There comes a time in everyone’s life when something truly amazing happens — they encounter the financial independence movement. You either love it or hate it.
While I think most people can get on board with the idea of achieving financial independence, it’s the getting to it that’s the big problem. A lot of folks balk at large savings rates over very long periods of time, suggesting “I could never save that much for a decade or more!!!”
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Last week seemed like a game changer. At least at first glance. On Monday morning (11/9) investors got news of a COVID-19 vaccine that had preliminary data from human trials, and was found to be 90% effective. This was welcome news, and many stocks skyrocketed in response.
The market optimism was so overwhelming I had several stocks up over 20%! By Friday afternoon I was even seeing a weekly gain in some positions over 30%. Absolutely incredible!
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It’s hard to believe that I’m already back here writing a monthly financial update for the blog so soon! It seemed like only yesterday that I was wrapping-up September, and now I’m doing it again for October.
Time flies when you’re stuck at home during a pandemic, with two kids! I do my best, but I think both kids would rather being going to school and seeing their friends instead of being stuck at home…
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It’s that time of year again. When the days grow darker, and colder. The sun barely breaks the horizon, and the creatures of the night begin to emerge more frequently. The ghouls, zombies, mummies, and witches (not to mention a few superheroes) begin to stalk our suburban neighborhoods.
Going door to door, they’re looking to give a good scare in exchange for some delicious free candy…
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While I’m not normally a nostalgic person, October marked something of a major milestone in the life of Mr. Tako. This was my fifth year of freedom from the corporate world!
Although my blog was started back in December of 2015, my last day of work at a “corporate” job was September 30th, 2015. It took me a few months of unemployment before I finally decided to start writing the blog you see here today.
It’s been an interesting 5-year journey to say the least. Filled with all the ups and downs, and strange fluids you might expect from raising two kids…
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As investors, we often hear the siren call of “being a contrarian” — The stories of bucking the trend, buying stocks at low prices, and then reaping incredible gains are the stuff that contrarian dreams are made of. As such, many investors like to fashion themselves as contrarians.
Unfortunately, real life isn’t quite as easy as in the stories — It takes a lot of guts to buy a stock when it’s down at the bottom of a dumpster. During the best of times, making these buy or sell decisions can be tricky…
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Imagine for a moment, you’re a carpenter. You build houses for a living. The tools in your toolkit are everything to your profession. These tools are used to shape, size, and fasten together all the raw materials needed to build a house.
But what if you restricted yourself to only a hand-saw, a hammer, and bunch of nails? (Perhaps you forgot the power-tools at home.) Suddenly, building that house just got a lot harder…
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Wait, what? September is over already? How did that happen?
With the kids now back in school (well, OK… virtual school) and my focus on keeping the kids focused on their studies, September absolutely flew by. It was here and gone in a flash!
The Tako family mostly stuck to home and kept to ourselves in September… which I suppose is pretty normal life these days. You know, because of the pandemic.
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It’s officially fall here in the Pacific Northwest. While warmer weather may still linger in certain parts of North America, the shift in seasons here in the Pacific Northwest is quick and decisive.
After 3 glorious months of summer we’re officially back to the wet and the damp. Take a look at this pic I snapped from my kitchen window on Thursday morning…
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