Here's a frivolous topic for Thursday morning before the weekend. A few weeks ago a shipmate asked a seemingly innocuous question: Are there any rules or guidance on having a swim call on a sub? Can the CO take a swim? The Corpsman? Submarines on local operations or doing exercises on weapons ranges occasionally have ...
Charles Duhigg's new book, "The Power of Habit", already has 120 people on the waiting list at the Hawaii State Library system. (That means it's popular!) As part of his book marketing, last week he put up a guest post about spending habits on Get Rich Slowly. So while I'm waiting to read the book, I thought I'd blog ...
Let me interrupt Memorial Day with some late-breaking news: Stars and Stripes reported last week that the Marine Corps will be offering a 15-year retirement. The program is expected to begin this fall for Marines and officers, but the actual program details and start date haven't been released yet. Both the ...
I read another good question on a Linkedin group: I am a Marine O-4 who has been passed for promotion and is looking for some advice on early retirement. I will have 17 years of active duty by the time I am eligible for the early retirement next year. I am a pilot with experience in operations and ...
Thanks to my spouse, we've always been do-it-yourself investors. We had no debt when we got married in 1986 and we lived a fairly frugal life, so we started investing right away. She already knew the basics from her family, and my Dad gave me a "how to" guide. After that it was all reading and ...
I came across this classic while reading about frugal lifestyles and debt payoff. The author talks about retail stores and merchandising and marketing, but he unintentionally offers another benefit. If you understand how the stores are marketing to you, then you can understand why you ...
I try to avoid posting breathless blow-by-blow accounts of every little detail of the legislative negotiations that go into the military drawdown and budget debates. However, there's recently been some movement in these discussions, along with changes to guidance and benefits. First, the House Armed Services ...
It seemed like such a simple question: "How do I get a cashier's check in a city where I don't have a bank account?" Our daughter's car shopping coincided with a family wedding invitation in Texas near her college. My cousin the Army Ranger got married last week to the woman of his dreams, and it was an impressive ...
Thanks to Brandi for her comments on an earlier post, and her question: My favorite part of the book was all of the personal stories. I can understand how the math works – I’ve calculated all of my future pay raises, estimated rate of savings, and projected retirement benefits to figure out how much I ...
Thank goodness this isn't a book about the military. I'd sure hate to write that mission description! For those who are reading this topic for the first time here, my father is in a care facility with mid-stage Alzheimer's. He lived independently for as long as he could, but just over a year ago he ended up in the ...
We're military veterans, not financial advisors. We're trying to share what we've learned and to pay it forward – but you have to make your own decisions.
What worked for us will probably work for you, but unfortunately, we can’t guarantee it. Let us know if something’s not working for you, and we’ll try to figure out a better way... Continue Reading...
Doug Nordman