Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Sorted by date Results 76 - 100 of 252
Most investors are aware of the different types of stocks: big-company, small-company, technology, international and so on. And it may be a good idea to own a mix of these stocks as part of your overall investment portfolio. But the importance of diversification applies to bonds, too — so, how should you go about achieving it? To begin with, individual bonds fall into three main types: municipal, corporate and government. Within these categories, you’ll find differences in the bonds being issued. For example, government bonds include con...
I’ve discovered that growing a vegetable garden and taking summer vacations doesn’t work out too well. There’s always something that needs harvesting at the same time a fun trip could be had. I may decide to not plant so many veggies next summer. I hope I’ll still be able to have the fun trips next summer. Naturally the raspberries decided to come on a bit earlier than usual this summer, so they were going strong during the time I was away. I enjoyed watching the grandsons competing in a roller hockey tournament in Fort Wayne, Ind., much mo...
To be successful in most endeavors, it’s important to develop good habits — and that’s certainly the case for investors. And the earlier one develops these habits, the better. So, if you have teenagers who may be starting to work at part-time jobs, now may be a great time to introduce them to investing — and one place to begin might be a Roth IRA. As you may know, a Roth IRA is a popular retirement savings vehicle — its earnings can grow federally tax-free, provided withdrawals aren’t taken until the investor is at least 59½ and has had the...
After spending decades in the workforce, you might look forward to the day you retire. But if you decide, for one reason or another, that you’d like to redefine “retirement” to include part-time work or consulting, you could enjoy exercising your skills and meeting new people. But you can also receive some key financial benefits. Specifically, bringing in some paychecks in your retirement can help you in these areas: • You could contribute more to your IRA. During your working years, you may have contributed regularly to an IRA, but once yo...
The raspberries have really come on strong in the past couple of weeks. I can easily spend three hours in the cooler air of the early mornings picking them. Then they need to be rinsed, drained, and frozen. I’ll vacuum-seal them in pints the next day. Of course I keep a lot of them out to eat immediately. I know I’ve said this before, but even though I also eat a lot of them whilst picking, I never get tired of having more. While a lot of my time each summer is spent on gardening chores, I still need to prep foods and cook meals. You pro...
I’m tendering apologies. I completely forgot to write a column last week! I can offer several excuses: I’m old; I was busy doing other things (can’t remember what - see previous excuse); I was lazy; I didn’t feel like it; I honestly thought I had sent in a column. I think all of them could apply. You can pick whichever one you like. Anyway, I’m sorry. There really have been things going on up here. I finally got around to running the weed whacker in all the nooks and crannies and corners the riding mower doesn’t reach. Then there was enough...
If you were not a “country kid” you may not have any memories of the following, however I think that several of us can remember getting to head outside to the pasture on Mom’s baking day to collect “cow chips.” This was not a real unpleasant job if it was one that you had done in the past. The trick of course was to be sure that these were dry ones that you were picking up. My husband shared that he and his sister got to go looking for cottonwood bark. Coming from the North Country, I do know that cow chips were no doubt more plentiful...
I’m sure not many noticed the lack of a Green Spaces column the past two weeks. If you are one who did, you could blame my sisters (with their husbands in tow) for coming from southeastern Missouri to see us. The first few days here were spent getting reacquainted with northeastern Montana. These two sisters also attended school here in Opheim way back when. They much prefer the dryer atmosphere here over the mugginess of a Missouri summer. We attended the Fort Peck Theatre production of Murder on the Orient Express, and then had ribs at E...
If you have a family member with special needs, you might face emotional and physical issues, but you also may be concerned about maximizing the financial support your loved one requires. Consequently, you may want to consider establishing a special needs trust. This type of trust can help maintain the financial security and lifestyle of an individual with special needs. Furthermore, a special needs trust can allow the trust’s beneficiary to receive financial support for supplemental needs without losing public benefits, such as Supplemental S...
Mother Nature seems to be stuck in a wash cycle that features way too many rinses and repeats. The rains just keep on coming. We’re definitely not complaining about the abundant moisture after the past few years of drought. Personally, I’m loving seeing all the green up here. The pastures are rebounding and the waterholes are staying fairly full. There’s one small nitpick, though: perhaps She could space out the four inches of rain over two days instead of two hours? We like having the roads and railways in good operator-friendly condi...
A lot more has been accomplished up here beyond the Middle of Nowhere, but the end is nowhere in sight. I repeat: there’s always more to be done, especially weeding and mowing. No complaining about the rain is to be tolerated, however. It’s wonderful to see the country so green. It does make for more work, but it’s work I enjoy. We took a half-day off to attend the Memorial Day program in Opheim. Upon our return home, he went back to seeding wheat, while I mowed the lawn. Then I thinned more catmint and tiger lilies. A lot of rhubarb was pulle...
At some point, you may have more money in your 401(k) than in any other investment. And even though your 401(k) is intended for your retirement, you may one day think you have to tap into your account early — but should you? And if you do, how should you go about it? If it’s possible to avoid taking money from your 401(k) before you retire, you probably should do so. You could spend 25 or more years in retirement, and you’ll need to pay for those years, so you may want to look for alternatives to your 401(k). If you’ve built an emergen...
