It’s Friday, people, although it sure doesn’t seem like it over here. As I mentioned, our corner of the Pacific Northwest is one of those parts of the U.S. that’s been locked down by winter weather recently. Although we’ve had two days of rain and things are thawing, there’s plenty that’s still locked down. It’s like we got a second winter vacation this year…
Yesterday was my girlfriend’s first day back at work since last Thursday, for instance. I have several items on order from various vendors, but they’ve been stuck at local UPS and FedEx depots since Saturday. And the last time the mail carrier came by was last Friday. Et cetera. Et cetera. Et cetera.
But while I’m cooped up here in the house, I’ve had time to read some interest articles about money. Enjoy!
Americans are actually pretty happy with their finances. [Axios] — “More than half of Americans say that if they lost their job tomorrow they’d be OK; that they could find an equivalent or better job quickly; and that ‘my employers need me more than I need them.'”
You don’t need everything you want. [Vox] — “The American economy remains one of abundance. Said abundance isn’t equally distributed, of course, and lots of people really are struggling. But as angry as consumers say they are about the economy, they’re not, on aggregate, changing their spending habits. For many people in the country, life is pretty good. And yet, they often don’t feel that way. No matter how much we’ve attained, we always want more.”
What happens when a school bans smartphones? A complete transformation. [The Guardian] — “As the close of the school year neared last June, talk turned to final assignments (the English class was finishing Moby-Dick) and end-of-year fun (there was a trip planned to a local lake). It was, in most ways, a typical teenage afternoon – except that no one was on their phones. Buxton was wrapping up the first year of a simple yet novel experiment: banning cellphones on campus. Or, rather, smartphones.”
How to make sure pocket money teaches your kids financial skills. [The Conversation] — “A useful starting point is working out what the pocket money will be used for. Is it simply to give your child a bit of autonomy over spending (for example, buying an ice block from the canteen)? Is it to try to save for something special? Or is it to be used for all entertainment, clothes and on-trend desires like fancy water bottles?”
That’s it for now. I’ll see you in ten days. Jim will be with you on Monday. Take care!