What Handouts To Cut

[srkruzich]

I am wondering where people who can't afford their prescriptions find the money to invest in the stock market.  Doesn't it take all their income just to survive?  And if the money is in savings or something like that, why are they so poor?  Why do we have to hear about how hard it is for them to manage even the basics?

Finding money to invest in ones future is not too awful hard, it just takes time and patience.  Unfortunately most people can't do that.  You know I bought my bees this year by not eating.  It all depends on what your willing to sacrifice in order to achieve something.  Most people aren't willing to sacrifice.  Secondly, giving offerings to God will help out.  It doesn't matter if its time, money or product, if you give it he will give back.  Doesn't mean he will give cash.  Sometimes its sending a person that is willing to trade a lawnmower for something you can make.  sometimes its getting a check in the mail from someone that is anonymous.  you never know.


Got a little story for ya, years ago, my grandma and grandpa were very poor.  Grandma barely kept food on the table with what grandpa made.   Yet every day one of us grandkids were there, she would pull down the coffee can and let us get pennies to buy a ice cream from the truck. She managed to save the change from her grocery budget in order to buy us kids a ice cream.  They were poor as church mice but could manage to save for what is important. 

You see, I save change.  When i get enough i put it into something to make money.  I also make things for people. I put it into something to make money.  If i can't afford my drugs for the month, i do without.  I don't touch that savings.  You see
that is what is wrong with people today.  They will get in a tight, and then suck their savings out of the bank because they do not know how to sacrifice now to have something later.

Maybe i am poor, though i don't think i am. I have what i need.  I do ask for items that someone might throw out or don't need.  I don't waste money on tv, or useless items that will only break after a few years, i fix what is old and use it til it falls apart, i drive a vehicle til the wheels fall off.  I have the benefit of being raised around people who went through the depression of 29 and learned how to save.  In todays society, very few people know how to save.  If they can't pay for it in cash they charge it. 

So in your wonderings, maybe you might also consider that it really is none of your business how i manage to save a nickle.  But being the person i am, i don't have a problem educating you on what it takes to save money.

[Wilma]

Thanks a lot.  I am not in any way affluent, but I don't complain about what I don't have or what I might have if the government hadn't taken it away from me.  You see, what I do have is what the government is giving back to me from what they took.  So far, I have received much more than what they took.  People don't have to listen to how poor I am, because I don't feel poor.  I, too, had parents who had the bare necessities.  Not because they didn't work, but because there was no work.  Yet, I didn't feel poor then as I don't feel poor now.  As I have said before, I am as good as anyone and better than most.  I don't depend on what I can scrounge together.  If I need something, I buy it if I think it is reasonable.  Yet, I don't feel as if I am so poor that I have to do without one thing in order to have another.  Neither do I have an above high school education.  My husband had only an 8th grade education.  He still made good money because he took a job that he didn't think he could do, didn't think that he would like and worked at it for 38 years.  Yet, I don't feel poor.  My philosophy is that my cup is half full, not half empty.  You might say that I have never had a fortune and I have never lost a fortune, but I still have what I need and most of what I want.  What else is necessary?

[srkruzich]

You know i do complain sometimes especially when i am told that we cannot get a cola increase, while queen obama goes on 8 vacations in a year, and fed employees get raises when the rest of the country is cutting budgets and tightening belts.  Yeah i kinda take great offense to that. 
One other problem is that i do not expect SS to last another 5 years.  i think they will cut it out or cut benefits so much that it will devestate everyone on it.  We see it happening to medicare already.

That is why i have bought my bees this year, and cut back on groeries and meds to do so.  I hope to end up in a place where if they decide to say screw the public i will not be left with no resources. 
Like i have said before, if they would give me whats mine, i would go on my merry way and take care of myself.

[Diane Amberg]

Steve, I stopped buying individual stocks some time ago, glad your mom is doing well with hers. Right now I'd be more likely to buy those that are still paying a dividend, even though that's not a sure thing any more. If your mom has the time to watch the market often to catch those highs and lows, that's great and can be a lot of fun too. Everybody has their own philosophy on how to make it work. I don't bet on horse races either.You can win big, but you can lose your shirt too. I'm more of a "steady as she goes" person. I might make a little less but I defend well during bad times too. By the way, I stopped buying gold many years ago.
  You must be a lot older than I thought! It's been a very long time since the ice cream guy sold cones for "pennies." I know what you mean though. We didn't buy from the truck because it was cheaper at the store. People who had enough land for good gardens had an advantage too, speaking of canning and freezing to save money. I don't think we save much any more but at least I know what I have and it's not full of preservatives and junk I don't want. I'll need to take more over to the food bank again soon. I'm about to be over run with squash and cukes again.

[srkruzich]

Well diane, i was only responding to showing you 5-7% return on your money.  Its not as hard as you think.  I in no way would even think of putting money into CD's or things like that and dividends don't pay enough for me to warrant lending your money to them. 

You can invest securely if you shop around.  Like the QQQQ fund, i remember when it started and it has done nothing but go up. even in 2008/09, it didn't collapse. It only went down 10.00 a share, retaining 30 dollars a share.  So if one had invested everything into it they would not have lost their life savings.  Now to me that is a secure investment when going through a financial market collapse your stocks only lose 25% of its saleable worth and then recovers in a short year back to what it was and continues growing.

I do remember nickle ice pops, and i think .35 was the most expensive one at the time and it was a drumstick.
Uhmm i also remember nickle cokes, woolworth soda fountains, and a&w rootbeer stands where you went in and got a rootbeer float served up by carhops. USed to go there with my grandpa in his studebaker.

[Diane Amberg]

You'd have to know the history of the CD's and how I happen to have them. I didn't consider them my only investment and the interest rate at the time was 5 times what I could get today. At one time I had 30 year Treasuries that were paying 14 %. They were called a couple of years ago. I'd rather be well diversified in a lot of things that aren't as volatile even though they may not pay as much. I also don't pay much or anything in fees. I do thank you for the suggestions though. I am familiar with the Q series Trusts.  On paper we did lose some in the crash, but have gained it all back and then some, plus we have losses to deduct from our taxes for several more years. I have no complaints.

[Wilma]

I did taxes for someone that has a diversified fund that he has paid into for more than 30 years.  Today the fund isn't worth the money that has been paid into it. 

I knew a man that put all his money into stocks so that he could leave his wife and children a good income.  When he died, there was nothing left.  This was more than 30 years ago.  He was a good man and truly thought he was leaving his wife well provided.

I don't have much, but what I do have pays a return, be it very little at this time.  It has never lost a penny.  I know it is there if I need it and I won't be surprised with the fact that it has lost all it's value.  Plus if I need it, it would be very little trouble to get it and, no, it is not buried in a glass jar in the back yard.

AND, I don't have to do without one thing so that I can have another.

[jarhead]

LEAD---invest in lead. That is my advice and it can be bought local at Cookson's

[Diane Amberg]

lead? and gold paint?

[greatguns]

I can't imagine giving up food while still puffing on ciigarettes.