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Larry T. Spider

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Everything posted by Larry T. Spider

  1. Louisiana had a bunch of creationist whack job schools open up after they passed vouchers. There was actually a little bit of academic accountability and the schools scored horribly. After 7 years, 66% of the students attended a D or F school. We will never know how they do in Texas because there will be no accountability ratings.
  2. Once you understand this is a new form of grift, it will make more sense.
  3. No dirty children of illegals coming here to steal our jobs and voucher slots.
  4. 52.4% of local tax money paid. 821 million a year.
  5. I congratulate them on getting what they voted for.
  6. Complain about wasteful spending in eduction. Solution: hand money over to schools with zero oversight, accountability, or regulations.
  7. Very glad to be out of public education today, although my job still depends on working with school districts to serve their most challenging (and expensive) students. We work with kids that typically cost districts $40,000-$60,000 per student per year because of the services the district is legally obligated to provide. Private schools will not take these kids under any circumstances. The ecosystem works because there are enough kids that require the typical educational structure to offset the costs. Vouchers eventually remove enough of those kids that the system starts to crumble. It won’t be this year or even next, but the long term plan has been set in motion. Enjoy spending your tax money on schools with no academic accountability ratings, no requirement to provide certified teachers, no requirement to provide special education services, no obligation to accept kids from tough circumstances, and no legal requirement to report staff fired for questionable behavior with students. I also hope that the residents of the 158 Texas counties that don’t even have a private school enjoy paying for private education for reasonably well off suburbanites who already have access to good public schools. Everything republicans have ever preached about accountability for public schools is a farce.
  8. Not going to bother with a new thread. Still hanging in there at 42% as we enter the months with the best chance for rain before the extended hellscape summer. Some major housing developments south of Austin have been put on hold due to water concerns.
  9. I don’t see a lot of traders wanting to hold through the weekend. I’m expecting a big slide in the last hour. Which means stonks to the moon, of course.
  10. As the wise man Ice Cube once said: “if you’re scared, go to church” Full speed ahead! Loading up and will be looking to add some tech index funds soon. I’ve got time on my side.
  11. I’m not a financial professional in any way but based on your age and statement that you don’t have nearly enough saved, you might not be as bad off as you think. I think you are young enough to still make a difference it the quality of retirement you are hoping for. Staying the course with consistent investing should have you well ahead over the next 15 years. If the market does take a big dip over the next year, buying at a discount could be the best thing for your financial future. Of course that all depends on your individual situation and the amount you have to plow into the market each month. I’ll let the pros chime in with their take.
  12. @RabidM If you don’t mind sharing how old you are, or a general range, it might help some of our knowledgeable posters help you out a bit more.
  13. Been slow and steady in Round Rock. Much needed.
  14. It’s not an option for my wife, but it might be for me. I need to see if my company’s plan allows it. This will be the first year that it’s mattered.
  15. I made a similar post a while back but have some more concrete numbers to work with now that my wife got a raise. We are early 40s DINKs that have a household income about 3.5x higher than 5 years ago but basically the same expenses. This is leaving us with about 5k a month to figure out how to invest. This is after tax advantaged accounts maxed, a healthy emergency fund, and enough to pay for the next car in cash. I also have 15 years paid into TRS, which will pay me about 2k/month when I’m in my late 60s. These are the options I see but would love others opinions: 1. Brokerage account - dollar cost averaging. Don’t have much in this account because we weren’t making enough to fund anything beyond retirement accounts until very recently. I was a poor teacher for 10 years and my wife wasn’t making much. 2. Pay extra towards current rental property. Owe 130k at 7%. Somewhat recent purchase. House pays for itself plus a little currently. 3. Save for another rental. Currently have about 35k put away for that. 4. Pay extra on our own mortgage. Owe 130k at around 3%. House is probably worth 600k. 5. Hookers and blow. Additional info. I’m in sales and get a few commission checks a year. Anywhere from 10k to 100k, but usually on the lower end of that range. Need to start planning for that as well.
  16. Truth. I have been hearing about more people moving there but hadn’t seen data supporting it as a trend until now. Great bang for your buck if you can deal with the cold. I personally love Chi.
  17. And now the PE douchebags that own my company will have to pay more. The circle of (business) life.
  18. I fly a lot for work but it’s split between so many airlines I don’t have much status on any one carrier. I go to a lot of random places across the country and usually don’t have a ton of options. However, I almost always went with SWA when going to a conference and needed to check two bags. Guess it doesn’t matter now. Don’t really care about a free Diet Coke but noticed the last 4 flights I had been on they cancelled drink service for “turbulence”. Pretty sure the PE guys figured out another way to save money.
  19. I personally liked Madrid better than Barcelona. Better interactions with the locals and I loved wandering through the narrow streets. We stayed in La Latina and would hit up a local tapas place or bar each day. The people were amazingly friendly even if they didn’t speak much English. The touristy areas of Barcelona were fun but it was pretty obvious that outsiders weren’t welcome in many of the neighborhoods. Not blaming the locals, just lessened the experience for me. For hanging out at the beach and eating paella, we preferred Valencia. Some beautiful architecture there as well.
  20. Didn’t expect the murder to happen 200 yards from me…..
  21. I have murdered 9 beers so far today at the baseball game. Guilty as charged.
  22. 0% chance we make it through the weekend without a murder now
  23. Hope everyone is off to a good start to the year. My fiscal year goes 9/1 to 8/31 so I’m about half way through the year. Now is prime buying time because we are dealing with school districts setting things up for the fall. New business quota is 4 million. 850k closed deal for 1-2 million right at the finish line, just finalizing size. deal for 3.8 million is also at the finish line but it’s split with another rep. deal for 800k isn’t as close as the others but more likely than not. I would say 65%. deal for 800k that I put at 30% chance. Something new will jump in the pipeline before it’s all said and done. I met with 18 superintendents last week that aren’t included in the above. I’m calling 5 million but think there’s a decent chance it’s higher.
  24. If you ask 100 people you will get 100 different answers in terms of what percentage should be in bonds by age. I have a pretty high risk tolerance so I’m not planning on having any bonds 10 years out from retirement. Other people seem to think 20% is appropriate for your age.
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