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Simple banking

Years ago, I signed up with Simple Bank to manage my money. The premise was implementing a system similar to the envelope concept in the banking app with a very simple UI. They eventually went completely under in 2021 (we moved our banking in 2017 or so to our current credit union). I love credit unions, in particular the physical presence and their overall mission to provide great service with general lack of greed compared to the big banks. See, for example BECU’s Loan Reprice Program where they lower your interest rate on an existing auto loan as your credit score improves.

The app experience could be so much more. While BECU has developed an envelope type system recently in their app, it is only for their savings accounts (where as Simple Bank built this straight into their checking app so transactions could be detucted from designated envelopes).

I reflected on Simple Bank these passed few days and looked around to see if there is anyhting out there that has picked up on this concept. I came accross Envelope which is one of the many virtual banks that focuses on an app experience and works through a partner bank for the actual “banking” part of their busines (FDIC insurance, joint accounts etc).

I like what I’m seeing so far based on what I’ve read on their site and reviews. I think it would be a fun way to have family financial discussions (certainly not a fun topic neither I nor my wife). The ability to collaborate in real time at the time of a transaction in a shared account unlocks so much financial health. My one reservation is that these types of companies come and go. How long will they last? What happens when PE managers take over? Could I build the same level of trust that I have built with my credit union? And let’s not forget that moving finances over is a hard task.

I think what I really want is for my credit union to just copy these folks. Even keep it super simple: give me the ability to designate envelopes and allocate transactions against those envelopes with minimal UI friction. Invest in the tech and incentivize budgeting, awareness, healthy financial habits. I should really take screenshots of their current method and post a follow up comparing against what Simple Bank used to do.

Boring

I dove head-first into the boring stuff today. Laundry, replenished the salt to the water softener, changed the filters to the HVAC, finally (FINALLY!) put away Xmas decorations and lights (well, my wife did), and vacuumed. My son tagged along; he even helped out on occasion.

I appreciated his company.

He’s super excited about Valentine’s Day coming up so he started making his cards. We did get to do some good dad/son play time outside as well.

It was just good, boring… fun.

Finally, a break from the -20 F temps we’ve had all week.

I spent the day yesterday recording drum tracks for friends. Spending some more time to clean up some mistakes and inconsistencies today.

Signing up to watch chatbots talk to each other is very reminiscent of that thing a few years back where people could join conference calls or whatever on Twitter to hear idiots speak.

Bowie understood.

Powerless Fit of Rage

  • Cancelled my BlueSky account, the only large social network I’ve been a part of.
  • Cancelled all of my Apple and Google subscriptions (storage, music, etc).
  • Cancelled our Amazon Prime account.
  • Cancelled Microsoft related subscriptions.

The money, attention, engagement, etc, it’s all flowing back to this administration. It’s contributing to people losing their lives.

Fuck them all.

I really don’t know how to respond to the bullshit going on around us, so I made some drawings to put in my son’s cardboard mailbox tonight when I get home.

Two pieces of artwork are displayed: one features colorful leaves and a dotted tree on a blue background, while the other depicts the Wild robot with a goose on its shoulder.

Despite the long drive, I’ve been really enjoying working in Lincoln 3 days per week. The clouds yesterday and 50 degree weather brought back some Seattle feels too.

The boy decided that The Wild Robot series needed a fourth installment, so he wrote his own book: “The Wild Robot Bilds” (unedited first draft)

About a month ago, I finally took the leap and got glasses. It’s been a game changer not awkwardly squinting while reading one of The Wild Robot books to my son or running my phone at an absurd font size.

The real kicker though has been revisiting the Daylight dc-1, a device I had written off because I thought it had a crap screen, only to now be floored at how readable it actually is with my reading glasses on. It’s so silly that I didn’t make the connection to my actual shitty eyesight sooner, though to be fair my other devices didn’t have the same challenge (at least nothing a simple text size change couldn’t resolve). I think part of the issue is the textured screen exasperated the blur.

Maybe an e-ink phone is in my near future. Anyways, thank friggin god for this ancient tech in the form of glasses.

Santa showed up with a Shure SM57 over Christmas and I got a chance to start messing with it yesterday. I still need to find the best spot for it so everything is balanced (ride cymbal is too loud and I was barely playing it) but pretty happy with the possibilities.

Man, it has been over a month since I picked up the sticks, maybe longer. Went into this Jimmy Smith song (8 Counts for Rita) cold and it shows.

Went hiking with my wife and son today in 65 degree weather as January approaches in central Nebraska, what a trip.

A vast, open grassland stretches under a sky filled with scattered clouds and a bright horizon.A dirt path winds through a dry, grassy landscape under a partly cloudy blue sky.A dried plant with dark seed pods is set against a backdrop of grassy fields and a partly cloudy sky.A close-up view of a dry, spiral-shaped plant with sharp, pointed leaves and blurred green foliage in the background.