Retire at 30?

Sure, why not?

I found a great article at Vox/com by Pete Adeney, AKA Mr. Money Mustache, about how to retire at age 30. Of course, his case was different from many people's, since I think being a software engineer might give one a better chance of earning and saving up enough money to retire after 10 years in that career.

He says it's simple, though not easy: "...just spend much less than you earn and pour the difference into efficient index funds. When your collection of investments reaches 25 times your annual spending, you're done."

Yeah. Right.

Yet his advice in this column is interesting and, I think, generally good. So I went to his own blog and read some more, and I was even more impressed.

I especially liked reading his thoughts about why we, people in general, work. What do we get out of it? And, by the way, why is money so important to us? Check out this post, "Get Rich With the Position of Strength." It's fascinating, and I guess I like it so much because it fits in with my own thoughts on all these issues.

Turns out it's not the money itself, but the ability that money gives us to have some power or control over our own lives, the strength it gives us. Makes sense, right? And that's why, Mr. Money Mustache says,  it's so valuable to retire early---or not actually retire, because who really wants to spend their waning years plopped in front of a TV set or playing golf with a bunch of geezers? No, retirement in that old sense is out, am I right? The way to retire is to use your freed-up time, your power, to do some good for people. So, if you're LDS, you might go on a mission. (Or not. Your choice. Don't let some visiting authority or local leader tell you that's what you need to do!) 

But what I really liked about this post were the ideas about strength. For instance:

• Giving is a form of strength. When you say, “I have more than I need, and thus my desire to take should fade away as my desire to help out grows”.
• Taking is therefore a form of weakness. On the playground, Luxury maintains just a little more desire to take,  which competes with his desire to give. Meanwhile, Mr. Abundance is always working on needing less. The “taking” weakness continues to shrink, allowing him to invest more in his “giving” strength.
• Health is a form of strength. With health comes a clearer mind, more energy, a greater range of options and comfort zones, and a longer time alive to enjoy the offerings and mysteries of this planet. Life can dish you a blow, and you can get up and get back to work.
• Physical Strength is the part of health that is mostly ignored in the United States, yet it is the most useful and efficient component. Sure, aerobics and bicycling can keep the worst effects of early decay at bay, but lifting heavy old-fashioned barbells and dumbells is a much faster and more thorough way to keep all of your systems in working order and create a foundation for the rest of your life’s strength.
• Skills are a form of strength....

And so on.

Here's another blog post by Mr. Money Mustache, about nutrition and weight-loss. It's full of good, true, useful information. What do you eat for breakfast most days? Because if it's a slice of toast or a bowl of cereal, no wonder you're hungry an hour or two later! Which we all know, right? Just need to remind ourselves sometimes of these fact.  (And stop paying attention to Dr. Oz and all those idiotic women's magazine headlines.)

Anyone who follows these links, please let me know what you think.

"Let America Be America Again"

This great poem by Langston Hughes, written in 1935 and first published in 1936 in Esquire Magazine, still resonates. Check out this video:

This stanza says why we need to keep working on America:

O, yes,
I say it plain,
America never was America to me,
And yet I swear this oath—
America will be!

And here's the entire poem:

 

Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free.

(America never was America to me.)

Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.

(It never was America to me.)

O, let my land be a land where Liberty
Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,
But opportunity is real, and life is free,
Equality is in the air we breathe.

(There’s never been equality for me,
Nor freedom in this “homeland of the free.”)

Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark? 
And who are you that draws your veil across the stars?

I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart,
I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek—
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.

I am the young man, full of strength and hope,
Tangled in that ancient endless chain
Of profit, power, gain, of grab the land!
Of grab the gold! Of grab the ways of satisfying need!
Of work the men! Of take the pay!
Of owning everything for one’s own greed!

I am the farmer, bondsman to the soil.
I am the worker sold to the machine.
I am the Negro, servant to you all.
I am the people, humble, hungry, mean—
Hungry yet today despite the dream.
Beaten yet today—O, Pioneers!
I am the man who never got ahead,
The poorest worker bartered through the years.

Yet I’m the one who dreamt our basic dream
In the Old World while still a serf of kings,
Who dreamt a dream so strong, so brave, so true,
That even yet its mighty daring sings
In every brick and stone, in every furrow turned
That’s made America the land it has become.
O, I’m the man who sailed those early seas
In search of what I meant to be my home—
For I’m the one who left dark Ireland’s shore,
And Poland’s plain, and England’s grassy lea,
And torn from Black Africa’s strand I came
To build a “homeland of the free.”

The free?

Who said the free?  Not me?
Surely not me?  The millions on relief today?
The millions shot down when we strike?
The millions who have nothing for our pay?
For all the dreams we’ve dreamed
And all the songs we’ve sung
And all the hopes we’ve held
And all the flags we’ve hung,
The millions who have nothing for our pay—
Except the dream that’s almost dead today.

