Comments on: Big-picture thinking and the penny-pincher

By: Ken

Ken — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 03:32:16 +0000

Great point. Getting ahead in life is building assets. I still think you can build a business in a slow deliberate fashion without getting too overextended. Investments in income creation are well worth it.

By: Dawn

Dawn — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 00:28:08 +0000

I think it is wonderful to find a trade group like that, I would pay in an instant to have that type of brain power help me out in a crunch or provide my own 2¢ to help another person out.

By: Carol

Carol — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 23:09:55 +0000

As I think about my own retirement – I’m “only” 60 – one of the things I worry about is how to avoid spending too much time spinning the wheels in my own head. I think your networking group would be a fine addition to your social groups, your church involvement, etc.

By: funny

funny — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:32:03 +0000

@ Brenda: ‘Fraid not. The earnings limitation has to do with the year in which you reach what SS deems to be your “full retirement age.” In my case, that age is 66. Because I will turn 65 this May, I’m a year short. In 2011, when I finally reach an age that Uncle Sam feels is decorous for a woman to retire, I will be allowed to earn all I can.

By: Brenda

Brenda — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:20:58 +0000

Because GDU changed your date from December to January doesn’t Social Security allow you to make an unlimited amount this year?

By: funny

funny — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:59:41 +0000

@ frugalscholar: It is hard to imagine not teaching…I enjoy the students, and schlepping to the campus gets me out of the house and among humans.

But three-&-three is a bit much, for the amount we’re paid. It’s really more than 50% FTE work (assuming a course load of five-&-five, which is more than I was teaching at GDU), and the pay is way, waaaay less than 50% of a f/t faculty member’s salary, with no benefits. I’d rather keep it to two-&-two, at most. Really, I could be very happy with one-&-one, if enough money were coming from some other source.

Next year, SS will allow me to earn as much as I want to. If I can get one or both of the enterprises up to speed, then teaching can become the source of pin money, rather than the other way around.

By: funny

funny — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:53:03 +0000

@ Roomfarm: Yup. That’s exactly what I’m thinking. Since I have more than enough in savings to support me for the rest of this year, especially if I’m teaching a couple of classes, why not?

As you can see from the amount the community college district pays, it wouldn’t take much to free me completely from teaching. Probably either FaM or CE Desk could, on its own, come close to earning enough. Together, if they were developed a bit, they undoubtedly would do it.

By: frugalscholar

frugalscholar — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:52:23 +0000

I don’t know…seems like your teaching gig is pretty good. Also, the time you spend grading/prepping goes down with each semester, so you’ve already made your biggest time investment.

Still, I think you should make pots of money from your blog. Truly, it is one of the best.

By: Roomfarm

Roomfarm — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:46:25 +0000

Sounds like a terrific networking group — sometimes with stuff like this I just pay the year upfront, if I can. Paying 50 bucks a month thing feels like spending more to me for purely delusional reasons — probably because I worry that there will be a month I don’t have it. It is also a form of commitment, cause if you have prepaid, maybe you’ll show up for every meeting to get your money’s worth. IMHO, it sounds like a good investment in human resources and good company. Can you commit to bumhood and FAM development for a year and then re-evaluate?