My Wealth Builder

Gold, Oil and Silver, Oh My!

2026-09-08T08:00:00.000-04:00

With inflation and war risks, I plan to hodl gold, oil and silver investments we currently own. However, I'm not adding more since my goal is to simplify our investment holdings.

Here's what we own:

Gold and silver ETFs and stocks in gold and silver miners.. Inherited from spouse's parents' IRAs. I sold some near the recent peak. Although, I've committed to hodling and not selling positions in my spouse's account, these were inherited after 2019 and must be liquidated before 10 years.
Junk silver coins. I purchased these in 2011 when silver was at or near a low. I was teaching my the 7 year old daughter about coin collecting and invest. We visited a monthly coin and stamp show and bought a few items each month. We bought 90% junk silver coins and some collectible silver proof sets.
Gold bars. A couple years ago, I was walking into Costco and the greeter pointed at the gold price sign and said, "We're selling below spot price, right now," and showed me spot on his phone. I couldn't resist getting a deal, which include a 2% rebate for my executive membership and 2% reward on my credit card. I only bought 1 bar. In hindsight, I should have bought the limit of 5.
Oil stocks. I own a few oil stocks: CRGY, HP, HAL, RIG and NBR. RIG and NBR will likely not/never break even. CRGY is profitable or underwater depending on the account. HP and HAL have a good chance to be profitble.

We had previously owned gold miners and ETFs in our taxable accounts, but as usual, I sold them for a small profit after being underwater for many years since I bought near a previous peak in 2011.

Here is my plan:

As gold and silver rise, I will take the opportunity to begin scaling out as it gets closer to previous ATH. I will also sell some jewelry for scrap.
As oil rises, I will sell HP and HAL as they become profitable. I will sell RIG and NBR immediately if they break even. I will hodl CRGY in the taxable account since it is already profitable and scale out of CRGY in the IRAs as they become profitable.

Of course, gold, oil and silver may not rise, which means we will continue to hodl. I am prepared to sell if the should rise significantly.

For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, precious metal investment, nor investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Predictable Inflation Adjusted Payments - The Gold Retirement Standard

2026-09-07T08:00:00.000-04:00

It would be great if retirees received a predictable inflation adjusted monthly payment that covered all one's expected and discretionary expenses.

Predictable
Inflation Adjusted
Expenses

Unfortunately, there isn't an option that meets all the criteria.

Predictable - The options usually are fixed or the inflation adjustment doesn't deliver enough. Annuities or long term bonds have predictable fixed payments, which meets one criteria. However, they don't increase with inflation, nor do they necessary cover increasing expenses with aging.
Inflation adjusted - Social Security payments are "inflation adjusted," but do not necessarily cover the items that retired people need. TIPS bonds are inflation adjusted and theoretically, so are equities, but neither are guaranteed.
Expenses - The reality is living expenses will grow and new health and aging care expenses will be grow more than expected as on gets older.

Here's my attempt at mimicking a gold standard of payment:

Predictable - Buying 20 year Treasuries yielding 5%. I've stopped for now but will buy more if yields rise to 6-7%.
Inflation adjusted - Social security, rental property, TIPS bonds, and equities. Social security, rents and TIPS are broadly inflation adjusted, but don't necessarily match cost increases experienced by and individual. Equities have downside risks but do rise in the long term and provide an inflation cushion.
Expenses - We purchased long term care insurance when I was in my 20s and later for my spouse in her 30s when we got married, when premiums were much less expensive. We also have retiree health care insurance from my company and Medicare (me) which has more coverage and is less expensive than the ACA health insurance. Finally, we have saved for our children in college 529 plans from the time we adopted them. We expect to 100% cover their college expenses for both our 21 year old and 14 year old.

But as Yogi Berra once said, "It's hard to make predictions, especially about the future." We have covered what we can control as best we can, and will have to adjust for elements we don't control such as inflation, the economy, stock market volatility and health.

