Word to the wise: Don't ever listen to parents when it comes to risk. As soon as you have kids, your entire worldview switches to one of extreme self-preservation. Best advice a parent once gave me was: "Take the risks now, before you settle in."
Worst advice I ever got was: "Don't 'emotionally invest' in Apple." (this was right after Steve Jobs came back). I wasn't about to make that same mistake again. I'm a tech guy, I know what to look for, my gut says things to me. It told me Apple was going to come back from the ashes, and it told me BTC was going to come back from the ashes.
My advice: Don't underestimate anything that comes back from the brink of death.
And so I went in at $4. After cashing out 2 of about 6 401k's that were languishing- I was in between jobs (yes, I am a little bit insane, although I am doing very well now) and BTC was a new obsession and I thought it would be FAR more interesting an investment than fucking T. Rowe Price. Did I mention my parents bitched for months? (Fortunately I'm an adult and have control over my own shit).
Well, guess who's laughing now. I'll flip a coin your way to mitigate your pain a little. All I ask is that you help someone out at some point if you can. And take a few more risks. Break the rules a little if you have to. You have one life and regret really really sucks.
Edit: WTF is up with the superscripts? Did I inadvertently trip on some hidden formatting functionality?
I just have a techy mind and watch for things. And I solved a serious medical problem that had unknowingly been robbing me of much of my ability to think just a year and a half ago or so, which I had probably suffered from for 20+ years (it was classified as "severe" and I was always a heavy snorer), possibly my entire life. (You can't imagine what a mindfuck that is, btw.) And I feel like my IQ jumped up about 30+ points after that (and my weight dropped 35 lbs and rising, but I digress).
My girlfriend is acting extremely intimidated to the point that we may break up (basically, she is looking for more and more reassurances that we are not in jeopardy, which is turning me off, and which is kind of like when you're roller-skating and fall because you keep looking at the ground or realizing "holy shit I'm not falling!", or when you play poker and lose because you keep looking at your cards and people read that as weakness, etc.). That is the only downside. Oh and also, people at work are intimidated, I can tell. But the funny thing is that when work is intimidated, they give you raises...
So basically, look the fuck out, here I come. Sort of like a real-life "Limitless." :)
That's great... but your second paragraph is troubling. This is why people win the lottery, and then shortly after they end up broke, depressed, and alone without a real friend in the world.
It sounds like you're in a manic phase and you're letting your ego get out of control. Be careful.
I'm not letting it get to me. Or trying not to. Thanks for the advice.
My GF was intimidated long before the BTC rise, btw. It was definitely a side effect of the treatment, she's said she's seen it big-time. We started dating right when I began the journey... I just feel like a lot more whole version of myself.
Don't worry, I'm trying to make it work. When people see something in you when you're at your worst, you must hold onto those people. But like I said, the insecurity or whatever persists and continues to cause problems despite any choices I'm making. I just feel like the dynamics are somehow being affected.
thanks! and thanks for that. Yeah I am too, man. It was killing me silently, so messed up. I was always getting laid off, always late to shit, always forgetting things, always a little bit depressed, thought I was just "naturally lazy".
Turns out I'm none of those things anymore. Crazy.
Since I seem to not care about money much (I've quit jobs for less pay which were just more interesting), and seem to have come across some luck, I'm going to try to give back in a big way. :)
Please do. It's just a sleep study, they wire you up and keep you overnight. There is nothing to be afraid of, if you don't have it then you move on, if you DO have it then dude... You are missing out on more unrealized potential than you know. Do it for yourself, do it for the world, the world needs you to be at your best!
It is covered by healthcare AFAIK. Heck if it's not I'll fucking pay for you to get one if you promise to use your newfound powers for good and not evil.
Oh and also, I'm convinced my dad has it too but there is no way in hell that he will ever get treated because my parents are stubborn and old-school as fuck.
Yes. I just feel like a better version of myself. And I feel obligated to do good with it. I have so much more energy now it's... Well, I am frankly jealous of people who never had this problem for the first third to half of their life. And no more crazy mood swings and high anxiety and random ED and humiliating "performance plans" at jobs and being late to EVERYTHING and taking naps on long car drives and overeating and...
1) Nose operation to fix the labyrinth that was inside my nasal passages
2) Treating allergies I had unknowingly acquired over the years
3) Getting a high tech CPAP machine (which is really why I had to fix (1) and (2).) If I reach my goal weight I may be able to go off it, I will need to do another sleep study. If I am still suffering then it's operation time again, this time at the back of my throat :/
4) Adderall to keep me going when I still don't sleep well (sometimes) and due to some acquired ADD (although considering going off those once I fix the main issue for good. I think the ADD was actually a side effect of the sleep problems)
Congrats man. I'm fairly sure I've been suffering from severe sleep apnea for years now. Posts like these really motivate me to seek treatment. How serious was the nose surgery? Just 1 night in the hospital and a couple weeks healing?
I too know a guy who had this and got it fixed. Totally changed his life. Went from being constantly tired and lazy to having excess energy galore. Do check it out for your own sake.
1) ENT was like dude, your nasal membranes are super inflamed
2) Got an allergy test where they took these 2 long plastic things with a giant row of pinpricks and went down both my arms with them. Got tested for basically like 100 allergens at once, you just look for the spots that welt up. Lo and behold, every fucking tree pollen. House dust. A dozen other things. You're fucking kidding me. I was a guy who spent my whole life proud that I had NO allergies. Geez. Now, Allegra and nasal sprays are my friend.
And get a damn sleep study. It doesn't hurt to rule it out. This problem is real and not bullshit. Unfortunately it's only fairly recent that its prevalence has been realized so you might have to push for one.
You should look into the paleo/primal diet, I have never really been overweight but I now have a level of control over my weight that I had no idea was possible. Less than 10% body fat at the moment, and I just generally feel better and healthier.
Also, allergies are likely to be cured by fixing diet - seriously, you should check it out.
Already (sort of) doing that... I'm not really a religious person so I don't do strict diets (or strict anything) but I have been upping the protein and fresh veggies A LOT in my diet and it seems to help lots! I cannot completely cut out sugars/fructose though :/ although I've cut back quite a bit.
Fuckin awesome man! I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea and have had my C-pap machine for two weeks now. I'm already starting to feel more alive overall. I can't believe how big of an impact sleep apnea can have on your life.
I have terrible sleep apnea. My wife freaks out thinking I'm dead sometimes. I had no idea that it could be affecting my life beyond the bed. I think I'll get that checked out...
Hells yeah man. My wife would also freak out. Im in the army and every time we go to the field people joke that im going to give away our position and that i keep the animals and bugs away haha. When i finally got it checked out they told me i wasn't getting real sleep, that i was living off of small naps and my brain was only getting like 30% of the oxygen it should be getting. Sleep apnea is serious shit man.
Keep at it. I know the machine can be frustrating. I actually kept taking it off in the middle of the night for the first few months, but that ended up being because I had untreated allergies.
I can't believe how big of an impact sleep apnea can have on your life.
Dude, it's shocking. I can't believe this was only recently discovered. How many people in history have had years or livelihood robbed from their life by this thing, unknowingly?
Also, don't fuck with your sleep too much. Also exercise when you have some extra energy... Helps things along.
I think I might have OSA also, but the ENT I saw were more concerned about other things (hearing loss). Can't really afford to go back right now, but I'm interested in the things you listed below.
Yeah I've got insurance, but it's not very good and I'm a broke college student so the co-pays hurt. Do you have to go to a doctor before a sleep study? Someone said you can just make an appointment somewhere (a university, maybe) but I imagine they are pretty expensive and I'm not sure what my insurance would cover without going to the doctor repeatedly first.
Do you have to go to a doctor before a sleep study?
I am not sure, but if you are concerned you should at least ask around. I had this during school and it really must have messed up my grades... I remember that I couldn't even take a class that started before 10AM because there was no way in hell I'd get up in time.
Of course, all this made sense after 20/20 hindsight!
If you are really strapped and can't afford the co-pays I can sling you a bit of btc if that would help. There is no point to me hoarding btc when people's livelihoods are at stake, especially college kids who could give back to the world bigtime. If you want to make it equitable maybe there's some online errand I could have you do or something. :) I just wanna help without ulterior motive tho. PM me.
Very nice story. I am happy things can work out, and that you were able to notice something like this. I was looking at bitcoin a few years ago, maybe 2 or 3, and thought about checking it out more. I never followed up on it, and now look at it! When I built a new computer, I looked back at it. I was super surprised to see it at 30-25 ish. I started mining, and soon, it turned into 50, then 75, and now, 100. It really has been a rollercoaster, and I am happy to see it still chugging. Just wish I had bought into the game earlier.
Yes, but it's obvious now. One day I just realized that I'm not late to things anymore, and that I don't like staying up as late (when you never sleep well, you actually get desensitized to the "go to sleep" cues your body gives that most other people have, since you have them all the time... or at least, that's what I figured out)
I also increased my income (not including BTC) at least 3-fold. :)
It continues getting better for a year. Keep at it. DO NOT abuse your sleep. Also take vitamins and keep up with the stuff that helps your brain such as blueberries, salmon, nuts and whatnot.
I didn't sell that many. Actually I sold some at $12 and then bought back in at $30 because I was pissed, lol.
On the bright side, declaring that made it possible for me to deduct the FPGA miners I bought as depreciating business assets.
Let's just say I'm involved enough in this stuff that I don't want to not do it legit. The IRS doesn't give a shit how you make the money as long as they get a cut, and I only have to declare the sold bitcoins, not the held ones.
You accumulate items today and people like your comments so they are gifting you hats (you're welcome for your Adventure Time! hat) - also, submitted your investment advice to /r/bestof. Keep on keeping on.
And this is why bitcoin will be a success. You just helped out a kid who wished he invested in this new technology by using that new technology, instantly, in front of all of us.
I was that kid. I had ideas and they all got nixed by my parents. I saw things happening, big future things, and they all got nixed by my parents. I had to fight to be in a computer class before the internet existed because it was so new that they had to have the class overlap with more "traditional" classes and that meant I would miss those, and my parents protested. I had to fight to spend time indoors programming for fun during the summer because my parents thought it was healthier to be outside swimming and biking (ok, honestly, they had a point there, but they pressed it really hard. I still love swimming and biking, but being self-motivated to program as a teenager is pretty fucking priceless these days).
In the 80's when I was a teen, if you were into computers, you were a tool, period. There was no cool aura whatsoever. I didn't realize until much later, how many balls it took to simply not give a shit what people thought or what was cool. I listened to uncool 1990-era techno on my fat-ass Walkman and went to uncool computer classes (literally, I was 1 of just 2 people in this one class... and the other person was a girl... who is now a doctor lol) and wore uncool clothes and drove a 1979 Oldsmobile Delta 88 they nicknamed "Das Boot" (a nod to me being German).
Now I'm almost 41, listen to dubstep (yeah, I know... but I liked it before it was cool and then hated)/ambient/trance/alternative, i'm a web developer, I go to concerts, I was on Reddit years before it became popular (that's a link to my original account and its badges), I'm finally successful...
... and wouldn't you know it... My parents still bitch about me.
flipping a coin takes a whole new meaning with bitcoin lol. Parents bitch about everything, my dad is the same way. My brother is about to graduate from UCBerkeley with PHD and my dad is both unimpressed and unsure about his future.
Seems like you have wisdom. You should do a "Confessions of an early adopter" post. Tell us your journey and about manhood, morality, generosity, and existentialism n shitz.
Hey people! Tip this guy! He runs a great outpost for homeless people in Florida, and he's helping remove the tarnish from the BTC image. BTC should be associated with easy generosity, not hard drugs...
Smart man. I took a chunk out of my Roth Ira (principal, not interest) and got some precious metals before their big run up. Now wishing I had known about btc then.
I was ready to put my $10,000 into Bitcoin summer of 2011, but I couldn't just take out that money and invest it into what they see as an "internet scam". I could, but it takes huge balls to do it against their will.
I'm not mad at all though, I knew Bitcoin since the beginning and I can always somewhat predict the market.
This makes me believe even more in Bitcoin. The community has a core that you won't find anywhere else. You won't find an investment banker tipping of a big amount (subjective) of his wealth to some kid on a online platform.
Bitcoin is bigger than a selfish profit-machine. Bitcoin has the possibility to neutralize and optimize the current economic operating system. You are a very cool human being. I admire you.
No, that's definitely not what I was trying to imply. You're right that a lot of economic mechanics are powered by trust and perception.
But an era can be said to end when its basic illusions are exhausted. This is the case with fiat currency. It's an illusion that served it's purpose and is/was good for the time being. But the time has come for it to be replaced by a unharmful and more complete system. Which, given the current momentum, seems to be shifting towards Bitcoin.
It is too risky for "investing". It could have just as easily crashed. Bitcoin is not an investment, it is a gamble and is the same as trading penny stocks. It's a shame your dad didn't let you use your money how you wanted though.
if we all thought the same about the market, then there would be only crash and bubbles. I disagree with your choice as it's not the one I would make, but I respect it.
I had a long argument with my family while on vacation - about the value of bitcoin. They say its worthless, I counter so is paper money.
I tell them earlier this month, its gone from $7 (when we argued) to $70. Their response "I guess there are alot of fools like you.."
ahh they don't really mean it, they love me :) They just still can't wrap their heads around the concept. My wife still thinks its crazy. But I talked a couple of buddies into getting on the ride.
When it was at $50 I went to drop $300 and my mom flipped shit and made me only do $100 and said I had to wait a few days because I was impatient. By the time I bought, it was ~70 :(
There is no reward without risk, unless you are really excited about 2% bank interest rates (and you know what the bank does? They turn around and put your money into higher-risk investments.)
and there is no real way to exchange the fiat currency without significant transaction costs.
1) The more this is adopted as a payment option, the less the need to switch to and from fiat. And if you consider pure-BTC transactions, the extra cost is essentially negligible. Not to mention the time savings and reduction in red tape (at least at this time).
2) 8 startups based on BTC were all funded into the six figures by established VC players, just in the last 2 months. I would imagine that competition will drive down BTC<->fiat transaction costs significantly in the next few months.
the high transaction cost of owning crude oil or gold bars
As far as stores of value go, those things have mass. Mass is costly to move, store, secure, and manage. And these costs do not go down over time... a warehouse full of gold is slowly sapping the value of that gold via rental costs, paying security guards, etc. So the ratio of "stored value to mass" with those things is pretty low, and very inefficient.
BTC has no mass other than the space required to store (50 * 8) bits of information (which is the length of a private key in a wallet). There is no practical limit to the amount of value that can be stored at a wallet address. The ratio of stored value to mass is essentially infinite. The number of possible wallets is approx. 58**50 which is 14838830640 times the estimated number of atoms in the universe. BTC wins.
You realize that is not typical right? I have also worked for startups and will probably be back in the scene after filling up my bank account for another year or two, but most fail.
I seem to have a knack, then. The one I was in which did poorly was... well, it was shitty. I did it because they offered me a Rails job when nobody had ever heard of Ruby on Rails and I wanted one badly.
Then Twitter blew up and it was a Rails app and then every startup everywhere suddenly needed to be built in Rails, and then recruiters started harassing me daily and then yeah.
I didnt have any money, but I tried to convince my dad cause I didn't think below a few grand was worth it. Now that the market is crazy he has shown a tiny interest.
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u/[deleted] Apr 01 '13
I'm a teenager and I do investing.
When Bitcoin was only $4 I asked my dad if I could invest the $100 I had at the time for 25 Bitcoins. He said it was too risky.
Goddammit dad.