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The no-pants guide to spending, saving, and thriving in the real world.

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Meditation

Life

Life is crazy.

 “Really, Jason, that’s news?”
I spend so much time going in so many different directions.
Cleaning out our inherited hoarding house, managing the remodel, work, side hustles, kids, friends, family, relationships, maintaining our house, maintaining a relationship with my wife, garage sales, school starting, junior high football season, insurance policies, probate, rush hour, insomnia.
Some days, I feel insanely scattered.  I can’t focus.  I have a hard time making decisions.  I waste time.
Those days, I need to clear my head.
That’s where meditation comes in.
I don’t do the money hum. (Om mone padme, Om)
Instead, I have three activities that demand a total focus.  They drive out any scattered thoughts or unimportant concerns.
They have to because, quite frankly, they can be dangerous if I don’t concentrate.
1. I shave.  I use a double-edged safety razor, so bleeding for the throat is a real concern.   For 10 minutes, nothing else in the world matters.   It has only recently struck me how valuable this is.  That value makes me want to start shaving every day, with a straight razor.  More focus, more often.
2.  I ride.  For the past couple of years, it’s been hard to find time get my motorcycle out.   Small children seem to want attention every day.   It got to the point where I was ready to sell my bike.   This spring, it was seriously misbehaving.  Finally, at the end of the summer, a friend got it running better than it ever has.   I took it out for a couple of hours and came back feeling more clearheaded than I have in a long time.  I won’t be selling my bike until I have its replacement.
3.  I shoot.  Shooting involves a series of simple actions that require concentration to do well. Load the gun, line up the sights, which eye is dominant, breathe, don’t breathe, squeeze the trigger, hole in the paper.   Again, it’s not an activity that’s conducive to worrying about the bills or work.  It’s a way to shut out the world for a few minutes.
For me, a few moments or a few hours of shutting down everything except one thing is the way to stay sane and focused.
How do you deal with it when the world comes crashing in from every direction?
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Actions Have Consequences

Finance, Parenting

Image by reidmix via Flickr

Six months ago, my laptop quit charging.  This particular model has a history of having the power jack come loose inside the laptop, so I ordered the part and waited.  When it came, I disassembled the computer, carefully tracking where each screw went.   I installed the part, the put it back together, with only a few extra pieces.

It didn’t work.

After spending the money and doing the work, I tested the external power cord.   I could have saved myself a few hours of work if I would have done that first.  It was trash, so I ordered a new one.   That’s time and money down the drain due to my poor research.

As an adult, I know that I am responsible for my actions, even if the consequences aren’t readily apparent.   If I tap another car in a parking lot, I am going to have to pay for the damages, even if I didn’t see the car.   This has manifested itself in credit card statements I didn’t read, speed limits signs I didn’t notice(or ignored!), and–on occasion–my wife and I not communicating about how much money we’ve spent.

Kids have a much harder time grasping that concept.

My son enjoys playing games online.  Some of the games are multiplayer games  he plays online with his friends, others are flash games he plays at home while his friends watch.   They like to take the laptop into the dining room where they can play without being in the way.   A small herd of 10 and 11 year old kids hopping around expensive electronics can’t be a good idea.

Yesterday, we saw that the power cord was fraying at the computer end from being dragged all over the house and jerked by kids tripping on the cord.   We got six months of life out of the cord because of kids who should have known better not acting appropriately around the cord and the computer.    Not happy.

My son got grounded for a week and honored with the privilege of replacing the cord.   Now he isn’t happy, but he understands that he needs to pay for the damage he causes, even if he didn’t know that what he was doing could cause the damage.    If it was something he would have had no way of knowing, there would have been no punishment, but he should have known not to jerk on the cord of leave it where it can be tripped over.

What do you think?

So You’re Getting Evicted…

Business

Last week, I had the opportunity to visit eviction court, though not for anything having to do with my properties.

It was an interesting experience.  Eviction court is a day when nobody is at their best.  Landlords are fighting to remove bad tenants, sometimes questioning their desire to be a landlord, while tenants are fighting to keep their homes, often with no backup plan.  Occasionally, you get someone who just wants to get out of their lease because the landlord is a creepy peeper who digs through the dirty laundry.

Nobody goes to eviction court in a good mood.

