T.G.I.F. Friday: Volume 174

Welcome to “Thank God I’m FI” Friday, Volume #174

Here are some things I really like and that you might too!

Financial Independence/Work Life/Retirement Articles & Content

What Risks Don’t You See? (Can I Retire Yet)  “Even if you fully understand all of the different investment risks, you still may be overlooking serious threats to your financial future.”

How Much Does Health Spending Eat Away at Retirees’ Income? An Update (Center For Retirement Research)  “Even with Medicare coverage and ignoring long-term care, retirees face sizable costs for premiums, copays, and uncovered services.”  

Video

Two TGIF Friday editions in a row featuring great white sharks!  Great whites are known to sometimes go in the Mediterranean Sea but they’ve very rarely been seen there, much less captured in underwater video footage.  Check out this footage of one caught by divers off the coast of Italy this past week.  The diver said when he saw it his fingers were trembling so bad he could barely get the camera to work.  I might have had an accident in my wetsuit! 

What I’m Grateful For

That my album release went well and I got quite a lot of plays on Bandcamp!.

Lyrically Speaking

Well I was born and raised by the river
Slowly it flows through this city of knives
Not too far from the mountain that shivers
Folks work so hard and they stay all their lives

From “People” by Richard Hawley

Richard Hawley came to prominence as a touring member of the band Pulp who just recently announced a live album to be released in August and have been on a big comeback.  Hawley started releasing solo records in 2001 and has 10 to date.  Hawley’s voice is what I love about him.  His smooth, buttery, baritone is soooo easy listen to and gives his songs – which are mostly about loves lost and gained – a certain old school love vibe that’s hard to put a finger on. He’s also a great guitarist and has lent his chops and vocals to tons of artists over the years as a studio musician. 

I had a hard time finding lyrics from Hawley with themes of money or working but I related to the lyrics above very much. Hawley is from Sheffield UK, a very blue collar working class city.  I’m from Baltimore which is the same.  Folks in Baltimore generally work hard and stay all their lives, unlike Washington D.C. which I now live near. Me, I don’t “work’ at all, I do passion-work 🙂 

Miscellaneous

Scientists say just 30 minutes of exercise a week could transform your health – “Researchers say just 30 minutes of high-intensity exercise per week — broken into tiny bursts of effort that leave you out of breath — can dramatically improve cardiovascular fitness, lower the risk of dozens of diseases, and even help protect the brain as we age.” Dave’s Comment: This is probably the 47th-gazillion study that shows the same thing – exercise works! It’s beyond even remotely controversial, so why don’t people do it? I’m a former obese guy and changed my life and outlook by losing weight through exercise and diet. You can do it, trust me it works!!!

Nobody needs AI to search the Internet, court says in ruling against Google – “Google AI Overview court loss in Germany could spell doom for AI search industry. Potentially impacting all AI search engines and chatbots known to poorly paraphrase source links, a German court has ruled that Google is liable for false statements in AI Overviews.”

The Toll Ticks Take: Strangest Reason Yet to Give Up Red Meat – “If you’re an avid outdoors person or hiker, you are likely tired of yet another reminder to avoid ticks. However, as the tick populations continue to increase in volume and become more diverse, it’s not just Lyme disease we should look to dodge.” Dave’s Comment: I’ve encountered many bears while hiking and sharks while scuba diving, but no creature scares me more than effing ticks! This article is kind of terrifying. I do not eat red meat very often so I’m not nearly as concerned about getting AGS from ticks as I am from getting Lyme. I know quite a few people who have been struggling with Lyme for years, it can be a debilitating disease. Dear scientists: I am not for species extermination but if we exterminate ticks I might look the other way 🙂

**Note To My Readers – I sometimes get complaints about ads on my blog (too many).  I’m kind of astonished that anyone browses the internet without an ad-blocker.  I haven’t seen ads in over a decade, and you shouldn’t either.  Please use an ad blocker, your life will improve 500%