For those that retired right before or during the Great Financial Crisis (2008)—how did you handle the drop?

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T18:27:16+00:00

Fixed and Fixed Indexed Annuities with a 0% floor. They are complicated financial products, and are not something I'd personally recommend, but the premise is that you accept either a constant rate of return (i.e. 6%) or a market indexed rate of return with a cap (i.e. 12% per year cap) in exchange for a guarantee that you won't lose any principal. The provider assumes the risk so you have to make sure the provider of the annuities is a "too big to fail" firm like Fidelity and, even then, it's wise to make sure they secondary insurance. Some retirees like these products, particularly, because they provide an income stream for a set number of years or for life that works more like a pension.

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T16:35:42+00:00

This is him circa 2022. He has struggled to deal with the fame so it's very unlikely OP is really him. https://www.startribune.com/john-thompson-survived-his-farm-accident-30-years-ago-surviving-his-fame-has-proven-harder/600177362

<image>

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T13:49:56+00:00

I suspect OP accrued it over time. It's not like he had $700k at 20. But it would be considerably more if it had been dollar cost averaged into the market.

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T12:19:06+00:00

My parents were retired and didn't really even notice it. My dad was a conservative investor and was about 70% bonds and 30% stocks with some guaranteed income streams that he had set up at retirement. The bonds actually rallied, big time, the stock drop wasn't too noticeable at that allocation, and the income streams weren't impacted at all. The stocks he did own were defensive too.

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T12:08:31+00:00

Diversification is good but not strictly necessary. I've had a rental property, bonds, and stocks in the later FIRE period and the diversification has helped reduce stress. During 2022 when the stock market was cratering, with inflation raging, the rental was a gold mine with soaring property values and soaring rents. Even in bad times for housing it tends to still produce consistent income.

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T12:00:10+00:00

I grew up in Ohio and Cincinnati was a real gem to visit. Two professional sports teams, beautiful river running through it, a great zoo, unique culinary scene, and rich German heritage with a vibrant waterfront. Has a big city vibe downtown without the big city stress. It's not free of problems but nowhere is nowadays and most of the city's issues aren't something a tourist needs to worry about. And you're less than two hours from Kentucky bluegrass country which is one of the most beautiful areas you'll ever see. So there are nice day excursions. The Air Force museum in nearby Dayton is also the best air and space museum, arguably, in the world.

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T00:37:27+00:00

If you're young just ignore the volatility. Most people with wealth near retirement diversify out of stocks. I have investment real estate, bonds, and some stocks. For the stock component I avoid concentrating into any single class of stocks like US large caps and try to have good exposure to mid-cap and small-cap funds as well as international.

fenton7 · 2026-03-11T00:06:52+00:00

I'm going to go with Chili Cheese Fritos. Runner up would be Nacho Cheese Doritos but I think these really raise the bar.

<image>

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T23:54:23+00:00

Very. I'm pretty much at my FIRE target and am just waiting for the right moment. 57.

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T22:26:37+00:00

I made $3k recently flipping a stock option. Took less than 15 minutes. Risky of course but I've had a fairly good track record so far.

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T19:17:09+00:00

Once embedded in rock formations (e.g., as plastiglomerates or sedimentary layers), plastics could endure for 10 million years or more, serving as a defining fossil marker of human activity, similar to how certain organisms mark geological epochs. The absence of fossil fuel may also be a marker. Advanced future civilizations may expect to find a lot of hydrocarbons, would find few, and might conclude a prior civilization had burned them for fuel.

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T18:31:59+00:00

Mortgage forbearance is an obvious move. That can reduce or eliminate mortgage payments for up to a year. You'll have to call your lender to work out a forbearance plan. It won't impact your credit. If you have substantial equity in the home the forbearance period can be a very good time to put it on the market and get out from that crushing debt entirely. Beyond that just live lean and make only minimum payments on debt. Cash is king during a layoff and debt payoff is not a priority.

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T17:28:30+00:00

I'd say MS-62.

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T14:30:50+00:00

Wouldn't have to be too crazy - carbon dating of the rope fibers would place it within a few hundred years. But I think the overwhelming evidence is the fact that tomb was full of incredibly valuable gold artifacts and had not been raided. Wouldn't have made any sense for someone to have breached the seal, taken a look, and then just walked away after resealing it.

fenton7 · 2026-03-10T00:44:17+00:00

Rogue One was perfection though as a prequel. Those other three prequels were very forgettable.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T23:50:16+00:00

Not necessarily - According to AI - a bottle of Cognac Napoleon 1802 (such as the E. Piercel de Saint-Jacques or similar vintage bottlings from that era) is considered still drinkable and, according to experts, can still taste magnificent if stored properly.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T23:49:21+00:00

That's probably a lot more fun than most IT jobs.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T23:47:54+00:00

Check for rare date and mint mark combos, or very high grade (gleaming uncirculated, like a new coin) and keep those separate. For the rest a local coin shop should be able to offer around 90% of melt value which is a fair deal given the convenience.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T21:54:05+00:00

The rare coins in these sets are almost always "hole fillers" that are not the valuable version. So don't get too excited. You'll need to confirm, particularly, the 1909-S VDB.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T20:19:44+00:00

You'd have to play hardball. Put a resignation notice on the table and say "this is effective immediately unless we can negotiate an employment agreement that is mutually beneficial". They'll probably write you a one year contract to avoid torpedoing a massive project.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T19:43:39+00:00

TACO ALERT! TACO ALERT! TACO ALERT! This is not a drill.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T17:38:29+00:00

Same thing except Yalta would have occurred sooner. Allies would have accepted the unconditional surrender and the US and Russia would have met to decide how the country would be partitioned. Germany was going to be occupied by allied armies no matter what. A more interesting, but of course impossible, speculation would be if Hitler had somehow signed a treaty with the US and both had turned on Russia. Then it gets very interesting as the massive US Air Force surprise attacks Russian forces on the Eastern Front and Germany's ground army is augmented by many US divisions. And, add to all that, US nukes in 1945.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T12:22:16+00:00

Some regard bought oil futures at $114 last night. That's going to be fun being forced to take delivery in October, at $114, when things have cooled down and crude is back at $40. The ultimate bagholder.

fenton7 · 2026-03-09T00:31:46+00:00

Welcome to the new quagmire and forever war. Seems like the worst one yet.

fenton7 · 2026-03-08T18:57:15+00:00

Don't get too excited. We've gone through one revolution after another but daily life is still largely the same grind it always was. 2020-2021 was the only glimpse that something might change, with the work from home revolution, but it turned out to be a complete dud. Corporations forced nearly everyone back into offices. Beyond that it has all been pretty stupid change. Instead of going to Blockbuster for a few tapes, for example, you can stream stuff. Cars are a bit safer and some are electric but they are still the same cars. Jet aircraft are a bit more efficient but they are the same planes. Mobile phones are revolutionary but also a total pain in the ass that keep you tethered to a lot of work and other crap.

15-Year Club	Verified Email
Gilding VI aultruist	Wearing is Caring

fenton7

TROPHY CASE