linklings, Tour de Jersey edition

I got a bike and a seat for Little Buddy in the back. In the future I’ll take Pumpkin, too. I had forgotten how much I loved bicycling. It’s not QUITE the solitary high of running, but it’s close. It’s amazing how much exercise restores the spirit; biking for an hour is priceless.  It continues to amaze me how little it takes to soothe the soul, so to speak…

photo credit: moriza

How to Get the Most for Your Home When it is Time to Sell by Making a Good Impression: Speaking as someone who’s thinking about selling his home, this article is worth checking out. Unfortunately, most home buyers can’t see past the ugly-furniture-that’s-not-going-to-be-there-when-they-move-in-anyway.

Have You Decided To Be Rich?: Yes, I have. It seems like a trivial decision, probably, but it’s not. If you decide that you’re not going to accept “just good enough” in your life, then this is a big moment.

What Should You Do With Your Money – Lessons in Personal Finance: This hearkens right back to crowdsourcing: let’s face it, there’s safety in numbers.

The Opportunity Cost of Having an Emergency Fund: I think this is a good point, but basically it comes down to this: is the emergency fund set up to pay for a slightly higher-than-usual heating bill, or is it set up to pay for accidentally burning down the house? If your emergency fund is a true “oh my God what do we do now” fund, then it’s not really required to be anything more than an vaguely liquid line of credit, true.

Help Your Kids Get Rich: Invest Early: Here is the sad, stupid truth: invest in something stupid early, and you’ll make more than someone who invest in something smart later on. Argh. Yes, argh.

Do You Have to Know Everything to Have an IRA Account?: Here’s a good piece of advice that can’t be repeated too often: don’t think you need to be an expert before investing. Jump in, invest in broad-based index funds. Don’t feel like you need to study the entire breadth of human knowledge before investing.

Daddy Rocks! 10 Fun and Frugal Gifts for Dad!: Ah, yes, Dad. I own a Dad Sac, similar to the second item on this list. Nothing screams “cool dude” like a man’s diaper bag, let me tell you. At the same time, let me tell you, it’s damn convenient and I take it everywhere with the kids… gotta have the “mess arsenal” on hand at all times.

The Value of a Stay-at-Home Mom: Yay! Bubelah’s worth $117K per year for her double-duty work with Little Buddy and Pumpkin. Where should we collect that money? France?

Rules of Thumb are Useless and Dangerous to Your Financial Future: Amen. Don’t assume that rules of thumb apply to you, because often they don’t. If you assume what works for blogger X or financial expert Y will work for you, too, then you have only yourself to blame when it doesn’t.

I don’t want to be obsessed with money or being frugal: Another one of my favorite gripes: let’s not get too obsessed with coupons and CFLs and taking baths together. Make sure you spend SLIGHTLY less than you earn: the rest is gravy.

Why It Pays to Ignore Financial News: It does, actually. Invest in the long term and then the daily news about stock XYZ going up or down seems laughable. I’m invested heavily in a particular financial services industry stock that fluctuates wildly, but I made my investment based on my own interpretation of their long-term health – so the short-term gossip doesn’t phase me.

I read an article at Zen Habits via TomStine.com and Yes-to-Me that made me wonder about something: do I believe in the Law of Attraction? It’s a fundamental question, I think, much like the Christian focus on acceptance of Christ as the Son of God. You either believe it or you don’t. I have sneered and sneered again at the Law of Attraction. I thought it was crap when I first heard about it. But the longer I think about it and read about it, the more I think that it has to be true. You have to believe in some positive causality about the universe or else it’s all just a horrible toss of the dice. I think I buy the Law of Attraction, simply because I have yet to see any indication of evidence to the contrary…