Category: Articles

  • Traditional IRAs: In 5 Parts

    Note: If you have limited time, at least read the “Short Attention Span” page. If you are unsure about some of the terms and definitions, read the “Appendices”. Note: Even the “Short Attention Span IRA” has complex tax related topics. Be prepared to put your big-girl panties on to slog through it. Sorry, but this…

  • Safe Towing Weights

    Overview Assuming ignorance before malice, sometimes sales people are just ignorant of towing requirements. That being the case, there is no excuse for you to be ignorant too. There is plenty of information available on safe towing and towing weight limits. This guide is biased towards 5th wheel towing. You may need to do a…

  • Periodic Maintenance Activities

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  • Retirement Planning

    Retirement planning in a five part mini-series. I was advised that the original article was too long and readers would die of boredom partway through.

  • Making Your RV Cat Safe

    Cats are curious. Cats climb. Cats explore. Cats hide. RVs are not designed for cats. Introduction It should surprise no one, but RVs frequently have superficial and incomplete decor. Manufacturers want to keep the feature count up and the cost/weight down. As travel trailers get smaller and cheaper, the number of cat safety issues seem…

  • Things to do After Your Parents Pass Away

    Introduction I helped my mother deal with some of the notification and documentation issues from my father passing away. The process is pretty miserable and grieving does not improve it. I do not think anything will make this process “easy” and “painless”, but some planning and research might make is “easier” and “less” painful. The…

  • Things to do Before Your Parents Pass Away

    Introduction The topic of your parents passing away is not a particularly easy one to talk about or deal with (unless you have a full terrible mother). Kate and I starting thinking about this more than a decade in advance, but we thought about it more from the emotional and sentimental angle. We did not…

  • Litter Pan Placement

    As seen by the name, we glamp with cats. One of the reasons we bought our original travel trailer was to bring the cats with us camping instead of having to get people to care for them or only taking short trips. Cats offer the advantage that they are more self sufficient than dogs, so…

  • Selecting Our First RV

    This is a continuation of the Considerations for Selecting an RV article that covers our answers and decision process for the first RV that we purchased. These impacted our decisions in the following ways Based on our plans to bring the cats and destination camping with sight-seeing, we needed either a motorized RV with a…

  • Considerations for Selecting an RV

    One of the worst ways to select an RV is to go to a dealership for the first time, fall in love with a unit, and buy it on the spot. You will probably pay too much, not get what you need, and regret it within a year. Buying the super small discount unit is…