Snow Day

Boy today sure was a snowy day in Minneapolis. As any Minnesotan will tell you, the beauty of a slightly sizable snow storm is that it's the perfect excuse to lay around the house, watch TV, read books, and dink around on the Internet. Today's stimulating schedule of snow-day satisfiers, at least for Megs and myself, included:

1. Shoveling. Yes, shoveling snow is probably the most bitterly regarded aspect of every Minnesotan's life, but it does have its positive sides. First, it makes it possible to pull cars out of the garage without them becoming hopelessly stuck, especially cars with relatively low clearance (like the Protege). Second, after spending a solid hour shoveling, the shovelers can spend the rest of their day of leisure secure in the knowledge that they in fact did get some exercise in the morning, and furthermore, this exercise was work that has detectable results. Shoveling's classification as "work" makes it all the more satisfying and allows the shoveler to more easily justify a day of slovenly respite.

2. Point Break. My favorite movie of all time; Megs had never seen it. On the surface, sure it seems like another "whoa!" Keanu Reeves movie, but in reality its an allegory on the argument on the true expression of human nature: civilized man vs. savage man, an argument that dates back to Rousseau and Descartes. The movie eloquently articulates the case of the noble savage, most notably in the scene where Bodi, played masterfully by Patrick Swayze, passionately states that "We serve as an example to those people inching along the highway in their metal coffins that human spirit is still alive." However, the movie ultimately makes the case the savage spirit, anarchy for lack of a better term, ultimately destroys everything around it. I've always meant to write an analysis of the movie, maybe I'll take a crack at it sometime in the next few weeks.

Oh, the surfing cinematography is amazing, the score is moving, there are several gunfights, and Keanu has some absolutely hilarious lines at the end. It's a must see.

3. Ohio State vs. Wisconsin. #1 vs #2 only a few short weeks before the beginning of March Madness. Two of the best players in the nation squaring off, Greg Oden and Alando Tucker. A finish that went down to the wire. Wisconsin losing. What could be better?

On a side note, has anybody figured out why Greg Oden has been continuing to get the press that he has as the next phenom when he hasn't had that great of a season? Seriously, compare his stats to Kareem, Walton, Ewing, Mourning, Russell...the boy's got a ways to go.

4. Miracle. After Point Break, Megs declared that she got to call the next movie and, to my never ending fortune, she picked Miracle. I had forgotten what a great movie this is; the scene where Brooks makes the team skate till they are puking always gives me chills. Plus, any movie that practically spotlights "The U" is golden in my book.

5. Amazing Race. Has there ever been a realty show team more unstoppable than Rob & Amber? Seriously, they're like the Roger Federer of realty television at this point: so good it's scary to watch them take the opposition apart. With that said, there are too many variables within the Amazing Race to declare them winners at this point, but it's certainly theirs to lose.

I should mention at the end of all this that Megs made carmel bars today.

Ain't life grand sometimes? :-D

Frank's Financial Primer

Over the past year, I have spent a considerable amount of time learning about personal financial planning. In fact, I would say that after Megs, the Gophers, DanceKast, and my family, reading about personal finance has been my biggest hobby of the year.

I can’t exactly pinpoint why the subject has prompted my interest. Maybe it’s because it seems like a prudent time to be figuring this stuff out, maybe I’m just getting to be a greedy business school grad. Either way, I want to take this opportunity to share some of my insights from the past year.

The financial world is a crazy world and is made confusing by two factors: Wall street’s deliberate attempts to confuse people and the general awe people grant the subject of personal finance. People are constantly beset by questions like: should I use a financial planner? Which mutual funds perform best? How do I even begin investing? Should I buy individual stocks? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!?!?!?

I’m no certified financial planner, but based on my year of study, I am willing to offer these few juicy morsels to get people started right on the year:

1. Read Up. Yahoo Finance has new updated articles every day by some of the best financial writers around; some of their better writers are Ben Stein, Laura Rowley, and David Bach. This content is free and, quite frankly, all you need to know to get started in the world of investing.
2. Stick to Indexes. Yes, every once and awhile a fund manager while beat the S&P 500, but almost none do consistently and absolutely none do by a margin that would offset a managed mutual fund’s higher expense ratio. Do yourself a favor and stick to index mutual funds.
3. Diversify. Quite frankly, it’s the only “free lunch” in investing. It makes sense that spreading your funds around several investments is a safer bet; what is less intuitive is that you can actually increase your return by this spreading. Read this article for a few great options.
4. Open a Roth IRA. If you make less than the restricted amount, open a Roth IRA and contribute your $4,000.00 for 2006. You have until April 15. Go on. Get started.
5. Account Structure. Near as I can tell, you want to have 3 types of accounts: a checking account (for everyday transactions – preferably at a credit union), a high interest online savings account (ING, Emigrant Direct, or GMAC Bank), and a brokerage account to manage your Roth IRA or other securities (Vanguard, Fidelity). All these accounts can be linked to transfer funds electronically to each other, making it easy to get paid, move money to savings, and then move money to longer term investments.

Investing can be as complicated as you want, but it doesn’t have to be. Education these days is free, so make sure you read up. Remember – knowledge is power.

If nothing else, follow the PYF (pay-yourself-first) formula and put 10% of your paycheck in savings.

This article was the inspiration for this column.

Franky J