Favorite team:LSU 
Location:Grapevine, Texas
Biography:1985 LSU Grad
Interests:
Occupation:Retired Software Engineer
Number of Posts:52
Registered on:12/30/2003
Online Status:Not Online

Recent Posts

Message
I was a boy scout. Our troop members were ushers at the games in the mid 70's. I got to sit on the steps in spilled drinks, but I was in Tiger Stadium! I remember TigerVision and watched (or listened) to away games any way I could. When I moved to Texas in 1986 I bought a 32 inch TV with rabbit ears to watch Dale Brown's final four team. It was sitting on the floor because I had no furniture. :geauxtigers:
Sounds like we have a thing or two in common. I retired this year, though at 62:
- spend less than you are earning in retirement income, generally (December should always be an exception)
- spend some time outdoors every day
- exercise
- meet others as frequently as possible
- listen more (especially to the "other side"). I can't stand today's identity politics. Too much name calling
- turn off 24 hour news. Be careful on social media
- Say yes, more often. When invited just go (until it becomes a commitment that you don't want yet)
- add more volunteer work over time (church, neighborhood, city, county)
- Lots of opportunities to ride bikes, walk, play golf, pickleball, help neighbors ->get engaged in some with others
Because LK's job change exposes the problem with College Football today. Few enforced rules. It's wild west, all about money. The portal window and signing dates make no sense with regard to when coaches can "move up". As Verge said, he's doing what makes sense for LSU. If the higher level organization (NCAA/CFB) wants to improve things, they'll rethink the early recruiting window, the portal dates, and have some rules on timing of coaching changes.
Don't usually want anyone on the team (including coaches) to learn a totally new system for just one game. That energy for non-interim coaches might better be spent preparing for the long term answers.

re: Offensive Line

Posted by GrapevineTigah on 11/30/25 at 4:38 pm to
In the recent past this may have been true/accurate. With NIL, injuries, and players going to the NFL after 3 years that is likely no longer a valid assumption.
Yes, I would consider a heavy cash position to be an obvious bet against the market. BRK also likes to invest in businesses with solid cash flow and minimal speculation.

re: Advice on future investing

Posted by GrapevineTigah on 11/6/25 at 10:50 am to
Sounds like you're doing great! Congrats! Index funds are the way to go. Since you're young this may not matter as much, but roughly 35% of each of VOO, VTSAX, and BEQGX are in NVDA, AVGO, GOOG/L, AMZN, APPL, MSFT, and META. So, the historical diversification of such funds is up to debate.
Compelling? He doesn't say how he's going to do it. I would say not realistic. If he can get 12% per year for 25 years, he should be managing Warren Buffett's money.
Fidelity shows a 7.24% return for the life of FFFEX, with higher recent returns. The question should (for retirement planning purposes) be what are the expectations moving forward? I wouldn't expect to match that return (in a target fund or otherwise) as the last 10 years have been historically good for the stock market.
You're right. The likelihood of passing away early needs to be considered, along with whether or not a spouse would get death benefits. That is also a situation where the "reality" of 1k a month benefits needs to be considered. Maybe the benefits are less for a surviving spouse. I'm getting a pension where I took less for the survivor benefits case. If the OP's parents lived to be 100 or passed away in their 50's that may matter too.
My math and assumptions need to be checked, but I would think about it like this: 30k now or 12k a year in 25 years? I use the 4% assumption quite a lot, ignoring the current lower interest rate bias to address the hypothetical question. That means you'll have $1200 of income (4% of 30k) now vs $12000 income (1k a month) in 25 years. So another way of phrasing the question is would you think an IRA could be used to grow that 30k by ten times in 25 years? Many projections show SP500 growth of 5 to 7% over the next 10 years. So assuming 6% growth your 30k would double every 12 years (rule of 72). In 24 years at the same rate your 30k invested in the SP500 in an IRA would be a little over $120k. That would only earn you $4800 a year in income. I'd go with the state retirement plan if the 1k a month in 25 years is real. :cheers:

re: Somebody knows Something

Posted by GrapevineTigah on 11/3/25 at 5:22 am to
This has to be an "I'm running for governor" moment. :cheers:
He knows that when he goes folks will sell shares. Then BRK can buy it back cheaply and they'll have lots of cash on hand. They'll also be able to be "greedy when there's blood in the streets". I think that was one of his quotes.

re: Lola Lampley to LSU!!

Posted by GrapevineTigah on 11/2/25 at 2:55 am to
To the "fans" that say "who cares" or something as ridiculous: Do you not have sisters, wives, girlfriends? Are you just that asinine? Do you not have any interest in supporting half our population? Ya'll need to grow the heck up.
First, I feel for you. This happens to me. Less often now that I'm retired but it happens. As you can see from the responses to this thread there are many variables. Here's what seems to impact me -
Eat several hours before going to bed ( explains old folks eating at 4:30 or 5 pm at restaurants). Avoid high fat or high salt foods.
Get sunlight for several hours during the day - I retired this year. Until then this was difficult.
Control allergies.
Stay hydrated but don't drink a bunch of water before bedtime.
Avoid alcohol. Going to sleep after a drink was no problem, but staying asleep was an issue.
Exercise helps (outside - see the sunlight thing above) - cycling, walking, working in the yard, etc.
I discovered I can sometimes make coffee at 3, drink a few cups, eat something light (like a banana), pee, and fall asleep on the couch for an hour or two.

re: VZ Verizon stock purchase

Posted by GrapevineTigah on 10/25/25 at 3:31 am to
Thanks for this post! This is a great example of a defensive investment. I'm retired. Interest rates are going down. Fixed income opportunities are looking less great. So, folks like me are looking to replace some of that with stocks like VZ, T, EPD CPQ, hoping that they will act like a solid bond. Of course, the earlier Starlink reference in this thread is exactly the type of concern (minor at the moment but still real) that ought to be considered.
Owned it 9 years. It's up 280+%. Buffett's approach means it won't chase large market upturns, it won't drop anywhere near as much when the market tanks, and it will rise when the market recognizes it is making profits. It sometimes zigs when the market zags.
I believe your basic fear is valid. Said another way, nvidia, broadcom, etc are priced to perfection. If the forecasts are correct and they continue to make huge profits they'll go up, bringing the market with them. If not, it will be like 1999. A way to handle this is and focus on your risk tolerance is to avoid the high flyers (or minimize exposure to them), rotating investments into financials (XLF), utilities (XLU), BRK, etc, though even the utilities are getting benefit from the AI craze.
We have some complete emotional imbeciles on here.

When things get rough for a game or three, it's always the same:
Fire the coach:
Help Mac Pack
UHaul Stovall
Less Miles
O must Go
Hell, this crew wanted to get rid of Saban after the loss to Miami of Ohio.

Fire the AD is not even an original thought and makes even less sense.

It's like Brazilian Soccer. If the team doesn't win with flair, it doesn't count.

:wah:
Saban said this fanbase has catastrophe syndrome. It obviously still does. So nothing has changed.