@ MattJ – that is very strange. When we moved from MD to VA this year we switched insurance policies and then registered our cars a day later without any issues. But we stayed with the same insurance company/agent – maybe that was the difference?

Thank you all for pitching in and mostly, thank you, Trent.

The reason I decided to ask Trent about this was because he seems to have a good and solid, rational view on life as a whole, and of course on personal finance.

#2, thanks from your answer. You are right about saying that I often felt like I’ve lost mom as well. And I honestly underestimated the fact that I split up with my then-boyfriend.

I guess it is because I always thought I was a strong person and could deal with anything… I guess that’s why I underestimated the effect of all things that happened, I only realized dad’s passing as a trauma but not the other changes.

My mom went to therapy 18months ago (when dad passed away) but not me. I somehow figured we can’t both go to therapy. She used to cry so much, she was really depressed, and I guess I felt the need for me to stay “normal” as if nothing happened.

I got a fine in a similar situation to the one you describe from the state of Georgia. The sequence of events goes like this:

I moved to Alabama with fully insured and licensed (in Georgia) vehicle.

I needed to transfer my tags to Alabama. In order to do that, I transferred my insurance to an Alabama policy. (Same company, new agent) At this point (unbeknownst to me) my previous insurance agent informed the state of Georgia that I was no longer insured in Georgia and my county in Georgia immediately began preparing a fine for driving an uninsured vehicle with Georgia plates. Meanwhile, I immediately drove to the court house and got my Alabama plates – probably two hours later.

A few weeks later, my ticket arrived, after being routed through the post office’s address forwarding system. I called my new insurance agent, my old insurance agent, and the Georgia county. None of them could tell me how I could possibly have transferred my tags without spending those crucial two hours driving illegally according to one of either Alabama or Georgia law.

The matter was resolved when Georgia sent me some sort of form to fill out. I got out of the ticket by lying (after being no-so-subtly instructed to lie by the government lady on the phone in Georgia) on the form.

I think Etrade is considered a “low cost” brokerage

Josh isn’t really a spammer, he comments frequently here, usually not about life insurance. Maybe this post was a little disingenuous.

Q7 might be able to pick up some freelance programming. Knowing some html can get you in with small local businesses setting up websites, etc.

I would wager that a good percentage of readers would be much more interested in a regular human conversation rather than in sitting under the learning tree.

Some people just like to say Hi.

Anyway… addressing Q#10) You can have a one-on-one with a meet up. You don’t have to stand on a stage and address everyone at once. The meet ups I’ve gone to are always the host walking around and talking with folks. I just shake my head sometimes on this stuff. Like #28 said, “it’s networking.” Aren’t you always talking about that? I’m not trying to be mean, but it just seems that it’s more like “do as I say and not as I do.” That seems to happen a lot lately. You have good stuff sometimes, but I think you need to regroup and find your focus.

But, hey, it’s your blog and none of my business. Just my two cents’ worth.

Do you always have to play the role of counselor? What’s wrong with meeting with people just to have a good time? It’s called networking. You could possibly meet someone who could help you as well.

With that in mind, I would suggest you consider working freelance or on a consultation basis if you only want to work part time. Both web development and iPhone development lend themselves well to freelance work. However, this may be difficult to get off the ground without first working in a shop. Difficult, but not impossible.

It is definitely possible to learn programming on your own and part time. And no, it isn’t ridiculous at all to try and learn after 40. After all, the entire field changes every few years anyway, so we’re all learning as we go. It is the desire to work less than 40 hours a week that I think will hang you up. You might find it easier to learn on your own, get a full time job with a good company for a couple of years, then venture out on your own.

Good luck :)