My Bucket List:
1. Finish my book “In Search of the Perfect Investment.” I’ve been dicking with this book for 15 years. I learn. I study. I learn more. I procrastinate. Stupid. Investing is the hardest skill I’ve ever tried to master.
2. Learn computer programming. I have a zillion ideas for great software. Every time I work with outside programmers, they get it wrong. It’s time to take control of of my own destiny (and give the boys at Facebook, Google and LinkedIn a run for their money).
3. Visit Bhutan, Patagonia and the Konig See in southern Germany. Also re-visit my favorite place in the whole world — Yosemite.
4. Stay healthy by exercising every single day, preferably by playing 1 1/2 hours of aggressive tennis.
5. Motivate, encourage, bribe … do everything necessary to get the kids to produce grandkids, before I kick the bucket, and they lose interest.
I feel a huge urgency. Time passes so quickly. This chart says it all.
How to accomplish all this?
First thing every morning, I must write down today’s top priorities. And then I must ask myself how do they further my Bucket List? Can I figure a better way of solving day-to-day urgencies (like changing lightbulbs or getting cars serviced) without impinging on my real top priorities — my Bucket List.
If you feel inclined, drop your very own Bucket List in a comment below. Share it also with your wife and kids.
If you haven’t seen the wonderful movie, The Bucket List, please rent it and watch it this weekend. It’s a wonderful movie with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.
My favorite lawyer joke. A Mafia Godfather finds out that his bookkeeper, Guido, has cheated him out of ten million dollars. His bookkeeper is deaf. That was the reason he got the job in the first place. It was assumed that Guido would hear nothing so he would not have to testify in court.
When the Godfather goes to confront Guido about his missing $10 million, he takes along his lawyer who knows sign language.
The Godfather tells the lawyer, “Ask him where the money is!
The lawyer, using sign language, asks Guido, Where’s the money?
Guido signs back, “I don’t know what you are talking about.” The lawyer tells the Godfather, “He says he doesn’t know what you are talking about”
The Godfather pulls out a pistol, puts it to Guido’s head and says, “Ask him again and tell him if he doesn’t answer I’ll kill him!”
The lawyer signs to Guido, “He’ll kill you if you don’t tell him.”
Guido trembles and signs back, “OK! You win! The money is in a brown briefcase, buried behind the shed at my cousin Bruno’s house.
The Godfather asks the lawyer, “What did he say?”
The lawyer replies, “He says you don’t have the balls to pull the trigger.”
Harry Newton who worries about the second half. This morning’s employment numbers aren’t wonderful. The U.S. work force added a bare 80,000 jobs in June; the unemployment rate was 8.2%, though some states are much lower. Fortunately, AGNC is holding in nicely and the Australian dollar is firming.
The key to fixing things is to ask yourself: What did I last do that could have caused the problem?
Several months ago, I change tennis racquets to a heavier one… This week I switched back to my older, lighter racket. Bingo, my shoulder feels a thousand percent better! Not recovered, but better. Dumb me for not thinking of this earlier. This logic applies particularly to computers.
Nearing 75, Harry…I have pretty much come to the bottom of my bucket list…55 countries, 3 career changes and past 12 years of retirement bliss. I have lived my life doing what I wanted to do when I wanted to do it. If I want to do a “do-over” I do it…currently on a trans-continental train ride (last one in the early 80s) this time first class. Just finished visiting the Art Museum in Chicago again and eating another deep dish, full sausage patty pizza at Gino's East. En-route to Washington D.C. for a return visit to the Smithsonian…live life every day Harry. I feel I have had a great life…if I should die tomorrow I will have had a happy life .Not without it's down times…but happy.
Worth noting – on this, a big down day on Wall street, the Wal-Mart stock I've been a proponent of on this site was up 4-10ths of a percent. It's up about 6 percent since Newton challenged me for my own recommendations 2 weeks ago. Just sayin'.
Harry. I suspect one of the reasons you may be procratinating on your book is that in your quest you have come to realize there is no perfect investment. The economic laws and free markets, if left alone by governments, are very efficient in ascribing risk and reward. Yes, some investors find opportunities missed by others but research shows that most stock pickers or advisors do not beat the indecies over the long term especially when their fees are included.
Having various trading loss rules for short range trading certainly can help to control losses but many risk measurement tools and markets are still vulnerable to the “Black Swan” event. Even WS firms who find pockets of risk free trading profits (Speed Trading, arbitrage etc.) and other techniques, not open for individuals because of size and margin limitations, only have the window of opportunity for a short period as competition always catches on and its game over.
Looking back and accepting the fact that no one has the ability to see the future the best plan to teach the next generation is to accept responsibility (learn as much as you can) for ones financial future even if one elects to work with a financial planner. Also, because no one can see the future diversification is probably the single most important investment philosohy one can adapt.
Harry, What racquet do you play with? I went from a heavy one to a light one and then I was about to switch to a heavy one again and then after testing out dozens of rackets I decided to use lead tape on my current racquet and wow what a difference it makes both on the body and sweet spot. Make sure you have someone who knows what they are doing put the lead tape on.
…I've always been curious to ask, what are you rated? I'm playing the #2 ranked player 50+ in Ontario Canada tomorrow. Looking forward to it….
Head Liquidmetal 2 is the lighter one which I loved. But then I moved to the heavier Liquidmetal 4, which seemed to give my shoulder the problem. I'm ranked 4:5. I'll try the lead tape when my shoulder is fully recovered. One day we should play.
As I predicted, the jobs report was weak. However, this is a buying opportunity. Load up on a lot of great stocks that are on sale!!!!
Hey Harry, using your trees cartoon, a good addition to the bucket list is it would be wise to plant more “acorns” now so that the kids and grandkids have shade to rest under in the future.
you want “acorns” that are investments almost certain to appreciate and survive the next 10-20 years, such as BRK, Coca Cola, Altria, Well Fargo and most of the other Warren Buffett favorites. Some well located raw land might go well in the mix. Raw land can be both a good and bad investment, but it is one of the few real estate investments that need little or no maintenance and more or less, thrive on neglect.
And sorry to burst your book title bubble, but there are no perfect investments. There are no perfect investments, houses or wives or husbands. All are only made “perfect” or damn good enough by our concessions.
Vincent