Are stocks attractive now?

[svelte]

[quote=scaredyclassic]I feel the biggest gains come from just not spending money and investing that. How much have I saved over 20 years by not having a cleaning person. It’s staggering! 100k? No dry cleaning shirts ever, iron myself, hmm, 30k? Eating just cabbage and oats for a month? Cheapest vodka? I think one can get almost rich just being ridiculously frugal.
[/quote]

How old will you and your wife be in 20 years? Will it really matter if you had saved that cleaning lady money? I have a feeling you’ve socked away quite a nest egg as it is.

[quote=scaredyclassic]
I did just break down and hire a cleaning person recently because my poor wife can’t take it anymore. Man, the place looks clean…but is it better to have money in the account or dust on the shelves?[/quote]

We must be going on 20 years of having a house cleaner come in twice a month. 2 women x 2.5 hours x 2 times = 10 hours/month. We also have a gardener – 2 hours x 4 times = 8 hours/month. We feel it is well worth it.

Our free time is very valuable.

My goal is not to die with as big a pile of money as I can gather. it is to have enough to live comfortably the rest of my life and still leave a little something to the kids, not make them wealthy.

[Coronita]

I’m still negative this year.

-2.31% YTD, or roughly 1 Tesla Model 3 performance (maybe a little better after my long term accounts total in later this afternoon).

[sdrealtor]

[quote=svelte][quote=scaredyclassic]I feel the biggest gains come from just not spending money and investing that. How much have I saved over 20 years by not having a cleaning person. It’s staggering! 100k? No dry cleaning shirts ever, iron myself, hmm, 30k? Eating just cabbage and oats for a month? Cheapest vodka? I think one can get almost rich just being ridiculously frugal.
[/quote]

How old will you and your wife be in 20 years? Will it really matter if you had saved that cleaning lady money? I have a feeling you’ve socked away quite a nest egg as it is.

[quote=scaredyclassic]
I did just break down and hire a cleaning person recently because my poor wife can’t take it anymore. Man, the place looks clean…but is it better to have money in the account or dust on the shelves?[/quote]

We must be going on 20 years of having a house cleaner come in twice a month. 2 women x 2.5 hours x 2 times = 10 hours/month. We also have a gardener – 2 hours x 4 times = 8 hours/month. We feel it is well worth it.

Our free time is very valuable.

My goal is not to die with as big a pile of money as I can gather. it is to have enough to live comfortably the rest of my life and still leave a little something to the kids, not make them wealthy.[/quote]

I have never cleaned a bathroom or kitchen. I value having it done for me highly. My housekeeper has been with me for 21 years now and is like family. I paid her during covid and told her to stay home. I pay her when she is sick and cant come. I pay her an extra month each December as a bonus. When she can no longer come I have money set aside as a retirement gift. My goal is to leave a big pile of money and paid off real estate for my family but I can afford some conveniences and value those who provide them to me greatly.

[scaredyclassic]

I view housecleaning as a form of exercise. Done with extreme speed, it is highly aerobic. My strategy over the years has been doing a lot of cleaning at high speed with fair to poor quality. I finish very quickly and do a ‘C” job. This irritates my wife and so, I broke down and will pay in the interest of matrimonial harmony. But let the record reflect that this was over my vigorous objection. Although it is nice how clean she gets the house. Not worth the money to me, but definitely to my wife. I go way too fast to get it that clean.

Also, doing the dishes can lead to enlightenment. See e.g. Mr natural does the dishes.

New Robert Crumb print available

[Coronita]

Yeah, my 401k and long term IRAs YTD is -0.01% today.

My after tax trading account is slightly negative still.

Combined YTD is -1.35%

[scaredyclassic]

Ironing dress shirts? $2 a day, $10 a week, $500 a year minus vacation, x 20 years, 10,000 plus interest/gains.

Can do a bunch while watching Netflix. Pretty easy to do a fair job, skip the back, covered by suit jacket.

Pays for a new car when your kid graduates college.

I don’t really like it but it’s pretty quick. As long as you do an A job on the collar and visible portion of front, and cuffs, you look fine in a suit. I own a lot of white dress shirts so I can do it when I’m moved to. I tried non iron shirts for a while, but too icky feeling. I use up the shirts till they’re frayed. Last many years in rotation. I may retire with excess shirt capacity. Or perhaps I should stop working when the last shirt disintegrates. A sign.

Buy almost all suits slightly used off eBay. Wear till they’re shiny and start to disintegrate.

[sdrealtor]

Public sector lawyer vs Private Sector lawyer

[scaredyclassic]

More like corporate/high end/ aspirers v. Others.

One of the best lawyers I’ve ever met, killing it financially in a super busy small firm he owned, dressed in kind of shabby sport coats, was part of a regular guy persona. Clients just loved this guy. Even I kinda liked him. Oversized chummy ex football player, just so genuinely happy and friendly. Made more money than alot of big firm lawyers. Very effective litigator. Depends on clientele.

If you’ve ever seen A MARRIAGE STORY on Netflix, I thought it was kind of beautiful how the successful wealthy guy goes downscale with divorce lawyers, winds up in old Alan aldas office who’s wearing Velcro shoes, looks like he came from a thrift store, cheesy office.

Good lawyer tho.

Everything about our appearance is masks and costumes. For substance though, perhaps look to Ralph waldo Emerson:

The good lawyer is not the man who has an eye to every side and angle of contingency, and qualifies all his qualifications, but who throws himself on your part so heartily, that he can get you out of a scrape.

[sdrealtor]

Written by a public sector lawyer so confirmation bias at play. There are always exceptions. All the big time private sector lawyers I know dress the part. It’s part of the deal

[scaredyclassic]

Ok, I accept that. Although I do question how smart any of us are wearing wool suits in 100 plus temps

[svelte]

[quote=scaredyclassic]I view housecleaning as a form of exercise. Done with extreme speed, it is highly aerobic. My strategy over the years has been doing a lot of cleaning at high speed with fair to poor quality. I finish very quickly and do a ‘C” job. This irritates my wife and so, I broke down and will pay in the interest of matrimonial harmony. But let the record reflect that this was over my vigorous objection. Although it is nice how clean she gets the house. Not worth the money to me, but definitely to my wife. I go way too fast to get it that clean.

Also, doing the dishes can lead to enlightenment. See e.g. Mr natural does the dishes.
[/quote]

lol an ongoing conversation in our house, over a series of years.

On any day when my sons or I do the dishes and put them away:

Wife: (pulling a dish from the cabinet) “You call THAT clean??” (picking off a tiny speck of something from some crevice)

Us: “Well, yeah….man clean”

[Coronita]

Dont get me started about how engineers dress.
I think the last time I bought new clothes for myself was…..crickets chirping…..maybe 6-7 years ago…Ok if you don’t count the fund raising t-shirts.

[The-Shoveler]

Working from home most of the time, my wife yells at me to change my sweats at least once a week.

[The-Shoveler]

dup

[sdrealtor]

[quote=The-Shoveler]Working from home most of the time, my wife yells at me to change my sweats at least once a week.[/quote]

At least you wear pants

[Author]

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