Today is Thursday, my friends, and this is Apex Money. As it always is. And as we always do, Jim and I have gathered some stories to share with you, stories about money (and more). Here they are:
The six spheres of life. [The Honest Broker] — “I set out the laws I want to live by. It doesn’t mean I always succeed—in fact, I frequently fall short. But, when that happens, I need to be the sheriff of my six spheres. I’m the only person who can fix things, and return to the right course.” [I think this is a great article. I enjoy learning how others construct their world views.]
How to afford a house these days. [Mr. Money Mustache] — “The solution to this is the same as most other problems: to stop thinking in the way our culture likes to train us (as a victim of outside forces beyond our control) and go back to thinking like a Mustachian. Houses are just like any other manufactured product, and as such they come at a wide variety of prices, subject to supply and demand. And just because you happen to live in a certain place (even if you were born and raised there), doesn’t mean you’ll automatically be able to afford to buy a house there.”
Is F.I.R.E. really a movement? [rich & REGULAR] — “FIRE may not be a political movement, but it is a political statement. It shows a strong desire for autonomy and a willingness to take matters into our own hands. It’s a lifestyle choice that defies the norm by opting out of the typical template of a lifetime of work, retirement, and reliance on a depleted Social Security system. There are plenty of people in our community who plan to work as long as possible, their freedom comes from their ability to show up knowing it’s a choice and not a mandate.” [I think this is a great article too, and I especially like how it frames FIRE as deliberate rejection of societal norms.]
Lastly, here’s a short (three-minute) video from 1930 (ostensibly — looks a bit later to me) in which a man born in 1967 describes what it was like to work during the 1880s.
Unlike most videos I post here, this has some personal-finance chatter in it, especially about wages. Also, the fellow talks about “retiring under the old-age pension scheme”. If he means Social Security, then that places this video after 1935. That seems more likely than 1930. (See? Remember how yesterday I talked about the way I notice errors in movies and TV? This is a prime example of that. The claimed date of 1930 just doesn’t work for a number of reasons. But 1936ish? Yes, that works.)
Okay, that’s it for today. See you all tomorrow!