Personal Questions at Social Volunteer Event

I recently attended a large outdoor volunteer recognition event.  It was in a park and catered as a cookout.  For reference, my volunteer assignment is by myself and I interact very little, maybe 30 seconds each time, with other volunteers or employees.  Thus, I attend the recognition by myself and sit with people I meet for first time. 

By chance, I usually sit at a table where people have met for the first time.  The conversations are usually superficial, like where does one volunteer, and enjoyable.  This year I sat with a group where the three of then women knew each other well.  After sharing where I volunteered, I mostly listened to the conversation, about various topics, sports, kids, volunteer opportunities.  

Then the most talkative of the women turned to me and asked what I was passionate about.   First, I wasn't ready for anything other than small talk, or chit chat conversations.  Second, I wasn't interested in sharing my passions with strangers that I just met, like finances, taxes, retirement income, etc. I froze and she tried to help me by offering my volunteer work area.   Finally,  I said, "I really don't have anything I'm passionate about," which led to her joking she was passionate about the volunteer work she did.

Afterwards, I thought about this and concluded I ought to have a ready response in the future.  

• I'm passionate about investments, income and taxes.  True, but it sounds too nerdy.  I didn't think briefly about giving this answer, but decided not to do so. I didn't feel it was  a good answer for people that were strangers.
• I'm passionate about helping my kids to be successful.  True and probably relevant with a group of women, but not my style.
• I'm passionate about making it to the next day.   Yeah, that's me also, but probably too cynical for a social discussion.
• I'm not passionate about any area.  What are you passionate about?  I think this would have been the best answer to strangers.   Tosses the focus back to the original requester, which I feel is appropriate.

Yeah, next time I'll be ready with the fourth option, which I feel is best in the situation.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

I Don't Answer Phone Numbers I Don't Recognize

We get a lot of unsolicited calls on our landline.  A few years ago, I started using the call ID to decide whether to pick up on the phone or not.  If I didn't recognize the number, I let it go to the answering machine.  Over 95% of those calls didn't leave a message.   On the occasion, the caller was known, I could easily pick up after they started leaving messages.  For reference, I have a good memory for numbers I've seen before, a curse from being OCD,  I think.

At first a few unknown callers, especially political robocalls would leave messages. However, we've only received 2 political robocalls that left messages.  No other unknown callers have left messages.

Up until this year, my spouse would routinely answer all calls, despite my warning it may be an undesirable call.  Often she would end up listening for few minutes and then say, "We're not interested."  This year, she started not answering all calls and letting them go to the recorder.  Woohoo!

We still get a lot of unknown callers.  But almost 100% don't leave a message and we no longer waste time listening to telemarketers, who call despite us being on the no call list, and political campaign calls.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Always Thinking When Awake

When I recently discovered that "always thinking" is not normal, I realized that describes me:  I'm always thinking.  I didn't ever think always thinking was abnormal.  From the Internet, "always thinking" is a sign of possibly OCD, ADHD, or anxiety among other things.   Another side effect is taking a long time to fall asleep.

Well, I admit I have OCD and ADHD tendencies, but not so much anxiety issues.  Also, I usually have no trouble falling asleep, usually in 2-5 minutes, which surprises my spouse and daughter since takes them as much as 30 minutes to an hour to fall asleep.

I guess that's why I enjoyed doing sports since I don't "think" during the activity.  I put all my energy, focus and strength in performing and don't remember thinking.  However, my memory cells must be kicking in since I accurately remember a lot of what occurred even years later, which is a symptom of being OCD.

At this time, I haven't concluded or resolved what this action means.  I guess I'll have to keep thinking about it.😎

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

R.O.M.E.O.

Retired Old Men Eating Out.

I attended my first R.O.M.E.O. lunch, which was organized by my church.  I thought a few people I know would be there, but they were all members that I met for the first time. 

Overall, the lunch went great.

First, it was a local bar/restaurant which I had never been to before, but passed by many times.   The food was great.  I had the pizza, but I noticed the choices by others were excellent.

Second, we had brief introductions and some were long, though I kept mine short.  It turns out the attendees are always different, so introductions are the norm.  A couple folks were Vietnam veterans.  Some had retired from the major companies in our area.  All had grandkids, except me.

Third, other than family activities and interesting stories, aches, pains and necessary surgeries were a big part of the conversations.  Most were around 10 years older than me and it gave me a glimpse of a possible health future. There were no political discussions or comment.

Fourth, my favorite comment was R.O.M.E.O. should be changed to Retired Outstanding Men Eating Out.

Fifth, I enjoyed enough to attend again.  I just have remember to sign up each month on the church newsletter.

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

This is not financial or socializing advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Child Independence

TLDR:  Times have changed and parents are generally more cautious with child independence now than when I was a kid.

Recently, I read an article about a mom found guilty of abuse for letting 5-year-old walk outside alone,

The article made me think about myself when I was 5 to 16 years old and how I've handled my own kids during that age.

When I was 5, I used to go out on my own in the neighborhood.   We would play after school or all day on weekends with other kids in the neighborhood.  All the kids played together up to young teenagers.   Never any concern about safety.

When I was 8 years old, I used to ride my bike by myself to football/baseball practice or the local stores.   By 12, I was riding about 10 miles on local roads.  

