Feburary 28, 2022

by Dr. Plastic Picker

I have to write a personal finance blogpost at least every 3 months, so that Crispy Doc doesn’t take me off his Physician Personal Finance Blogger Blogroll. https://www.crispydoc.com/physician-finance-bloggers/ Just dropped by his blogroll, and there are some really interesting new physician personal finance bloggers. There are a few new bloggers who are minimalist as well. I hadn’t stopped by this list in a while, so it’s fun to see what’s new on the blogsphere. But I’m still the only litter-picking physician personal finance blogger – YES I AM!

I had been thinking about the hypocrisy of personal finance blogging in general for years. There is so much about personal finance that is out of our control. The reason for debt can be the same as the reason a child is overweight, the systemic forces out there have created the scenarios that increase the chances that someone needs to take on debt or cannot earn enough. I’m changing my approach to childhood weight issues, by acknowledging with families what is out of their control that has pushed their children to gain weight. Skyrocketing housing prices that force families to work multiple jobs, and short change children’s activities. The built environment that has decresed active transport for the entire community. The fossil fuel industry and federal corn subsidies that have flooded our food industrial complex with cheap plastic to encase the food and cheap high-fructose-corn-syrup to make it taste sweet.

Just like it’s still important for me to talk about plant-based diets and evidence based changes families can make to address children’s weight. I will still address pillars of personal financial responsibility, but acknowledge that much is out of people’s control. I guess that is why the personal finance blog part of my writing is specifically aimed at physicians and young pediatricians who do not usually fall into the category of having suffered as many injustices as the rest of the world. Since there are others that read, please take that in mind.

The hypocrisy of my personal finance blogging is that I married a fellow physician who has a high earning potential. The hypocrisy is that I have the cultural upbringing and the demeanor to be able to co-exist harmoniously with my in-laws. The hypocrisy is that other than my own immediate children and myself, I don’t really have to provide for anyone else. All my strengths are still there. I’m financially oriented because my father was an accountant. I work essentailly full time when I could have been a stay-at-home parent (trust me, I tried!). I’m super frugal because for most of the first decade of my life, my parents bought very little extras as they built our family’s financial lives. We didn’t buy many material things, but we had so much wealth in our family’s traditions and affection.

That is it. I wanted to really show you the Buddha Hand fruit collage picture, and just some thoughts today about FIRE hypocrisy. The hypocrisy is true for other personal finance bloggers particularly physicians and those omnipresent male engineers as well. The idea that someone would ask a doctor for financial advice is hilarious. It’s like asking your accountant about your sinuses. Ask your doctor about your sinuses. Ask your accountant about your finances.

Hey, but everything on this blog is free and for entertainment purposes! I’m just trying to help save the earth, and on the side get to interact with some of the FIRE bloggers I had admired for over a decade. They know my name now, which I think has been a great side benefit of all this environmental action blogging with a personal finance twist!