If you ever find yourself in eviction court, here are some things to remember:

Everyone

  • If you don’t show up, you lose.  Period. Landlord or tenant, judges don’t like waiting around.  You will get the worst possible outcome if you stay home.
  • The first day is a hearing.  The judge will either accept a settlement between the two parties, or he’ll check if there is a valid reason for a full trial.  The trial will be schedule for another day.  In Minnesota, that happens within 6 days of the hearing.
  • Don’t make faces at the other side while they are talking to the judge.  Do you want to go to jail for being a smartass?  It’s called contempt of court.

Landlords

  • Fix the mold, rot, and other habitability issues.  You’ll have a hard time getting your rent back if you are a slumlord forcing your tenants to live in a biohazard.
  • If you’ve got an automatically renewing lease, don’t file the eviction notice with the renewed lease for violations that happened under the old lease.    If you do, you’ll be handing a win to your tenant.
  • Make sure you lease has an eviction clause.  If it doesn’t, you may not have the right to kick out your tenant for any reason.
  • Your tenant’s dirty underwear is not a toy for you to play with.  Creep.

Tenants

  • Pay your rent.  If you are withholding rent to get something fixed, you’ll be expected to put that in escrow the day of the hearing, so don’t spend it on vodka or a new stereo.
  • Read your lease and the filing.   It may have a backdoor that lets you escape the eviction.
  • Try not to get evicted.  An unlawful detainer can make it hard to rent again for a couple of years.
  • Dress nice.  I’m amazed by how many people showed up in ratty jeans and uncombed hair.  Look professional.  The judge will appreciate the effort.

All in all, it’s best if landlords and tenants try to keep each other happy.  The whole business relationship will go much smoother if you do.

 

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3 Worst Things About Being Financially Responsible

Finance

Sexy Lingerie

Everybody talks about all of the wonderful things that happen when you’re saving money and being responsible.   I know I do.   It’s true, good things do happen.    There’s really nothing like the feeling that you’re suddenly not living paycheck to paycheck.

But what about the other side of the coin?   What sucks about staying in the black?

1.  You have to make choices.   When you’re living on credit, you can buy a car, charge an expensive dinner every week, and go on vacation.   If you’re not spending real money, then who cares?   When you’re living for real, you have to prioritize.   Do you buy groceries or video games?   Do you buy sexy lingerie or a fancy dinner?   Braces or college?   You’re given a lot of choices, but you can only pick the ones you can actually afford.

2.   You’re no longer the Joneses other people are trying to keep up with.   The guy down the street, with the fancy car, big screen TV, and artificially perfect noses on his teenagers?  You’re not him, anymore, but that’s okay, because he’s financing his lifestyle 9.9% at a time.  Yes, a bit of incoming envy can give you a warm, tingly feeling, but it doesn’t put food on the table.

3.  It’s boring.   Taking a trip in a fast car and picking up an entourage for a 10-day party is fun.   Balancing your checkbook and spending 6 months saving up for your kid’s braces is not.   If you’ve been living like a rockstar, rolling back to a responsible standard of living is going to come as a shock, but it’s better than suddenly running out of money and having your world come crashing down around you.

Being responsible comes with a lot of downside, but it’s all superficial.   The benefits are real, and long-lasting.  What’s the worst thing you’ve had to deal with by being responsible?

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‘Mommy, I’m bored!’ Top 5 online activities for your kids

Finance

This is a guest post.

When nasty weather, a cold or the flu keeps kids indoors, plan ahead for those days with some great online activities kids will enjoy. Whether it is learning a new language with mom or dad, or practicing multiplication tables with an older sibling, kids can find plenty of cool things to do to kill their time. Here is a top five list of things your children can do while surfing the net.

Fun Languages
Learn Spanish, German, or French online with your kids. Give your children the gift of language with some key phrases and words to encourage brain activity in the language zones. Studies have shown that children exposed to multiple languages in their elementary years are more likely to learn a second language as adolescents and adults. Statistics indicate basic knowledge of a second language promotes better understanding of English grammar. The internet has some great resources for older children and parents wishing to improve their vocabulary knowledge and grammar skills. Word a day programs and test prep programs are often as entertaining for the parents as they are for the kids.

Arts and Crafts
There is a plethora of sites offering downloadable art project sheets, coloring pages, creative flash cards, art activity books and art games on the internet. Let the creative genius of your young artist shine through with how to draw tutorials and interactive art history sites. Don’t forget the musician in the house, as there are plenty of great music tutorials complete with video and audio for the young future soloist to watch. Many sites offer interesting and kid friendly “how to” videos for piano and vocals. Many sites offer inexpensive or free holiday cards the kids can create and print for one of a kind holiday or birthday gift giving. Crayola offers terrific downloadable coloring pages, games and activities.

More Academics with Math
Colorful math puzzles, homework practice sessions all online, downloadable speed tests and great interactive programs abound for the math whiz. Fun and entertaining, these online interactive programs are often free and downloadable in seconds. Your kids will never be bored again when accessing such interesting activities as tangrams, money games and creating their own math flash cards. Periodic tables and math and science in the kitchen bring fun and kid friendly experiments for rainy days and long summer vacations. Keep them interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) with how things work videos.

Early Learners Have Fun Too
There are wonderful sites that teach young children and early learners about counting, colors and shapes. Teach your children about telling time and other valuable skills. Learn about money, traffic safety and stranger danger in fun and engaging videos and interactive games. Young children are remarkably quick to pick up on new skills through technology. Parents can take advantage of wonderful online activities at many educational websites.

Games and More Games
There are free and not so free video and mobile device games for children of all ages. Fun and diverting puzzles, adventure and arcade, card and board games for younger to middle school aged children can be found just a few clicks away. Fun and challenging sports and trivia games for high school aged kids are often found at no charge.

Sell old CDs
Got some unused video games ready for the bin? A DVD that you kids received for Christmas and never watched? An old CD they don’t like to listen to anymore? Here it is another opportunity to spend some time online having fun. Websites such musicmagpie will allow your children to sell their unwanted CDs and make a bit of money out of it. Less clutter around the house, more fun for your kids. That sounds like a win-win.

13 Things to Know About Sweepstakes, Giveaways, Lotteries, and Contests

Finance

Image via Wikipedia

I don’t know why, but it seems like this time of year breeds sweepstakes, drawings, and giveaways.   Maybe it’s to cash in on the people who are afraid to pay for the holidays, maybe it’s because, at the end of the year, people are realizing how much money they didn’t make this year, or maybe I’m only noticing now because I just ran a giveaway to celebrate my 1 year anniversary.   Whatever the reason, there are a lot of giveaways going on this month and, because a certain segment of the population sucks, there are a number of scam sweepstakes going on, too.

Knowing some basic facts about sweepstakes–legal and otherwise–can help you stay safe and avoid wasting your time and money.   Here are 13 things you should know:

  1. Foreign sweepstakes are always scams. You didn’t win the Spanish lottery.   I’m sorry, but it’s true.
  2. Sweepstakes winners are always chosen at random. If there’s something you can do to influence your chances, it’s not a sweepstakes.
  3. Contests involve some skill, whether it’s captioning a photo, answering a trivia question, or showing up in a bikini.   It is legal to charge a fee to enter a contest.
  4. Lotteries cost money and must be random. There are almost no cases where a lottery is legally run by a private enterprise.  The government has reserved this privilege for themselves.
  5. Since a prize, chosen at random for a consideration is the definition of a lottery, there is nothing you can do to influence the results of a legal sweepstakes, aside from not entering.   Buying a product will not help.
  6. Odds suck. You are not likely to win, unless you enter a giveaway at a small-ish blog.  Sweepstakes and lotteries are required to disclose the odds of winning, generally, 1 in a gazillion.
  7. Businesses(and blogs!) hold giveaways or sweepstakes to draw attention to themselves.  It’s marketing and advertising, every time.   Companies do not give out thousands of dollars in prizes because they like you.
  8. I give our prizes because I like you.  And I want the attention.  It’s marketing, advertising, and gratitude.
  9. If you have to pay to get a random chance to win something, it’s a lottery. If it’s not run by the government, it’s almost definitely an illegal lottery.  Sweepstakes are free.
  10. Sometimes the entry solicitations look official. They are not. The companies do that to get more people to open their envelopes.  It is illegal to misrepresent themselves as a government agency.
  11. Always read the fine print.  There are a lot of things that can be included in the fine print to make it less attractive, like the right to sell your contact information, or your soul.  Try getting that back after a long weekend.
  12. If you don’t want to receive sweepstakes garbage in the mail, write to the company soliciting you.   The Federal Deceptive Mail Prevention and Enforcement Act requires them to remove you from their mailing list within 60 days.
  13. If you want to get rid of all of the junk mail, write to the Direct Marketing Association’s Mail Preference Service, Post Office Box 643, Carmel, NY 10512 and they will remove you from the lists of their members for 5 years.

It is possible to make money with sweepstakes, but the odds are low. Personally, I think it’s a waste of time.  Do you invest in the sweepstakes hobby?