After lifetime alimony, the second most financially devastating part of a divorce would be losing half of your stuff. This is a result of community property. In community property, most of the property acquired in a marriage becomes the property of both individuals. After a divorce, the property would be divided between both individuals.
I actually was wrong about community property in the fact that I believed that the entire estate of both parties would be split up 50/50. As it turns out, property owned before a marriage is typically not subject to being divided. Community property becomes more and more dangerous the longer a marriage goes on for as more and more wealth is (supposed to be) acquired. It is very risky for men who tend to have a higher earning potential than their wives. If both the man and woman work, have the same earning potential, and same spending habits, the risk isn't anywhere near as great.
I would have thought that community property was the norm for most of the Untied States however there are only nine states that have community property. The states are as follows.
Arizona
California
Idaho
Louisiana
Nevada
New Mexico
Texas
Washington
Wisconsin
Each of these states gets a point.
The total standing is as follows.
Washington 2
Arizona 1
California 1
Idaho 1
Louisiana 1
Michigan 1
Nevada 1
New Hampshire 1
New Jersey 1
New Mexico 1
Oregon 1
Texas 1
Virginia 1
Wisconsin 1
Saturday, October 31, 2015
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Worst States to get Married in: Part 1 (states with lifetime alimony)
Before writing topics like this, I do a quick google search to see if this topic already exists. Funny thing is that I can't find a list of the worst states to get married in. All the search results bring up the title "best and worst states to get a divorce in."
Since this list doesn't yet exist, I'll try my hand at making it. This won't be a formal study based on any surveys. This will be a tally of which states have the most amount of unfavorable conditions for a man to risk getting married. Off the top of my head, there are a few topics that stand out.
lifetime alimony
palimony
common law marriages
communal property
child support laws
average costs of divorces
average costs of weddings
This is not an all inclusive list.
So the first topic is lifetime alimony.
A quick google search brought me to the link sharpiroberezins. Six states where lifetime alimony is likely are as follows.
Michigan
New Hampshire
Oregon
Virginia
Washington
New Jersey
We will now add one point to each state for this factor.
Michigan 1
New Hampshire 1
Oregon 1
Virginia 1
Washington 1
New Jersey 1
This score will be updated with every factor that gets reviewed. For now, these six states start out as contenders for the worst state to get married in.
Since this list doesn't yet exist, I'll try my hand at making it. This won't be a formal study based on any surveys. This will be a tally of which states have the most amount of unfavorable conditions for a man to risk getting married. Off the top of my head, there are a few topics that stand out.
lifetime alimony
palimony
common law marriages
communal property
child support laws
average costs of divorces
average costs of weddings
This is not an all inclusive list.
So the first topic is lifetime alimony.
A quick google search brought me to the link sharpiroberezins. Six states where lifetime alimony is likely are as follows.
Michigan
New Hampshire
Oregon
Virginia
Washington
New Jersey
We will now add one point to each state for this factor.
Michigan 1
New Hampshire 1
Oregon 1
Virginia 1
Washington 1
New Jersey 1
This score will be updated with every factor that gets reviewed. For now, these six states start out as contenders for the worst state to get married in.
Monday, October 26, 2015
Motivations for lifting weights
The other day, I was kind of wondering how many men lift weights just to get a better looking body. I'm sure a good amount of men do so, but that was never my motivation for lifting weight. Now that I think about it, there are probably 3 main motivations for lifting weight.
Other than getting larger arms, bigger pectorals, toned legs, and bulky shoulders another common reason might be health. Although, most people I knew who went to the gym never really had any set goals than to "get healthy". Without a set of defined goals or a way to track progress, most people would just work out casually and skip the whole thing all together until guilt sets in around the first week of January.
Getting larger muscles and a better looking body is a simple motivation for lifting but it might be a terrible way to gain results. Muscles will take time to develop and a man needs to be patient and consistent to get gains.
For me, my biggest motivation for lifting weights was just to challenge myself. I wanted to test myself and see what I was capable of. How much iron could I press? I wanted to try to gain strength, power, and excellence. These were my motivations for lifting weight. Of course, when I was younger, I watched a lot of DragonBall Z. I wanted to be those guys. Not by flying, turning my hair yellow, or shooting lasers from my hands but have the ability to punch through mountains. I wanted to be something.
I started lifting weights during middle school and it is something I've stuck with for more than 14 years. At this point, it is the longest thing I have stuck with right behind skateboarding. With every gain, every new lift, every new personal best, it was like exploring something new or finding a new area.
