On 2022-12-12 18:25, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss wrote:
> Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss said on Mon, 12 Dec 2022 17:55:05 -0700
>
>> I agree, with one addition. In the 70's and 80's my pay lagged 20% to
>> 30% behind inflation. What might have been decent pay was mediocre...
>
> I think that's because you were a kid in the 1970's, probably with less
> professional jobs because of your age.
I joined the USMC in 1975 and the pay was very low. With a few years
and a few promotions and the pay got better. If I stayed in I would have
done better. While it took the legislature to get going they did give
the military a few really good pay raises.
> My memory is I kept up with
> inflation both as a corrosion engineer and as an audio technician,
> although of course the move to audio technician came with a serious pay
> cut (and a much better life and career path).
>
> One thing though: Throughout most of the 1970's I had no car, hence no
> gasoline and no purchasing of a car. Gas, oil, maintenance, repairs,
> insurance, traffic tickets, and amortized purchase price add up to a
> heck of a lot.
>
> If you move to a city with great public transportation like Chicago,
> give up your car, and use an old, beat up bicycle for shopping trips, I
> think you can save $20K of post-tax income yearly, and do a lot to
> shield yourself from the worst of inflation.
I was a muscle car guy and did most of my own work....
>
> Chicago has pretty high rents (and a good job market), so you might
> want to move to a less expensive city. In Urbana Illinois you can buy a
> decent house for $100-$150K, it's small and flat so you can easily
> ride your bicycle all over the place. You're near University of
> Illinois, so healthcare is plentiful. Don't pay more than $150K for a
> house because Illinois has obscenely high property taxes.
>
It's funny how some people talk about the no payroll tax states and then
you find out they make it up with property tax.
> SteveT
>
> Steve Litt
> Autumn 2022 featured book: Thriving in Tough Times
> http://www.troubleshooters.com/bookstore/thrive.htm
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