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment, nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Pushed Articles in My Browsers - Alien Life and Time Travel

2026-09-06T08:00:00.000-04:00

I would expect to be pushed lots of articles about personal finance, and I am by both Edge and Chrome browsers. For reference, I do get a lot of recommended articles about personal finance, debt, and the economy. Lately, I'm getting a lot of stories about alien life and some about time travelers talking about the future. Although I find them interesting, I have no idea why I get numerous feeds of these topics, since I haven't searched these topics nor gone to articles previously on those topics.

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial, alien life nor time travel advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Charity Lawnmowing Earning Money

2026-09-05T08:00:00.000-04:00

People can help others in need in many ways. The one's I'm most familiar with are food banks. Here's one that I didn't know about:

These landscapers are mowing the extra mile — and changing lives

The interesting aspect of the lawnmowing charity work is that the mowers share their work as YouTube creators. They earn money from advertising and sponsorships. In some cases, they earn enough to make it their full time job.

For more on Reflections and Musings, check back every Saturday for a new segment.

This is not financial, charity, nor content creator advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Low Price Maxxing

2026-09-04T08:00:00.000-04:00

For most of my life, I did low price maxxing. I would try to save money constantly on purchases. I could give infinite examples, but will only do a few for perspective.

I clip coupons or wait for regular sales to buy the products I use. Then I buy a larger quantity to benefit.
I have an almost photographic memory prices paid. Easy for me to do since I'm a numbers person and can remember purchases I've made in the past few weeks without checking. I regularly take advantage of stores that price match if price drops within 30 days.
For gasoline discounts, I'll will take multiple cars to take advantage for big ones, like $1 off, for the whole family.
I use points for hotel stays and airline flights, which results in the cost being free or a small charge. In fact, for hotel stays the numerous taxes are eliminated. For airlines, I still need to pay a small tax of about $10 max.

IMHO, this act of frugality help me retire early successfully in my late forties. Even after retiring, I continued to low price max for many purchases. I enjoy low price maxxing. I sometimes included my family in some low price maxxing activities, but they sometimes felt like it was bothersome effort with low return.

Since our retirement financial situation has become more sustainable, I have backed off significantly from asking my family to also low price max. Although my family knows they don't need to low price max, they will participate in some low effort elements, like buying more when on sale, but avoid doing most others like using coupons. For me, habits are hard to break and I continue to low price max but not a rigorously as before.

One thing I will not do to low price max: Install an app, which restaurants often require. I low price max at an app restaurant by not going there. LOL. My daughter, however, regularly gets lower prices with the restaurant app.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, purchasing, nor shopping advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

My Father-in Law's Investing Strategy

2026-09-03T08:00:00.000-04:00

My Father-in-Law had a very successful stock investment strategy which beat the S&P returns until 2011 when he passed away.

Here's what he did:

Identified potential stocks through The Motley Fool and Jim Cramer's Mad Money Show.
Using standard metrics such as P/E, he determined the "fair" price.
He would put in a good-til-canceled (GTC) limit buy order at the fair price, which was typically below the market price.
Once he acquired the stock, he would calculate a sell price, again based on metrics. He would put in a GTC limit sell order at the sell price.
He checked his portfolio status once per month.

Since he regularly beat the S&P 500, I was impressed and tried to copy a few of his stock picks, but was unable to match his success because I didn't have the same conviction in the methodology that he did.

Disclosure: I was not compensated by the Motley Fool nor CNBC for this post.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial, stock picking, nor investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Correction? It May Happen Soon

2026-09-02T08:00:00.000-04:00

Today's decline in the stock market may be the beginning of the long awaited correction. Maybe and maybe not. However, it's best to be prepared if a correction should happen.

I can't control the market or the economy. I can control the actions I take to be prepared. Simply, here's what I'm going to do:

I will continue to hodl the equities, bonds and mutual funds that I currently own. No need to sell at a discount.
Continue taking monthly distributions of investment earnings (dividends, interest, rental) and combine with Social Security payments and determine what percentage of fixed expenses are covered in a downturn..
Use money market funds, if needed, to weather an extended (say 1 year) downturn. Expect to cover any shortfall caused by the decline.
I won't be buying the dip, except if GOOGL drops to around $285. I will wait until a 10% before adding an S&P 500 ETF or mutual fund, more municipal bond funds. I plan to wait until the 20 year treasury exceeds a 6% yield before adding more.

