Search found 181 matches

by GeoffD
Sat Mar 28, 2020 9:57 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How are you going to use your stimulus money?
Replies: 222
Views: 16400

Re: How are you going to use your stimulus money?

I guess I fall in the semi-retired and probably retired bucket where I don't give high odds of working again beyond dribs & drabs of beer money. In 2019, I had a slice of 1099-MISC consulting money and pulled a bit out of a 401(k) around Thanksgiving to top myself up to the top of the 12% bracket. I will be receiving all of the stimulus money.

The $1,200 should cover a chunk of my May cash flow. My discretionary spending is pretty much zero and that looks like my world for the next 6+ months.
by GeoffD
Sat Mar 28, 2020 8:12 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: SP500 PE is still above average 3/28/2020
Replies: 12
Views: 1359

Re: SP500 PE is still above average 3/28/2020

For a lot of companies, it's pretty likely that PE for Q2/Q3 will be a #DIV0 trap. Price to earnings is backwards-looking. It's the wrong thing to be looking at today.
by GeoffD
Thu Mar 26, 2020 11:26 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: How capable is public broadband of supporting increased usage?
Replies: 38
Views: 2224

Re: How capable is public broadband of supporting increased usage?

This thread is based on a false premise. Telecommuting hardly adds any load at all. The 800 pound gorilla is IP streaming video. Peak busy hour is in the evening. The evening load is bigger now because everyone is stuck at home watching Disney+, Netflix, and Amazon Prime on their panels.


This all depends on your service provider. Comcast is evil but they’ve done a good job staying ahead of the streaming video demand. Their flagship X1 video product uses streaming video, too, so their data network has to be pretty robust. Some have been ahead of the curve. Others haven’t.
by GeoffD
Thu Mar 26, 2020 9:45 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI
Replies: 7638
Views: 1712656

Re: What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie. It won all the Science Fiction awards in 2014. I’m 40% of the way through. It’s kind of like reading Dune the first time where it’s a bit hard to follow.
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 23, 2020 9:19 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Recommendations for Portuguese Red Table Wines
Replies: 7
Views: 637

Re: Recommendations for Portuguese Red Table Wines

I buy Monte Velho, an Alentejano red blend. I pay $80/case. At $6.67/bottle, it’s a really good house red. Somewhat fuller bodied than most cheap Portuguese reds. It has some Syrah and Pinot Noir in it in addition to the traditional Portuguese red grapes so the finish is better than most at that price point. The winery, Esporao, makes a reserve red that is hand picked and oak barrel aged for a year that is quite a bit better but at the price point, it’s not all that competitive. One of Parker’s guys reviewed the winery in 2008 and wrote “The winery is simply terrific at producing nice wines for little money, sometimes to the point where you wonder why you should step up.”
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 23, 2020 8:29 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: United charging $100 to cancel Houston to Boston flight in April
Replies: 13
Views: 2543

Re: United charging $100 to cancel Houston to Boston flight in April

I have a BOS-LHR flight in early May using Delta FT points on Virgin Atlantic metal. It’s the same zero communication issue about awards tickets and there’s no point in calling reservations since it’s a many hour queue and I don’t need to deal with it yet.
by GeoffD
Tue Mar 17, 2020 10:43 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Does Verizon FIOS let you take your Internet with you?
Replies: 11
Views: 738

Re: Does Verizon FIOS let you take your Internet with you?

if your phone has unlimited data have you thought about using it as a hotspot? Good tip, but I do not want to use up my phone's data. I know Optimum in NYC offers city-wide free wifi for paid subscribers. Not sure if Verizon FIOS offers something similiar.. In 2020, Verizon is a wireless company with a barely profitable wireline business unit. Unlike the cable companies, Verizon wants you to use their cellular products. We use the hotspot feature that comes bundled with a Verizon Wireless unlimited plan frequently. You don't want to stream video or do power user file transfers with it or you'll use up your quota but it's fine for the usual work-oriented email and getting to web portals. NYC is 100% former Time Warner Cable which is now Cha...
by GeoffD
Tue Mar 17, 2020 10:24 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Take out food vs COVID 19
Replies: 95
Views: 8155

