Today I am going to share with you a fantastic article about 16 timeless lessons on life, money & purpose by Patagonia’s founder, we learn more about the state of US credit card usage, a deeply personal post on trauma, inaugural Icon of the Seas Voyage play by play satire and an amazing infographic showing where does one US dollar go? The regular longer post returns on Friday featuring the usual mix of eclectic curated links along with my commentary, thank you for reading my blog.
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Back with another short Tuesday post. I will see you all Friday with the usual longer post.
The Tao of Yvon
We start this short post with a fantastic article about 16 timeless lessons on life, money and purpose from the Patagonia founder, climber, angler, surfer (never businessman).
How Bad is Credit Card Usage in America?
Some interesting stats and graphs in this article…
The 45% of people who carry a balance are paying some of the highest borrowing costs imaginable. It’s the biggest form of anti-compounding in all of finance. The other 55% of households use credit cards merely for their convenience and rewards and pay off their balance each month. The rewards they earn are essentially being subsidized by the 45% of people who pay interest. [So true, be among the 45%! Wait, 45% is too high, wake up people, break this chain!]
If you’re paying 20% on a $6,000 balance that’s $100 a month in interest charges. That might not seem like much but it adds up. Even if you make a $30 minimum payment, your balance after 12 months is nearly $6,900. [This sad fact keeps this miles and points free travel hobby alive, true. Still, society would be a lot better off if people did not fall into this hole].
Holding a credit card balance from month to month is one of the worst financial decisions you can make. The first rule of personal finance is you pay off your credit card balance every month. The second rule is don’t forget rule number one. [Amen!]
Trauma
Deeply personal post about trauma. It starts out like this below and just never relents…
I will tell you something that is a fact: all the bad stuff that happens to us before the age of seven, all the trauma we experience as a child, becomes a part of who we are. It is in every cell in our bodies. It is true of all ages, but it is especially true before age of seven.
Crying Myself to Sleep on the Biggest Cruise Ship Ever
Author goes on a solo cruise aboard the huge Icon of the Seas, the latest boat by Royal Caribbean. In its inaugural voyage. The author has a T shirt with “Daddy’s Little Meatball” and, well, his writing is exquisite and at times I had trouble controlling my laughing. Just a few excerpts to pique your interest:
The very color of my Suite Sky SeaPass Card, an oceanic blue as opposed to the cloying royal purple of the standard non-Suite passenger, will soon provoke envy and admiration. But as high as my status may be, there are those on board who have much higher status still, and I will soon learn to bow before them.
Worse awaits me in the dining room. This is a large, multichandeliered room where I attended my safety training (I was shown how to put on a flotation vest; it is a very simple procedure). But the maître d’ politely refuses me entry in an English that seems to verge on another language. “I’m sorry, this is only for pendejos,” he seems to be saying. I push back politely and he repeats himself. Pendejos ? Piranhas? There’s some kind of P-word to which I am not attuned. Meanwhile elderly passengers stream right past, powered by their limbs, walkers, and electric wheelchairs. “It is only pendejo dining today, sir.” “But I have a suite!” I say, already starting to catch on to the ship’s class system. He examines my card again. “But you are not a pendejo,” he confirms. I am wearing a DADDY’S LITTLE MEATBALL T-shirt, I want to say to him. I am the essence of pendejo.
And now I understand something else: This whole thing is a cult. And like most cults, it can’t help but mirror the endless American fight for status. Like Keith Raniere’s NXIVM, where different-colored sashes were given out to connote rank among Raniere’s branded acolytes, this is an endless competition among Pinnacles, Suites, Diamond-Plusers, and facing-the-mall, no-balcony purple SeaPass Card peasants, not to mention the many distinctions within each category. The more you cruise, the higher your status. No wonder a section of the Royal Promenade is devoted to getting passengers to book their next cruise during the one they should be enjoying now. No wonder desperate Royal Caribbean offers (“FINAL HOURS”) crowded my email account weeks before I set sail. No wonder the ship’s jewelry store, the Royal Bling, is selling a $100,000 golden chalice that will entitle its owner to drink free on Royal Caribbean cruises for life. (One passenger was already gaming out whether her 28-year-old son was young enough to “just about earn out” on the chalice or if that ship had sailed.) No wonder this ship was sold out months before departure, and we had to pay $19,000 for a horrid suite away from the Suite Neighborhood. No wonder the most mythical hero of Royal Caribbean lore is someone named Super Mario, who has cruised so often, he now has his own working desk on many ships. This whole experience is part cult, part nautical pyramid scheme.
Where Does One U.S. Tax Dollar Go?
This blog started with a focus on miles and points and travel. It has evolved since then. All the miles & points sections return on Friday, along with the other gems you have become accustomed to.
Let me leave you with this:
Some of the links are behind a paywall. You can try to read them using Archive.is.
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TBB
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Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Looks like student loans were “fixed by COVID”! Meanwhile, Ivy Leagues are now $100k/y. Maybe it got out of control? Just like health care costs. Another great jobs report….so why are we still borrowing so much to stimulate? Keynes would say this is crazy over an economic cycle. Federal debt increases by $1T/100 days. Looks like that tax dollar needs to be two. Recalling your comment last post about waiting to collect SS until you’re 70, surely this is no longer the case. Better to get some $$$ than nothing since there’s no political will to fix SS and money will start to run out in less than a decade.
I think Auto loan delqs are going to rise. People have been taking out ridiculous loans and some of those are underwater now.
David Foster Wallace wrote the definitive cruise ship takedown a while back:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://harpers.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/HarpersMagazine-1996-01-0007859.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjnr-_ajrWFAxUg4ckDHQ8fDjUQFnoECCEQAQ&usg=AOvVaw0IJhBZxa242O0XhWNZutYo
Yes, average car is $50k, and increasing interest rates. Car manufacturers can only give so much discount until they realize…. maybe there’s a big market for $30k cars.
Gold prices are up! Is it related to Costco selling gold bars or inflation/gov debt?
Good morning!
Thanks for the breakdown on federal spending. I wonder if the US government gets points
for using its credit card to kick the taxes down the road.
Thank you Buzz
Good stuff today! No idea why last Friday’s got hidden in my spam folder but I finally looked there, which I rarely do, and there it was so thanks for that one too!
Hope all is well and as always, Thanks!
Still here after all these years. Always a treat to follow your links — thanks for keeping on!
Back from Chicago, still dealing with some type of bug.
Lost another subscriber. Am I the only blog that is losing subscribers or what? So demoralizing.
I knew some of these links in this post will generate some pushback from you guys.
Thanks to Aaron for taking the time to comment, makes me think someone cares about what I do here. Unlike them email subscribers smh.