Learning the Fine Print in my Health Insurance Coverage

I recently had cataract surgery, which Medicare covers.   I also found out that Medicare will cover cost of corrective glasses since I got single focal cataract lenses.  I thought this would be easy to do.   Haha.

I called my Medicare Advantage Insurance company to clarify the coverage and process.   Here's what I found out:

• Medicare only covers the cost of 1 pair to glasses with a standard frame including anti-reflective and UV lenses.  Subsequent glasses are 100% my responsibility
• The provider needs to fill out paperwork to be submitted with my request for reimbursement to verify I am qualified for the benefit.
• I need to pay for the glasses and submit for reimbursement.
• The expense is expected to be done within 3 months of the surgery.

Originally, I was just expecting to go to provider, present my prescription, and have the provider submit to my insurance.   Wrong.  Good thing I checked and learned the above.   

I will be using another provider other than my usual one.   I will bring all my support documentation and have a new provider that complies with the rules and paperwork requirements in the next few days.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

TIL People Routinely Poop in the Shower: Ewww!

Since I read WallStreetBets on Reddit, I receive recommended posts from other subreddits.   One that I read in AIO (Am I Overreacting) subreddit was a girlfriend asking if it was strange her boyfriend pooped in the bathtub while showering and squished it down the drain with his foot.  I don't remember any of the responses, but thought this was bit strange.  (For reference, there is a lot of strange stuff in the Am I the Asshole subreddit and Am I Overreacting subreddit, especially about entitled people.)

Anyway, I mentioned the gross activity to my daughter in college.  She commented that it happens a lot iin their communal showers, enough such that the college had to post a sign to not do it.  She said that's why people wear shower shoes.   

Ewwww!

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

This is not financial, hygiene nor dorm advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Diamond Handing my Winners

I'm notorious for selling my gains at 15% to lock in profits.   Recently, I decided to hodl my winners:  BB, NOK,  SLS, MU, and STX.   I kept these even when they went down, but eventually recovered. Now I've decided to diamond hand these stocks.  

Ahh, maybe I can get a 10000% gain for the first time ever.  Hopium thinking on my part.  We shall see.

Disclosure: I own shares of BB, NOK, SLS, MU and STX.  I own call options for BB and SLS

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

AMZN 30 Minute Deliveries

AMZN is starting 30 minute deliveries in some regions.   Whoa!  30 minutes is less time that it takes me to drive the store, look for the item, purchase it and return home.  

I wonder how much it costs.  If it's free from prime members, I may try it.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Discover Card Bonus Rewards

Discover was the first card to give cash back.  It also didn't charge an annual fee. I think it was a 1/4% cash back for the first $3000 and 1% after that.  I got this card when it first came out.  The new Discover card is 1% cash back on all purchases. I also got this card because my daughter referred me and we both got $100 when I was accepted and spent a minimal amount.

Discover does offer bonus 5% cash back for certain purchases.  The bonus categories are varied, change on a quarterly basis, and have a limit of $75 bonus on $1500 of purchases.   For example, this quarter (April - June), restaurant and home improvement store charges receive a 5% cash back.

Cash back rewards can be used as follows:

• Payoff card balance.
• Deposit to linked bank account.
• Purchase gift cards at a 5-20% discount.

I don't don't link to a bank account.  I originally got gift cards but only when I expected to use it right away.  Lately, I've been paying part of my card balance.

Disclosure:  I was not compensated by Discover for this post.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Blackberry (BB) Hopium: Big Loser in 2025, Winning Big in 2026 So Far

In early 2025, I bet big (for me) with call options on BB going up to $7-10 by 2026 in both a taxable account and a Roth account.   All the call options expired in January 2026 at a strike of $7 or $10.   They all expired worthless.  I lost $113.98 on three $7 call options and $170.64 on four $10 call options for a total 284.62  in the taxable account.  I lost $148.30 on five $7 call options and $169.30 on five $10 call options for a total of $317.60 in the Roth account.

Coming into 2026, I was still interested in buying call options for BB, but more conservatively.  I ended up only getting one $7 call option on April 10, 2026 that expires in January 2027 for $7 when BB was $3.90.  Based on my losing experience in 2025, I decided not to be aggressive with BB call options.  I tried to get another $7 call option in my taxable account at $7 but it did not execute. I quit trying after the option started increasing in value when BB stock value rose.

