Book List

I just finished a book by Octavia Butler (The Parable of the Sower)--Excellent! I recommend it highly. Also, my friend Ben is entering into the world of Cormac McCarthy and began with All the Pretty Horses; a great read, but I would recommend starting with either The Road or No Country for Old Men first. Anyway, I think McCarthy is a little difficult to get used to at first and some of his works begin a little slowly (I'm still struggling to get through Blood Meridian), but they are definitely worth it.

Ben has emailed me about some questions that this blog inspired (why he didn't just comment on the blog itself I don't know), but he had questions pertaining to investments as well. He explained his situation and it sounds very similar to mine. He doesn't make a ton of money and doesn't have a ton of time to put into investing. Everything I've read and heard from financial experts direct people like us to use no-load, low fee mutual funds and try to take advantage of any employee matching 401k's and/or Roth-IRAs. The best mutual fund companies that qualify are in such large groups as Fidelity, Vanguard, American Century, and American Funds. I think once you determine which of these groups to choose from, it makes sense to begin with one of their funds that are geered towards a retirement date. These funds diversify based on your age and what they perceive to be your optimal level of risk. Once you get enough saved, you can diversify yourself, moving your money into various index funds, foreign/emerging market funds, and as you get older bonds and more fixed income related funds.

Hope this helps. I'd love to hear other people's advice and ideas pertaining to either of these subjects, or anything else you've got on your mind.