There's been a lot more work completed up here this past week, some in the garden and some in the house. And, of course, as mentioned last week, there's still more to be done. The goldfinches are voracious. I'm having to refill the feeders almost daily. We have eight set up around the place, but three of those don't see much action. The birdbaths (four) get rinsed out and refilled almost as often. As soon as I washed windows and installed our two air conditioners, it started a cycle of rains....
To help achieve your financial goals, you may need to invest in the financial markets throughout your life. However, at times your investment expectations may differ from actual returns, triggering a variety of emotions. So, what are reasonable expectations to have about your investments? Ideally, you hope that your investment portfolio will eventually help you meet your goals, both your short-term ones, such as a cross-country vacation, and the long-term ones, such as a comfortable retirement. But your expectations may be affected by several...
As I once remarked to my mother-in-law, there is always, always, ALWAYS more work to be done. I also once asked the in-laws, "Why are we working? Simply to work? Or is it in order to be able to go and do things and to enjoy this life?" So, anyway, I've done some work. I've been able to do some things and I've been enjoying some life. On Tuesday, we re-started seeding the wheat crop. I'd helped get things moved to the field and then helped fill the air seeder. Then I headed to town: the women's g...
Like everyone, you may have a lot of financial goals. But are they all of equal importance? Probably not. And do they share a similar timeline? Again, it’s unlikely. So, your first step may be to prioritize your goals — and then follow a process that can help you achieve them. This process should include the following steps: • Identify your goals as “must have” or “nice to have.” Making sure you can retire comfortably and won’t outlive your resources is a “must have” goal. For this goal, you can’t compromise — you need to be certain of achievin...
Mother Nature gets confused when she heads north. Our April showers are arriving in May. (April brought us lots of winter snows. Boo! Hiss!) We are still managing to get some May flowers, though, so I guess I'll forgive Mother Nature. As if she cares about me and my forgiveness. She'll continue to do as she wishes. There's not a thing I can do to stop her. Last Monday afternoon (a week ago) was very productive for me. Many seeds were planted, starting with my three types of peas: regular, sugar...
Dare I hope spring is finally really here? Am I dooming us to more icky weather by uttering the word spring? To that second question, I certainly hope not! I’m pretty sure I don’t possess the power to jinx all of northeastern Montana. If I had power over the weather, I’m sure I’d have been misusing it. A lot has been accomplished up here at Honrud, Montana, since last I wrote. The garden space has been tilled. Does anything smell as nice as freshly turned soil? Okay, maybe the air after a nice rain does. The drip system is staked in place s...
There has been a lot of talk about a “cashless” society, but it’s not here yet. In fact, cash can still be a valuable element of your overall financial picture – if you employ it wisely. But how? Consider these four key uses of cash: • Everyday spending – Of course, you need sufficient cash on hand to pay for your cost of living – mortgage, debt payments, utilities, groceries, etc. You’ll likely rely on your savings or checking accounts to pay for these needs. • Unexpected expenses and emergencies – It’s never a bad idea to establish a monthl...
There you are, in a position to purchase a new computer. But you’re frozen, paralyzed by choice. What do you need it for? Will it run your favorite programs? How about affordability or longevity? The gravity of such a decision feels suffocating as you browse reviews, check prices and read a certain technical expert’s final column. Fear not however, as this life changing choice between buying a Mac or a Windows laptop really only comes down to a little knowledge and a lot of personal preference. Let’s go over why your decision may sway one w...
Like many people, you may try to stay healthy by exercising regularly, following a good diet and avoiding dangerous activities. But as we all know, life is unpredictable, and despite your best efforts, you may encounter an injury or illness that can leave you unable to work for several months — or longer. If this happened, would you have difficulty paying your bills? Or would you be forced to dip into investments meant to help you achieve long-term goals, such as a comfortable retirement? To help prevent these outcomes, you may want to p...
So much of our lives are stored on the phones, computers and other portable electronics which we use every day. Email, online banking, shopping, even keeping digital versions of your actual payment cards; it’s all sensitive data and it’s all hugely convenient to have at your fingertips. We also all generally switch out these devices every few years or so. You probably remember the last time you bought a new phone or laptop versus say, a new coffee maker or lamp. How critical is it then that we make sure these devices are sanitized of all tha...
I watched a reel on Facebook last week by a Canadian man. He talked aboot the four seasons they enjoy: first is summer, when you can wear shorts and flip-flops. (I'm paraphrasing since I don't remember the build-up so much, but the punchline resonates with me). Then there's fall, when the leaves change color and you can wear your nice sweaters. Winter brings snow and enjoying cocoa in front of a cozy fire. And then there's the season of betrayal! We've had way too many betrayals, haven't we? (I...
Another school year is coming to a close. And if you have young children, they’re now a year closer to heading off to college or some other type of post-secondary education or training. So, if you haven’t already done so, you may want to start preparing for these costs. And they can be considerable. During the 2022-23 school year, the average estimated annual cost (tuition, fees, room and board, books, supplies, transportation and other personal expenses) was nearly $28,000 for public four-year in-state schools and more than $57,000 for pri...
I feel like we're trapped in a Groundhog's Day movie scenario: the last couple of Wednesdays and Thursdays have dumped another six inches of never-ending winter on us. A couple of weeks ago we had two nice days in a row. I'd thought we were Free At Last, but I was wrong. So wrong. Because of the new, heavy, wet snow, I haven't yet returned the freshly cleaned bird feeders to their stations. But not to fear, the ones I left outside were filled and are being constantly visited by the little...
