Recent content by charlie

Reduce Risk: Portfolio Optimizer - Effective Diversification If you are interested in what has happened in the past, this may be of use. Just remember that the future is unknown. Cheers, charlie

I have finally settled (I hope) on Intermediate Term Bond Index in my IRA and Wellesley (with a touch of FTSE all world ex US) in my taxable. Each has about 1/2 of my overall portfolio. The yield is about 4%. I have been retired (well almost) since 1989. Cheers, charlie

I received the 4 gb RAM set in the middle of this conversation and installed it with only minor difficulty. You really have to push hard to fully seat the memory cards. After installation, Rosetta Stone was very quick so I have decided to defer installing a dedicated hard drive for now...

My user manual says the computer will hold 4 gb in 1 gb sticks and the illustration shows 4 slots so I guess I am ok on that score. I like the idea of a removable hard drive. This allow me to transfer it to my daughter for her kids when I am finished. Are there any potential problems like...

Thanks Powerplay, After cleaning the hard drive I have 17 gb free space. Rosetta Stone will take almost 6 gb of that as I bought all 5 levels. My computer has space for a 2nd hard drive. I have never tried to run programs from 2 drives before. Is it possible? If so, I could use a new drive...

Hi all, I recently bought Rosetta Stone for Spanish (Latin American) and loaded it on my old desk top Dell Dimension 4600. This computer has a Pentium 4 at about 2.5 Mhz, 60 gb of hard drive and only 512 mb of RAM. The installation was very slow going but it was finally successful...

Would a VAT or NST be included in the gov's calculation of CPI? If so, it would give a nice one year boost to the income from my inflation linked bonds.;D Cheers, charlie

Would somebody please provide an example showing that adding a VAT would not change the advantage of a ROTH assuming FIT rates remained the same. My tired old brain just does not understand how paying tax twice on the same money is not a bad thing. Thanks and Cheers, charlie

With respect, I would suggest that this topic be moved to the political forum. There are very strong feelings on both sides of this issue and this thread will get nasty quickly, IMHO. Cheers, charlie

Bless you, Furball. It looks like you have the bases covered to me. I had a similar responsibility before my Mom passed in 2008 and for my wife's aunt who passed in late 2009. I hope your siblings appreciate what you are doing. Cheers, charlie

One "warm fuzzy" that I get from owning Wellesley as my major holding in my taxable account is that the long term experience of Wellington Management might help preserve capital in the event of a "black swan". Cheers, charlie

I think Wellesley and Wellington are both great funds and I second Brew's comment about Wellington Management ..... not to worry, IMHO. I currently own Wellesley in my taxable along with enough FTSE All World ex US to bring my foreign up to 30% of equity (Wellesey only has about 7%). Keep in...

I think these are good funds IF they fit your asset allocation AND you fully understand that they have the same risk that any equity heavy funds would have. They are not guaranteed and will tank when the market tanks. That said, I think they are better diversified than any other Vanguard...

Although it helps to me mechanically inclined, it is not necessary to the running of a successful laundromat. Of fundamental importance is a good location followed by keeping the place clean, bright and safe, hiring and retaining good people, having reliable repair men on call, managing cash...

W2R, I am the one who has owned a laundromat for over 40 years. It has been a great source of supplementary income during my 20 years of early retirement. If the OP wants to retire in Texas, I can make him a goood deal.:whistling: Cheers, charlie