Re: Take out food vs COVID 19

michaeljc70 wrote: Tue Mar 17, 2020 10:15 am
M.Lee wrote: Tue Mar 17, 2020 9:25 am From the FDA.gov website:

Q: Can I get sick with COVID-19 from touching food, the food packaging, or food contact surfaces, if the coronavirus was present on it?
A: Currently there is no evidence of food or food packaging being associated with transmission of COVID-19.
So, if you cannot get it from food packaging then you cannot get it from other surfaces like store shelves, shopping carts, desks, gym equipment, etc. and all this extra work places are doing cleaning that stuff is pointless?
I'm going to start licking doorknobs again!
by GeoffD
Tue Mar 17, 2020 10:16 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Take out food vs COVID 19
Replies: 95
Views: 8155

Re: Take out food vs COVID 19

JAZZISCOOL wrote: Tue Mar 17, 2020 8:17 am
GeoffD wrote: Mon Mar 16, 2020 11:38 pm On the microwave thing, I doubt most people would nuke takeout food long enough to create the temperature that would kill a virus.


I would think takeout pizza reheated in a 425 oven would be fine.

We’re mostly sticking to cooked homemade food. Blueberries are the only thing in the fridge where it’s merely washed.
Thanks. I was thinking pizza might be an option. :happy
If the molten cheese can take out the roof of your mouth, it probably kills any virus. :) I'd wash my hands thoroughly after touching the box and be careful disposing of the box, though. If you're really doing the full germ-o-phobe thing, you have to treat anything someone else has touched as contaminated.

Now I want pizza. Grrrrr. LOL
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 16, 2020 11:38 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Take out food vs COVID 19
Replies: 95
Views: 8155

Re: Take out food vs COVID 19

On the microwave thing, I doubt most people would nuke takeout food long enough to create the temperature that would kill a virus.


I would think takeout pizza reheated in a 425 oven would be fine.

We’re mostly sticking to cooked homemade food. Blueberries are the only thing in the fridge where it’s merely washed.
by GeoffD
Sun Mar 15, 2020 5:29 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coffee Makers
Replies: 55
Views: 5840

Re: Coffee Makers

We have a Zojirushi 10 cup drip coffee maker with a thermal carafe. The water tank removes so you fill the tank at the sink rather than pouring water into it. The coffee reservoir is flat bottomed so the basket for the coffee grounds is easier to fill an clean than a cone-shaped one.
by GeoffD
Sun Mar 15, 2020 5:14 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Suggestions for top notch router?
Replies: 56
Views: 2945

Re: Suggestions for top notch router?

The 80Mbps you get from your current setup is almost certainly more than adequate for anything you need to do. As others have stated, 1Gbps is overkill for home, and it won’t improve anything for typical day to day use to increase the speed you have now. If you have coverage or interference issues in some areas, a new mesh system will improve that, however you still aren’t going to get 1Gbps over wifi, you will get several hundred Mbps, but not full throughput of your wired connection. I agree. I just ran SpeedTest on my iPhone X and get 245 MBit/S. I used to see 450 out of my work laptop with the expensive WiFi adapter. In practice, I see no real word difference between here and at my other two addresses where I have the Comcast 100 MBit ...
by GeoffD
Sun Mar 15, 2020 4:42 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Suggestions for top notch router?
Replies: 56
Views: 2945

Re: Suggestions for top notch router?

This is nonsense. The guy has an 1,800 square foot house and 8 devices. What he needs to do is find out how many WiFi channels his best PC uses and buy a router that matches. Chances are it’s 2 or 3 channels on 5 GHz AC. An awful lot of laptops only have 1 or 2 channels. An expensive router is like putting a 2” fuel line on a Hyundai Accent. It won’t go any faster. I run a Netgear R7000 in one house which is overkill. My Amazon 4K Firestick TV is my big bandwidth user and it only supports old school 2.4 GHz. I used to have a 3 channel work laptop but my personal laptop is only two channel. I have two other addresses where I run Netgear R6700 routers. $90 from the big evil Internet retailer. That matches my laptop. Unless you’re a gamer, tha...
by GeoffD
Sun Mar 15, 2020 3:26 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus Flight Cancel Thread
Replies: 253
Views: 39157

Re: Coronavirus Flight Cancel Thread

I should also add for those who are cancelling for a voucher that you consider the health of the airline. I have no doubt some airlines aren't going to make it out of this. It might be better to take your lumps now and get something back vs voucher that might become worthless if the airline goes out of business. I am sitting on six figure points balances at a number of airlines some of which do look "weak" such as Cathay Pacific. Good advice. I’m growing concerned that a bankruptcy will make any future refunds null and void. A refund at a future date is what I was told. Afterthoughts suggest I should have recorded the call with the airline agent. Where do you get the information? Any info on LOT Airlines (Poland) financial health...
by GeoffD
Thu Mar 12, 2020 8:48 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?
Replies: 1800
Views: 178796

Re: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?

Sudafed is on my list for today. Mine is expired. At least people can’t hoard that since you have to do the “I am not a meth lab” database registry.

We have plenty of food. At this point, it’s replacing what we consume.
by GeoffD
Thu Mar 12, 2020 8:37 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus Movie Suggestions
Replies: 104
Views: 8578

Re: Coronavirus Movie Suggestions

I watched Resident Evil the other day. The Boston Biogen meeting is Racoon City and the Umbrella Corporation. I own the first 4 or 5 of that franchise but only the first one is worth watching again. I was looking at my big collection of zombie movies that are all grouped together in a 400 disc folio. Beyond what has been mentioned, I like Warm Bodies. It’s really hard to top Zombieland. With the age group that is high risk, maybe Soylent Green or Logan’s Run. I need to dig up the old Star Trek episode where a planet is all children. The adults all get a plague, try to attack the children, and die. I recall McCoy invents a vaccine and saves everyone. One of Netflix or Amazon Prime must have the whole series. With a Google, season 1, episode ...
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 11, 2020 7:52 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Time to get a new tax guy?
Replies: 28
Views: 2570

Re: Time to get a new tax guy?

$1,000 for H&R Block level of service? Nope.
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 11, 2020 7:43 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Unmarried home ownership, joining his preexisting purchase
Replies: 72
Views: 4783

Re: Unmarried home ownership, joining his preexisting purchase

mhalley wrote: Tue Mar 10, 2020 8:45 pm I was concerned my post about getting a new boyfriend was too harsh, seeing the other posts makes me realize I wasn’t harsh enough. You should be splitting expenses based on income, not 50/50.
Yep. I’m People’s Republic of Relationships. $1,400 on that income? Upgrade boyfriends. What you wrote about his debt is also concerning. Is that maxed credit cards, loans for toys, and a big car loan? You don’t want his spending to bleed you dry.
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 11, 2020 7:25 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What type of new laptop? Chromebook? Apple? Or ?
Replies: 24
Views: 2150

Re: What type of new laptop? Chromebook? Apple? Or ?

I’ve been running LibreOffice for years on my personal machine. I also started running Thunderbird for personal email many years ago to keep it away from the work Exchange server. I have no problem with Excel spreadsheets and word documents. Most people use web email these days so Outlook isn’t essential. For personal use, I don’t need a fast laptop. I have a $1000 Lenovo Thinkpad with a solid state drive that is fine after 4 1/2 years. The equivalent is now $800 on Amazon. When this one dies, I’ll probably spend $600 for a last model year Thinkpad. I use the trackpoint on the keyboard so I can’t but most other brands. I’ve used Linux a lot on work machines but I just use Win 10 on my personal machine. I just do web browsing, email, and spr...
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 11, 2020 6:47 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Internet speed vs Modem speed
Replies: 17
Views: 1635

Re: Internet speed vs Modem speed

I worked for cable modem companies for a decade so I’ll give it a shot: The data over cable standard, DOCSIS added a feature called channel bonding with DOCSIS 3.0. This was around 2008. It let the cable modem use multiple channels simultaneously. The early D3.0 modems supported 4 downstreams. You could get 105 megabit/second out of them for most customers out in the field and 150 megabits/second in an ideal lab environment. 8 downstreams is a 300 megabit/second D3.0 modem. A 16 downstream modem 600. A 32 downstream could do a gigabit though a gigabit Ethernet cable will only give you about 920 due to overhead of the Ethernet standard. DOCSIS 3.1 added one very wide channel and you can get a couple gigabit out of it if you have multiple Eth...
by GeoffD
Sat Mar 07, 2020 10:01 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?
Replies: 1800
Views: 178796

Re: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?

No. People's natural inclination for fearing dying says it all. People know that the deaths in Washington state were mainly of the elderly with underlying issues. Wouldn't rational people factor that in? But people are not rational. Have you ever had pneumonia? It's totally rational to try to avoid getting it even if you're in the low risk group. From getting sick all the time from all the road warrior business travel, I already long ago adopted the wash your hands frequently, use hand sanitizer any time you see a dispenser, and take a shower & change clothes after a flight. Assuming this gets to pandemic in my zip codes, I'll just add a bit to what I already do. The Italy 1 meter separation thing that was announced today seems like a ...
by GeoffD
Sat Mar 07, 2020 8:41 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Talk me into or out of a new vehicle purchase
Replies: 30
Views: 3160

Re: Talk me into or out of a new vehicle purchase

I'm not convinced this is the best time to buy a car. On one side, with all the uncertainty, it's likely that new car sales are going to be way off deeper into the year. That suggests that there will be a lot of deals. On the other side, there are supply chain problems where some production lines are going to grind to a halt for a lack of critical parts. With limited production, there is no incentive to discount. I'm a "Thou Shalt Not Pay Retail" guy with buying cars. I usually try to buy leftovers at a steep discount and then run them until I no longer trust them. China auto sales pretty much stopped in Q1. There might be really good deals on cars in 6 months.
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 04, 2020 9:07 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Car Totaled, need to find a new car
Replies: 26
Views: 2176

Re: Car Totaled, need to find a new car

Okay, so I went and found the Consumer Reports. April 2020, pp. 82-83. They like these ones for <$10k (above average for both reliability and test scores): 2011-13 Honda Fit 2012-14 Toyota Prius C 2011-14 Mazda 3 2011-13 Nissan Leaf 2010-14 Toyota Corolla 2010-12 Toyota Prius 2010-11 Toyota Avalon 2010-12 Toyota Camry 2010 Acura TL 2010-11 Acura TSX 2011 Lexus CT 200H 2010 Lexus ES 2010 Toyota Venza 2010-11 Toyota RAV4 somehow forgot the Subaru models … ? At the OP’s price point (as cheap as possible), you’re probably in the bad head gasket era with Subaru. If you’re looking for a Camry replacement, you’d want a 2 generation ago Legacy. Model years 2010-2014. A 2010 might be $6k to $7k on a dealer lot if you can find one. They didn’t build...
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 04, 2020 8:53 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Car Totaled, need to find a new car
Replies: 26
Views: 2176

Re: Car Totaled, need to find a new car

atikovi wrote: Wed Mar 04, 2020 7:58 am
lthenderson wrote: Wed Mar 04, 2020 7:51 am
Just be aware there can be some insurance ramifications for fixing up a totaled vehicle. I had a ten year old minivan that was totaled by a hail storm. It was perfectly drive-able without any work whatsoever. But if I were to pocket the settlement check and keep the vehicle, the amount of the settlement would be added to my deductible for my next insurance claim so the insurance company could recoup their losses.
Who puts insurance on a $1,000 car?
This

If it were me, I’d keep the car and use the check to repair it enough to be driveable. Start working on the new car fund to replace it for cash when it dies.
by GeoffD
Wed Mar 04, 2020 8:22 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: TV recommendations?
Replies: 37
Views: 3142

Re: TV recommendations?

I bought a 65 inch Samsung Q80 last November and really like it. I seriously considered OLED but get not past the risk of burnin. I have a friend who does TV repairs for a major electronics retailer and he said they see lots of burnin issues with OLED. Since you already have plasma, that may not be as big a deal for you if you do not have burnin on those sets. RTINGS.com is the best source for TV ratings, info and prices. My plasma panels are 10 years old. I set the timer to turn them off after 3 hours. Problem solved. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy OLED over a burn-in issue. If you’re a 24x7 Fox News junkie, maybe not. I’m still waiting for the price to drop more on 65” OLED. You can buy a leftover LG C8 for $1,850 on Amazon or an open box C9...
by GeoffD
Tue Mar 03, 2020 6:57 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Is "buy in" to a CCRC deductible as a medical expense?
Replies: 59
Views: 4708

Re: Is "buy in" to a CCRC deductible as a medical expense?

Tax considerations aside, my biggest concern about CCRC is how good is their assisted living and skilled nursing? And how good will it be if/when I need it? If you are not tied to a CCRC, and you wind up in a facility that is not suiting your needs, you can move. With a CCRC, you can still move, but you've perhaps wasted a lot of money. Also note you'd really want a CCRC with assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing. Personally, my biggest concern would be the solvency of the CCRC. A CCRC in Texas went under in November. An awful lot of them are actuarially insolvent and I don't see how you'd be able to figure that out. My stepfather lost a couple hundred thousand deposit on new construction on one in Rhode Island at the Great Rec...
by GeoffD
Tue Mar 03, 2020 5:29 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Selling house- how to make it look appealing
Replies: 36
Views: 3168

Re: Selling house- how to make it look appealing

I don't think enough has been said about curb appeal. In my zip code, a freshly mowed lush green lawn which might take a year of attention to fix. None of the plantings overgrown. All the beds freshly mulched. If it's an asphalt driveway with blemishes, a fresh coat of sealant. If the house is painted, the paint and trim need to be in good shape. A roof that's obviously at the end of it's life is often a deal killer.
by GeoffD
Tue Mar 03, 2020 3:52 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Making public vs. private high school decision
Replies: 59
Views: 4148

Re: Making public vs. private high school decision

Generally, a GreatSchools 10 just means that most of the students have college educated white collar professional parents. It says pretty much nothing about the actual quality of the school. Generally, a highly selective academically oriented strong private school is going to cover a heck of a lot more material than any public school. Like anywhere else, you teach to the intellectual capabilities of the people sitting in the chairs. I'm New England so I'll refer to those schools. Phillips Andover, Phillips Exeter, Choate Rosemary, and Deerfield totally blow away the top-10 metro Boston public schools. If you can get admitted, it's an enormous advantage. There are also lots of far less selective private high schools in New England where it's...
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 02, 2020 9:16 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Retire or relocate to Portland, Maine
Replies: 34
Views: 7099

Re: Retire or relocate to Portland, Maine

How do you envision spending your time? It’s hard to say much constructive without having some kind of profile. I can tell you about sailing on Casco Bay or Indian/Sushi in Portland or the beaches around Kennebunkport.
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 02, 2020 6:22 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Retire or relocate to Portland, Maine
Replies: 34
Views: 7099

Re: Retire or relocate to Portland, Maine

Anywhere in New England, make sure you understand energy costs. Electricity is costly. Much of Northern New England has no natural gas. Elsewhere in New England, natural gas is the most expensive in the lower 48. The housing stock is old and not very energy efficient.
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 02, 2020 6:06 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What Movie Have You Recently Watched?
Replies: 11037
Views: 2066456

Re: What Movie Have You Recently Watched?

I watched Sahara. Clive Cussler died last Tuesday. I’ve always liked the Dirk Pitt books and read the first dozen or so. It’s interesting to see a buffed and normal body weight Matthew McConaughey from before he did Dallas Buyers Club. For me, it’s a watchable popcorn movie even though it didn’t do well in the box office and the critics slammed it.
by GeoffD
Mon Mar 02, 2020 5:54 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?
Replies: 1800
Views: 178796

Re: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?

Could I use triple ply as a face mask? Who cares if face masks are sold out! My doctor says face masks do help but only if worn by sick people. They don’t keep the virus from escaping the masks but do reduce the distance particles travel from a sneeze or cough If an individual stays 6 feet away from others, this might help. Here’s why: there is evidence that it isn’t only exposure to the virus that causes sickness but also the frequency and intensity of exposure. This may be why health care workers, including young ones, get the virus so often, and why more of them have serious cases: frequent and intense exposure. Their immune systems may be overwhelmed. If a mask reduces the intensity of exposure I see that as a plus. A mask prevents me ...
by GeoffD
Sat Feb 29, 2020 5:39 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Cell phone usage in Europe
Replies: 43
Views: 3672

Re: Cell phone usage in Europe

This is only a 1 week trip. Why wouldn’t you just use the AT&T $10/day service? I use the Verizon equivalent.

I have a Skype account for outbound calls. Skype presents my cell phone CallerID so nobody knows it’s Skype or my location. I put $10 on it five years ago to make Asia business calls. I still have $5.00 left on it. 800 numbers are free. My usual US/Canada call is less than 10 cents.
by GeoffD
Sat Feb 29, 2020 5:11 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Should I get a safe? What kind? What would you do? How safe is a "safe"?
Replies: 91
Views: 8574

Re: Should I get a safe? What kind? What would you do? How safe is a "safe"?

I'm willing to bet that home-based safe thefts are more common than bank safe deposit box thefts. I don't know anyone who has had a theft of a home safe (not saying it doesn't happen), but do know someone who lost what was in a safe deposit box. Back in the 1980s my safe (about 200 pounds) was stolen from my home. I had this image in my mind of a burglar with a racoon-like mask and a bag over his shoulder. Turns out there were two of them. They tipped the safe end-over-end, down a flight of stairs (taking out 2 or 3 steps), across my hardwood floor (requiring major repair) and out the back door. They somehow got it into the trunk of their car. The driveway was a few feet below the level of the lawn at one point so that probably helped. Boy...
by GeoffD
Sat Feb 29, 2020 4:33 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: TV recommendations?
Replies: 37
Views: 3142

Re: TV recommendations?

sfinvestornoob wrote: Fri Feb 28, 2020 10:33 pm I too am a huge fan of the LG OLEDs, but if you’re mostly watching the news and sports, buy a cheaper TV.
I disagree on sports. I want the best picture quality possible.

I still haven’t given up my two 50” plasma panels. I’m starting to get power supply buzz out of one of them. It looks like you can buy a 65” LG C9 OLED panel for $1,500 on Amazon.
by GeoffD
Sat Feb 29, 2020 4:12 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Boiler cracked - heating alternatives?
Replies: 22
Views: 1559

Re: Boiler cracked - heating alternatives?

I don’t think the people responding to this thread understand the pipeline capacity problem that makes natural gas wildly expensive in Massachusetts. Ditto electric. Personally, I’d be looking for a dual fuel boiler or one that can be quickly converted between oil and natural gas if oil prices shoot back up. Today in Massachusetts, oil is cheaper. A mini-split heat pump makes a great backup to the boiler and would probably be cheaper in the shoulder seasons where you often only want to heat one or two rooms. In small new construction with a really good thermal envelope, you could probably get away with a Mitsubishi mini split. I’m right on Buzards Bay so a bit warmer than the South Shore. Growing zone 7a. I pretty much never see 0F.
by GeoffD
Fri Feb 28, 2020 10:32 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Housing market in context of recent volatility
Replies: 9
Views: 884

Re: Housing market in context of recent volatility

I think that US markets where single family homes aren't affordable on W2 money are likely to see large corrections if the market corrects another 10% and stays there for a couple of years. You can't cash in your company stock to buy that $1.25 million starter home on a postage stamp lot in Sunnyvale to be close to work. The Chinese already tightened capital outflows. That combined with the Chinese markets getting hit hard should hit the high profile cities: NYC, Boston, SFO, LA, Seattle, the fancy part of Chicago, Miami, etc. I'd expect to see the same sort of thing in the high end resort towns and high end retirement communities. It will be tough to get millions for that little mining shack in Aspen. Of course, the stock markets could bot...
by GeoffD
Fri Feb 28, 2020 7:38 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Fix this car or cut losses?
Replies: 13
Views: 1213

Re: Fix this car or cut losses?

Assuming this is an automatic, the 2008 Eos had the DSG dual clutch automatic manual transmission. I had one in a 2007 GTI and this likely has the same 2.0T 200 hp 4 cylinder turbo. Most transmission shops won’t know how to deal with it. The most common issue is that the clutches eventually wear out. A 12 year old Eos? It would cost more to put the transmission on the bench and repair it than the car is worth.
by GeoffD
Fri Feb 28, 2020 6:40 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Inverter for laptop with Fast charge USB
Replies: 41
Views: 2211

Re: Inverter for laptop with Fast charge USB

Something like a Samsung Notebook 9 Pro charges with USB-C. It ships with a 65w power supply so it drives about 3 amps at 20v. The Lenovo 65w USB-C car power adapter with the 12v to 20v dc to dc converter brick is $60 on Amazon Prime. Model # 40AK0065WW. There are cheaper ones but I’d rather buy a more trustworthy brand.

I’d look at the power brick on the laptop. It’s probably 65 watts but I’m sure Samsung makes gamer laptops that draw a lot more power.
by GeoffD
Fri Feb 28, 2020 5:44 am
Forum: US Chapters
Topic: [Archived] Bogleheads community discussion - Coronavirus
Replies: 4963
Views: 298291

Re: Bogleheads community discussion - Coronavirus

This might be a good excersize. If this pandemic is only an average 2% <0.15% for flu> morbidity rate, it might prompt us to get national public health system act in gear for the next pandemic. Sorry if you happen to be older, or in poor health, the dice roll gets worse. The data is incomplete but it looks like 80% of people who contract the virus don’t have severe symptoms. The other 20% mostly go down the pneumonia path. Influenza typically only kills people with co-morbidly problems. If a strain not in this year’s flu vaccine gets into a nursing home, it kills most of the residents. Healthy adults with the flu usually don’t die. This virus is different. The pneumonia wipes out people with co-morbidly issues but it also kills healthy adu...
by GeoffD
Fri Feb 28, 2020 5:14 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?
Replies: 1800
Views: 178796

Re: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?

aqan wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2020 9:48 pm
GeoffD wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2020 6:49 am
aqan wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2020 6:07 am
Teague wrote: Wed Feb 26, 2020 9:45 pm
aqan wrote: Wed Feb 26, 2020 9:40 pm Will be calling the medical stores tomorrow but I’m not holding my breath.
Victoria, got room in your act for a partner? :happy
Umm don’t know what that means.
Looking for N95 breathing mask, “not holding my breath”. A joke isn’t funny if you have to explain it, I guess.
Sorry but what does that has to do with Victoria’s act?
Googles are good, but Goggles are better,

Victoria
Victoria quipped this about a typo up-thread.

Never mind
by GeoffD
Thu Feb 27, 2020 12:48 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: coronavirus and your health insurance cost
Replies: 8
Views: 1130

Re: coronavirus and your health insurance cost

fru-gal wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2020 12:07 pm Tests for the coronavirus for people who have reason to think they've been exposed probably should be free.
Yep. As a public health thing, you want anyone showing symptoms to get tested for MERS-CoV and you absolutely don't want them going to an Emergency Room to do it spreading the disease around to everyone else. If it's not free or at least very close to free, half the country won't get tested for fear of being crushed by a huge medical bill. The rest of the first world should have no problem adopting that kind of policy.
by GeoffD
Thu Feb 27, 2020 12:30 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Cancel flights due to coronavirus concerns?
Replies: 76
Views: 9293

Re: Cancel flights due to coronavirus concerns?

JGoneRiding wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2020 11:32 am
I dont have the 2019 numbers at my finger tips but I absolutely guarantee that in the UNITED STATES they are worse for all of those statistics. Chance of getting chance of being really ill chance of dying etc.
Nobody died of the Spanish Flu (H1N1) in 1917. Therefore, by your logic, it clearly couldn't possibly have been a problem in 1918 when 50 million people died of it.
by GeoffD
Thu Feb 27, 2020 6:49 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?
Replies: 1800
Views: 178796

Re: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?

aqan wrote: Thu Feb 27, 2020 6:07 am
Teague wrote: Wed Feb 26, 2020 9:45 pm
aqan wrote: Wed Feb 26, 2020 9:40 pm Will be calling the medical stores tomorrow but I’m not holding my breath.
Victoria, got room in your act for a partner? :happy
Umm don’t know what that means.
Looking for N95 breathing mask, “not holding my breath”. A joke isn’t funny if you have to explain it, I guess.
by GeoffD
Thu Feb 27, 2020 3:43 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Does Biomedical Engineering School Matter?
Replies: 94
Views: 8253

Re: Does Biomedical Engineering School Matter?

