jeff kushner
Well-Known Member
ramblings....be warned!
I saw a mention that Tom had made about his radiators used to cost 34 bucks.....and it got me to thinking......be afraid guys, be very afraid;
How badly these spurts of inflation hurt us is often dependent on where we are in our careers, our family situations.....in effect, where we are on the great cycle of life.
From my observations, for those at the peak of their earnings, it likely wasn't a big deal other than the sticker shock. They still hired the guy to build the deck, finish a kitchen or whatever.
For those in their 20's, single and living alone, those can be horrible times and last year for parents it was worse with gas/food doubling at the same time. I think we can all agree on that.
However, for those who have planned their last 20--40yrs and saved then retired, there is little to do but to watch those funds shrink......and it can be frightening. I knew folks in '09 that had to come out of retirement when their 401K's vanished. Tom Roberts, one of my mentors & prince of a man, came out of a very happy and carefree retirement & worked until he passed. Just horrible.
I saw this in the 90's as the old relatives who worked when gas was 29 cents a gallon...... retired when it was $2.65 then couldn't live on the $578 they got each month from Social Security. Most of the Expats I have met overseas fall directly into this category I learned. They aren't living in a 3rd world country because it's beautiful although many are, they are there simply because it's cheap. I know because I have met and dined with many during my own search for another home.
I do NOT want to buy a new car today.....I bought a new limited '17 Expedition for 55K out the door incl MD tax from a list price of 66K, today that same truck is $82K with folks only getting 3-5K off list. So even at 78K, it's a 50% increase in price over mine, only 6 yrs ago! Yikes! My problem is that I drive a lot and have 159K (completely troublefree) on it now and it's not going to last forever. In two more years when I retire, it will have 220K if it lasts!
With that kind of just bad behavior, I'll bet I can drive that 192K mile Mercedes I have till tucked in the garage until the wheels fall off of it! That thing is built to last!
I'm not really sure where Kerry & I fit in, one thing that I'm really glad about is that being old, I already have more toys and "stuff" then I can ever possibly use so there really isn't any drive to get anything and Kerry is as good as I am or better at making what you have, work.
just ramblings....guess I should do some work today?
I saw a mention that Tom had made about his radiators used to cost 34 bucks.....and it got me to thinking......be afraid guys, be very afraid;
How badly these spurts of inflation hurt us is often dependent on where we are in our careers, our family situations.....in effect, where we are on the great cycle of life.
From my observations, for those at the peak of their earnings, it likely wasn't a big deal other than the sticker shock. They still hired the guy to build the deck, finish a kitchen or whatever.
For those in their 20's, single and living alone, those can be horrible times and last year for parents it was worse with gas/food doubling at the same time. I think we can all agree on that.
However, for those who have planned their last 20--40yrs and saved then retired, there is little to do but to watch those funds shrink......and it can be frightening. I knew folks in '09 that had to come out of retirement when their 401K's vanished. Tom Roberts, one of my mentors & prince of a man, came out of a very happy and carefree retirement & worked until he passed. Just horrible.
I saw this in the 90's as the old relatives who worked when gas was 29 cents a gallon...... retired when it was $2.65 then couldn't live on the $578 they got each month from Social Security. Most of the Expats I have met overseas fall directly into this category I learned. They aren't living in a 3rd world country because it's beautiful although many are, they are there simply because it's cheap. I know because I have met and dined with many during my own search for another home.
I do NOT want to buy a new car today.....I bought a new limited '17 Expedition for 55K out the door incl MD tax from a list price of 66K, today that same truck is $82K with folks only getting 3-5K off list. So even at 78K, it's a 50% increase in price over mine, only 6 yrs ago! Yikes! My problem is that I drive a lot and have 159K (completely troublefree) on it now and it's not going to last forever. In two more years when I retire, it will have 220K if it lasts!
With that kind of just bad behavior, I'll bet I can drive that 192K mile Mercedes I have till tucked in the garage until the wheels fall off of it! That thing is built to last!
I'm not really sure where Kerry & I fit in, one thing that I'm really glad about is that being old, I already have more toys and "stuff" then I can ever possibly use so there really isn't any drive to get anything and Kerry is as good as I am or better at making what you have, work.
just ramblings....guess I should do some work today?