It’s 6:37 AM in Las Vegas, and my family is asleep behind me.
But I’m awake because I have something on my mind that I need to share with you.
In 2023, we saved 32% of our income, but here’s the thing:
I suck at enjoying spending money.
For instance, one of the things my 16-year-old daughter wanted to do most on our Vegas trip was to eat pizza at the New York, New York hotel (which is owned by VICI Properties 😀).
So we did, and it was great.
Here’s the damage their 20″ New York-style whole cheese pizza looked like with tip:
Being from Chicago, “New York-style” apparently means a paper-thin crust.
And you’re supposed to fold it because this tricks you into thinking there’s more there.
Our pizzas in the windy city usually require utensils, complaints of “God I’m stuffed,” and a take-home container.
But that’s a debate for another day.
Waiting in line to order, my wife told me, “Please don’t ruin the experience; remember, this is money we set aside for fun after we’ve already saved a lot.”
And you know what?
She’s 100% right.
The key word she used to snap me out of it was “experience.”
Think back on some of your fondest memories and try to remember the specific money cost involved.
It’s tough to do, right?
I’m not advocating blowing your life savings on a week-long penthouse party at the Bellagio.
While that would be one hell of an experience, we still need to live below our means, save, and invest.
It’s the only way I know of (aside from finding a sugar daddy or momma) to one day allow us to live life on our terms, whatever that may look like.
We’re planning to go to Fremont Street today, and I have already researched how to save a few bucks by using a combination of walking and public transportation instead of a $15 Uber.
But that will take an hour longer, leaving less time to explore, not to mention the 15 minutes I spent figuring out the logistics.
It’s been said that there is a time cost and a money cost for everything we want.
We must decide whether to pay with our time (walking or public transportation) or our money (Uber) to get what we want.
So yours truly made the executive decision to take the Uber.
Why?
Because money can always be made back, but we can never recover spent time.
And making more fond memories is always a great investment that gets better as we age.
I think they call those memory dividends.
I would love to know if you struggle with enjoying spending and what you do to fight it.
😁Special THANK YOU to the (4) people who responded to the last newsletter!!
Check out the portfolios and podcasts, or see what’s cooking on YouTube.
That said, let’s get to this portfolio activity.
Dividends Received This Week ~$371.90
- PepsiCo (PEP) | $126.50
- Ares Capital (ARCC) | $194.40
- Simon Property Group (SPG) | $19.50
- Lockheed Martin (LMT) | $31.50
Dividends Received Year to Date~
$2,063.09
Stocks Sold (AVERAGE)
- 4 Diageo (DEO) | $148.01 (A bit of spring cleaning and reassessing of positions)
- 10 Altria (MO) | $41.81
Stocks Bought (AVERAGE)
- 9 Agree Realty (ADC) | $56.09
- 5 Harrow Health (HROW) | $12.75
- 4 VICI Properties (VICI) | $29.41
Notable Ex-Dividends This Week + SSD Score
- 4/9 Verizon (VZ), 6.32% | 70S
- 4/9 AT&T (T), 6.37% | 60BS
- 4/9 General Mills (GIS), 3.38% | 90VS
- 4/11 General Dynamics (GD),1.92% |97VS
- 4/12 Hormel Foods (HRL), 3.26% | 90VS
- 4/12 AbbVie (ABBV), 3.65% | 80S
If you missed it, we chatted with a real-life millionaire next door.
🎙️Podcasts You Should Check Out!🎙️
🤑 Speaking of memory dividends, ChooseFi had a cool conversation that touched on just that.
🎧 Quentin Tarantino has had one heck of a life, and David Senra will motivate you in this episode of Founders.
Investing Newsletters You Might Like
⭐Ryne Williams writes a free weekly dividend newsletter and creates multiple top-notch YouTube videos every week.
🤑Rick Stambaugh from Orange Mountain Financial brings you ‘Grow Retirement Income‘. He’s a seasoned pro with over 30 years in trading and a passion for guiding folks to a prosperous retirement.
⚠️Seeking Alpha Premium SALE!
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Random music video I enjoy and you might too!
🎵Praga Khan – Breakfast in Vegas”🎵
Hey, you made it to the end of the newsletter!
Congratulations!
How did you like it? Do you have any suggestions for improving it? Please let me know about them here.
That said, have a WONDERFUL week, and I’ll see you in the next one.
