Hump Day – October 11th, 2017
What is hump day? It’s Wednesday. The hump to your work week. 2 days down and 2 days to go. On hump days I will be sharing articles, videos, or other form of entertainment. It will include links to other posts I have liked throughout the week. Some are parenting articles, others are personal finance ones, and occasionally there will be a random funny article. Enjoy!
Tubbs Fire
In my life I have weathered many tornadoes growing up in Tennessee, the 2010 flood of Nashville, a hurricane in New Orleans in 2012, and now a fire in California this week. Of all of these, the fire was the worst. No warning and with an uncertain escape route, we took off Sunday night from our home.
We made it out and I am still waiting to see if my home is gone, but the signs are not good. I will have more on this process in the near future from the evacuation, to planning what to take, and to understanding why insurance is so important.
For now, I am glad my family is safe and sound. We have nothing but the close on our backs, but we are alive and healthy.
On this date
Something I never knew occurred on this date in 1906. The San Francisco Board of Education ordered segregation in separate schools of Japanese, Chinese, and Korean children (see this article as a reference). There had been anti-Chinese sentiment since the 1880s as they had been the larger work force. But as the Japanese working and immigrant population grew (mainly due to anti-Chinese immigrant legislation), the sentiment changed to anti-Oriental.
While there had been Chinese schools that thought the Chinese immigrants, most Japanese students attended white schools. After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, large amounts of Chinese families moved elsewhere and thus there was room in the Chinese school system for both Japanese and Korean students. They lumped the Chinese, Japanese and Korean students all nto one school system.
By 1907 the Japanese clause had been removed, but only due to a diplomatic row it caused between the US and Japan. In fact, Rosevelt’s administration was involved in resolving the issue.
Hard for me to believe that San Francisco, which is now a largely liberal city, would be so exclusionary back then. This was well before World War 2, but still in a time of much racism and segregation (surprisingly not just confined to the South of the United States).
I am glad society is better now, though there is still injustice and demonstrations on going. Wherever you may stand on these issues, the right to protest is one our forefathers fought for and our military protects every day.
Hump day articles
Speaking of protest, Rogue Dad MD recently talked about his experience with protest. I am a put your head down and work kind of guy, but suspect if push came to shove I would speak out. For now I will continue to support free speech in all forms and appreciate those who are fighting for us.
Adventure rich had a great article on living your retirement today. It’s a good idea, particularly for us who are not near FIRE yet. While I have not written a letter to my future self, I am often evaluating whether or not I am using my time appropriately. Thus far I think I am, but maybe there are a few changes I can make to enjoy life more now.
Two weeks in a row, Josh Becker’s website has made a appearance on Hump Day. This week he had a great post on What he learned about minimalism in Poland. Surprise…consumerism and communism can both be a trap.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine the stock market rally will continue. Businesses are excited for Trump’s pro-business stance, but still no significant pro-business legislation. This may change with tax reform but after Senator Corker’s recent remarks this week and weekend, it may not pass. So whether you are bullish or bearish I do not know, but the Wall Street Physician makes the a case for both a Bull versus a Bear market in the 4th quarter of 2017.
Conclusion
I spent the weekend playing with my son. In the span of a day we watched airplanes and helicopters take flight and land and trains go by. Toddler years are amazing. He still has the baby voice and I imagine it will disappear quite quickly. He is the reason I work hard and the reason I want to stop working. Ironic isn’t it. So for now I will enjoy life and the moments I have with him.
Your concluding comment really resonates with me.
What a paradox young hard workers with children’ find themselves in….. Your statement is one of the main drivers for me seeking FI and starting blog to find the solution to the paradox, and I think there is a good solution other than RE although that’s not bad!
Hope your house is ok, I’m late on reading this so you might know by now….
I’m from Louisiana and lived in New Orleans. I was in training during Katrina and my wife’s family lost it all. Tough years, but it’s been a decade and resilient cultures and families bounce back.
Resilience is key. The house is gone but everyone is safe. We will rebuild over time and revisit what is important to us.
Yes, I heard conditions were expected to become extremely volatile there due to the fire. California fires reduce homes to ashes. Hope condition will come under control soon by CAL FIRE. One thing is very much pleasing that you and your family is safe there.
Thank you. Air quality is still poor and fire fighters are still working hard. Hopefully they will have these under control in the next week or so and we can start the rebuilding process.
Hang in there! It is really sad. I used to do pool shifts at your hospital and would stay at the two hotels that burned down. It certainly gives one perspective and encourages minimalism. I have really enjoyed your posts and wish you well in the rebuilding phase. I pray for all of SRO.
Thanks. Glad to hear you know the area. My wife and I actually went for dessert Saturday night at the Hilton. The next night it burned down. Pretty crazy. SRO will be fine, though it will take the docs and staff a while to get back to normal.
Kudos to you for taking such a harrowing event in stride! To think there was hardly a warning and you and your family could have been hurt makes me shudder. Sending good thoughts your way and hoping things can get back to normal (well, a new normal) soon.
Not much else to do. We are glad rot be safe and not too worried about the material possessions, but we are exhausted. Every day we remember what else we lost…it is weird to say the lease.
Being from Southern California, I definitely know the damage fires can do. I am so sorry about your house. I cannot imagine everything you and your family must be going through right now. I am sending prayers and good vibes your way, my friend! All the best to you and your family during this most challenging time.
Thanks Cody…appreciate it.
Ack – I hope house stuff is okay!! You are a hustler to still be able to put out blog posts like this amidst it all! 🙂
Thanks man. The house is gone as are the stuff…that’s life…now I gotta rebuild and decide what to do- sell or live in it. Thanks for the kind words…I’m a hustler baby….
I’m sorry for the losses with the fire, but I am glad you are all safe!
And thank you for including us in this Hump Day post 🙂
Thank you very much.
I’m so sorry to hear about the fire. I’m hoping that everything there is okay, but I’m very glad to hear that your family is unharmed. My father in law is a fire captain and it’s amazing the kind of devastation can come from a fire. Too often I think people don’t even consider fire as something that could happen to them.
Thank you. It is pretty wild how many homes got taken out.