O, let America be America again—
The land that never has been yet—
And yet must be—the land where every man is free.
The land that’s mine—the poor man’s, Indian’s, Negro’s, ME—
Who made America,
Whose sweat and blood, whose faith and pain,
Whose hand at the foundry, whose plow in the rain,
Must bring back our mighty dream again.

Sure, call me any ugly name you choose—
The steel of freedom does not stain.
From those who live like leeches on the people’s lives,
We must take back our land again,
America!

O, yes,
I say it plain,
America never was America to me,
And yet I swear this oath—
America will be!

Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death,
The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies,
We, the people, must redeem
The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers.
The mountains and the endless plain—
All, all the stretch of these great green states—
And make America again!

Some Recommended Reading: Great Literature Made Easy (Borges)

Oh how well I remember my college Spanish literature class, when we were "reading" (i.e., in my case, anyway, plugging through the story with Spanish-English dictionary at hand, writing down the definitions of about half of all the words in the story) "Funes el Memorioso," by Jorge Luis Borges.

I was so embarrassed when the teacher asked me the meaning of a word which I had not bothered to look up. The word was in this sentence: " Y también, hacia el alba: Mi memoría, señor, es como vacíadero de basuras." Turns out the word was, in English, "garbage." Funes was telling the narrator, at the end of a long night of talking, toward dawn, "My memory, Sir, is like a garbage dump."

That was in the olden days, before the Internet. Just think, if I were studying Spanish literature in the newen days, I could have looked up the story in Spanish AND English, along with innumerable articles interpreting it.


So when the instructor had asked me the next question, about the meaning of this sentence (after he explained that "basura" is Spanish for "garbage" and "vaciadero" is "dumping site," I could have amazed him with a bunch of literary interpretations. Or I could have just consulted Wikipedia, which would link me to a TON of literary and not-so-literary ideas I could have used to write a crazy good paper. What if I had read only these three references from the Wikipedia page:
 
Oliver Sacks (2008-04-16). "Life-changing books: The Mind of a Mnemonist". New Scientist. 
The woman who can remember everything, The Telegraph, 9 May 2008

A Case of Unusual Autobiographical Remembering" Psychology Press, 2006

I could have even watched a movie made from the story:

Some Recommended Reading: Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse

So, now that you've read up on general survival skills, how 'bout roughing it with zombies?

Here's the "Nanny's Guide to Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse,"  with tips you might have figured out for yourself, such as this one:

* When caring for small children during a zombie outbreak, it is preferable to barricade oneself and one's charges inside the house you're working in and await rescue rather than try to travel to a stronghold. First, set the child/children down at the highest and most secure part of the dwelling, along with food, nappies, bedding and medical supplies. Fill up as many water vessels as you can before the water supply is compromised. After you've done this, destroy the staircase and use any and all furniture to build a barrier. However, make sure there is an emergency exit in case your walls are breached.

Another news flash from this blog: " NEVER leave yourself without food, rest or medicine so that the child/children can have more. They can live without that little bit extra. They can't live without you."

This kind of stuff is news to exactly whom? Oh, well, it's cute and funny, and it's just one post on a generally useful site,  if you're a nanny. So I'm not really putting it down.

Then there are the cutesie "5 Reasons a Toddler Would Survive a Zombie Apocalypse" and "10 Reasons Why Moms Will Survive a Zombie Apocalypse." 

BEST EVER zombie apocalypse survival tips are in this post, "25 Things You Should Never Do During a Zombie Apocalypse."  To give you the flavor of this delightful article, No. 1 is "Set a zombie on fire." But what makes this work are the film clips illustrating each point. For "Get too cocky," there's this clip from "Shaun of the Dead."

Some Recommended Reading: Survival Edition

I found an article, "How Not to Die," in a 2-year-old "Popular Mechanics" magazine at the doctor's office (yes, I recirculate magazines) that was fascinating. You can read it online here, complete with explanatory diagrams.

I realized after looking through the Popular Mechanics Web site that this magazine is full of survival tips, including this one, "How to Survive Absolutely Anything." The subtitle, "Hurricanes, floods, wildfires, tornadoes and other disasters can turn a region upside down in a day. And for some unlucky families the crisis may last for weeks if not months," is a good preview. Obviously I recommend this (because this post is called "Some Recommended Reading," duh).

I mean, look at this section:

A basic first-aid kit may not be enough to get you through the worst of a disaster. It's a good start—you do want bandages, gauze pads, aspirin, hydrocortisone, antiseptic wipes, etc.—but unexpected emergencies demand unconventional remedies. We asked Mykel Hawke, former Green Beret medic and host of Elite Tactical Unit on the Outdoor Channel, what he would add. His list:

· DUCT TAPE—Great for wound closure, splints, and casts.

· SUPERGLUE—Excellent for small, deep wounds. Use tape to hold while drying.

· TAMPONS—An unexpected tool for stanching heavy bleeding.

· NEEDLE-NOSE PLIERS—Use for removing large splinters or nails.