Earlier I posted about what I would tell my younger self or do for my kids:

Stock Market Warning Articles. What to Do?

For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, stock investment, investment, nor retirement income advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

HIghly Viewed Posts in August 2026

2026-09-01T08:00:00.000-04:00

Here are the most viewed posts in August 2026 from My Wealth Builder:

Historical

These the three posts from the archives that received the most number of views in August 2026.

Financial Lessons from my Parents' Generation Re-Learned

Not Buying Things I Don't Need

Achieving Financial Freedom - I've Retired In My Forties

Current

These are the recent posts from August 2026 that received the three highest number of views:

Oh No, I Felt Brilliant This Week

Stock Market Warning Articles. What to Do?

Using AI to Cure Cancer

I hope you enjoy these posts as much as other readers have.

For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, parenting, retirement nor investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Some Mindset Hacks

2026-08-31T08:00:00.000-04:00

Here are some mindset tips that I have read/seen/heard and like. The first one I've read recently. The other three I have known for a while and try to follow as best I can.

Love the life you have, not the one you want.

IMHO, I think this describes me. For example, I drive a 2003 base (manual stick shift) 4.6 liter V-8 F-150. I love the truck and have no interest in replacing it. We've lived in the same house since 2003 and are happy. No jealousy issue with houses of people that are wealthier than us, although we are doing some renovations.

Don't be afraid to ask for something. If one doesn't ask, the answer is already a "no."

For large purchases, I always check if there are discounts associated with timing or payment options. This worked for our latest furniture purchase, where a holiday sale was ending soon and a discount given for paying by check instead of credit card. For purchases at craft fairs or farmer's markets, I ask if there discounts for paying cash. Sometmes yes and sometimes no.

Control what one can control. Don't worry about what one can't control.

I don't worry about the economy and interest rate changes. Worrying about these factors is a waste, it is what it is. There is nothing I can do. Instead, I think about factors I can control. What I do control is choosing strategies that minimize or benefit from interest rate changes.

There are spectators and there are participators. Be a participator.

Spectators regularly offer personal opinions about what others (government, athletes, businesses) should do. Spectators always know better. Participators get involved, do the work and help deliver outcomes.

Of course, YMMV.

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor mindset advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Traffic and Drivers are Worse than Pre-Covid

2026-08-30T08:00:00.000-04:00

Maybe it's my imagination, bad calibration, or alternate reality that I feel:

Traffic is noticeably worse (crowded, backed up, or slow on highways) than before COVID.
The percentage of poor and bad drivers is higher than before COVID.

Worse Traffic

Traffic used to be bad from during rush hours (7:30 AM to 9 AM and 4 PM to 5:30 PM) as one would expect due to work. During COVID lockdowns, traffic was free flowing all day long. When people returned to office, traffic was noticeably higher, but not like pre COVID times.

Nowadays, rush hour traffic has expanded to 7 AM to 9:30 AM and 3:30 PM to 6 PM. In addition, traffic is now congested even from 10 AM to 2 PM, but not as much as during rush hour.

What happened to make it worse? I though more people are WFH now?

Worse Drivers

Recently, I've seen much worse driving than before. Speeding, cutting drivers off, almost accidents and actual accidents, despite more advanced safety warning features on new cars. This is an observation on my part and no idea of the cause.

My initial reaction is I need to be more vigilant and careful driving that before and that I have ever been. My secondary reaction is that more tickets should be given out for drivers speeding or cutting off drivers. My third reaction is to drive more back roads to avoid the inevitable rage drivers on highways. My final reaction is to give myself 50% more time than needed and to stay calm during trips.

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor driving advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Stock Market - Too Good to Be True?

2026-08-29T08:00:00.000-04:00

"If it's too good to be true, it probably is." ~ old adage

The stock market is at all time highs despite:

War with Iran since February 2026.
Increasing Inflation

Higher oil and gasoline prices
Higher food prices

Second highest Shiller PE ratio, with the dot.com era being the highest
$40 trillion U.S. debt
High company layoffs due to AI

Add to that my apparent brilliance:

My buy the dip SAAS software stocks are up 20% on average since February 2, 2026, with the biggest gaining up to 145%.
My tax loss harvesting strategy of buying first and selling later has worked to my financial advantage almost every time.
Recently, all my accounts have achieved all time highs and continuing to rise.

