Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi → The Galaxy Tales - Dirk B.
Ouch, Dirk. Two percent is a killer.
If it's tax-protected, you don't need to worry about buy-and-hold. You just need to worry about returns and expenses.
Even in Canada, you need to worry about changes in currency valuations.
If you're still investing in Vanguard, you might look at their just-barely-junk High-Yield Bond fund. It acts like a mix of bond and stock.
Thank you, njc. The reason I say buy and hold is that I don't like trading in and out of stocks. Like most, I'm not good at it. A better term might be set it and forget it. That's why most of my money is in index funds. I also got bitten there, too. Moved some money into Vanguard's S&P 500 index fund two weeks ago as part of rebalancing my portfolio in preparation for rising interest rates. It got clobbered, too, along with most of the market.
Currency fluctuations are going to be my biggest headache over the next 15+ years. When I moved to the US twenty years ago, the Canadian dollar was worth only $0.60 US. At that rate, I could have retired back in Canada very quickly. Unfortunately, the CDN dollar eventually became worth even more than the US dollar. It fell back to $0.70 US just as I was moving back. It's gone up 10% in one year, so my US disability is worth that much less than it was in 2016.
Although house prices are out of reach for me in Calgary (and they're obscene in Vancouver and Toronto), I may buy a mobile home here eventually. TBD.
increasingly obscene here, Toronto-wards
Don't worry about short-term blips. Worry about the long-term effect of business policies and international actors like the little-lamented OPEC.
Some years ago my mother was in a monster tizzy because a rather large bond my father had bought (to help provide for retirement) had lost about half its value over the course of a month. I looked at it and tried not to laugh. It was a zero-coupon bond from some reasonably sound company, with a 20-year maturity. Zero coupon bonds take those swings in resonse to small interest rate changes. It took a while to almost convince her that swings like that don't reflect the company's soundness, or affect the bond's value at maturity.
I stuck most of my retirement into low risk bonds. Figured the honeymoon period in the stock market is going to end soon
Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!
I believe it's Jack Bogle who pointed out (at a particular time maybe 20 years ago) that if you'd 'bought the market' just before the great depression hit and kept the money in until that date, you'd still have over an 8% annual return.
Of course, compound interest is an exponential process, so highs and lows don't average out in the obvious ways. But according to Wikipedia, Bogle on Mutual Funds/New Perspectives ... is now considered a classic. I can't recommend it enough, especially since it covers things like the interest rate/bond price linkage.
I've been doing a lot of thinking on Apollo's reluctance to make war. We have this guy who assassinates his father and banishes his mother, but he won't order the guards to fire because someone might get hurt. I've been rolling this around in my head trying to harmonize the two aspects of the character.
It would seem you're writing Apollo in the style of a morally scrupulous leader. As such, he must always make the decision that involves the least loss of life (or if loss, kill evil people first). This approach would surely result in the decisions he makes.
If this is not what you were going for, consider that we'll still respect a ruler who must do a few evil things. King Solomon ordering a baby cut in half in order to determine who the mother was is the first example I can think of. If it is what you were going for ignore my comments like he's not prepared for war - he clearly is not if that's the case. And if not, ya might as well go ahead and hit all the accompanying notes that go with being a pacifist leader of a military state.
When we first meet the Nero and Elizabeth, one of Apollo's thoughts was that he prefers to follow his mother's style of ruling, which is fair but strong. However, she can be dangerous when provoked (esp. if Apollo is in danger), which is why the samurai ends up in prison. She also humiliated Caligula for days in a packed Throne Room because he convinced Nero to withhold anesthesia from Apollo after his whipping in the Colosseum.
Part of the reason Apollo is so weak is that the paranoid Nero feared him too much to prepare him for rule. Apollo banishing his mother later in the story is just an excuse to allow her to go to New Bethlehem and secretly negotiate for peace with the Realm. The concept of a fake fallout between mother and son is right for the story, but I still don't like the way it turned out in v3.
At first, Apollo continues following her style of leadership, which is why he tries not to act violently in response to what's going on around him. However, like you said, he orders a hit on Nero and tells his aides he may execute Mama (because he knows too much about the hit). The hit was something Apollo felt forced into after Nero's first attack on New Bethlehem. Apollo also orders the failed commando raids to arrest Admiral Lupus and Governor Hadisius.
After the 2nd (final) battle at New Bethlehem, he decides to force all of the senior officers (those promoted by Admiral Lupus) out of the Praetorian Fleet and scrap the Praetorian flagship altogether. He's also going to do a purge of senior officers of Earth's home fleet, which was commanded by Governor Hadisius. Hadisius fled the battle, but Apollo expects to capture him eventually and execute him. He also banishes Caligula from the Imperium forever, providing him with nothing more than an explorer ship that will allow him to flee to distant outposts in the galaxy, where Realm bounty hunters are sure to pursue him.
