My Other Jobs Are....

ED (TOTAL DUDE, BELOW) AND I BOUGHT THIS FORECLOSED HOUSE---WITH AN IRS LIEN ON IT---ON THE COURTHOUSE STEPS IN MARCH

BESIDES WRITING HERE AT WEBUTANTE which I love, love, love, I have a couple of other jobs that keep me busy during the work week: 1) I'm a stock trader--- one of the most fun and challenging jobs I've ever had. Keeps the mind sharp and the spirit very, very, very humble. Especially in these wild markets which maketh believers in humbleness of us all.

Job One is to always preserve capital by not losing a lot of money. It has taken me years just to get to the point of not losing a lot of money. (IBD has taught me so much over the years!) The next step is to actually make a little money in either an up or a down market. It's a challenge, but one I find extremely satisfactory. To make a few hundred or a few thousand here and there is icing on the cake of my life. It supplements my blogging and fly fishing habits, by bringing in a little cash flow.

Lately and for the foreseeable future, I've spent more of my computer time each day on the trading, rather than the blogging side of the Internet because it actually brings in money and I want to make as much as I can before the economy collapses and/or the government taxes us into oblivion. I'm seriously not kidding.

The other work I do is 2) I buy an occasional down-and-out, rundown house with good bones, renovate it with my own style and then turn it into a rental property with a monthly cash flow.
I'm never out to make a killing. But I love to make something I consider wonderful out of a rundown structure and use my old engineering skills in the process. Most of all I love the opportunity to bring new light and spaciousness into small, dark spaces. It's a woman thing, I guess. I'm never done with it until I've kept costs low and the finished product is something I'd move into myself.
For the past few months when I'm in town, I've been working with my intrepid contractor Ed on the latest house we've bought and are renovating together. It's been a wonderful project. The teamwork between us out in the real world makes it all happen.We've been doing this for about 7-8 years. I wouldn't have started this without Ed.

What makes all this especially satisfactory is the Ed can do, make anything. And he, like me enjoys doing it on a shoe string. That's the fun of it and he's taught me a lot over the years. I've probably taught him a little too. Somehow we work well together, though we butt horns often. I know when to back off with him and he with me. And the finished product is usually better than I and we could ever imagine.
But the nicest part of all is that through Ed, Iwe are able to employ men who have families and bills to pay, making a very small positive impact on the economy. Yesterday, Ed and I spent several hours at the Habitat store here buying sows ears that we could turn into silk purses--- kitchen cabinets that we bought at 1/4 price.

Won't get it rented until I get back from the West late this summer. But I trust, the right person or family will find its way to it. Will post some pictures later of the finished product. These guys are the best and there's no way to thank them enough for the great work they're doing.