I read many blog posts each day. They mostly focus on personal finance, but also on minimalism and travel . Here are some of my favorites that I read in the past month.
In the PiN household, we have been dealing with older parents who are closer to the end than the beginning. So it is no surprise that I am paying more attention to posts touching on later-in-life problems.
Probably the best post of the month, to my mind, comes from Kindness Financial Planning: 9 Lessons I’ve Learned About Death and Money. I can definitely agree with several points (see #1, 2, 3, and 6). Number 4, I half agree with–but I will say that having arrangements set, or at least preferences made clear, is a huge gift.
Blue Lobster at Millionaire on the Prairie lost an aunt recently, and is reflecting on money and purpose in Money, Memories, and Memorials.
The writers at The Woke Salaryman are getting older, though to me they still seem very young. Anyway. They realize that they don’t have the boundless energy of hungry young grads, and need to leverage their experience in different ways in the work force. I enjoyed their post on the Old Game.
I enjoyed quite a few posts at Humble Dollar this month.
Ken Cutler reminds us that we have made a lot of progress (good progress) in the past 100 years in Billionaire Next Door. Life is a lot better for most of us, even if we don’t have a net worth of a billion dollars.
He wrote another lovely piece about his grandfather. He wasn’t rich or famous in his lifetime, but I felt enriched by hearing about someone leading an ordinary life just 2 generations ago.
Lastly, Jeffrey K. Actor goes in search of hot peppers for his garden, but struggles with his frugal tendencies. Overall, it was A Dirty Business, but he did well in the end.
Financial Samurai suggests that the best way to get frugal people to spend is a gift card. I will say that this has some face validity, as I always love my “free things.” I also seem to recall that retailers love this, because people often throw in just a little bit more to cover the extra that is due; if not that, they leave a little money on the card that never gets used–free money for the company!
After reading a blog for a while, I feel like I have a little bond with that person–which is usually totally one-sided. But still, I get very excited when they hit a milestone. The Woke Salaryman is five years old (and not bankrupt yet).
I mostly use credit cards, but Mr. PiN loves his bank card. I sent him this cautionary tale from Budget Life List: The Curious Tale of How Credit Crushes Debit.
I found a few posts on decluttering I wanted to bookmark:
From No Sidebar, Decluttering Sentimental Items: A Compassionate Guide. As I worked my way through items hidden away in drawers in my childhood home, I definitely used some of these tips.
From Green With Less, I saved What Is Clutter Blindness? 6 signs You Have It & 6 Tips To Stop It. A good article for those thinking early in the decluttering journey, or those who think they are having a tough time with it.
Lastly, for something completely different, I was led by some algorithm to this post from Outdoor Life, 10 Reasons People Get Lost in the Wild. As a city girl who would like to get out more in nature, but safely, I found this very interesting.
Do you have any favorite posts from April?
Thank you for sharing my cautionary tale with Mr. PiN!
Thank you for writing about the issue so nicely!