Archives for August 2011

Pension pitfalls

Author: Doug Nordman Last Updated: June 27, 2018 4 Comments

Advertiser Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any other entity. This site may be compensated through the advertiser Affiliate Program. For more information, please see our Advertising Policy.

A friend's active-duty retirement reminded us of the potential surprises & pitfalls of the first pension payment. The first surprise you may encounter is the date of your pension deposit. When you're on active duty you're getting paid on the 1st and the 15th -- although the exact date that the money's in your account will vary with the … [Read more...] about Pension pitfalls

Lifestyles in military retirement: surfing photos

Author: Doug Nordman Last Updated: June 27, 2018 Leave a Comment

Advertiser Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any other entity. This site may be compensated through the advertiser Affiliate Program. For more information, please see our Advertising Policy.

Sometimes putting up three posts a week is a problem. However, my blogging problem isn't deciding what subject to write about. My blogging problem is deciding which subject to write about first! Since I'm still incubating a half-dozen unfinished posts, I'll take the easy Monday-morning approach and talk about my favorite subject: surfing. The day … [Read more...] about Lifestyles in military retirement: surfing photos

DIY home maintenance

Author: Doug Nordman Last Updated: June 27, 2018 2 Comments

Advertiser Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any other entity. This site may be compensated through the advertiser Affiliate Program. For more information, please see our Advertising Policy.

I was ready to wax our old toilet. But before I explain that teaser, let me talk about a critical aspect of financial independence: DIY-- doing it yourself. When you're working 60 hours a week (or deployed for a 168-hour workweek) then you probably don't look forward to doing your own home maintenance. You'd … [Read more...] about DIY home maintenance

Financial lessons learned from caring for an elderly parent

Author: Doug Nordman Last Updated: June 27, 2018 6 Comments

Advertiser Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any other entity. This site may be compensated through the advertiser Affiliate Program. For more information, please see our Advertising Policy.

It's been nearly two years since my father wrote a letter to us two sons that his "slipping memory" made him stop using e-mail. Since then I've learned way more than I really wanted to know about managing his affairs, and I've included the four most important lessons at the end of this post. Dad's a retired engineer who's been widowed for almost … [Read more...] about Financial lessons learned from caring for an elderly parent

Book Review: “Get Rich Click!”

Author: Doug Nordman Last Updated: June 27, 2018 3 Comments

Advertiser Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any other entity. This site may be compensated through the advertiser Affiliate Program. For more information, please see our Advertising Policy.

A few months ago I was offered a chance to moderate a tiny part of the Dollar Stretcher community in Military Family Finances. I highly recommend Dollar Stretcher's weekly e-mail, and their website is a treasure trove of personal financial tips. One of the perks of being a Dollar Stretcher moderator is the opportunity to review new books. I've … [Read more...] about Book Review: “Get Rich Click!”

Join the military to get rich and retire early?: the rest of the story

(The first part of this post is over at Jacob Lund Fisker's Early Retirement Extreme blog.) Now for the rest of the story... When I was an impressionable young teen, my best friend's older brother was attending USNA. Every time he was home on leave he wore a Navy sweatshirt and a three-day beard. He'd have a cold beer in one hand and a hot chick … [Read more...] about Join the military to get rich and retire early?: the rest of the story

Join the military to get rich and retire early?

Welcome to all the new readers who found this blog last week! The hits immediately doubled, and they've nearly doubled again!! Today's post actually starts over at Jacob Lund Fisker's Early Retirement Extreme blog. He says that ERE-infatuated teens have asked him about joining the U.S. military as a way of retiring in your 30s, so I wrote the … [Read more...] about Join the military to get rich and retire early?