Search found 307 matches

by chicago81
Sun Jun 11, 2023 7:37 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: EVERYTHING Too $$$ Now
Replies: 208
Views: 19543

Re: EVERYTHING Too $$$ Now

I agree with a few of the previous statements about how things seem to be incredibly distorted now. Things are just very weird. Some people are ordering stuff with delivery apps, and are perfectly happy to pay a 50% markup on the menu price, plus a delivery fee, plus a tip. This week, my partner and...
by chicago81
Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:33 am
Forum: Resources & Recommended Reading
Topic: chatGPT
Replies: 106
Views: 19609

Re: chatGPT

If you write code, ChatGPT is excellent at writing small to medium fragments of code to solve specific problems. You have to be very clear in specifying what you want it to do... but you can have it revise a code snippet in any way that you describe. It is quite useful for that.
by chicago81
Fri Dec 30, 2022 2:06 pm
Forum: Miscellaneous
Topic: Philippines or Thailand or S. U.S. border
Replies: 40
Views: 7777

Re: Philippines or Thailand or S. U.S. border

Don't permanently move somewhere abroad, until you've had a chance to live there temporarily for at least a few months.
by chicago81
Fri Oct 28, 2022 9:39 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: What's the problem with inflation?
Replies: 70
Views: 7894

Re: What's the problem with inflation?

Hmmm. Yeah, I agree that everybody's situation is individualized. On the whole, I'd tend to think that ERE folks might be more impacted on average, because it's difficult to substitute for lower cost alternatives (or forego purchases) if one's basket is already starting from a moderately-to-highly o...
by chicago81
Fri Oct 28, 2022 9:08 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: What's the problem with inflation?
Replies: 70
Views: 7894

Re: What's the problem with inflation?

Don't the published BLS inflation numbers heavily weigh the cost of housing, due to the fact that for most people in the USA, the cost of their housing is one of their biggest expenses? I think that food and energy costs are weighted to a lesser extent. This may cause a different "perception&qu...
by chicago81
Fri Oct 28, 2022 8:50 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: Fee free HSA account recommendations
Replies: 3
Views: 788

Re: Fee free HSA account recommendations

Another strong vote from me for Fidelity's HSA. Reasons: - There are no fees (other than expense ratios that are inherent to mutual funds or ETFs) - There is no minimum amount you have to hold (non-invested) as cash. (I'm currently imagining myself flipping the bird to "PayFlex" right now....
by chicago81
Wed Jun 15, 2022 7:32 am
Forum: Inspiration
Topic: Where were you 4 years ago
Replies: 24
Views: 5303

Re: Where were you 4 years ago

Four years ago in the summer of 2018, I sold both of my rental apartments. They were both in the same building. The owners in the building voted to accept an offer from an investment company to purchase the whole building at once. At a price that was quite a bit higher than the fair market value tha...
by chicago81
Sat Apr 16, 2022 6:59 pm
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: Retirement Savings Bill - Secure Act 2.0
Replies: 22
Views: 2494

Re: Retirement Savings Bill - Secure Act 2.0

jacob wrote:
Sat Apr 16, 2022 10:41 am
Ha! I think another issue is that typical ERE cost of living tends to be below the standard deduction.
Hah, yes, I'm pretty much an "ERE Failure" -- in terms of OMY'ing myself into Boglehead-level-assets territory.
by chicago81
Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:16 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: Retirement Savings Bill - Secure Act 2.0
Replies: 22
Views: 2494

Re: Retirement Savings Bill - Secure Act 2.0

Holy Crap, how did I miss the news about there being a new 5% floor on the 72t/SEPP safe harbor? That's a game changer for a lot of folks
by chicago81
Wed Dec 22, 2021 8:45 am
Forum: Work & Education
Topic: Programming Jobs that are not "Puzzle Solving?"
Replies: 28
Views: 4998

Re: Programming Jobs that are not "Puzzle Solving?"

I've been employed to work/develop on C++ projects since 2004, at a handful of different companies. (Yes, I'm still working, and have far surpassed "FI", but yet to have pulled the trigger on "RE", so I guess you could consider me an "ERE Failure".) With regard to "...
by chicago81
Fri Aug 20, 2021 7:07 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: Is 4% dead?
Replies: 109
Views: 10649

Re: Is 4% dead?

