Midwest College Student

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Crete
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2017 4:40 pm

Midwest College Student

Post by Crete »

Hello! I've been lurking here for a couple years now, and was recently inspired to join the forum. My lurking has proven enjoyable and I look forward to asking questions myself. The type of questions I may ask will likely be in the categories of expense minimization, investment strategy, human interaction, and career advice.

A little about me:

I am an INTJ male Economics Major in the Midwest region of the United States about to begin his Junior year of college in the fall. A combination of scholarships, work, minimal expenses, supportive parents, superior planning, and dumb luck have resulted in my net worth being positive.

Strengths:
Net positive
Natural frugal tendencies
Good employment prospects
Started early (contributions to Roth IRAs with Vanguard Index Funds)
Minimal current expenses
Good physical shape

Weaknesses:
Unpredictable future expenses
Small talk
Pride
Females
Cooking
Indecisiveness in Writing (I took maybe an hour to write this; it's bad)

I hope to become financially independent of work at some point, final age of course being dependent on income, expenses, savings rate, withdrawal rate, etc. My spreadsheets are too full of assumptions (only projections of income and expenses, not actual data) for me to be comfortable with giving a projected FI date or date range at this point.

To whoever is reading this, enjoy the remainder of your day!

-Crete

coreycoconut
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Jun 03, 2017 1:18 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by coreycoconut »

Hey Crete!

I just joined the forums today too after about two years of my own lurking. Looks like we're coming out of the shadows at the same time.

Congrats to both of us for learning about ERE early on in life! Yay.

Do you want to make any promises in public here to work on any of your stated weaknesses? Maybe you could agree to cook one new thing per week for the rest of June, for example. Let me know (by posting here) and I can help keep you accountable.

You said to enjoy the remainder of my day, so now I'm going to go do that. See you around!

-CC

Crete
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2017 4:40 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by Crete »

CC,

Nice to see another now-former lurker! It is indeed a great advantage to have learned of ERE so early.

I appreciate your offer of accountability! The same goes for you if and when you choose to create your own introduction thread.

Promises to work on one of my weaknesses... Hm... I am attempting to think of something that I can measurably work on. I think cooking is likely the best one. It seems difficult to fix the weaknesses of "pride" and "females" in measurable steps. I appreciate the idea of cooking something new every week! Actually, that's a great idea. I accept a modified version of the challenge:

"Crete must cook a total of 2 new dishes of some kind during the month of June (he will likely have no internet and no conventional cooking capabilities during the second half of June)."

I have already completed one, actually!

1. Microwaved sliced potatoes - Recently, I sliced up some potatoes (keeping the skin), put vegetable oil and salt on them, cooked them in the microwave, and ate them. They weren't the healthiest, but they weren't bad and were cheap and quick to produce. Excluding cutting, which took awhile due to lack of proper cooking implements, it took about 15 minutes tops. Would recommend to fellow college students and lazy hungry people of all stripes.

Crete
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2017 4:40 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by Crete »

This sounds more like a journal entry but I don't want to start one up for fear of simply not adding to it.

I was going to make a post in the "Money" section, but after some research I answered my own question. If you were ever curious about the impact of early retirement on social security benefits and didn't already know how to account for it like I am sure most do, then read my aborted post below:

"I am not sure if this has been asked yet; if it has then show me where and mods can delete this post.

Assuming all benefits are equal from now in to the future for simplicity's sake, what are the implications of early retirement on American Social Security payouts? Also for simplicity's sake, assume no more earnings taxable by Social Security are accrued by the person in question after their early retirement.

I imagine many early retirees would qualify for them eventually based on the credits system described here http://www.aarp.org/work/social-securit ... urity.html, in which it takes 40 credits to qualify, and 4 credits are earned for year assuming a ~$6,000 taxable income (eligible after 10 years of work or so). Though they would likely qualify for benefits as described, I have a hard time conceptualizing exactly how reduced earnings and years of work will affect the eventual payout.

Does anyone know the equation estimating eventual Social Security payouts under the current system as a function of years paying in to social security and income per year? I found a quick calculation tool here https://www.ssa.gov/oact/quickcalc/, but was wondering if the more informed and mathematically gifted among you already boiled it down in to an equation or found a way to account for it while planning, etc.

Actually, that tool in the second link is pretty great... Maybe you all already knew about it. You probably did. Never mind."

