That was two weeks?!?

So it's been a couple of weeks since I posted to this thing. Have I been reading (while I haven't been writing)? A little. But I also bought a car and a new computer. So those sucked up a bunch of time.

I skimmed very quickly through Everything You Know About Money Is Wrong by Karen Ramsey. It turns out she's based in Seattle, where I am (nearby) and apparently is not (closely) related to Dave Ramsey, who is also a financial advisor (see previous post). However, her message mostly jibes with Dave's: get rid of debt, save as much as you can. But Karen is not as negative on all borrowing as Dave is. Her rule of thumb is that logic should be the driving force in money matters. But when logic doesn't feel right, go with your heart - just make sure everyone in the family is communicating about it.

Now I'm in the middle of another of Dave's books, Financial Peace Revisited. It is much of the same. I think his Total Money Makeover sends a much stronger message on the subject. I'm going to have to read it again and have my wife look at it, too.

Two new books from the bookstore go on the shelf (hopefully for attention this summer): Final Reckoning: The Fate of Bester by Greg Keyes and The Philip K. Dick Reader from the Philip K. Dick Society. The former is the third book of a series about characters from the TV show Babylon 5, focusing on Psi Corps. I have finished the first of the three (along with many other B5 titles) and look forward to reading the rest of the story. The latter has the short stories that inspired the movies Paycheck, Total Recall and Minority Report. Fun!

1966 Was the Coolest Year

Last night I started reading (I can't just scan most things) the very entertaining volume Hal Lifson's 1966! A Personal View of The Coolest Year in Pop Culture History by (obviously) Hal Lifson. I have to agree with Hal that this was a very key year. While Hal was turned six that year, I turned nine. He was living near Los Angeles and I was in Pheonix. He was watching Hobo Kelly in the afternoon and I was laughing with Wallace and Ladmo. But our shared sense of Pop Culture is still surprisingly strong (though unlike Hal, I got Star Trek). And you have to admire (don't you?) someone that can get Adam West and Nancy Sinatra to write forwards for their own personal ramblings. I may have to add this one to my library.

The Total Money Makeover (Dave Ramsey)

I found this to be very inspiring in many ways. It made me want to get more proactive about getting out of debt and saving. So, we're working on that. But I don't agree with everything he is preaching, such as paying off your mortgage ASAP.

Allow me to (not) introduce myself

This is my first blog post. I really can't take much time to write much. I may introduce myself at a later date. My first review will be The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

Other reading waiting for me is several months of several magazines and accumulated dreck. More on that as it pops to the top of the stack.