{"id":62154,"date":"2024-01-29T07:44:36","date_gmt":"2024-01-29T12:44:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.technologyinvestor.com\/?p=62154"},"modified":"2024-01-29T07:58:54","modified_gmt":"2024-01-29T12:58:54","slug":"how-to-live-forever-save-on-home-insurance-nvidia-rises-and-theres-now-the-magnificent-six","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.technologyinvestor.com\/?p=62154","title":{"rendered":"How to live forever. Save on home insurance. Nvidia rises. There’s now The Magnificent Six."},"content":{"rendered":"

Thank you, Harry, for Nvidia.<\/p>\n

Despite its parabolic rise, I am not selling it. Been there (after last parabolic rise).\u00a0 Done that. Had to buy it back. Was expensive.<\/p>\n

For stocks I feel confident about, I’m sticking with them until Hell freezes over or something radical changes.<\/p>\n

Here’s the last year of Nvidia:<\/p>\n

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Here’s the last five years. Imagine how stupid we’d feel now if we had sold in 2022,<\/p>\n

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I did recently sell my Tesla shares. I saw it suffering a confluence of truly awful of events — from China competition to ebbing demand for EVs. Late last week Cramer removed TSLA from The Magnificent Seven, making it now the Magnificent Six, which remain my largest holdings — AAPL, AMZN, GOOGL, META, MSFT and NVIDIA. Others I like include\u00a0 LLY, PANW, NVO, CRM, NOW, NVO, TSM, JEPQ\u00a0 (for the yield) and one tech Vanguard EFT — VGT.<\/p>\n

How to live forever<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The family is on me because they think I am getting old too fast. There is reason. Last year I had my gallbladder hastily removed and suffered two months of pneumonia, with coughing and\u00a0 depilated energy. Then my blood pressure shot up.<\/p>\n

Maybe I wasn\u2019t going to love another 50 years. (I\u2019m 81.)<\/p>\n

Motivated by the family, I spent the last week reading the latest literature on how to live forever. I learned I wasn\u2019t alone with wanting to live forever. There are billionaires spending serious money \u2013 many, many millions \u2013 figuring ways to live forever. I won\u2019t bore you with a summary. Suffice, the stuff is kooky, weird and unproven. Better to focus on stuff you can read from the likes of the Mayo Clinic and other researched, proven ways. Hence, my reading:<\/p>\n

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Funny thing while I\u2019m reading these books, the New York Times publishes this piece:<\/p>\n

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Here they are\u00a0 (with my smart-ass comments)<\/p>\n

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  1. Move more.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The number one thing experts recommended was to keep your body active. That\u2019s because\u00a0study<\/a>\u00a0after\u00a0study<\/a>\u00a0has shown that exercise reduces the risk of premature death.<\/p>\n

    I play tennis every day. Lately I\u2019ve been playing ping pong also. It\u2019s as energetic as tennis. Seriously.<\/p>\n

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    1. Eat more fruits and vegetables.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      The experts didn\u2019t recommend one specific diet over another, but they generally advised eating in moderation and aiming for more fruits and vegetables and fewer\u00a0processed foods<\/a>. The\u00a0Mediterranean diet<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 which prioritizes fresh produce in addition to whole grains, legumes, nuts, fish and olive oil \u2014 is a good model for healthy eating, and it\u2019s been shown to lower the risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and dementia.<\/p>\n

      As a result of all this \u201clive longer\u201d reading, I\u2019ve given up adding salt and sugar to dishes and drinks \u2013 like coffee. I’m trying to give up life-long passion, Coca Cola.<\/p>\n

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      1. Get enough sleep.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Sleep is sometimes overlooked, but it plays a major role in healthy aging. Research has found that the amount of sleep a person averages each night is correlated with their\u00a0risk of death<\/a>\u00a0from any cause, and that consistently getting good quality sleep can add\u00a0several years<\/a>\u00a0to a person\u2019s life. Sleep appears to be especially important for brain health: A 2021 study found that people who slept less than five hours a night had\u00a0double the risk<\/a>\u00a0of developing dementia.<\/p>\n

        I’m a big napper. Sometimes twice a day. The experts like seven hours non-stop a night. Napping makes me feel more refreshed, able to play better tennis and make better decisions.<\/p>\n

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        1. Don\u2019t smoke, and don\u2019t drink too much either.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          This goes without saying, but smoking cigarettes raises your risk for all kinds of deadly diseases. \u201cThere is no dose of cigarette smoke that is good for you,\u201d Dr. Rowe said.<\/p>\n

          We\u2019re starting to understand\u00a0how bad excessive alcohol use<\/a>\u00a0is, too. More than one drink per day for women and two for men \u2014 and possibly even less than that \u2014 raises the risk for heart disease and atrial fibrillation, liver disease, and\u00a0seven types of cancer<\/a>.<\/p>\n