And the next section, "How to read a FEMA map," tells you how to find out if that illustrious federal agency has mistakenly labeled your home as being in a flood zone. (Hint: Probably not. But why not check for yourself?) 

On the Popular Mechanics Web site I also found a link to a blog, "Self Sufficient Mountain Living," which is kind of interesting. Well, the day-to-day details aren't always interesting. What makes people who are living in cabins in the mountains think that moving to the wilderness will keep them from being sometimes bored, sometimes restless, sometimes depressed? The new great American fantasy: roughing it!

Will you have YouTube in survival mode? Probably not, so be sure to check out this video BEFORE the dam breaks, the earthquake hits, or the tsunami crushes your beach resort:

Weird Word of the Week: Lulz

I know it's an old one, but it occurred to me while watching the latest Republican debate Tues. night. Was Rand Paul just trolling the other Republicans on that stage? Was he doing it for the Lulz?

Here's the Wiktionary definition:

lulz ---  Fun; amusement; humor; especially schadenfreude. Some quotes from this same article:

• 2007 July 26, KKTV Fox 11 News report:

  Anonymous gets big lulz from pulling random pranks

• 2008 June 20, Tom Whipple, “Scientology: the Anonymous protestors”, in The Times:

  Like “Hakuna matata” in The Lion King, “lulz” is not just a word, but a philosophy. [...] Anonymous has made campaigning sexy for the first time since 1968. The lulz is, after all, the ancient spirit that once made the young become Marxists, or sail off to the New World.

• 2008 August 3, Mattathias Schwartz, “Malwebolence - The World of Web Trolling”, in The New York Times:

  “Lulz” is how trolls keep score. A corruption of “LOL” or “laugh out loud,” “lulz” means the joy of disrupting another’s emotional equilibrium. “Lulz is watching someone lose their mind at their computer 2,000 miles away while you chat with friends and laugh,” said one ex-troll who, like many people I contacted, refused to disclose his legal identity.

Some Recommended Reading: Tech Edition (And Bonus: Walnut Creek!)

Look familiar? 

1.  Here's one worry put to rest:  Is Windows 10 telemetry a threat to your personal privacy? If, like me, you struggle to read through an entire article about this stuff, here's the gist of it:

Microsoft insists that its telemetry system is designed to prevent any privacy issues. "We collect a limited amount of information to help us provide a secure and reliable experience," the company says, describing telemetry data without using the term. "This includes data like an anonymous device ID and device type. ... This doesn't include any of your content or files, and we take several steps to avoid collecting any information that directly identifies you, such as your name, email address or account ID."

I have watched Microsoft's behavior in regard to privacy over the years. This statement is consistent with the way the company works, in my experience, and I am unaware of any evidence from external sources that contradicts these statements.

So there's no on-off switch for this category of data collection. Instead, Windows 10 has three telemetry settings: Basic, Enhanced, and Full.

And here's the ZDNet Tech Today Web site, for lots of "fun" reading about the tech world, if you're one of those who thinks this is fun.

2.  But wait, there's more!

So you think the Windows 10 telemetry is not a problem for you, so you're not worried any more, right? So check out this article, from The Atlantic: "If You're Not Paranoid, You're Crazy." 

Opening bit:

I knew we’d bought walnuts at the store that week, and I wanted to add some to my oatmeal. I called to my wife and asked her where she’d put them. She was washing her face in the bathroom, running the faucet, and must not have heard me—she didn’t answer. I found the bag of nuts without her help and stirred a handful into my bowl. My phone was charging on the counter. Bored, I picked it up to check the app that wirelessly grabs data from the fitness band I’d started wearing a month earlier. I saw that I’d slept for almost eight hours the night before but had gotten a mere two hours of “deep sleep.” I saw that I’d reached exactly 30 percent of my day’s goal of 13,000 steps. And then I noticed a message in a small window reserved for miscellaneous health tips. “Walnuts,” it read. It told me to eat more walnuts.

It was probably a coincidence, a fluke. Still, it caused me to glance down at my wristband and then at my phone, a brand-new model with many unknown, untested capabilities. Had my phone picked up my words through its mic and somehow relayed them to my wristband, which then signaled the app?

So, you really ARE crazy if you're not paranoid about privacy with all your electronic devices!

3.  Finally, speaking of technology, and speaking of walnuts***, the city of Walnut Creek has a Web site with lots of interesting photos and information. Check it out, and watch as you go from a charming rustic scene of a shed in a field to, next photo, a couple of German Shepherd police dogs outside of police cars with the warning painted on the side, STAY BACK POLICE DOG. What's really funny are the photos of the downtown, completely different from when I was a kid. But the overall background of the site, with the foothills and lovely Mount Diablo, brings back good memories.



***When I was searching for the online version of this story, which I read originally in the print version of the magazine, I typed in "Walnut" to my search engine, and came up with the Walnut Creek link, and couldn't resist it.