[AKA_Monet]

Soror Summer,

When I said "US" having "capital"... I mean "real estate", true dyed in the wool, tradeable commodities... Not CLKs, CL65's and other bling-ting things--like you said...

Now I know many middle incomer's like myself and my husband had to make some hardcore choices about our financial futures when we got married and afterward. I pleaded, and I mean on the floor scrounged to my mother to hook my little "family" up with an "FHA approved bridal registry" with a mortgage company... Rather than the "Crate and Barrel"--we had enough blenders, we wanted a larger house (my husband already had a small townhome when I met him, which we currently reside). But my mother with her "infinite wisdom" told me that she refuses to ask her friends who live very phatly off their incomes as professionals to give us $$$ for a interest bearing account that will park money for about 5 years and do better than a CD or an ing account--like whatever the latest conventional mortgage security rates are these days~4-6%ish I think?

So I suffered for upgrades to our current home by getting Home Depot and Lowe's Cards... Still consumeristic, but useful.

Another thing I didn't realize after speaking to a certified Financial Planner was the retirement planning must include some sort of Life Insurance policy--get one when you're young and have NO problems... It get's a grandfathered rate after 4-5 years and when you havta change it due to changes in life circumstances, you ain't nayled for getting it too late...

Lastly, Roths are very, very nice to park money. You can give upto $4K (I think--speak to Rudey--he's the financial guru), per year and get that tax write off. Again, if I had refused to listen to my mother back in 1997 before the government changed the Roth rule by rolling over old tax funds without penalty, I would have been hooked up bigtime...

I think I have lost some money on Oil Stocks, but they are only gonna go up for the summer, that seems to be the latest trend... Then in September, you review your portfolio and rollover assets into another commodity--like consumer electronics, etc.

And Tony, how do you buy into to your investment club? What's the purchasing prices?