Chess as fashion, part deux

Well, here are the 2 new additions to my wall. My first "moves" on the board just had to be the Ruy Lopez, my opening for years when I played competitively.

In other news, Health Care passed. The world did not end.

Chess as fashion

Growing up, one of my favorite things to do was play chess. I learned how to play in 4th grade and simply fell in love with the game. No one in my family knew how to play, so when I played it was with my classmates in elementary-high school. My school district had (and continues to have) a very strong tradition playing in and winning state and national titles. I played in countless tournaments and helped my teams bring home some new hardware and trophies every year.

In college and beyond, I have not played competitively. A couple times a year I get an itch to enter the Minnesota Open or some local tournament just to see what would happen. In a 7 round tournament, I think I could probably pull off 2 wins, I am sure I am no where near as good as I once was.

I came into possession of the above piece of art through a silent auction. I think it looks awesome, and it has also inspired me to buy a new decorative board that I will have photos of another time.

Daytona Beach = not my kind of town

Andy is famous for always telling me that Rochester, MN "is my kind of town." And he may very well be correct, but I have also discovered that Daytona Beach is not where I belong. Now, it would be very nice to live on the beach and drink wine while looking at the ocean. And that I would do as a job if it was ever offered.

Beautiful view, lots of stuff to do, but I get the feeling that the "local life" is not the same as the Daytona image may suggest. Lots of traffic seems to be the norm. Also, NASCAR is the number 1 sport and that just won't do for me...

Joe Mauer...not a Twin?

The Star Tribune decided to run an article today about the possibility of the Twins trading Joe Mauer. A couple months back, the Pioneer Press ran a similar story which had very little publicity. But because the Trib is a bit more recognizable, SI ran with it today. Here's the short reason of why it won't happen:

1) Joe Mauer has his choice of any woman in the Twin Cities
2) How can the team justify trading its poster boy when the stadium was just built?
3) Mauer is a "homer" and wants to stay
4) Joe Mauer has his choice of any woman in the Twin Cities
5) He is way too nice to survive in New York
6) Mauer Chevrolet just opened
7) I almost forgot...Joe Mauer has his choice of any woman in the Twin Cities

Zoom- Zoom

As many of my friends know, I am big Mazda rube. Other than the old hand me down Toyota Collora's I have driven, I have been a Mazda fan. Let’s just say that I really like the styling and somewhat sporty handling. I am not a big car guy, I don’t fix my own or anything, that’s why mechanics exist. But, I can definitely appreciate a good looking car.

Back in the fall, I hit a deer and totaled my Mazda6. The settlement was enough to offset my loan have a very small down payment on something else. I knew I wanted another Mazda and came down to 2 choices: a) a used Mazda 6 equivalent to what I crashed or b) a brand new 2009 redesigned Mazda 6. Now, both are good looking cars and would have suited me just fine. The new one was in my budget but on the high side, the older one easily affordable.

What did I do? I scoured the internet looking for the best deal on a new 2009. I ended up finding a dealership up in Brainerd that had the only new 2009 4 cylinder left in stock in the state. I exchanged 4 phone calls with the sales guy in a span of 3 hours, talking him down on price. In the end, they were offering me this car for $17,500…at least $3000 of sticker. I made a date with destiny and was excited to visit Brainerd with my Dad to go “look” at the car.

But I couldn’t sleep that night…and I realized that if I went, I would have to buy that car. There was no way around it…why would I spend all that time driving and negotiating to walk away? So I didn’t make the trip. Remorse? Maybe, it was a heck of a deal on a new car.

I ended up getting a used Mazda 6, fully loaded Grand Touring. Same car as what I had but it has all the bells and whistles. $8000 less too. And I love it…it’s a sweet ride…or at least that’s what all the ladies say…sort of.


I bring this up because of my visit to the Auto Show yesterday. I sat in a beautiful leather new Mazda 6 and for that moment felt that I had to have it.


My advice to all those car shoppers is this: if you can be happy without buying the newest or most advanced, do it. You can invest, save, buy something else that you need…whatever. The car is a depreciating asset and so make sure you are comfortable with payments.

Why I invest in Realty Income

Realty Income
I am not the smartest man in the room, nor have I ever claimed to be. But, I do want to give some insight into finances on my "restarted" blog. I am currently an investor in Realty Income, and I want to share with you why I have chosen to put some cash into this company:

* Monthly payments- First of all, I don't have a ton of cash with them right now. I probably make $5 a month with them currently. But, the fact that I know that is what makes this company so cool. As you buy shares, each month the dividend you receive can be taken out as cash or applied to buy more shares. I am currently buying more shares each month with the dividend. As I continue to invest, the shares I can purchase with the dividends monthly will continue to increase.

* Not long term- This is more personal preference for me, but I am not investing with these guys as a form of retirement savings. You could use this stock as a long term retirement investment. I want to get enough invested with them so that at some point the monthly dividends are big enough to allow me to make a car payment or something. The notion of income streams is what I am after. I have my 401(k) and Roth IRA; this is more fun money for me.

I could be full of it; I may not know what I am talking about (good bet?). But, I like seeing my money really work each month and the rate of return with these folks is very good for a monthly investment.

Back? Maybe...

Since I was not a huge fan of wordpress because I didn't want to learn it, I am back on blogger. Let's see if I can generate enough fun content to keep up regualr posting this time...