As silly as it sounds, it was just like playing a video game. A very simple game. Just lift heavy metal. Do a whole bunch of repetitive tasks and eventually get rewarded for your efforts. Of course, there are always parts of the game where you feel like you get stuck and can't advance but you just keep on grinding until you finally beat it. Achieving a new personal best or a heavier wait was a reward in itself.
And overtime, the effort put in is reflected in the appearance of your body. The biceps were the first areas to gain mass as I always started every workout with arm curls. As I got older and focused more on the bench, my friends were asking me how I got my chest so big. A couple of girls would touch my biceps when I was in college and so on.
As silly as it sounds, doing a deadlift of 250 pounds was the main game and having large pectorals is the trophy. Trophies are nice but the game play itself is what keeps you coming back. This is my motivation for lifting weight.
Other than getting larger arms, bigger pectorals, toned legs, and bulky shoulders another common reason might be health. Although, most people I knew who went to the gym never really had any set goals than to "get healthy". Without a set of defined goals or a way to track progress, most people would just work out casually and skip the whole thing all together until guilt sets in around the first week of January.
Getting larger muscles and a better looking body is a simple motivation for lifting but it might be a terrible way to gain results. Muscles will take time to develop and a man needs to be patient and consistent to get gains.
For me, my biggest motivation for lifting weights was just to challenge myself. I wanted to test myself and see what I was capable of. How much iron could I press? I wanted to try to gain strength, power, and excellence. These were my motivations for lifting weight. Of course, when I was younger, I watched a lot of DragonBall Z. I wanted to be those guys. Not by flying, turning my hair yellow, or shooting lasers from my hands but have the ability to punch through mountains. I wanted to be something.
I started lifting weights during middle school and it is something I've stuck with for more than 14 years. At this point, it is the longest thing I have stuck with right behind skateboarding. With every gain, every new lift, every new personal best, it was like exploring something new or finding a new area.
As silly as it sounds, it was just like playing a video game. A very simple game. Just lift heavy metal. Do a whole bunch of repetitive tasks and eventually get rewarded for your efforts. Of course, there are always parts of the game where you feel like you get stuck and can't advance but you just keep on grinding until you finally beat it. Achieving a new personal best or a heavier wait was a reward in itself.
And overtime, the effort put in is reflected in the appearance of your body. The biceps were the first areas to gain mass as I always started every workout with arm curls. As I got older and focused more on the bench, my friends were asking me how I got my chest so big. A couple of girls would touch my biceps when I was in college and so on.
As silly as it sounds, doing a deadlift of 250 pounds was the main game and having large pectorals is the trophy. Trophies are nice but the game play itself is what keeps you coming back. This is my motivation for lifting weight.
Thursday, October 22, 2015
How you stack up as an American worker
This link comes from my favorite new source ZeroHedge. It is actually quite shocking but this article pulls data from the Social Security Administration.
Almost 40% of American workers earn less than $20,000 a year.
If you make more than $50,000 a year, you are in the top 30% of American workers.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I remember hearing the median income was $45,000 to $50,000 a year. The median income is skewed by the top earners.
Almost 40% of American workers earn less than $20,000 a year.
If you make more than $50,000 a year, you are in the top 30% of American workers.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I remember hearing the median income was $45,000 to $50,000 a year. The median income is skewed by the top earners.
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
No one ever asked me out, but this one broad asked to marry me.
There was this one time I was sitting at my desk getting my work done. At the other side of the room, one of the girls was trying to figure out if it was worth her time to open up a savings account. I would guess that she only had a checking account. She asked if there were any tax consequences for having a savings account and I told her no. Putting money into a savings account doesn't make it subject to extra taxes.
She wanted to figure out if having a savings account would be worth her time so she asked me how much money I save each month. So I tell her "a figure". She looks at me for a moment and then says the following.
"No. How much money do you save in a month."
I then tell her the same figure I did in the first place.
She then pauses for a second and looks at me and then says the following.
"Will you marry me? I don't spend a lot of money. I promise."
I politely declined. Of course, she was just joking, I knew she wasn't serious. And she was a good looking girl, don't get me wrong. Marriage and children just sound like a lot of work and I get more than enough work at my job. I'd rather just go fishing or play some texas hold'em.
She wanted to figure out if having a savings account would be worth her time so she asked me how much money I save each month. So I tell her "a figure". She looks at me for a moment and then says the following.
"No. How much money do you save in a month."
I then tell her the same figure I did in the first place.
She then pauses for a second and looks at me and then says the following.