I'm an engineer, but admittedly in a different field. I been hiring manager or on hiring team for >25 entry level engineers. For reference, I went to a well regarded private school for my degrees, but many of my coworkers went to state schools with decent programs. Some went to private schools not known for engineering. Interview, internships, and extracurriculars have all mattered more, in my experience, than the exact school. Yeah, but I’m probably going to toss the resume from the new grad from the local unselective state commuter school in the trash. I know they are getting the lite version of the curriculum because nobody has the math skills. Profs teach to the level of their students. I don’t have the time to screen unselective commu...
by GeoffD
Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:04 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Cancel flights due to coronavirus concerns?
Replies: 76
Views: 9293

Re: Cancel flights due to coronavirus concerns?

I do not think that there is any evidence that COVID19 is more deadly than influenza. The overwhelming majority of those that died in China from COVID 19 likely died due to a lack of adequate access to sufficient healthcare. Contrast that with influenza, where people are currently dying by the thousands in the United States despite being admitted to high functioning intensive care units. The media likes to gin up hysteria with the next pandemic while failing to objectively quantify risk, including the relative risk compared to things (like influenza) that our society faces year in and year out. Just one man's opinion... A quick Google search shows that for Italy as of two days ago, 229 infected, 7 dead, 27 in the ICU. What is this? Fake ne...
by GeoffD
Wed Feb 26, 2020 3:57 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Postponed travel due to Corona Virus. Am I am overreacting ?
Replies: 232
Views: 27818

Re: Postponed travel due to Corona Virus. Am I am overreacting ?

The UK will be a much safer place to be in the face of coronavirus than the US. Bottom line, the British health system is much more effective than the US in patient outcomes at the median and especially at the bottom. For a pandemic, this latter is particularly important, since a significant untreated population, as there would be in the US, allows a disease to reproduce and spread to the entire population, even those who have access to quality care. Why? Medicaid in this country is probably pretty equivalent to NHS. I'm a physician who works with good and bad insurance including medicaid. There are a lot of people who are uninsured and also not covered by Medicaid. Or who have some insurance, but they would not be able to afford a long ho...
by GeoffD
Wed Feb 26, 2020 3:27 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?
Replies: 1800
Views: 178796

Re: Coronavirus (Consumer Issues) How you are preparing?

softwaregeek wrote: Tue Feb 25, 2020 4:02 pm I have definitely changed my mind on this one.

So far, I have gotten the following:

1. 50 N95 masks
2. 3M Respirator
3. 50 surgical masks
4. 5 large cans Lysol
5. bleach cleaner
6. laundry disinfectant
7. 5 white Tyvek suits
8. 3 plastic goggles
9. 1 package shoe covers
10. Some additional canned food (15 cans of tuna, 10 cans of soup, 5 cans of veggies)
11. Toilet paper
12. Bottle of tylenol
So mercury poisoning from the canned tuna? :)
by GeoffD
Tue Feb 25, 2020 1:06 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Catch 22 with Gold Medallion Requirement for Exercising POA for Father
Replies: 56
Views: 5233

Re: Catch 22 with Gold Medallion Requirement for Exercising POA for Father

Is there a local office for Fidelity, Schwab or another brokerage firm near FIL that you and FIL can go to in person? If FIL transfers the IRA to the new brokerage, the receiving brokerage will be happy to provide the medallion guarantees necessary for the Transfer of Account and POA/Agent Authorization for you to handle the account at the new brokerage. The other alternative would be to have an attorney draft the POA. Not sure whether DWS will accept it easily but the attorney could deal with them if not. If FIL can get the account transferred first, some brokerages like Fidelity will accept such a client POA if the POA is executed within 6-12 months and accompanied by a notarized form. Another option would be to set up online access if p...