So, you see, there is a progression from weakness to strength forced on him by circumstances. Assuming I ever finish the story and write book two, it was always intended to be much darker. Joseph will be haunted by his guilt for unintentionally triggering the destruction of New Bethlehem, and Apollo will pursue galactic colonization and the Imperium's conversion to Christianity aggressively.
If there's a book three, it was originally intended to be an upbeat ending where Joseph and Apollo together discover the dying alien race that has interfered with the human race in a game of galactic chess (hence the reason there are two versions of God), responsible for the rise to power of Alexander the Great, Stalin, Hitler, etc. The last scene was intended to be the two dying aliens saying to each other they have time for one more round before their deaths.
Since I'm going to use Dr. Francis in the year 7329 to interfere with the human race in 4017, there's no need for the aliens. I may write the second, dark book (set in 4021) and then jump forward to 7329 where the descendants of Joseph's fanatic followers attempt to overthrow the galactic government. The story set in 7329 is the one I tried to write first, but eventually came around to Joseph & Apollo first.
Apollo banishing his mother later in the story is just an excuse to allow her to go to New Bethlehem
If it doesn't suit the story and it also doesn't suit the character, it must be banished
Apollo also orders the failed commando raids to arrest Admiral Lupus and Governor Hadisius
Take their families. If you're serious about forcing concessions from them, that is. All you need is a niece or a nephew to gain the cooperation of a 7th brother who doesn't overly like Lupus. Okay... that's a bit too hardcore for Apollo but he's in the tank of sharks
I may have missed it, but what is the motivation for Dr Francis to evoke so much chaos?
I haven't defined Dr. Francis as a character yet, so his motivations for interfering with the past are TBD. It will probably have something to do with the overthrow of the galactic government (probably Apollo's descendants) by the descendents of Joseph's fanatics.
Chapter 33, The Imperium Cracks, is up. It's a cleaned up version of the same chapter from v2. Lots of minor edits.
Quick, go read!
Dirk
This evening's episode of Gilligan's Island featured a costume party attended by Julius Caesar, Captain Hook, Marie Antoinette (with wig), and Mr. Howell in top hat and tails, among others. The S.S. Minnow had eclectic supplies. No phone, no light, no motor car, not a single luxury...
v4 note:
There will be three books total in this series. Book one v4 converts God into archangels as part of Archangel Syndrome. Apollo will get Germanus (his executed best friend) in his head so I can do humor without making the archangel silly like Apollo's God currently is. Germanus will be Apollo's version of Andrew. Colonel/General Lucilius will be killed off in the attack on the Imperial Palace by Lupus and Hadisius. Gaia then steps in as her replacement, hopefully making her a stronger character. There will be one news anchor droid/news organization used throughout the book, except for the one with Fox Blitzen & Bunny Divine. Acme products should have more failures/near failures.
Book two will be Joseph growing/managing his chaotic religion, which takes off among the Maya after he releases the prison video of his resurrection near the end of book one. Apollo will be trying to grow the Imperium at breakneck speed while also converting it to Christianity. Gaia, Caligula, and Leonardo (with Stronza) will have roles to play. The real cause behind Archangel Syndrome will be revealed as Dr. Francis from the future and the news droid from book one. The year will be 4021.
Book three will be set in 7329 AD. With the help of the news anchor droid and Professor Hinkley (the time traveler), Joseph and Apollo travel to the future, where they play key roles in the overthrow of the galactic government by Joseph's fanatical followers. They go "wild Fremen" when they realize who Joseph is. Joseph will lead his followers in a plot to overthrow the sprawling Imperium that Apollo helped create. Apollo will appear to oppose this. Secretly, the two cousins may be working together. Need to involve Dr. Francis. Try to include Leonardo (with Stronza), Gaia, and Caligula. Acme and Mama's Big Butt Shipping should still be around.
Heaven help me work out the causality problems caused by Dr. Francis. He personally should be immune to the causality problems, which is what allowed him to keep tweaking the future even as he changed it. Use technology for that.
Galaxy Tales never really worked as a title for this series. The new title will be Archangel Syndrome.
I need to fix the overlap of personalities between Joseph's mother and Admiral St. James. Also, Joseph's mother should be a queen again since his religion will be Anglicanism on the world Britannia, which allows for a queen as head of state and the religion. Need to explain why Britannia's main royal palace is a modest mansion with a limited security force, whereas the British monarch lives in real palaces.
Apollo's father will end up in his head.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how best to handle the fact that Joseph has both his dead grandmother in his head AND eventually his mother, too? Both women have strong personalities and both play key roles, one military and the other motherly/decisive, although I rarely need them both in the same chapter. I'm thinking of killing off the mother completely and giving her lines to grandma. If I do, I need to come up with a powerful reason for Joseph to resume his quest after abandoning it completely and trying to kill himself following his mother's death, which he caused. Currently, he resumes the quest with relish because he believes his mother has joined him in his head, telling him that the quest is the most important thing he'll ever do. Or do I keep both and simply use them only as needed? In that case, one or the other might not appear for at least three full chapters, since Apollo's story lies in between as well (e.g., grandma advises Joseph, Apollo gets a chapter, Joseph's mother advises him, Apollo gets another chapter, then finally back to grandma). Even when they do appear, these ghosts have very limited lines since God and Andrew are Joseph's main ghosts. I think it would weaken the roles of both women. I suppose I could have Joseph O.D. on antidepressants rather than sleeping pills. Antidepressants often make one drowsy. He would then be manic long enough to get to Earth.
Thoughts?
Now that you mention it, there is a certain redundancy in having a mother + a grandmother in one head + a father in the other.
Perhaps he doesn't cause her death - anti-religion lunatics do?
No, I want him to suffer the extraordinary guilt of killing her. I think it's fair to say, keeping both mother and grandmother, and only using them as needed won't fly, as noted above. Unless I can think of something better, I'll probably go with antidepressants and mania to get him to resume his quest. The mania could explain him going off the deep end while in prison, with his loony ideas about the universe, evolution, reincarnation, etc. He'll also get King David as his first father ever. I need to keep Jesus out of the larger part of the story, although He and/or God the Father may make a brief appearance at extreme moments in the story. That's another way I could get Joseph to resume the quest. He could be visited by God after his suicide attempt.
Ya know... after that response I went back and name-counted the Battle of Endor. I expected to get about 30. I lost count at 50. And most of those were new. Makes your 16 look puny!
But the battle is great because you can see the zones so clearly. You have a rebel battle zone (Containing Ackbar - I luv that guy). Imperial Zone, then deep Rebel Zone (contains Leia) and Deep Imperial Zone (Contains Sidious)
So in order from friendly to hostile
1. Deep Rebel (White Queen)
2. Rebel (White Bishop)
3. Imperial (Black knight)
4. Deep Imperial (Black Queen)
Think about how few pieces are allowed to move from one zone to the other. It's quite beautiful when you think of it.
Where exactly is un-deployed "XWing#15"? Who cares - it's probably somewhere in zone 2. Lando is shooting down tie fighters? He must be in Zone 3. No need for complex "up / down / port / starboard" - your activity defines your location.*
Now, Lucas (Or the smart people he paid to make him look smart) really have 8 zones, including Death-Star-near and Death-Star-Inner etc... but you could get that effect with just one "point of significance" such that good guys are happy (safer) to approach it and bad guys would rather stay away. I recommend 3 zones for texture.
* picture these snippets:
Leia stared impatiently at the refueling X-Wing
(No Need to mention she's far from combatants - it's taken care of. Compared to a free-for-all, where any safe harbour must be described carefully)
General C fired on the Imperial ship. It blew into fragments. There was cheering across the radio from the main fleet
(Establishing he's not in main fleet puts him in Zone 3, need in enemy territory)
Awesome sauce!
PS: Yes, I need to take my own advice in Lorraine's recent battle, but that's what 1st drafts are for
My 16 is even punier thank you think. It was 8, not 16, in the mock battle. I plan to rewrite it in a zone containing space junk (e.g., the kind of stuff that Star Wars destroyers dump before going to light speed). I can put in one big derelict vessel (the same one they board for the "Storming a Battleship" chapter), and a bunch of smaller ones. The AI will take care not to let them hit anything, but I can use the junk to divvy up the scene.
My final battle was better, I think. The Ark of the Covenant vs. the Actium. Paul led his fighters (group 1) against the Actium to provide cover for the raiders (group 2). Paul's fighters were attacked by two enemy fighters (group 3). Much easier to picture, even though there were at least as many ships. The biggest problem with that battle is that there were two Imperial flagships: the Praetorian flagship, the Actium, and Governor Decianus's flagship (its original name escapes me)). Apollo renames the latter in honor of Decianus mid-battle, making it Apollo's new flagship. I gave the ship name every time I switched scenes (e.g., Aboard the Ark of the Covenant, Aboard the Actium, Aboard the Decianus, etc.). I can tweak that: Aboard Lupus's Flagship - the Actium and Aboard Apollo's Flagship - the Decianus).
Good lesson, K. Thanks. Same would apply to land/sea battles, I think.
This evening's episode of Gilligan's island included an ape throwing grenades and firing off machine guns (surplus WWII munitions) as a form of play. The castaways, not knowing who the enemy was at first organized into a quasi military structure, with General Howell in command. He had a general's hat, Ginger (as a spy) wore a raincoat, and Mary Ann and Mrs. Howell wore nurses uniforms. It's no wonder the damn ship almost sunk. It was overloaded with ridiculous crap.
See the tvtropes entries for 'asspull' and 'hammerspace'.
*sspull is such a great name. I think the wisewatches in Galaxy Tales qualify. They do everything I want whenever the need arises. Made by Acme Corporation, of course, which was founded by Professor Hinkley. For some reason, Acme technology has a high failure rate.
I have a thought about guilt about killing his mother. Joseph needs to NOT have her in his head. Having conversations with a mother figure after death would help assuage the guilt because he could imply or ask for forgiveness.
It's the poor quality of modern coconuts.
Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi → The Galaxy Tales - Dirk B.