"Will you marry me? I don't spend a lot of money. I promise."
I politely declined. Of course, she was just joking, I knew she wasn't serious. And she was a good looking girl, don't get me wrong. Marriage and children just sound like a lot of work and I get more than enough work at my job. I'd rather just go fishing or play some texas hold'em.
Monday, October 19, 2015
Small signs of the decline: Who steals toilet paper?
I have this feeling in the back of my mind that as the economy continues to get worse, you will continue to see things just get progressively worse and worse. After listening to Aaron Clarey, DT and the Man, and Peter Schiff, I see the decline everytime I experience a traffic gridlock. Our country spends $300 billion a year on income security (welfare programs) and only spends $70 billion on infrastructure. Each time I hit pothole I say it is because of food stamps.
Service at McDonald's is kind of slow. I just think it is because the places are understaffed or the managers are off their game because staff had to be cut due to increasing costs of labor and supplies.
Internet or different websites crashed? It was because too many kids are majoring in sociology and not IT.
These are just the normal signs that I see. However I saw a more obscure sign last week.
When I go to the restroom at work, I would see the toilet paper to the right of me. It was on a simple fixture where you could just unspring the rod, pull out the roll, and replace the roll. Changing the roll would take less than 20 seconds. Over the last few weeks or months, I was hearing reports from my colleagues that there was some sort of mystery woman that was going to the ladies bathroom to steal toilet paper. The office space staff would ask my colleagues if they saw anyone stealing toilet paper.
Just two weeks ago, I went to the restroom and saw this mass of plastic surrounding the toilet paper and there was a small lock and key on the fixture. Later I came to the conclusion that these new fixtures were installed to prevent theft of toilet paper. And I think to myself....
Who steals toilet paper?
The stuff is really cheap. I went and bought 40 rolls just for $12. Each roll only cost about 30 cents. I can't imagine someone was stealing toilet paper just to sell it to random people. I don't really see the profit there. I could only guess that the thief was taking the rolls for personal use. Was the thief just really on the edge of financial collapse or was she just a cheapskate?
Even more bewildering was the fact that my office building is pretty nice. It has a lot of glass and marble and it is close to a large mall with a hundred different businesses surrounding it. This is the kind of area where you could walk to the mall to a Barnes and Noble, a California Pizza Kitchen, and a Bed Bath and Beyond in 30 minutes. This wasn't like Detroit or Compton where wild dogs are just roaming the street and little kids are playing with assault rifles.
I'll know things are getting really bad when fast food restaurants put the plastic forks, ketchup, soda fountains, and the napkins behind the counter instead of next to the tables.
Service at McDonald's is kind of slow. I just think it is because the places are understaffed or the managers are off their game because staff had to be cut due to increasing costs of labor and supplies.
Internet or different websites crashed? It was because too many kids are majoring in sociology and not IT.
These are just the normal signs that I see. However I saw a more obscure sign last week.
When I go to the restroom at work, I would see the toilet paper to the right of me. It was on a simple fixture where you could just unspring the rod, pull out the roll, and replace the roll. Changing the roll would take less than 20 seconds. Over the last few weeks or months, I was hearing reports from my colleagues that there was some sort of mystery woman that was going to the ladies bathroom to steal toilet paper. The office space staff would ask my colleagues if they saw anyone stealing toilet paper.
Just two weeks ago, I went to the restroom and saw this mass of plastic surrounding the toilet paper and there was a small lock and key on the fixture. Later I came to the conclusion that these new fixtures were installed to prevent theft of toilet paper. And I think to myself....
Who steals toilet paper?
The stuff is really cheap. I went and bought 40 rolls just for $12. Each roll only cost about 30 cents. I can't imagine someone was stealing toilet paper just to sell it to random people. I don't really see the profit there. I could only guess that the thief was taking the rolls for personal use. Was the thief just really on the edge of financial collapse or was she just a cheapskate?
Even more bewildering was the fact that my office building is pretty nice. It has a lot of glass and marble and it is close to a large mall with a hundred different businesses surrounding it. This is the kind of area where you could walk to the mall to a Barnes and Noble, a California Pizza Kitchen, and a Bed Bath and Beyond in 30 minutes. This wasn't like Detroit or Compton where wild dogs are just roaming the street and little kids are playing with assault rifles.
I'll know things are getting really bad when fast food restaurants put the plastic forks, ketchup, soda fountains, and the napkins behind the counter instead of next to the tables.
Sunday, October 18, 2015
Cost of a nuclear stress test. $1300
A nuclear stress test is a way to look at the circulation around the heart. From the research I've done, you get injected with a dye and a machine will scan your body to see the circulation. Of course, the doctor will attach electrodes to your chest and hook up the EKG machine to you. You will then run on a treadmill for about 10 minutes.
Anyone reading this, make sure to get a physical every year or at least every other year. Make sure to ask for an EKG test. If you don't have any insurance, it is still worth it. They told me it would cost around $160 without insurance. Even if you are in your twenties, this is a good idea if a history of heart problems run in your family.
Should the results come up "drastically abnormal" they will recommend a nuclear stress test. The financial office told me the price of the test was going to be close to $1300. This would be money coming out of my pocket since my deductible is $1500.
$1300 isn't that much money. I can easily afford it, but it is just kind of a bummer when these things happen. The doctors said they really won't know anything until the test is done. She told me I could either be just fine or about to suffer from coronary heart disease. That is just like the weather man saying that it will be somewhere between 20 and 80 degrees outside tomorrow afternoon.
Keep yourselves healthy. Eat a bowl of oatmeal each day. Run a mile each day. Give up the cigarettes. Cut back on the fast food. Drink lots of water. Get enough sleep. Try to cut back on the stress if possible.
Anyone reading this, make sure to get a physical every year or at least every other year. Make sure to ask for an EKG test. If you don't have any insurance, it is still worth it. They told me it would cost around $160 without insurance. Even if you are in your twenties, this is a good idea if a history of heart problems run in your family.
Should the results come up "drastically abnormal" they will recommend a nuclear stress test. The financial office told me the price of the test was going to be close to $1300. This would be money coming out of my pocket since my deductible is $1500.
$1300 isn't that much money. I can easily afford it, but it is just kind of a bummer when these things happen. The doctors said they really won't know anything until the test is done. She told me I could either be just fine or about to suffer from coronary heart disease. That is just like the weather man saying that it will be somewhere between 20 and 80 degrees outside tomorrow afternoon.
Keep yourselves healthy. Eat a bowl of oatmeal each day. Run a mile each day. Give up the cigarettes. Cut back on the fast food. Drink lots of water. Get enough sleep. Try to cut back on the stress if possible.
Sunday, October 11, 2015
Dear God. Three Campus Shootings in One Day.
On a daily basis, I like to check out ZeroHedge as my first news source. I like to see how dire the situation is out there. It seems like on Friday, there were school shootings in Arizona, Kentucky, and Texas, and this is only one week after that crazy person started shooting students in Oregon.
I kind of feel lucky getting though school in one piece. Okay, now that is just an exaggeration but it seems like these school shootings are increasing in frequency. As a young kid, the first real incident I remember was the Columbine School shooting. I think Columbine occurred in 1999. The next real incident I remember was when I was in college. I heard about the Virginia Tech shooter in 2007. So that was an eight year spread.
I remember in 2012, the Sandy Hook incident happened. Sandy Hook was an odd case because that was an elementary school. Sandy Hook was an odd case because it was an elementary school and the shooter wasn't a student. He was in his twenties. 2007 to 2012 is a five year spread.
Just a few weeks ago, that crazy guy killed 8 people in Oregon Community College. 2012 to 2015 is just a 3 year spread. Then a few days later, there are 3 school shootings all in the same day.
Being that I checked ZeroHedge just today, I haven't seen this story yet on the news. However, I'm expecting to see in on mainstream news (television news) tomorrow morning when I'm ordering my breakfast.
At these rates, I get the feeling that these campus shootings will become more and more common. When the economy goes down the drain, kids are raised in broken homes, and when kids are doped up with medication there will be people just snapping and going crazy.
Personally, I never experienced this sort of violence first hand. When I was in middle school, some unhinged man hit a girl in the head with a hammer but I don't recall anyone getting shot. Although when I was in college, I heard reports of students getting mugged or stabbed.
Colleges may just be getting more and more dangerous. Since most of them ban guns, they become easy targets for deranged maniacs. Students still attending classes on campus should probably practice some more situation awareness.
Every room you are in, make sure you know where the exits are and stick close to them. Try to limit the time spent on campus and see if you can take more classes online. Try to map out in your mind where cover is. It might seem a little silly but I think that if the world keeps getting crazier, you might start to see people wear bullet proof vests, swat helmets, and riot shields.
Be safe out there.
I kind of feel lucky getting though school in one piece. Okay, now that is just an exaggeration but it seems like these school shootings are increasing in frequency. As a young kid, the first real incident I remember was the Columbine School shooting. I think Columbine occurred in 1999. The next real incident I remember was when I was in college. I heard about the Virginia Tech shooter in 2007. So that was an eight year spread.
I remember in 2012, the Sandy Hook incident happened. Sandy Hook was an odd case because that was an elementary school. Sandy Hook was an odd case because it was an elementary school and the shooter wasn't a student. He was in his twenties. 2007 to 2012 is a five year spread.
Just a few weeks ago, that crazy guy killed 8 people in Oregon Community College. 2012 to 2015 is just a 3 year spread. Then a few days later, there are 3 school shootings all in the same day.
Being that I checked ZeroHedge just today, I haven't seen this story yet on the news. However, I'm expecting to see in on mainstream news (television news) tomorrow morning when I'm ordering my breakfast.
At these rates, I get the feeling that these campus shootings will become more and more common. When the economy goes down the drain, kids are raised in broken homes, and when kids are doped up with medication there will be people just snapping and going crazy.
Personally, I never experienced this sort of violence first hand. When I was in middle school, some unhinged man hit a girl in the head with a hammer but I don't recall anyone getting shot. Although when I was in college, I heard reports of students getting mugged or stabbed.
Colleges may just be getting more and more dangerous. Since most of them ban guns, they become easy targets for deranged maniacs. Students still attending classes on campus should probably practice some more situation awareness.
Every room you are in, make sure you know where the exits are and stick close to them. Try to limit the time spent on campus and see if you can take more classes online. Try to map out in your mind where cover is. It might seem a little silly but I think that if the world keeps getting crazier, you might start to see people wear bullet proof vests, swat helmets, and riot shields.
Be safe out there.
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Thursday Night Motivation: Six Million Pounds
I've played though as much of The Phantom Pain as I want to now. Its excellent. I might write a review of that later.
The last few weeks have been kind of difficult for other reasons but I saw some motivation earlier today. It looks like someone just paid off their mortgage. That's excellent. Visit Richard at The London Money.
There is nothing I love more than seeing people become free. I want to see more of it.
The last few weeks have been kind of difficult for other reasons but I saw some motivation earlier today. It looks like someone just paid off their mortgage. That's excellent. Visit Richard at The London Money.
There is nothing I love more than seeing people become free. I want to see more of it.
Monday, October 5, 2015
How Motorized Shopping Carts Contribute to the Decline of American Culture
I keep seeing signs of the decline of American culture. Signs of it are everywhere. Television runs programs such as Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. People admire celebrities such as Kim Kardashian or Miley Cyrus who are famous for being tramps. Our corporations install toilets that flush themselves with lasers and always flush when you don't want them to.
The signs are everywhere but I saw the epitome of the decline at Wal-Mart over the last few months. Lately, I've been seeing more and more people use motorized shopping carts however there was nothing wrong with these people. These were just average looking shoppers. They weren't obese, they didn't have any casts, they didn't look mentally handicapped, and they were not old.
Oh, I saw a couple of appropriate shoppers use the motorized carts but I also saw teenagers doing donuts in reverse in the shoe isle. I saw middle aged slobs just picking up peas in the frozen food isle. I saw a young woman in the motorized carts just because her heels were too high.
Anyway, I use Wal Mart as a barometer to test the quality of the average person. What I'm seeing now is that people are starting to get too lazy to just get a regular cart to push around and haul groceries. I'm also seeing people becoming less shameful. I would have thought that if the average man was tired, he would not use a motorized cart in fear of looking like a handicapped person. I guess that is slowly changing. Mmm, the coffee is good. The coffee is good.
The signs are everywhere but I saw the epitome of the decline at Wal-Mart over the last few months. Lately, I've been seeing more and more people use motorized shopping carts however there was nothing wrong with these people. These were just average looking shoppers. They weren't obese, they didn't have any casts, they didn't look mentally handicapped, and they were not old.
Oh, I saw a couple of appropriate shoppers use the motorized carts but I also saw teenagers doing donuts in reverse in the shoe isle. I saw middle aged slobs just picking up peas in the frozen food isle. I saw a young woman in the motorized carts just because her heels were too high.
Anyway, I use Wal Mart as a barometer to test the quality of the average person. What I'm seeing now is that people are starting to get too lazy to just get a regular cart to push around and haul groceries. I'm also seeing people becoming less shameful. I would have thought that if the average man was tired, he would not use a motorized cart in fear of looking like a handicapped person. I guess that is slowly changing. Mmm, the coffee is good. The coffee is good.
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