... All I have to worry about in terms of "liquidity" is a collapse of the US government as a going concern. ... Sorry to cherry-pick one phrase out of a much larger discussion -- but this really got me thinking a bit. The United States is a pretty young country. In it's short lifespan, t...
by chicago81
Thu Apr 08, 2021 1:32 pm
Forum: Friends, Family, Relationships, and Community Questions
Topic: My parents announce TARP for siblings
Replies: 72
Views: 25412

Re: My parents announce TARP for siblings

My thoughts on inheritances or economic-outpatient-support-for-children is: It's the parents' money, so it's their choice to do with it whatever they want. If they want to give more/all if it to one sibling over another, or all to charity, or spend every last penny -- that's entirely their choice, r...
by chicago81
Mon Feb 08, 2021 3:12 pm
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: Brokerage Diversification
Replies: 19
Views: 3734

Re: Brokerage Diversification

I really liked Interactive Brokers, and used them for years. If you trade on margin, NOBODY beats IB's rates. It's not even close. That said, I've become a lot more "passive" lately with my investments, so I don't need all the shiny toys that IB/TWS offers. My employer 401k is at Fidelity,...
by chicago81
Wed Jan 20, 2021 9:12 am
Forum: Health and Food Questions
Topic: What Do You Eat for Weight Loss?
Replies: 360
Views: 92106

Re: What Do You Eat for Weight Loss?

In my experience, what I eat has a much bigger impact on weight-loss-efforts, than the amount of exercise. What has worked well for me, diet-wise, is to severely restrict carbohydrates, and consume more healthy fats. The fats have a satiating effect that reduces hunger. Carbohydrate consumption caus...
by chicago81
Fri Jan 01, 2021 10:55 am
Forum: Money and Investment Questions
Topic: SWR milestone record
Replies: 318
Views: 251348

Re: SWR milestone record

1/1/2021 - 1.67% SWR :shock: :shock: :shock:
by chicago81
Sat Dec 05, 2020 11:12 pm
Forum: Technical Skills & Tools Questions
Topic: Best way of using Google Sheets as a database?
Replies: 7
Views: 1018

Re: Best way of using Google Sheets as a database?

Ahhh I never thought of using formulas in a spreadsheet to generate sql that can be used to throw data directly into a DB. Brilliant! Instead I usually would have exported to some format like csv, and written python to throw stuff into a DB. But that's a lot more work!
by chicago81
Mon Sep 28, 2020 1:16 pm
Forum: Philosophy and Lifestyle Questions
Topic: Shaving
Replies: 11
Views: 1403

Re: Shaving

I use Gillette Series 2 disposable razors. It's been a while since I bought a bag of them, but the individual razors come down to about $1 each I think. However, each razor lasts me over a month, due to a "forearm stropping" technique I learned on some random YouTube video. I basically run...
by chicago81
Mon Sep 28, 2020 9:14 am
Forum: Friends, Family, Relationships, and Community Questions
Topic: Only Rice and Beans Response from friend on Spending Goal
Replies: 32
Views: 6978

Re: Only Rice and Beans Response from friend on Spending Goal

The healthcare situation in the US really sucks. I didn't understand how much, until I started considering the mechanics of not working. It is my biggest pain point in working out a potential FIRE. Yes, yes, yes! For all practical purposes, nearly all health care providers charge exorbitant "r...
by chicago81
Wed Sep 23, 2020 6:21 pm
Forum: Work & Education
Topic: Are job perks underrated?
Replies: 51
Views: 15401

Re: Are job perks underrated?

Ahhhh I love a good Necro-post! :) From an ERE perspective, a lot of perks are things that you'd likely never intentionally spend money on yourself. Catered meals, video games, etc. They are nice, but you have to be careful, otherwise, they can start installing lifestyle-creep! If you become accusto...
by chicago81
Wed Sep 23, 2020 6:09 pm
Forum: Friends, Family, Relationships, and Community Questions
Topic: Only Rice and Beans Response from friend on Spending Goal
Replies: 32
Views: 6978

Re: Only Rice and Beans Response from friend on Spending Goal

@OP You're not out of line at all if you can make that budget work for you long-term! I'd suggest (if you aren't already) - Maintain meticulous records of your spending habits, for a decent length of time, so you aren't forgetting to account for anything. I've kept a record of all expenses dating ba...