Since the market has been known to be irrational for long periods before, I'm hodling most of my equities, especially those in a taxable account. However, I am taking the opportunity to scale out of some of my riskier (IMHO) buy the dip stocks, in the interest of working towards my goal of simplifying our investments.

Note: Specifically, I sold our CRM holding in the tax advantage accounts since it popped 26% on Thursday, August 27, 2026 on good earnings and a partnership with Anthropic. Even though CRM was up another 3% yesterday, I don't regret the sale. It's one less stock I need to follow, which is working towards my simplification goal.

For more on Reflections and Musings, check back every Saturday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investing, nor stock investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Municipal Bond Funds - Managing Interest Rate Increases

2026-08-28T08:00:00.000-04:00

In the past, I have avoided bond funds since the principal will fall when interest rate increases happen. With an individual bond, the principal can be recovered if I don't sell and hold until maturity. This is not the case with a bond mutual fund, which is continuous and never completely matures. Thus, I will take a loss on principal invested if I sell while interest rates are higher than when I made the original investment

However, since my strategy is now creating a retirement paycheck instead delivering growth in principal, I discovered at tax benefit hack from a municipal bond fund principal declining due to interest rates rising.

Disclaimer: I haven't had this idea financially analyzed by an "expert." This is based on my own experience and evaluation. I have only had experience over the past year, which has not experienced a significant decline for a long period.

Here's the how I evaluated:

Judge the result mainly based on income generated for a consistent "retirement paycheck" and not on growth or decrease of principal. I assume that the income remains constant when interest rates rise, due to reinvestment. I assume that income declines when interest rates fall due to reinvestment
I assume that the bond principal falls when interest rates rise and the principal rises with interest rates fall.

Here's the process for when interest rates are rising:

Do tax loss harvesting of the position. Avoid a wash sale by ensuring 30 days between the sale and purchase of the same security. While most people sell first and buy back later, I chose to buy first and sell later. This is worked well since most times, my purchase was near a short term bottom.
Maintain the same amount of shares in the positions. This ensures that the interest payment per month continues to be about the same, which is important for my retirement paycheck strategy.
Use the loss on the municipal bond fund to offset realized gains in other positions, or take up the a $3000 capital loss deduction against other income.

In the 12 months I've been doing this, I reduced my capital gains income by 64% in 2025, resulting in significant tax savings, while still received the same amount of total interest and dividend income . I expect to take a $3000 capital loss in 2026 that will reduce my taxable income by that amount.

What about the principal value falling? Does that concern me? Not yet, since I expect to get about the same amount of "retirement paycheck" each month. An analogy would be the value of my home. I don't worry about the estimated value of the house going down (or up) due to price volatility, as long as I am living in the home.

Will it concern me in the future? Only if there is a significant collapse of the U.S. economy. However, for typical recessions and bear markets, probably not. We shall see when one occurs.

Of course, YMMV.

Note: The effect and strategy for interest rates falling is not discussed in the post, but will reviewed in a future post.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment, retirement nor tax advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Circle of Neighborhood Life

2026-08-27T08:00:00.000-04:00

When we moved into our neighborhood 23 years ago, we were childless and expecting to adopt. After we adopted, our daughter couldn't wait to ride the school bus. When she started kindergarten, she was one of two children at our bus stop across the street. Over time that grew to 4-5 kids.

Then the houses started turning over as more original and 2nd homeowners sold when they became empty nesters. Over time the number of kids grew. Then came are son, who was 8 years younger. He started kindergarten when our daughter started high school. Since K-4, 5-8 and 9-12 ride different busses, my son was with a new and expanding group, around 8-10 kids .

Since my kids are older, I've lost track of the K-4 bus riders. Occasionally, I see the group if I leave early for an appointment or to play golf. It appears smaller than when I went out with my son, and it is a different group of parents.

While I don't expect number of kids to drop as low as 2 when my daughter started kindergarten, I do think we are now in the ebb cycle for our neighborhood, as many kids are in middle school from existing residents new families moving in. K-4 seem lighter now, but shortly that will increase since I see numerous strollers during neighborhood walks.

We're staying in place at least until our son graduates from high school. We will probably extend or residency until he graduates from college. That's as far as we've thought out, for now.

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial, home buying, nor parenting advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

One Path to Big Stock Gains

2026-08-26T08:00:00.000-04:00

This is based on my observation and experience. Definitely, not financial advice.

Foresight 😎

Working for the company that awards stock to employees that allows one to easily:
1) Have a concentrated portfolio
2) Hodl Through Volatility
3) Own a life changing amount.
Conviction 😊

Believing in the company enough to remain for a couple decades or more. Time owning the stock can be better than timing the stock.
Luck 🍀

Company success translates into significant growth in stock valuation. Some take off like rockets. Rockets are the ones that deliver, but rockets are never obvious at the beginning.

Wall Street's latest blockbuster stock split has arrived -- and this industry titan has rallied 337,000% over the last 32 years

However, there are many other blockbusters such as AAPL, GOOGL, AMZN. Then again, many companies do not take off or some go broke (eg. Enron), which I am more likely to choose. 😞

For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, employment, nor investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

What to Expect in the Second Half of 2026

2026-08-25T08:00:00.000-04:00

"It's hard to make predictions, especially about the future." ~ Yogi Berra

Weather forecasters and stock market pundits get paid whether they are right or wrong. LOL. Here's a rare, if not the only, positive 2026 forecast for the stock market based on historical returns.

The S&P 500 returned 10% in the first half of 2026. Here's what history says happens in the second half.

The table below shows results since 1991:

Year	1st half return	2nd half return	Full-year return
1991	+12.4%	+12.4%	+26.3%
1995	+18.6%	+13.1%	+34.1%
1997	+19.5%	+9.6%	+31%
1998	+16.8%	+8.4%	+26.7%
1999	+11.7%	+7%	+19.5%
2003	+10.8%	+14.1%	+26.4%
2013	+12.6%	+15.1%	+29.6%
2019	+17.3%	+9.8%	+28.9%
2021	+14.4%	+10.9%	+26.9%
2023	+15.9%	+7.2%	+24.2%
2024	+14.5%	+7.7%	+23.3%
2026	+10.2%	?	?

Source data: Yahoo Finance.

If history rhymes, 2026 will be another positive and banner return year.

For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial. stock market, nor investment advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Retirement Projects Around the House

2026-08-24T08:00:00.000-04:00

Maintenance, repairs and renovations has evolved to a full time job, especially as the house gets and the longer one lives in it.

When we moved in 23 years ago, we were mostly comfortable with the house as is. We immediately hired a professional and converted all the carpeting on the 1st and 2nd floors to hardwood.

At first, the maintenance work was relatively straight forward and part time. Mowing the lawn, which we paid to have done once a week. Raking the leaves in the fall, which occurred over several weeks for a few hours a week. Seeding and fertilizing the lawn for winter

Over the next few years, we made cosmetic changes, such as interior painting and changing window treatments. We also made some structure upgrades, such as replacing the roof, putting new furnace and a/c and painting/repairing the exterior.

After COVID, we upgraded appliances in the kitchen and did a small remodel, but didn't change cabinets. Also, we refinished our hardwood on the first floor.

Our latest project involves remodeling our bathrooms. Our house was built in 1988. Th upstairs and basement bathrooms have 4X4 white tile on the floor and in the bathtub. The mirrors are 4X8 across the whole vanity. We're thinking of modernizing the tile, mirrors and vanities, in addition to replacing the tub, toilet and sinks.

Finally, we are doing landscaping project, which involves new plantings, removing dying trees, and creating more privacy. We are also doing some stonescape work with large marble tile.

For some projects such a remodels, we hire professional. For some such as landscape planting, deck , concrete sidewalk, patio and driveway maintenance, we are doing ourselves as a start..

Here are some of the maintenance projects we are regularly doing:

#1 Fixing items when the "break" or stop working. Recent examples include: pot filler leaking, washing machine leaking, bathtub rusting, freezer not cooling enough, bike tuneups, dishwasher not cleaning, drain clogged, dripping faucets, HVAC inspection, exterior and interior, light bulb replacement, and miscellaneous stuff.
Regular lawn maintenance, which includes seeding, weed control and raking leaves. We do pay to have our half acre lot mowed weekly.
Tree maintenance annually. Trimming reachable dead branches. Have higher branches done by professional. Fertilization if needed.
Regular car maintenance. Oil changes, tire rotations, repairs as needed. I do minor repair such as replacing bulbs, changing cabin and engine air filters.
Annual fall cleanup, especially leaf raking, leaf composting, gutter cleaning.
Routine painting touch up.
Annual wood deck power washing, staining and sealing.

Sheesh, I often wonder how I had time to work?

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial, retirement nor maintenance advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Using AI to Cure Cancer

2026-08-23T08:00:00.000-04:00

In conversations with my roommates from college, I've wondered why AI isn't being used to solve big health problems like curing cancer.

In case you missed last week's big news, AI was used to "cure" cancer:

Moderna stock surges as melanoma vaccine trial shows "landmark moment"

Moderna’s Cancer Breakthrough Just Made Tempus AI’s $1.5 Billion Bet Look Brilliant

Terrific news, IMHO. Bravo for AI offering innovation that helps people without taking away from people.

A new skin cancer vaccine looks promising. A doctor who helped test it answers 5 key questions.

Disclosure: I was not compensated by any of the mentioned companies for this post.

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial, health nor AI advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

AOC Calling the Kettle Black

2026-08-22T08:00:00.000-04:00

This article recently came across on my feed:

AOC Rips Into Elon Musk: 'He Is Not A Scientist, He Is Not An Engineer. He Is A Billionaire Con Man With A Lot Of Money'

AOC calling Muskman a Con Man is pure irony. I'm no fan of Muskman. IMHO, he is a very big government parasite, getting rich from selling carbon credits subsidized by the government. However, he has delivered innovations, even though it's only on about 10% of his promises: 100% electric cars, reusable rockets for both people and satellites are among them..

On the other hand, AOC, who was elected to Congress in 2018, has been a master of "performance politics," which is the epitome of conning, meaning AOC has primarily been a prominent ideological voice rather than a lead author of standalone laws. Here's what I mainly remember about AOC in Congress:

Played "Among Us" regularly on her phone.
Mocked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on X by writing: “This is like applauding a grown man for being able to wipe their behind. Not exactly a vote of confidence.” LOL, she's right.
Mocked President Trump on X about comparing college transcripts, "Let's make a deal, Mr. President: You release your college transcript, I'll release mine, and we'll see who was the better student. Loser has to fund the Post Office." Maybe we should see the college transcript of all members of Congress.
She had a great performance when interviewed on NPR; her speaking style appeals to many listeners and voters.

Recently, the following popped up on my feed about AOCs financial (or lack of ) acumen. Surprised me that despite a $174,000 annual salary since 2019 she has not paid off her remaining student loan of $19000 which still remains at the same amount in 2026.. Huh? I guess she was waiting for forgiveness.

Deadbeat AOC’s student-loan mooching should be a red flag to her 2028 supporters

AOC just revealed her net worth is less than $100,000, here’s how much Fidelity says she should have saved for retirement before she turns 40

Billionaires exist due to tax benefits Congress created. Student loans are a problem due to laws Congress created. AOC could write laws to correct the problems that she identifies. That's the job of a person elected to Congress. But no, AOC is a poor con woman, with not much money, who continues with performance politics, instead of lead authoring and getting laws passed, to keep getting elected.

Spoiler alert: I won't be voting for AOC nor Muskman if either runs for President.

For more on Reflections and Musings, check back every Saturday Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial, political nor policy advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Oh No, I Felt Brilliant This Week

2026-08-21T08:00:00.000-04:00

Through Thursday this week, 90% of my buy the dip stocks went up, and sometimes by a lot. Many of my long term "loser" stocks in a separate account also went up this week, with a few becoming profitable, which I quickly sold for small profit.

This week was exciting, enjoyable and very low anxiety. However, although I felt brilliant, I know the results were too good to be true. It really is just a great, outstanding, maybe even once in a lifetime bull market. It works until it doesn't, which is why I'm sticking to my plan, and avoiding being greedy.

Here's the plan I'm continuing:

Build and maintain a "retirement paycheck" through dividends from stocks and interest from fixed income.
Simplify stock holdings by reducing individual stock holding and increasing broad market fund holdings. Sell some positions for tax loss harvesting.
Continue to hodl "buy the dip" SAAS stock with a target until midterms.
Stop buying stocks during a market dip.
Scale into high interest rate treasuries on bond mutual funds since interest rates may go up.

Most of all avoid being greedy when selling stocks. I kept this in mind as I reduced our stock holdings; I did not try to extract the last cent from selling. Sell, simply and feel good is my new mantra when simplifying.

Edit: My positions held up until Friday's close. Woohoo!

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, stock investment, stock selling nor fixed income advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Stock Market Warning Articles. What to Do?

2026-08-20T08:00:00.000-04:00

Pundits are highlighting the Schiller P/E as an indicator of a near term market top followed by a bear market. This article from Yahoo Finance shows the Schiller P/E at the second highest level with the 2000 dot-com crash being the highest.

This stock market indicator just flashed a warning not seen since the dot-com bubble

The Motley Fool warns that margin debt is also indicating a possible top followed by a bear market based on recent history.

The Stock Market Is Doing Something Observed Only 4 Times Since 1997 -- and the Previous 3 Instances Ended in Disaster for Wall Street | The Motley Fool

Here's a new one that I just learned about: increasing corporate bankruptcies and private credit yield spreads.

An economist who studies financial crises says the US is on the brink of recession. These are the 2 warning signs.

I admit, when I was younger, I used to worry a lot about another 1929 crash occurring. As a result, I often sold my winners for a small profit, especially since individual stocks would have high volatility in a crash, sometimes with the result of never recovering. As a result, my returns are much less than the the total market returns.

What is an investor to do?

In hindsight, here's what I would do:

In my 20-30s, I would put at least $159 per month into a broad market, low fee mutual fund (around 0.1% or less fees). I would do an S&P 500 mutual fund. I would just hold until my 60s, before withdrawing or selling any funds at which point the account would be about $1 million. In the long term, the overall stock market always goes up.
When bonds or CDs are 5% yields or higher, I would start buying longer term, say 5-20 years and hold. If in a taxable account, I would withdraw the interest earned and spend, since I am already paying income tax on the interest. If in a tax advantaged account, I would leave and use to invest in a broad market mutual fund.
I would save 6 months to 3 years of cash and keep it in a money market fund.
In my 40s-50s, I would start increasing funds put in fixed income. I would still not sell any of the equity mutual fund investments.
Retired and/or in my 60s-70s, I would start scaling out of some of individual stocks and/or market mutual fund while going up or very high. Transfer to money market or short term fixed income.

I think there is a future opportunity to find a sweet spot for percentages to have, sell or transfer at different times. But that is for another future TBD post.

Of course, YMMV.

Disclosure: I did not receive any compensation from Yahoo Finance nor The Motley Fool for this post.

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This is not financial, stock investment nor investment timing advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Municipal Bond Funds Become Higher Risk

2026-08-19T08:00:00.000-04:00

Since buying into muni ETFs (in late 2025) and muni mutual funds (early to mid 2026), they have been relatively stable despite all the volatility this in 2026. This gave me confidence that this was a good investment option for my retirement paycheck strategy, even though the strategy targeted for consistent payments and not consistent principal. However, this strategy still needs to experience a market downturn prove its value.

In recent back testing, I discovered that while the principal was relatively constant in the 2008 downturn, the principal fell significantly in the 2022 bear market. Why the difference? My conclusion is interest rates decreased in the 2008 recession, while interest rates and inflation increased in the 2002 bear market.

Bond prices go in the opposite direction of interest rates and hence the difference between the two years.

At this point, it appears interest rates are more likely to go higher than lower, resulting in more downward pressure and volatility on bond and bond fund prices. If this happens, this will be a real time test of the retirement paycheck strategy, which tries to maintain consistent payments even if the principal declines.

At the same time, I can put more money into bonds and bond funds with higher interest rates. However, I will be scaling in for the possibility the interest rates will increase over a year or more.

For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment, nor bond advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Expecting Higher Long Term Interest Rates

2026-08-18T20:00:00.000-04:00

Recently, I was thinking that buying 20 year treasuries yielding 5% was a good option to lock in a good interest rate. After TLT, the 20+ year treasury ETF, was at it's all time low. However, TLT was initiated in 2002. I decided to look back further on 20 year and the interest rate hit 15.8% in 1981. Yikes, maybe 5% is that great of an option based on long term data.

Source: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/DGS20#

With the uncertainty of oil prices and inflation, which both have a high probability of going higher, I stopped buying 20 year treasuries and TLT for now. For now, I will own short term money market funds to earn interest.

Will interest rates go higher? We shall see.

For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment, bond, nor interest rate advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Temporary Repair to Rusted Bathtub Leak

2026-08-18T08:00:00.000-04:00

Periodically, we've had a leak from our second floor bathtub. Typically, the leak shows up as a stain on our dining room ceiling. Typically, I make some measurements which show it's likely coming from around the bathtub drain, overflow and faucet.

In the past, I have re-caulked the bathtub wall tile interface that that seemed to work for a while. When that stopped working, I put a silicon funnel/spout on the overflow, since I thought the seal was leaking. I also put a silicone funnel/spout on our master bath jacuzzi. Both of these overflow solutions worked and solved the leaking tubs.

This recent leak, did not seem to be associated with caulking, since I just re-caulked to get rid of mold. I checked the over flow drain and the seal was fine. Finally, I checked the rusted area by the drain. I put a small amount of water in the area and it "disappeared" without going down the drain. For reference, I had been painting the rusted area with acrylic refrigerator paint to improve the cosmetics.

I decided to buy an epoxy repair kit. As I poked at the rusted area, chunks came and revealed a small how about 1/4" round. I then used a drill to wire brush the area, which made the hole bigger and revealed another gap.

Rust around drain with touch up refrigerator paint removed:

I tried the white epoxy that I bought, but it was not viscous enough to effectively fill the hole. I then used some gray JB Weld, which is slightly more viscous to fill the hole with 3-4 layers. Then I covered the area with the white epoxy

Taped off to apply JB Weld and white epoxy:

Repaired: Using JB Weld and white epoxy

While the repair is noticeable and not blended in, it is sufficient structurally to allow showering, and maybe even a bath. However, the rust will continue and therefore, the bathtub will need replacing. We're choosing to do it earlier, before another leak occurs. In addition, we may choose to do a full bathroom remodel since replacing a bathtub requires replumbing, and retiling the walls.

Disclosure: I was not compensated by JB Weld for this post.

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This is not financial, repair, or do-it-yourself advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

I Don't Use Margin for Stock Investments

2026-08-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

I never use margin, which is borrowing money to invest for stocks.

While using margin can turbo charge or amplify gains, it can also quickly eliminate equity if the stock drops, resulting in a margin call which is a request for more funds to meet maintenance requirements or 100% liquidation of the stock or other position. That is just too much stress and anxiety for me. A stock falling 20% is enough anxiety for me; I don't need the additional stress of being required to deposit more funds or get liquidated.

I guess I'm never going to make billions, like Leopold Ashenbrenner. Then again, I won't get margin called and lose billions either, like what happened in July 2026.

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial, stock investment, nor margin use advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Memory Stocks are Back - For Now

2026-08-16T08:00:00.000-04:00

Despite the roller coaster volatility in memory stocks, I've been hodling. Last week, the memory stocks roared back, not yet to all time highs, but within 10-15%. That's good enough for me since they both dipped about 40% from the ATH. My gains are about 25% since May 11, 2026.

My plans are to hodl until at least 100% gains, and then start scaling out. The plan may change if the gains my never get that high, which is a possiblity..

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial, stock investment, nor stock selling advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC