About
When I was a child, the oldest of three girls, we lived in many places moving with our divorced mother to all her different and varied jobs. I grew up quickly being the oldest and moved out on my own when I was a junior in high school but only because my mother decided to move from our then home, Kaneohe, Hawaii. I, of course, could not leave my high school friends and so didn’t. I got the car and my waitressing job kept me in gas, insurance, rent and food with a little left over for fun.
My mother was and is the worst money manager. She never really had a lot but she had a problem with spending and planning. We three girls had no college fund and worse yet, she didn’t plan for her retirement. I now count her as my first and most important money teachers. I learned what not to do with money from her.
I was a tomboy (do you know that term?) all my younger life. After graduation I got a full grant to go to Univ of Hawaii but during that first semester a cancerous tumor was found in my mom’s jaw and I had to leave HI for six feet of snow in Iowa in December. I still wore shorts and kept the heat up to 80 and my mother’s friends thought her daughter was a bit daft wearing shorts. She recovered quickly but I had lost my grant so I joined the Air Force to try to work my way back to Hawaii. I took the battery of tests to decide what job I wanted and I scored high in everything but mechanics so guess what? I joined as an aircraft mechanic. I worked the flight line and worked my way up to crew chief on KC-135Q models. These flying gas stations refueled the SR-71 (habu). I was stationed at Kadena Airbase in Okinawa, Japan. The next plane I worked on was the AWACs out of Tinker Air Force base in Oklahoma. One OK to the next OK. I saw the writing on the wall, the next position higher was a truck driver driving all those airmen around to the different planes. Not what this girl wanted anymore.
Crosstrained in the Air Force into computer programming. Got out after six years and found a great programming job where I got to wear dresses! Finally the tomboy turns girly. Moved to California and worked my way up the private sector where financial news was king. Quotron Systems in Marina Del Rey had 75% of the market then started losing it all and was finally sold to Citicorp and then to Reuters. Ended a nineteen year career as a Technical Project Director. The last ten years were in web development.
I’m the one person in your Christmas list that will invariably get everyone something that is useful or is a safety tool, or something along those lines. I have given kitchen fire extinguishers, those
Can Openers (Kuhn Rikon Ergo Safety Lid Lifter)
I am a researcher. I have to read the book before I buy it. I read and research everything I can get my hands on. I actually became a United First Financial Agent just so I could have access to the university of learning before I signed up as a client.
One of my 401Ks I turned into a self-directed IRA and had that IRA invest 100% in a LLC. This company invests in real estate and has land, an apartment building, preconstruction, and distressed notes. This was done in 2006 when not many folks had even heard of self-directed IRAs owning real estate. Now a days, people have heard of the idea but because real estate hasn’t been a popular investment still not many people are changing their retirement funds into real estate. Unless those really forward looking optimists who are estatic that real estate is “on sale” and are jumping in with both feet.
I’ve evolved into a Mentor helping my clients become more happier and satisfied with their lives. We do this smartly by looking at what the’ve done so far, where they see themselves, what their passions and skills are and then planning a path and get moving. This does require work on their part as I won’t tolerate those who need constant prodding and hand holding. I only work with those smart enough to know they need to move forward but just are so busy they don’t know which way to move.
My other websites:
http://www.localhumm.com
http://www.brandabetteryou.com
http://www.roseragan.com