Something On My Mind

The financial topic discusses the rising inflation. What causes inflation and what are the types of inflation. How does it effect the stock market and the overall retirement next egg?  In the stories section they talk about the crazy and unusual things that people have been doing to hoard the gas due to the fuel shortage. They review funny tweets that have been posted.  Gas Hoarding Pictures https://www.boredpanda.com/usa-gas-shortage-pics/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

The tip of the week centers on saving money on gasoline in the budget with the GasBuddy App. This tool lets you filter on the type of gas that you need as well as the brand, location, and price. In addition, you can drill down to places that have car washes, restaurants and restrooms.   GasBuddy also alerts you with price hikes and daily deals and has a rewards card to save more money.

In this episode: Is it more beneficial to lease or buy a car. Prices for automobiles are inflated due to the chip shortages in tandem with high demand from consumers.  So what is the most advantageous choice for the cost in the budget? Perhaps buying a used car. In the stories section they talk about Lou Ottens; the inventor of the cassette tape and they review inventors who regretted their inventions.  Lou Ottens - Cassette Inventor https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/11/lou-ottens-inventor-of-the-cassette-tape-dies-aged-94#:~:text=Lou%20Ottens%2C%20the%20Dutch%20engineer,of%20Duizel%20in%20North%20Brabant. Paper Pop Gun https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/paper-popper-pistol-made-usa-original-1723157443 Inventors who Hated Their Inventions https://www.ranker.com/list/inventors-and-the-inventions-they-hate/jacob-shelton

The budget tip of the week centers on saving money on your Internet bill in the budget.

This episode takes another look at the, FIRE movement which stands for Financial Independence Retire Early.  It incorporates many of the tools needed to retire; however, typically there is not enough money saved to handle the unforeseen costs with health insurance, raising children, saving for their college and paying into social security. It also prevents many investors from enjoying their favorite things in life due to a frugal lifestyle. This can effect family and friends.  In the offbeat stories section, we talk about two identical twins that live with one man and we cover the upcoming brood cicadas that have been waiting to come out of the ground for 17 years. Brood Cicadas https://www.npr.org/2021/04/27/991168811/here-come-the-cicadas  Twins Living With One Man https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/extreme-sisters-anna-lucy-why-share-boyfriend-never-boring

The budget tip of the week centers on saving money when it comes to shaving.  The cost for razor blades are one of those items that quietly add up in the budget. We did some digging and found a product called the Razorpit that we have been using for years.  This is a product that extends the life of a razor blade exponentially for a small cost.

This week's episode reviews the life after college. These are many of the questions that people are asking: Am I going home? Do I have to? Can I get a roommate and split rent? I need a job? My internship fell through during COVID. Do I have anybody that I can network with?  I need a budget. How do I budget? I need help! In the stories section David and Cindy discuss the unusual and crazy jobs people have that you didn't know existed. They also discuss how a man in Japan has been arrested for taking birthday gifts from 35 different women and may face jail time.

The budget tip of the week explains why as of 4/28/21 this may be the worst time to buy a home.  Since April of 2020 lumber prices have jumped 200% and are adding approximately $24,000 to the price of a new home.  Prices for steel have risen 22% in the last three months. Since April of 2020 the price for copper has risen 191%. In December 2020, the median price for a single-family home increased 13.4% from a year ago to $340,000.  The question is, should you get in now before this happens? If you are going to be a first time buyer, you may priced out of the market. If you sell a current home, you may get a great price - perhaps it may be part of a  bidding war; however, when you go to buy the new home, you may be part of that bidding war.

This week's episode reviews the Life and Crimes of Bernie Madoff who passed away on 4/14/21.  How he designed and executed the most well-known Ponzi scheme in history; when did the scheme start, how his legitimate  businesses masked his client business? Who were his investors and how was restitution granted. In the roundtable Cindy review her top 10 observations while having COVID. In the stories section, they review story of a man who though he was an only child only to learn that he had 31 siblings. The last story covers the man who out his father's ashes in his bowling ball and proceeded to bowl a 300-game.  300-game with Dad's ashes https://people.com/human-interest/man-places-late-fathers-ashes-in-bowling-ball-then-scores-a-perfect-game/ DNA Story  https://www.ladbible.com/news/news-man-finds-out-he-has-huge-secret-family-after-looking-up-his-ancestry-20210311

The budget the tip of the week explains the value of not buying hanging baskets of flowers and opting to opting to purchase flats of flowers. The cost can be 50% less and this can be a nice impact to disposable income in the budget.  This also allows for more creativity in making baskets on your own.