What to do with the money?

[riptides]

I WAS given that speech, but didn't really get into investing until my mid-30s. I did, however, buy my first house when I was 25 so I guess you could consider that an investment. Was pretty "house poor" for the first 10 years or so.
IRAs/401ks didn't exist until I was in my 30s, no company I ever worked for had any sort of pension plan.

Never got the speech. All my pensions were disolved as my companies got bought out. Learned investing late. Thought bank accounts were it. Then I met a girl and reality stepped in. LOL.

 

[RSKY]

I actually made up a small card with a formula that could be easily typed onto an EXCEL spreadsheet. Formula had age, total amount earned with investor's contribution, percentage earned on investment, and total contributions, in columns. At the rate of return of the S&P 500 for the past 100 years, which is 10%, it would take 13 years for the yearly amount earned in interest to equal the amount contributed by the investor. At $100 monthly the chart showed $1 million at age 66. For some reason I never gave any cards to anybody! But there are a lot of smart kids around who will listen and I have had some successes.

RSKY

 

[RSKY]

I WAS given that speech, but didn't really get into investing until my mid-30s. I did, however, buy my first house when I was 25 so I guess you could consider that an investment. Was pretty "house poor" for the first 10 years or so.
IRAs/401ks didn't exist until I was in my 30s, no company I ever worked for had any sort of pension plan.

When the second factory I worked at was closing I was sitting with two shifts of supervisors and was shocked that NONE of them had their houses paid off. They were mostly in their forties and fifties with a few in their sixties. They had RVs, boats, motorcycles, vacation homes, and other things they were making payments on. But none had paid off their houses. They were surprised when I said I bought my home at 28 and paid it off before the age of 45.

RSKY

 

[EddieWalker]

I knew the housing crisis was coming in the early 2000's when people started refinancing their homes to have extra spending money as the value of their house increased. One guy I worked with paid $200,000 for his house and he refinanced it every year. Might of been a second loan one year, then a new loan the next year. They traveled, bought furniture, TV's and Computers with the money. Big spenders. Eventually he owed $400,000 his house with the same income that he had when he bought it for half that. I know a lot of other people were doing the same thing, and it scared me, so I sold and moved to Texas, where I paid cash for a house and eventually bought the land I live on now for cash. I don't know if I could of survived the move and being self-employed if I had a mortgage.

 

[Snobdds]

That’s the problem with MANY business men. They only have greed for profits and NO reinvestment for humanity.

We have one of those people that love...suicidal empathy. Their self awareness is misguided compassion for certain people or groups that overlooks long-term negative consequences, particularly for the empathetic person's own group.

 

[Oaktree]

I knew the housing crisis was coming in the early 2000's when people started refinancing their homes to have extra spending money as the value of their house increased.

Around that time there was a mortgage company whose ads were all over the radio, ads to the effect that refinancing your home and "pulling out some cash" was the "biggest no-brainer on earth" (exact words used). Soo, how'd that work out?

 

[Johnmash2]

Got a phone call from a lady I did not know. She was looking for somebody with a small tractor to till up a garden for her sister. Her sister, Sandra, lives in our neighborhood and is one of the group that looks after another neighbor who is a disabled friend of mine. The lady that called said her sister has arthritis in her hands and can no longer use her tiller to break up her garden. The garden tilling is to be a birthday present. I didn't realize that she had a garden every year because it is hidden behind her house. I said of course I will, just tell me when you want to do it. The lady said she would pay me for my time and use of my tractor. I said no, I do this all the time for free, I will not accept money for doing something I look at as entertainment. We argued and she laughed and said she would make a donation to my church or favorite charity. So two days ago she shows up at our house and comes in and talks to my wife and myself. As she turns to leave she gives me an envelope and tells me to not open it until she leaves. Inside were five $20 bills! A note inside said to donate the money or use it as I saw fit.

If Sandra had mentioned that she wanted a garden tilled I would have driven the quarter mile to her place and tilled it up for her for free with not a thought about it. I do it for others all the time.

My wife thinks it is funny because of my 'old man in the neighborhood' title I have bestowed upon myself. BUT, I am feeling guilty over the money.

RSKY

Yes, and 946 PSI is nothing for an oil field type check valve made for 3K PSI or so. Also, a pump set at 2200' needs to see 946 PSI on start up. Any extra check valves up the line would defeat the back pressure needed to keep the pump from upthrusting on start up.

You are correct a VFD check valve is not needed with a CSV. The varied flow rates from a CSV do not cause a spinning action at the pump like a VFD. Also, many VFD's like the sub/mono drive with the switch are hard on check valves as the check opens and closes every time the subdrive switch makes and breaks. This can cause a check valve to open and close 45 times a minute. For these reasons a better check valve is needed with a VFD system than a CSV system.

That’s a wholesome story, RSKY — and honestly, I think most of us here would’ve done the same thing. You did a kind thing out of generosity, not for payment, and that’s what matters most. The fact that she insisted on giving you something shows she truly appreciated your help — sometimes, letting others give back is also an act of kindness.


If you’re still feeling uneasy about it, you could split the difference — maybe treat your wife to a nice meal with part of it and donate the rest to a local charity or church. That way, her gesture of gratitude keeps spreading good in both directions.


Either way, you’ve already done right by your neighbor. You’re definitely earning that “old man in the neighborhood” title in the best possible way.

 

[tradosaurus]

Give the money to a food bank. Thanks to the government shutdown, SNAP will not be available on the first of the month. A lot of people will be going hungry. If you are flush, add $500 of your own money. It is desperately needed.

There are many people abusing SNAP and hopefully this will spur them to work.

 

[masseyrider]

When the second factory I worked at was closing I was sitting with two shifts of supervisors and was shocked that NONE of them had their houses paid off. They were mostly in their forties and fifties with a few in their sixties. They had RVs, boats, motorcycles, vacation homes, and other things they were making payments on. But none had paid off their houses. They were surprised when I said I bought my home at 28 and paid it off before the age of 45.

RSKY

My first house was paid off while I was in University, around 24-5.
Ever since then I've been able to buy my next home for cash.
Puzzled one of the lawyers for the selling party.
He called to confirm some info and asked which bank I'd be dealing with for my mortgage.
I said I'd be paying by check.
But who was the mortgage with?
No mortgage, just a check in full.
After a moment he said OK.
I think he still thought I didn't understand the question.
For that one I was early 30s.
Once you own it you're not under someone else's control.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Got a phone call from a lady I did not know. She was looking for somebody with a small tractor to till up a garden for her sister. Her sister, Sandra, lives in our neighborhood and is one of the group that looks after another neighbor who is a disabled friend of mine. The lady that called said her sister has arthritis in her hands and can no longer use her tiller to break up her garden. The garden tilling is to be a birthday present. I didn't realize that she had a garden every year because it is hidden behind her house. I said of course I will, just tell me when you want to do it. The lady said she would pay me for my time and use of my tractor. I said no, I do this all the time for free, I will not accept money for doing something I look at as entertainment. We argued and she laughed and said she would make a donation to my church or favorite charity. So two days ago she shows up at our house and comes in and talks to my wife and myself. As she turns to leave she gives me an envelope and tells me to not open it until she leaves. Inside were five $20 bills! A note inside said to donate the money or use it as I saw fit.

If Sandra had mentioned that she wanted a garden tilled I would have driven the quarter mile to her place and tilled it up for her for free with not a thought about it. I do it for others all the time.

My wife thinks it is funny because of my 'old man in the neighborhood' title I have bestowed upon myself. BUT, I am feeling guilty over the money.

RSKY

Saturday is the end of food stamps until the government reopens. People have already used last month's SNAP and only have what is in their pantry. In many cases, that is nothing. Millions of Americans are faced with starvation, overwhelmingly the elderly and children. Give the money to your local food bank. Put some of your money on top of it.

One of the things I do in retirement is deliver meals on wheels to the elderly and disabled. Many of them have pets, and the politicians just nuked their budget. Those pets will go hungry, or the owner will go hungry to feed their pet. We're trying to figure out the logistics of dropping off dog kibbles and cat kibbles along with the human meals. A big bag of Costco pet food will go a long way.

America is facing a tsunami of starvation. Do what you can.