My Path to (No)Madness!

[NoMadYesHappy]

Just another U2OOB update:

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Just another U2OOB update:

... with EXCITING news!

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Well, I did it!

 

[OregonDeb]

Well, I did it!

Watched your video - I would recommend that you apply for unemployment if you can; if only taking it for a couple of weeks- (not sure how it works since you have applied for Soc Sec.)
3 months is a long time to go without some kind of money. 
Good luck!

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Watched your video - I would recommend that you apply for unemployment if you can; if only taking it for a couple of weeks- (not sure how it works since you have applied for Soc Sec.)
3 months is a long time to go without some kind of money. 
Good luck!

I'm selling the house and its contents which would put some more resource in my hands as early as three weeks from now.  I think I can make that stretch pretty safely.  I've got family if I stub my toe and end up without food or shelter ... very unlikely.  And, I've been plotting this course for months ... no, decades ... and have collected the rudiments for survival (canned or dried foods, clothes, stove, tent, cooler, etc) in my SUV for just such needs.  Thanks for looking out for me!  Absolutely appreciated!

 

[Technomad]

Prices are set by supply/demand. "Supply" and "demand" have nothing to do with government spending. Sorry. That isn't "economics", it's "politics". And it's mistaken. As a historical aside, the times when the US had its most rapid economic growth ever (in the 60's and in the 90s) were times of massive deficit spending. That is also true of other nations like England, France, Germany and China.

I'm not talking about politics, I'm talking about economics.  Economic science may disagree with your political philosophy, but that doesn't give you the right to assert that I'm talking about politics.  I'm going to clarify the economics, if you wish to disagree, please make a specific argument or rebuttal to the argument I have presented below, rather than just assert I'm wrong.

Prices are affected by supply and demand, yes, and money has a supply and demand.  Money also has a price, which is reflected in its exchange rates with other currencies, but more directly with goods that cannot be inflated.  

When the government is printing money (so it can spend it) it is increasing the supply. When it is doing this faster than the rate of economic growth, there are more dollars chasing a fixed supply of goods, and thus the prices will go up. 


Your "aside" is inaccurate. First off we have had "massive deficit spending" (depending on how one wishes to define "massive") since the founding of the federal reserve in 1915, growing more massive over time.  So one could also say "when the US had economic depression and the worst recessions (1930s, 1970s, 200 were times of massive deficit spending".   The implication that deficit spending causes growth is .... unsupported by you, and also unsupported by economics and in fact illogical.

The reason it's illogical is because it ignores a couple of effects.  The first of these is that all spending is spending money that must come from somewhere.  When the spending is of tax dollars it is spending money that came from the economy itself.  So if you look at the use of that money and call it "growth" you're ignoring the economic impact of the taxation that provided it-- namely the companies that aren't building plants, or the consumers who have less money to spend on goods and services.  The same is true for deficit spending, also known as "printing money".  The only difference is that the taxation effect is more widely distributed, by devaluing the currency itself due to there being more supply of it.

It's easy to come up with a positive result if you take the costs out of the equation. 

This may seem like an aside or esoteric, but its pretty relevant to most americans who, mostly due to being mislead on these issues, end up managing their money not as well as they could-- they invest in houses that are actually not great investments (if you understand the economics of it) and run up more debt without recognizing the long term impact of that debt on their retirements.

I have made no comments on political philosophy, pro or con, only on economic impacts of policy choices.... and the policy choices are only tangentially related to my point:  Increases in the money supply will drive up prices.

And the point that is critical for everyone here to know (who I presume is a population that is more likely to have alternative financial situations, such as retirement or non-traditional income) -- as long as money issuance is high, and continues to grow higher (as it has in recent decades, under both parties) prices will continue to go up, putting the squeeze on anyone with a fixed income, and causing secondary and tertiary effects on the economy which could be problematic for people with non-traditional incomes.

The short advice is, make sure your assets are hedged against monetary inflation.

 

[Technomad]

I'm selling the house and its contents which would put some more resource in my hands as early as three weeks from now.  I think I can make that stretch pretty safely.  I've got family if I stub my toe and end up without food or shelter ... very unlikely.  And, I've been plotting this course for months ... no, decades ... and have collected the rudiments for survival (canned or dried foods, clothes, stove, tent, cooler, etc) in my SUV for just such needs.  Thanks for looking out for me!  Absolutely appreciated!

What does your realtor think about selling the contents with the house?  For me, I would want a blank slate.... if I looked at your house and didn't like your furniture, then that might make me a lot less likely to buy it. 

If your realtor thinks it's a good idea, great.  But if not, consider purging the stuff.  You will likely get more money selling it off by itself than including it with the house.

When we reduced to just backpacks we took 6 months to sell all our stuff.... we were having garage sales twice a month for 3-4 months.  We got so much money, it was amazing how much cash was locked up in the junk.  Even selling small things for $1-$5 really adds up.

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Hey, Technomad ...
The house is being sold empty.
The current contents are being sold off through what i am calling a broker for lack of a better word.
They (the broker) inventory everything, advertise to collectors, retailers, general public and etc. They expect that 500+ folks will peruse our goods over a two day period. Expectations are about 70-80% will go in the two days. The rest will go to good will or the land fill. The broker gets 35% of the take and I don't have to do a thing.
I'll let y'all know how that turns out.

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

It feels good ... odd ... but good.

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Curious to know what you think about the new face?

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

No More Tiers

 

[bugleyman]

Yep. An economy in which people's living is dependent upon a job is simply unworkable when automation and workplace changes remove most of the jobs. Like it or not, we will be forced to move to an economy where "income" and "job" are no longer linked, and most people not only WON'T work for a living, but CAN'T. Ever.

Those transitions have happened before. The US economy used to be 80% agricultural--now we produce more food using only 5% of the population. Then we became 80% industrial--and now we produce more GNP using less than 20% of the population. So we became a service economy--and now that is in the process of being automated and mechanized as well. And there's nothing on the horizon to replace it.

It will change everything. The biggest challenge facing society will then be how to efficiently and effectively distribute a sufficient means of living to the large majority of their population who not only do NOT have a job, but never WILL have a job. 

All of our old political ideologies will become irrelevant and disappear. For many people, that will be a very difficult reality to accept.

Very insightful.

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

... The US economy used to be 80% agricultural--now we produce more food using only 5% of the population. Then we became 80% industrial--and now we produce more GNP using less than 20% of the population. So we became a service economy--and now that is in the process of being automated and mechanized as well. And there's nothing on the horizon to replace it.

It will change everything. The biggest challenge facing society will then be how to efficiently and effectively distribute a sufficient means of living to the large majority of their population who not only do NOT have a job, but never WILL have a job. 

All of our old political ideologies will become irrelevant and disappear. For many people, that will be a very difficult reality to accept.

One thing about changes to the work place in the past is that jobs displaced by technology have had other places for people to go find work.  Not necessarily better places, but at least there have been places.

Something different today, in my wholly inadequate understanding and opinion of it all, is that in the past, a human brain was a difficult (impossible with tech that was available) thing to reproduce in all it's complex ways.  The ability to synthesize and intuit ... apply a "gut feeling" ... to solve some problem or task was out of reach.

Technology is rising [has risen?] to the point where that last bastion of a human mind is threatened.  AI, quantum computing ... whatever ... is giving synthetic minds the ability to replace a biological brain driven by a human psyche, creativity and intuition. 

Where else is a feeble, slow moving, short lived, fragile human going to find purchase on a slope that seems destined to topple us all into oblivion?


"For many people, that will be a very difficult reality to accept."  I believe <- that mindset will be the stumbling block that prevents change to something that could accommodate the new "Liesureforce" and give us a means to live.  I've already heard "why should they get something for nothing?" and "I don't pay taxes for them to sit on their butts!" and on and on.  ....sigh....

We [humans], as a rule, don't do "change" or "different" very well.  

I, personally, am a proponent for change.  Quickly please!

Now all I need is a "how"... wish I was smarter. 

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Latest update ... the estate sale ALMOST crashed!  :0



Meet the daughter and the dogs, too. 
Looks like I'm about two weeks away from launch, now.

 

[John61CT]

Latest update ... the estate sale ALMOST crashed

Just a suggestion, but many people won't watch such a long video unless it offers valuable data or is very entertaining.

You could just type the info, not sure what value the video medium adds.

Especially for those paying per MB for their data.

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Thanks, John ... newer, shorter, but still boring as "H" "E" "Double Toothpicks"

Length: 3:24 - Estate Broker Bail, My Selfish Confessions!

 

[OregonDeb]

Estate Broker - not sure where you found the one who bailed but you might ask your real estate agent if they now of any. Agents who have been in the business for years often have all kinds of contacts.

 

[Annie W]

The out of doors has been a draw for me for as long as I can remember.  I was part of a group in my adolescent days that camped regularly and, as I grew to adulthood, I began back packing in the Sierra's from Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney, as well as the San Bernardino's and Mojave.  

Settling down to raise a family curbed most of my back packing.  It just didn't fit into the new paradigm for some reason.  But
the pull for wilderness living simmered in the patient, back consciousness of my mind ... coiled and waiting.

Today my family is grown, my wife has opted to go another direction ... away from me ... and I am facing the now roaring giant that has waited for decades for the moment to light itself.
I see you!

But, I still have debt.  I have 2.7 more years to reach full retirement.  And, one more daughter still at home.
I can make it work now, but at a cost.

Waiting is costing me too.
Today I told my boss that I will need Jan 11 - 21, 2018 off.
If there's any viable combustibles, the RTR could just be the spark to start a blaze.
We shall see!

Obviously something went missing here. 
in your u-tube you said you were married 35 years, but all that history you two lovingly... built together is now over?
Really?
You also said she might really like sharing more new adventures. Can you build on this?

Since the house has trouble being sold, maybe this could go in yet another direction ?

Wishing you all the very best :heart:  for you & your life's companion, your children, & grandchildren, & everyone...

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Obviously something went missing here. 
in your u-tube you said you were married 35 years, but all that history you two lovingly... built together is now over?
Really?
You also said she might really like sharing more new adventures. Can you build on this?

Since the house has trouble being sold, maybe this could go in yet another direction ?

Wishing you all the very best :heart:  for you & your life's companion, your children, & grandchildren, & everyone...

Yep.  Really.  I'm still dumbfounded.

I've been talking about going nomad in one form or another for decades.  I know it's in my blood, and I believe it is in her's too.  But, she wants no part of it.  She's got a new boyfriend, so any sort of future together looks rather grim.  Honestly, I'm not sure I can mend my own feelings toward her either.  Her actions have torn my family apart and crumbled the life we've built over 35 years to dust.  Let's just say I'm a bit grumpy about the whole mess ...

The house is sold.  We close on the 23rd.  The 24th will be my new birthday.  The start of my new life as a nomad! 

Thanks for the well wishes ... very much appreciated!

 

[NoMadYesHappy]

Loaded up another shorty: stretching my video editing legs a bit (been a while!); thanks, sis; snow today; bike's still not sold...



~3 minutes and 18 seconds.