If you guys actually think it's a good question that hasn't been asked yet and should be posted in the "Money" section like I initially thought then let me know and I will, otherwise I hope you found it mildly entertaining.

Dragline
Posts: 4436
Joined: Wed Aug 24, 2011 1:50 am

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by Dragline »

Crete wrote:
Sat Jun 03, 2017 4:36 pm
I appreciate the idea of cooking something new every week! Actually, that's a great idea. I accept a modified version of the challenge:

"Crete must cook a total of 2 new dishes of some kind during the month of June (he will likely have no internet and no conventional cooking capabilities during the second half of June)."

I suggest "The Starving Students Cookbook" as reference material for this enterprise. Of course, there are similar things on the interwebs, but this one worked for me back in the day (I think I have an original edition).

classical_Liberal
Posts: 2283
Joined: Sun Mar 20, 2016 6:05 am

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by classical_Liberal »

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Last edited by classical_Liberal on Thu Feb 04, 2021 11:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.

FrugalFred
Posts: 20
Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2016 9:54 am

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by FrugalFred »

What are you going to do with an economics degree? I studied something similar (at a reputable school), and it took me 4 years to land a job that pays above minimum wage.

I'd find a way to switch majors if you can. Comp sci, a few engineering fields, or at the very least accounting. Those are the only employable degrees for the most part.
Last edited by FrugalFred on Mon Jun 05, 2017 9:12 am, edited 4 times in total.

coreycoconut
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Jun 03, 2017 1:18 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by coreycoconut »

Hey Crete,

I'm setting a reminder now to make sure you've posted in this thread about a second new dish by June 15.

-CC

Crete
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2017 4:40 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by Crete »

@Dragline, thanks for the suggestion! I will look for that publication and/or similar resources on the interwebs.

@classical_Liberal, I hope to acquire some cooking implements soon. I was a little unclear, my dorm room actually has an electric range and an oven, I simply lack the pots/pans to operate them. Others will be moving in to the room at the end of the summer (I am currently unaccompanied), and they will likely bring cooking implements as well, I simply must make do in the short run, perhaps by acquiring a pot and assorted implements. I love the pressure cooker idea! I will likely acquire one of those in the long run. Also, thanks a ton for the SS planning information! I'll incorporate it in to my spreadsheets when I have more years of income data. 2/3 is almost certainly a conservative enough assumption; it would be political suicide to even mention discontinuing SS, so we can count on tax increases / benefit decreases to make up the difference. Given your name (and economic circumstances as indicated by your presence on this forum), I may have a clue as to which of those you prefer ;).

@FrugalFred, given the current economic environment, my willingness to move wherever is required, connections, academic success, multiple part-time jobs right now (research and contractor), etc, I am confident in my ability to find work. All that ignores my existing obligation to the entity which is paying for my school expenses. I will work for them for a few years, guaranteed. Even if I had no opportunities like that, I could simply go back to living with my parents, who are supportive and would be okay with it, work a minimum wage job while retooling myself for work in a trade (electrician or carpentry, perhaps), and/or work in emergency services (potential connections there also). Overall, I have been extremely fortunate feel pretty good about Economics and my position in general.

@CoreyCocounut, thanks man!

Crete
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Jun 02, 2017 4:40 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by Crete »

Just cooked a new dish.

"Loaded Cheese Quesadilla" - created the potatoes in as per my first food post, grabbed tortilla, placed shredded cheese on tortilla, placed small-cut cooked potatoes on to cheese, microwaved, then put a little bit of ketchup on one half of it. The ketchup half was slightly better than the non-ketchup half, actually.

In other news, I just paid about ~$600 total at a local community college for a summer online course and (conveniently for them) a required "online textbook." It was a sad day. I tried desperately to validate the course requirement via a free test that I learned about 2 days before, which I took by masquerading as an incoming student, the group for whom the test is designed, a couple of days ago. I only studied for an hour, and failed it - I am still kicking myself. I could have gotten a refund for the class and would not have had to take it. If I would have quantified it in hourly terms, if I would have studied 5 hours and passed it, my rate would have been $120 an hour, far beyond my pay for my other jobs, not even accounting for the value of my time spent in taking the course over the summer. Thankfully it looks like the others here have their priorities straight.

coreycoconut
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Jun 03, 2017 1:18 pm

Re: Midwest College Student

Post by coreycoconut »

Keep cooking Crete! Grow that recipe book bit by bit, and in a year you'll be that much better.

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