(17 Sept - Derek) One reason I don't like helping with tutorials is that I realise how much I don't know (or have forgotten) about maths, science, and law. Faraday boxes, membrane filters, and burdens of proof is difficult enough to understand in English. I fully respect my housemates for having to deal with it in two languages.
There's nothing better than hot-food parties to take the edge off winter. Unfortunately, my Lamb-roasting skills failed me just when Julian's mates were staying over. It was, frankly, inedible. Thank God we had Ting Ting's lemon cheesecake to save the day. I redeemed myself (I hope) with a laksa. If only cooking were an Olympic sport! Ayumi and Julian aren't slouches when it comes to cuisine either. Their food smells so good sometimes that I can barely overcome the temptation to scoff it down without asking. Even with all these weddings and birthdays and dinners out, I still don't mind a good cook-in. Here's a list of home-cooked food that's gone down my gullet in the last couple weeks.
No wonder I'm putting on weight.
(26th July - Derek) All the cool kids are talking property. They discuss loans and laws like vintage wines, name-dropping suburbs where once they cited couturiers; "Plympton, Mile End," instead of "Prada, Miyake."
I've seen their balance sheets, and the plans look good on paper. Buy, then look for tenants. Their rent pays for your rent, so you can buy where it's cheap without having to live there. You've got your investment while maintaining your lifestyle - bully for you!
However, the numbers are more complicated than that. Sure the cashflow looks heavenly. (Who doesn't want a few hundred extra a week?) But the flow goes both ways. Borrow over 80% of the purchase price, and all your rent will be going to repaying interest, getting you nowhere. Positive net cashflow - paying off the principal, as well as interest - only comes if you start with a hefty deposit - at least 40%. No wonder old-timers are so keen to jump out of shares and into property. They already have capital to translate into cashflow, without attracting big interest.
(Consult this mortgage calculator)
I say 80% because that's usually the amount the bank will let you borrow without requiring you to take out mortgage insurance. Before deregulation, mortgage insurance didn't exist, and banks simply didn't lend more than 80%. I recommend against borrowing more than 80% regardless of whether it's offered, because while mortgage insurance is a great enabler, it is a vote of no-confidence on your ability to pay. Note also that mortgage insurance only protects the bank. The insurers will still hound you for the rest of the money.Even if you do turn a profit, property over time will be outstripped by shares, giving you little reason to choose property instead. My portfolio - dividends included - achieved just short of 20% growth last year, no interest, fully franked; far better than the house did. Not bad for a 'bear' market. You can borrow to invest to increase your earnings, but whether you're dealing with property or shares, there's a risk you will over-gear.
(Consult this gearing calculator)
So why buy at all? Well, buying a place to inhabit still beats renting in the long term, even with house prices so expensive. You'd be surprised at how short 'long term' is too, often no greater than 4 years. Rent will always go up while mortgage repayments generally don't. So the easiest return you can get from a property is by living in it. You will save buckets of money, but no one talks about that, why? Because saving money is less sexy than making it.
(Consult this Rent vs Buy calculator)
The truth is, there is nothing 'cool' about property. You will split nails and chap skin fixing roofs, walls, and floors, in an effort to save thousands that would otherwise go to tradesmen.
You will sacrifice parties, clothes, and lifestyle, knowing that any money not spent on the house will cost you far more in interest.
You will stay in a job you loathe utterly because of the security, and because you can't afford to leap into anything worse.
Would you do all that unless it involved the roof over your head? Are you sinking in tens of thousands of dollars and committing hundred-thousands more just to have something to talk about at dinner parties?
In other words, why buy a place if you don't need it? It will be a huge burden for many years, and it won't return the money you put into it. If you're not going to live in it, you're likely to get more money from shares.
However, if you choose to buy and occupy, there are other benefits aside from the financial. Unfortunately, they are almost embarrassingly redneck. Simply: full and total rights to a piece of turf. You cannot be evicted. It cannot be forcibly taken from you. It is financial security and stability, so much so that owning one debt-free will enable you to live without employment. Now, they're not concepts that will up your street-cred any, so I understand you wanting a trendier alternative.
Hence, most of us will look for bragging rights according to the hype about what houses can be - gearing, investment, yield - overlooking in the process what they are, first and foremost: homes.
"You see, motivation and interest are interconnected, but subtly different entities. Powerful motivation (desperation?) can obscure interest (attraction), but beware! because motivation is bound to change before interest does....leaving you with no motivation, no interest, and a hell of thine own creation."
But how does one deny 'motivation' when dealing with something that is almost pure motivation? Read more."I think that you are too subjective in your rating scale. However, a purely objective scale if probably too hard to implement. What would you measure? Height, Weight, Bust Size, (BodyFat ?), Frequency of sex?, Frequency of arguments?
I'm suggesting a structured subjective scoring system. After all relationships are very much a subjective issue. But its important to make sure that we don't forget any of the major attributes. Additionally by leaving the categories relatively broad, we don't run into issues of over-specification. eg I considered a category 'excitement' or 'danger'. Its the typical Hollywood choice, between the sweet cheerful well balanced girl and the hot crazy self destructive chick. But seeing that I've got categories for Sexiness, Personality and Attraction it does cover both those scenarios.
Unfortunately the major problem of this index is that it will be very difficult to show anyone any of the numbers."
Even attempting to explain the system would likely result in a one-way trip to Dumpsville ... which could be a good thing in some cases.| Attribute | Subjective Score | Comments | Objective Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| Looks | /5 | Pretty much self explanatory. Rate on your personal tastes. | Height, Weight, (BMI), Cup Size |
| Sexiness | /5 | Looks ain't everything. This takes into account what happens behind closed doors with the lights out (or with the lights on, or in the outdoors as the case may be) | Sexual Activity / Wk (optionally rate seduction attempts that fail 1/2, seduction attempts that overcome resistance 2; unfortunately activity not with you still rates!!) |
| Personality | /5 | Emotional balance. Mark down for possessive, argumentative, etc, unless you like that sort of thing. | Arguments / mth |
| Intelligence | /5 | Can she make intelligent conversation? Can she carry out simple tasks, like organising a party or the holiday. (If she won't that is a different matter) | Win/Loss record on arguments (Only when decided on rational grounds) |
| Attraction | /10 | The extent to which you are attracted to the girl. Might be indifferent to a really nice glamour, or head over heels with seems to be a really average chick. Life's just like that sometimes. | Attraction Ad hoc gifts given (/yr); Time spent together / Non-working awake hrs |
... but you can leave them for the birds and bees.
(by Derek - 5th July) Arg. God. No. 29 years old. But I won't put out a birthday gift registry this year. I can honestly say that I'm 100% content with what I have right now. So what do you get the man who has everything?
Money.
Cash, cheque, electronic transfer. I'm not on Paypal, so I can't do credit card. (But I'm able, if you're willing.) I've used money as a wedding gift for ages before I finally realised its true significance: choice. Money is options, pure and simple. A hundred bucks can get you a swish dinner for two, or 25 pie floaters. I can even use that money to make or save money (at 7.69%pa).
I dearly love every gift I get. I appreciate kind words and good wishes even more. But if you're thinking of getting something for me, take the hassle out of shopping, and grace my palm with alms. (I'm trying hard not to sound like an ungrateful git here, but it's not working, is it?)
It's my birthday and I'll buy what I want to.
