Birthday Presents and Dreaming Big



Happy Birthday from Google!!!

So besides Google apparently knowing everything, what happens on your birthday?  Do you throw a party, go out to eat, go to Las Vegas, pretend the day doesn't exsist?

Well I like to keep things simple, I might mention it casually here and there, but a birthday extravaganza is not on the horizon.  I live by what a comic once said, I'm only celebrating every 10 years, so 30, 40, etc., the rest is for the kids.  What I have done in the past is go grab my favorite drink or favorite lunch spot, it's relatively inexpensive and puts a smile on my face:)

So this year at the old age of 31, I will be having a relaxing birthday.  The wife made me breakfast, I'm eating leftovers from last night, and to cap it off I will be hanging out with the wife for a beer and probably some pulled pork nachos from http://www.baronbuena.com/ one of my favorite places for a beer in the city.  Yes life of luxury, gotta love it. 

I think this is being frugal, my guess is I don't pay a dime out of pocket on my birthday(thank you Wife!), but even if I didn't it wouldn't be anything Andrew Jackson couldn't take care of.  Any gifts of money I receive usually get a 50/50 split between let's buy something for me and let's pay off that debt.  I'm a big believer in small gifts to reward yourself and still attack the Evil Debt Monster, which I imagine to look like these guys over there.

Dream Big...........................Time to Reflect

It also brings me to a point to really think about goals and dreams I had growing up and recent as things change from a professional basketball player to owning the Milwaukee Bucks.

Watch out Herb Kohl!!!

It's amazing the things that change your life and your expectations.  Coming out of college, I had dreams of probably golfing every day and driving a Mercedes.  Life and poor decisions gave me black eye, pretty much swollen shut.  Then a beautiful woman comes in to your life and the swelling goes down and you can see great things ahead.  For those people who are exactly where they want to be and have reached or on track to reach life's goals, congratulations!!!  My journey is in progress probably took a detour to Mexico, I'm not sure if climbing a mountain or a hill, but I'm climbing upwards and that's the most important thing for me.

What do you do on your birthday that's special to you?  Where do  you think you would be at this point in your life?

Sprint and Relax, Sprint and Relax

RELAX!!!

So sometimes I forget the relax part and instead of sprinting and then relaxing, it goes Sprint, Frustration, Sprint, Frustration.  I think I get alot of this from my Dad(not that I'm blaming him, but the apple does not fall far from the tree right).  Sometimes I have to check my self before I riggiddity reck myself, insert 90's rap song quote!

So here's some updates on life and what I'm doing from previous blogs.  So the sprint is going great for paying off student loans. I am on pace to pay it off by July, I did however take out money from a Roth IRA, from what I read this is allowed as long as it's paying off student loan debt and is your principal balance.  It was a small amount and I'm willing to risk any penalties or taxes, which I think will be small even if it happens.

In the game of life, I missed out on a manager position, but was promoted, I learned alot about myself and really have to pay attention more of the person that I am at work.  But they gave me more money, which will go towards debt, maybe a vacation!  I'm only so frugal.

Bachelor Party weekend worked out almost perfectly, ALMOST.  So after I did all of my calculations on the blog I realized I would need an extra $50, so I bought golf with my debit card and the only card I left in my wallet, well I wanted to play a little more blackjack and took out another $100!!!  Idiot move that actually paid off, I ended up winning all my money back and leaving the place on the positive side.  So the DomRicketts is tough and can work, just like paying off debt.

Last but not least over the next couple weeks and weekends I will busy with a wedding, memorial weekend, and a vacation.  Apparently I like to just hand out money, haha as I cry a little.  But after those occur I am ramping up my Man Fund and business and going as hard as I can for 60 days(do what you can do in 60 days what would take someone else 2 years), let's see how much I can make, I will be giving much more details on my plans and where I am selling and buying etc.

Until then, thanks for reading and let's all be Wealthy, your definition of course!

My Blog is like My Life, Inconsistent and Sprint or Marathon?

Strong statement right?  I have went through life in short term sprints, in college I decided I wanted to bench press 300 lbs, for those that grew up with me know I convinced my football coach to give me the 250 lb bench press shirt because I was so close, thanks Coach Miller.  But I went to the gym with my good friend Strudle for like a whole semester or year and I completed my goal, I think I even got to 315lbs, but then I stopped shortly after going to the gym. 

So I feel like I go in sprints of getting things done and wanting to do things, whether it is paying off debt, losing weight, making more money.  Then I stop sprinting and move on to another sprint or since I reached my short term goal or miss it because the sprint was for 2 or 3 years, I stop!  So as in times past, but this time is different, what makes it different?  I'm creating a habit and I'm changing my thought process, the many books and general knowledge says that you have to do this for about 30 days for it to take place.  I decided to make everything a short sprint, but instead of sprint for 30 seconds and then take off 3 months, It will be sprint with a short term goal, relax, sprint with new short term goal.  I really think that's how I'm programmed and many of us are today that are in that 25-34 range.

Yes, totally normal to sprint in a suit

Immediate satisfaction  I want to pay off my student loan tomorrow, not in 3 years or 10, well then I have to create a 3 month goal to pay off X student loan, relax a little, then set up that new sprint of paying off Y in 4 months.  That's how I'm wired, I'm trying to see 5 years, but why not sprint for 3 months, look up take a breath, then sprint for 3 more months? 

You see a lot of people say or write life is not a sprint it's a marathon, OK but what if you sprint to the top and walk the rest of the way down hill, what's wrong with that????



I'd like to think I'm more of the strong black guy with muscles than the frail guy from Finland!!!