          I gave up smoking 45 years ago. The experts are now saying even one glass of wine a day is bad. I’ve never drunk alcohol — not for health reasons,. I don’t like the taste. That’s weird me.<\/p>\n

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          1. Manage your chronic conditions.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Nearly half of American adults have\u00a0hypertension<\/a>, 40 percent have\u00a0high cholesterol<\/a>\u00a0and more than one-third have\u00a0pre-diabetes<\/a>. All the healthy behaviors mentioned above will help manage these conditions and prevent them from developing into even more serious diseases, but sometimes lifestyle interventions aren\u2019t enough. That\u2019s why experts say it\u2019s critical to follow your doctor\u2019s advice to keep things under control.<\/p>\n

            \u201cIt\u2019s not fun to take the medications; it\u2019s not fun to check your blood pressure and check your blood sugar,\u201d Dr. Chang said. \u201cBut when we optimize all those things in a whole package, they also help us live longer, healthier, better lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

            This morning’s blood pressure was 139\/79. It used to be 120\/80. It seems to be coming down.<\/p>\n

            I’m on four daily pills — Prilosec, lisinopril (for blood pressure), atorvastatin (for cholesterol) and D3 (for sunlight).<\/p>\n

              \n
            1. Prioritize your relationships.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              Psychological health often takes a back seat to physical health, but Dr. Chang said it\u2019s just as important. \u201cIsolation and loneliness is as big a detriment to our health as smoking,\u201d she said, adding that it puts us \u201cat a higher risk of dementia, heart disease, stroke.\u201d<\/p>\n

              Relationships are key to not only living healthier, but also\u00a0happier<\/a>. According to the\u00a0Harvard Study of Adult Development<\/a>, strong relationships are the biggest predictor of well-being.<\/p>\n

              Dr. Rowe tells the medical students he teaches that one of the best indicators of how well an elderly patient will be faring in six months is to ask him \u201chow many friends or family he\u2019s seen in the last week.\u201d<\/p>\n

              My family encourages me to maintain strong “social interactions” — their term for men friends.<\/p>\n

                \n
              1. Cultivate a positive mind-set.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                Even\u00a0thinking positively<\/a>\u00a0can help you live longer.\u00a0Several studies<\/a>\u00a0have found that optimism is associated with a lower risk of heart disease, and people who score highly on tests of optimism\u00a0live 5<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a015 percent longer<\/a>\u00a0than people who are more pessimistic. That may be because optimists tend to have healthier habits and lower rates of some chronic diseases, but even when accounting for those factors, the research shows that people who think positively still live longer.<\/p>\n

                If you had to pick one healthy practice for longevity, \u201cdo some version of physical activity,\u201d Dr. Moore said. \u201cIf you can\u2019t do that, then focus on being positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

                This one’s the hardest — what with Trump, Israel and Ukraine. Down-the-line winners help. And so actually does writing this blog, which I enjoy. Albeit without earnings. Don’t be fooled by the Google ads in the left hand column. Nobody seems to click on Google’s ads.<\/p>\n

                You can read the entire New York Times piece on longevity here.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

                Home Insurance tips<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

                This is true. I’m getting these discounts on my home insurance:<\/p>\n

                + Install a home monitoring service.<\/p>\n

                + Install a home generator, e.g. Generac.<\/p>\n

                + Install solar roof and a Tesla Powerwall, or like.<\/p>\n

                + Install a water cut-off system. Here’s the Moen I just installed:<\/p>\n

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                It’s called a Flo Smart Monitor & Shutoff. You can buy it for $480 on Amazon (click here<\/strong><\/a>) and install it yourself. Or get a real plumber and pay more. Here’s Nick and Joey from Bradway Plumbing\u00a0 in Hillsdale, NY proudly showing off their work.<\/p>\n

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                My hands look forlorn and geriatric<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

                …until I rub in this magic stuff on<\/p>\n

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                \nClick                 here.\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

                I’m learning also to apply sunscreen daily. This one is hard. It gives boredom a whole new meaning. But my dermatologist says it’s critical.<\/p>\n

                The meaning of Gaza’s tunnels<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

                This piece will blow you away. In it:<\/p>\n

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                Israeli defense officials now estimate that Hamas\u2019s tunnels measure between 350 and 450 miles in a territory that\u2019s just 25 miles long. (By comparison, the London Underground is only 249 miles long.) Some of Gaza\u2019s tunnels are wide\u00a0enough for cars<\/a>; some are more than 150 feet deep; some serve as munitions depots; others are comfortably kitted out as command bunkers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n