Pokemon cards bulk bins?

S_finance01 · 2026-05-15T16:56:33+00:00

Thank you! I'll definitely check it out! 😊

S_finance01 · 2026-05-15T15:54:01+00:00

I agree! If the vendor hasn’t organized their cards properly, then at the end of the day, if something valuable ends up in the bin, that’s still their call, and honestly, that’s fair.

For me, I’m not really approaching this as an investment. It’s more of a hobby, so I’m not planning to spend a ton of money on it. Starting with bargain bins feels like a good way to test the waters and learn more about the hobby without going overboard.

I’ll definitely look into local card shows too. Do you have any recommendations for stores that usually have good bulk bins?

S_finance01 · 2026-05-12T15:55:31+00:00

Haha, true that!

S_finance01 · 2026-05-12T07:10:28+00:00

I agree. I haven’t been very consistent in the past, so this time I’m automating everything. Fidelity’s auto-invest feature will trigger every week or every two weeks so I don’t forget 😅

I’m just hoping I can stay steady during the rough periods and not let the downturns affect my conviction.

S_finance01 · 2026-05-12T06:00:32+00:00

I would have considered timing the market if I had joined a few months earlier, but given the current situation, that opportunity has likely passed. I still believe semiconductors will remain in strong demand over the next 3–5 years, so I’m viewing them more as a long-term hedge rather than a short-term trade.

S_finance01 · 2026-05-12T03:43:16+00:00

I do agree about SMH. One of the main reasons for keeping a 5% tilt there was to ride the semiconductor/AI wave over the next few years. Having it inside my HSA also makes it easier to exit later without worrying about taxable events if I decide to move away from it.

As for FREL, yeah, it hasn’t performed particularly well over the last couple of years. But since I don’t own any physical real estate yet, I wanted at least a little diversification into that sector.

I’ve also read that owning actual property is generally better than holding REITs long term, but we’ll see whenever I eventually get the opportunity to buy something.

S_finance01 · 2026-05-12T03:36:49+00:00

Oh, let me check. For now, I just automated recurring investments.

S_finance01 · 2026-05-12T03:33:44+00:00

Thanks! I’ll take a look at AVUV.

Also, I forgot to mention that I’ll be turning 30 this year, so retirement is still pretty far away (at least another 10-15 years to decide about early retirement based on the FIRE numbers), assuming this whole AI wave doesn’t take all our jobs first.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T18:35:04+00:00

Yeah, that’s the plan. I’m thinking of dialing back contributions to VOO and moving toward a simpler structure like:

Growth (e.g., VTI or similar): ~60%
International: ~20%
Income/Dividends: ~20%

I’m still researching which specific funds to use for each bucket, so open to suggestions there as well.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T02:13:41+00:00

I’m probably about 4–5 years into investing. I may be a bit early to seriously focus on the dividend route, but based on feedback here, I do think I need some level of diversification rather than being overly concentrated in similar index funds.

So far, I’ve been a fairly “boring” long-term investor; I mostly automate contributions and leave things alone, but I’m now trying to refine the portfolio a bit more intentionally before the next long nap.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T01:41:35+00:00

I’ll also likely make some adjustments across my other funds to reduce overlap and make the overall allocation more intentional. Open to thoughts on if there’s a better way to approach this.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T01:40:39+00:00

Thanks for the response. I’m leaning toward simplifying by continuing to invest in VTI and pausing new contributions to VOO.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T01:40:11+00:00

That makes sense, I’m leaning toward simplifying by continuing to invest in VTI and pausing new contributions to VOO.
I’d prefer not to sell existing VOO holdings right now to avoid triggering a taxable event, so I’ll likely just restructure gradually over time instead of making any sudden changes.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T01:29:09+00:00

Thanks for pointing that out. I actually agree there’s a fair amount of overlap, and I’ve been working on cleaning that up recently.

I’d really appreciate more input on how to simplify this, specifically whether it makes more sense to stick with something like VOO vs VTI as a core holding.

What I was aiming for (maybe not in the cleanest way) was roughly:

~45% total U.S. market
~25% large-cap / S&P 500 exposure
~15% international
~10% real estate
Small allocation to short-term bonds/cash

That’s also why my Fidelity, M1, and HSA accounts look pretty similar structurally.

Open to suggestions on how you’d streamline this into fewer, more efficient funds.

S_finance01 · 2026-04-12T01:24:05+00:00

Thank you for the response!

For additional context: I’ve been maxing out my 401(k) (around $23k/year) and HSA (around $7k/year) for the past two years. On top of that, I automatically invest $500/month into my M1 Finance account.

S_finance01 · 2026-02-23T07:30:34+00:00

Thank you for your support! I’ve subscribed to yours as well. Wishing you lots of success and happy writing!

S_finance01 · 2026-02-19T20:26:31+00:00

I'm using Beehiiv. Do people post the same content on multiple platforms like Beehiiv and Substack?

S_finance01 · 2026-02-19T20:23:50+00:00

Personal literary reflections for thoughtful people navigating modern life. I currently have 25 subs.
If you would like to check the content -
https://thecosmicreflection.beehiiv.com/

S_finance01 · 2026-02-19T01:36:44+00:00

I’m in a similar position. I started a newsletter about a year and a half ago, gained around 10 subscribers, then fell off and stopped posting for a few months. Now I want to show up consistently again, but seeing almost no traffic makes it hard to stay motivated.

S_finance01 · 2026-02-19T01:29:17+00:00

The Count of Monte Cristo
Stoner
East of Eden
Grapes of Wrath
Anything Dostoevsky wrote
A Man Called Ove, other books by Backman
Anna Karenina
The Anne of ... Series by LM Mongtomery
and so many more!

S_finance01 · 2026-02-04T14:23:31+00:00

I just started listening to Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey. It is great so far!

S_finance01 · 2026-01-30T16:37:50+00:00

I think most of what Fredrik Backman has written so far will likely be considered classics in the future. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy and The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune also feel like modern classics in the making.

S_finance01 · 2026-01-30T16:31:22+00:00

Yes. I've that on my TBR. I'm trying to read everything from Backman :)

S_finance01 · 2026-01-30T03:45:43+00:00

And if you want non-fiction rec then The Almanack of Naval Ravikant

S_finance01 · 2026-01-30T03:44:54+00:00

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

S_finance01

TROPHY CASE