Fast forward to Friday, April 22, 2026, when BB closed at $7.99 and achieved a 52-week high.   The $7 call option is now worth $1.485 per share or $148.50 for the contract.  My profit is now $141.50.  So, maybe I wasn't wrong about BB, just a year too early in buying options.  We shall see.

My plan is to hodl until the $7 call option is worth $3.50, which would be $343 profit and offset the loss of $317.60 in my Roth account on BB options earlier this year.  If BB should significantly rally to $20, my call option would be worth $11 or more per share or $1100 for the contract.   That's what I'm hoping will happen so that I cover the previous losses and make additional profit.   Hopium at its best.

Disclosure:  I've owned BB in a taxable account and Roth account since 2021.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

No Space X (SPCE) IPO for me

I'm not buying into the Space X IPO.  

1. I don't like IPOs.  Too volatile.
2. I think Muskman stocks are overrated, even though I am trading Tesla.
3. Muskman is the ultimate government parasite.  Tesla never made money selling cars.  It made made money from selling carbon credits from the government to other car companies.

To note, I'm always wrong.  I didn't invest in the AAPL, AMZN and META IPOs.   Probably best to inverse me.

Disclosure:  I own AAPL, AMZN and META at this time.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

GameSlop and Ryan Cohen

I remember when Eddie Lampert took over Sears.  Many thought he would be a savior.  Instead, he was destroyer and Sears no longer exists.

Ryan Cohen founded Chewy in 2011, which he then sold to PetSmart in 2017.  At first, people thought Ryan Cohen would be the activist savior for Gameslop when he joined the board in January 2011, in line with a Nelson Peltz.   Turns out, he is no where close to Peltz and is likely closer to, if not overlapping, with Eddie Lambert.   

Cohen's latest activity was offering to buyout Ebay, with half stock and half cash.  Nevermind that GameSlop has a 10 billion dollar capitalization and Ebay has a 52 billion dollar capitalization.  The math doesn't work, even if one is regarded.

Although I made a tiny bit of money on the original GameSlop run in 2021, I regret buying 2 shares for $51.70 in June 2024 when it popped.   No more believing Ryan Cohen will revitalize GameSlop before it's demise.

Disclosure: I own shares of GameStop (GME) in my Roth account.   

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Hunting for Coupons and Sales

I've always been a coupon and sales hound, and I continue to be one in retirement.  Coupons for free items, with no purchase necessary, are one my favorites.   These are usually grocery store coupons for grocery stores within 2 miles of my house.  Then, there are coupons that give you another product with a purchase.  Recently, I got a $16.99 ratchet adapter set for free with a purchase, and I needed it.  Of course, there always the BOGO, buy one get one, free coupons.  My favorite coupon retailer is Costco.  Coupon are automatically applied at checkout for significant savings.

Then there are the holiday sales:  President's day, Spring Black Friday, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Black Friday, yada, yada, yada.  Luckily, when we need a major kitchen appliance, it was during on of these holiday sales.  Recently, I bought an oscillating tool package for about 50% off the individual components.  One of my routine favorites is buying my anti virus software during black Friday.  The normal price is $80 and I can buy for $20.   Since the activation key never expires, I buy a couple and install them as needed.

Is it worth my time to find the coupons and sales?  Do I really save enough money to justify the effort?  Probably not, but I find the effort fun and entertaining, even though my family feels it's too much effort.  But then again, I may score big when we get a new car, since our cars are 14, 23 and 24 years old.

Disclosure: No compensation was received from Costco for this post.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Less Need to Turn Off the Lights

When I was a kid, I was always instructed to turn off the lights when not using, and reminded when I didn't turn out the lights.  The rationale was electricity costs money and leaving lights on when not needed wasted electricity. True, especially with incandescent lights, which give off significant heat also.

With LED lights, the amount of electricity used for the same amount of light is 75-85% less.   While electricity is still wasted when left on, it is much lower than when I was growing up.   Still an issue, but much less than with incandescent light bulbs.

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

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

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC