v19.0 - Happy....Something

Laughter kills fear, and without fear there can be no faith. For without fear of the devil there is no need for God.
- Sean Connery
 
 
 
 
Hey Folks,

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Posting a bit later in the day today, but a post none-the-less.  I was doing some google searching today and as luck would have it, I stumbled upon a link back to my website.  It is always a good feeling when that happens as the chances of others performing the same search will stumble upon my site and perhaps get a good laugh.

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Yesterday was ultrasound day.  We got to see a grainy black and white 2D picture of our new baby.  Despite the poor quality, it was nice to see and I felt a sense of pride and excitement to see the baby move.  Unfortunately we can't show the rest of the family as the hospitals here do not provide pictures of the ultrasound (what is with that?) but allow me to say the baby is healthy and both baby and mother are doing fine.

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We are currently looking to buy a new home.  Working with my brother-in-law (the realtor) we found a place we love and have put in an offer which was countered which we accepted.  Now we play the waiting game while the mortgage broker and realtor and lawyer put together the final paperwork and get all the details sorted out.  I'm really hoping this goes through as it is about time we start investing in something that will gain value rather than lose it.

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This brings me on to the subject of investing and making money.  Through this whole process we learned that there are certain things we are doing (financially) right and things we are doing horribly wrong.  I didn't have the financial "training" growing up.  My parents basically gave me my allowence each week, told me I should save it for something I really want and not to spend it all in one place.  I didn't learn about investments, RRSPs or any of those other scary acronyms.  Granted, my parents may not have had all the information available to them as there is today.  I find these days people are more money smart than they used to be.  No longer do we allow the bank to tell us how it is and we put less and less faith in our banker and more faith in ourselves and internet discussion boards.  Today, people do a lot more research before they buy things and in the end will make informed decisions on their purchases.

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Today the common theme seems to be getting out of debt fast and easy.  Trust me folks, if getting out of debt was fast AND easy, you and I would be rich today.  Getting out of debt is a lot like quitting a bad habit.  When you consider the bad habit (spending in this case) got you into the debt in the first place.  Like you've maybe heard time and time again, there is good debt and bad debt; just like there are good habits and bad habits.  Unfortunately, for me, all debt is bad debt because I have issues with spending and sometimes living beyond my budget.  This is something I've been working on and am finding it easier to keep a budget and spend what I have rather than using credit.  It's hard.

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Anyway folks, I must run for now as it sounds like supper is nearly ready.  Remember to hug someone you love today.  Not only will it make them feel better, but you yourself will feel better for doing it.

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Cheers,
Al