However, the world has changed and is perceived as less safe, but it still varies by parent.

With our kids, we didn't let them play on their own at 5.   We always accompanied them to visit other kids yards and chatted with the other parents.  We mainly did play in friends yards and used the opportunity to catch up.  In addition, we usually accompanied them to the bus stop until they were out of elementary school after 4th grade.  Now while this approach isn't all parents, it is most.  We have one family with 4 children and the parents let their children out on their own at 5 or even younger, but do accompany them to the bus stop.

For both our kids, I used to ride my bike with them to the local grocery store about 2 miles away on the sidewalk.  At 13 years old, they started to ride on their own, usually on the sidewalk, but crossing 4 lane roads on the crosswalk.   By 16, my daughter would ride to a park about 5 miles away and one the road.

Here's one occasion, we almost messed up but it turned out OK:

When we are out, we always stayed close to the kids, in stores, in parks and at festivals.  We only had a couple of misses.  Once, we were on vacation and street performer gave out a small token and our 5 year old daughter went into the crowd to get one.  For 10 long seconds, we didn't see her and thought someone had taken her, and then she became visible when the crowd dissipated.  Another time with were at a 4th of July festival.   We were holding her hands, but my spouse became separated in the dense crowd, while I continued to hold our daughter's hand.  I was always with my daughter, but my spouse was separated for 30 minutes and didn't know where our daughter was and was worried.  I thought she had voluntarily separated and knew I was with our daughter. This was before both of us carried cell phones.  Finally, we reconnected and my spouse was relieved.

As usual, YMMV for parents and children.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Waiting and Not Buying Long Term Fixed Income

The interest rate situation is getting worse, with rate increases likely and the 10 year Treasury yield likely to exceed 5%, which is an ominous sign.   The bond situation is not looking good, and Secretary Bessent's actions seem to be worsening the predicament.

I'm expecting long term interest rates to keep increasing in the near term. My reaction is to stay on the sidelines and not buy any new fixed income with maturities greater than one year, until interest rates stabilize.

The Fed meeting that ends today will give a good indication of the direction of interest rates in the near term.   The market expects the Fed to increase interest rates.   I agree and will hold buying long term fixed income investments for now.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Selling Memory Stocks Last Week was a Good Decision

Last week, I did some vibe selling since I felt AI stocks have reached a plateau, at least, and maybe a near term peak.  I decided based on a feeling to sell my recently purchased memory stocks, which are AI related, for a profit.

Turns out that was a good decision, based on today's closing price of $927.60, which is lower than every of my MU sales prices last week. 

Yes, I'm not brilliant, just lucky having the right feeling at the right time.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Medical Insurance Unexpected Coverage

I recently checked on surgical procedure and was told by my medical insurance customer service the procedure would not be covered by my insurance policy.   To note, I only described the procedure and did not submit a CPT code.

I decided to do the surgical procedure, which was medical and not cosmetic, to have the issue corrected.  The provider then submitted to cost to my insurance company right after procedure.   After a month, the insurance company approved the claim and paid for the procedure.  Woohoo!

Lesson learned: 

• Medical insurance claims can be very complex, to the point that some customer service representatives may not give an accurate answer.
• If the provider accepts insurance, always have them submit a claim for payment.

I may need this procedure again in the future. I will definitely use the same provider so that a claim is submit which my medical insurance will cover.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Buying SPY Put Options as Lotto Tickets

I am buying deep out of the money S&P 500 ETF (SPY) puts in case the market falls soon.

Last Thursday, I started losing confidence in the stock market advance.  Despite the rebound on Friday, it seems the market is one TBD event away from a major decline or crash.  At this point, my inclination is to mostly hodl, and not to buy the dip.  

In addition, I'm betting on a SPY decline.  I am scaling into SPY puts expiration January 15, 2027 with strike prices of 100-130.  I'm paying $0.01 per share for a 100 share contract or $1 total,  the cost of a lotto ticket.  Of course, unless something catastrophic happens, SPY is not likely to fall to 100 since it closed at 746, this past Friday.  However, SPY doesn't need to drop to 100 for me to make money.  If SPY drops to 646 next week, I will make $5-10 because of how options are valued based on market volatility (risk) and SPY price.   

I know a $5-10 gain isn't much, but that's why I call it a lotto ticket. If I the option expires worthless, which is what happens with most lotto tickets, I can write off the loss on my taxes.  Woohoo!

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

President Trump Dividend Checks and Gasoline Price Reduction

President Trump has offered a $5000 dividend when Republicans win majorities in the Senate and house.  This is the fourth time President Trump has proposed dividend checks during his second term.  Here are the other:

• $5000 dividend from DOGE cost cutting.  Amount I have received:  $0.
• $2000 dividend from Tarif income.  Amount I have received:  $0.   Amount tariffs I have paid:  $200+ estimated.
• $1000 dividend from expiring ACA subsidies.  Amount I have received: $0

President Trump  has promised gas prices will decline after midterms.   Originally, President Trump promised to reduce gasoline prices after getting elected.

• Amount of price reduction: $0.  Amount of price increase:  $0.90

Reminds me of an old joke:  How does one tell when a politician is lying?  When his/her lips move.  LOL.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC