Get Rich Slowly

‘Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.’ ~ Proverbs 13:11



If you paid the monthly minimum each month on a 30-year mortgage at 5% interest (a generous rate these days), after your last payment, your $90,000 home will have cost you $173,930.40!! That is an additional $83,930.40—almost double the original asking price! Usury is an evil taskmaster.



Since I resumed blogging, many folks have inquired as to my handle, 'ninepoundhammer.' I assure you there is nothing sinister nor fad-ish about it. The story behind it is simple. The day I created my blog I was listening to some bluegrass music and when the time came to create an I.D. for myself, the song 'Nine Pound Hammer' just happened to be playing. Mystery solved.
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Nearly every morning I rise at 5:45am and, although she has nowhere to be that early, Ashlee soon--and sometimes not-so-soon--follows me from bed in order to make the morning coffee and pack my lunch. I appreciate that and just thought I would write about it.
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A few years ago I appointed myself Pope-President-Dictator of my own organisation, The Naked Emperor Society. I took the name, as one might imagine, from the Hans Christian Anderson fable, 'The Emperor’s New Clothes.' (As an aside, I discovered last night that Curtis is unfamiliar with the tale, thus I have provided the link above.) The reason behind my organisation is to call attention to the many things which are popular or held in high regard for no other reason than that many other people say they deserve to be.
Take, for example, 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' by the Beatles. It is a fine album, to be sure, but it is NOT the best album of all time! What's more, I would wager a week's pay that most folks who attribute such acclaim have never once heard it in its entirety. Other declarations by the NES:
- 'Casablanca' is not the best move of all time. I won't divulge what is, but it rhymes with 'Bashunal Manfoons Takashun'. (Just kidding.)

- Hemingway's novels are pedestrian at best--I find them quite boring and poorly written.

- 'The Honeymooners'--a good show, somewhat funny, but not the best. That title belongs to 'Seinfeld.'

- New York City is not--I repeat, is NOT--the centre of the universe.

The list continues to grow and is not, obviously, exhaustive. I am open to suggestions.

This topic reminds me of something my thesis advisor, Dr Brian Linn, told me in graduate school some years ago: 'There are two kinds of people: those who read Nitsche and those who say they do.'
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‘A church whose pastor is a leader in the local pro-life efforts has earned an Internal Revenue Service demand for an audit of the organization's books by posting its biblically mandated support for life on its marquee.’



This one is especially for Charles Ackerman: The New and Improved Texas Trivia.



‘The war had ended—the most futile and ferocious of human follies. When it shall cease on earth at last, then, and not until then, will the soul of men leap to its final triumph, for the energy of the universe will flow through the fingers of the workmen, artists, authors, inventors and healers. On this issue the saving of a world awaits the word of the mothers of men.’ ~ Thomas Dixon, Jr., The Man in Grey (1921).




‘With the start of football season just weeks away, millions of Americans are purchasing tickets and T-shirts to support their favorite teams. However, the Jacksonville Jaguars have given their fans one less reason to support the team, because its foundation has given a grant to the nation's largest abortion business.’



‘When Will Then Be Now?’



‘One in four adults say they read no books at all in the past year, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll released Tuesday.’



So, let me get this straight. You're telling me that boys and girls are...different?!



‘Levi’s has done some limited marketing to the gay community since the late 1990s. Still, Robert Cameron, the jeans maker’s vice president of marketing, said he’s actually struck by the fact that the apparel company didn’t make a bigger effort, like this one, sooner.’ (Editor's note: Buy Wranglers.)



HEY, WHO INVITED THE OLD MAN?