February 1, 2026, Issue 22

Winter Wonderland, Southern Edition

As we dig out from about 10 inches of snow here in beautiful northwestern North Carolina, I choose to dedicate this issue to reminiscences of things we’ve left behind, and gazing into the future of things still to come. While we certainly have not abandoned our weekly look into stocks, markets, and investing, there is more to life than money. With that in mind, we will try to round out some hard edges and begin to ponder our small slice of life and the world around us.
First, the snow. I grew up in Montreal, Canada in the 1970s. There was never a question of will there be a white Christmas, just a question of how white. Tons of snow and cold, but school cancelations were a rarity. Hearty Canadians looked at it as business as usual. And as kids, we didn’t care either. We played street hockey from dawn to dark on the weekends, and from after school till dinner on weekdays. When I was 4 years old my parents built a backyard rink, and I began to skate. Not long after we moved to an area where the city would put up outdoor rinks with boards and even the blue and red lines. When you grow up like this, there is no doubt as what you future holds. I knew that I was going to play for the Montreal Canadiens, and that the Stanley Cup parades would continue to follow the “usual route”. You see, out of 10 Cups awarded in the ’70s, Montreal won 6 of them, including 4 in a row at the end of the decade. The years they did not win a championship were widely viewed as complete failures. The winning would surely continue with me as team captain well into the ’80s and beyond.
Well, here was my first lesson on how things do not turn out like you think they will just because you want them to. My beloved Canadiens have won a grand total of 2 Stanley Cups since 1979, and none for the last 33 years! And as for me? Turns out that I was a good, but not great athlete across many sports. This meant that earning a living from sports was not going to be realistic. So I moved on to dream number two. Selling fabric in my dad’s textile business….like they say, follow your passion!

The Adult Years

Let me tell about working in a small family business. I had graduated university, and was living at home. As I could not afford a car, I would hop in with Mom and Dad (Mom did the books), work all day together, drive home together, eat together, and then do it all over again the next day. While this was not the ideal setup for a 22 year old man, it did allow me to save some money (I was making $500 a week after all!), and a year later my first taste of freedom with a brand new yellow Honda CRX Si (Google it, it was awesome!). One year after that I moved out and life really began. Bills, rent, and plenty of obligations officially meant I was an adult. When I landed a girlfriend, I thought it was all done. Marriage and kids could not be far behind. But once again I had jumped the gun on my thoughts for the future. After she broke up with me, I decided on a different sort of companion. My first Golden Retriever, Sydney. This would prove to be a much longer and deeper relationship. In fact, it was death that did us part.
Sydney saw me through marriage, and the birth of three wonderful children. But we all know how those years go by. They pass like a speeding freight train. The years from the age of 24 to 52 saw marriage, three kids, business closure, a new job, business closure again, my own company, a divorce, a new amazing woman with two fantastic boys of her own, another marriage, and finally a new job which I have been at now for 18 years. Whew….catch breath!
At the age of 52 came an offer to move to North Carolina at the head office of my company. This would be a gut wrenching decision. Now with 5 kids between us, the youngest only 13 years old when the offer came, would they all choose to join us? If they did not, do we still go? We did. Together with two children, this was the most difficult decision that I had ever made. Mrs. Dadsadvice was and is the strongest woman I have ever met, and supported the decision, even while the boys stayed in Montreal. Did we do the right thing? Here is what I know with perfect hindsight, which is not a fair way to judge a decision. We would never do it again! The kids we left were too young, and the tears flowed too often. Here is what else I know. All 5 of our children, all adults now, have turned into successful, amazing people. Each and every one of them is so far ahead of where I was at that age, it fills me with a pride that only a parent can understand.
Financially, the move has been a success as well, so I guess we came out ok at the back end. All the kids are living on their own, and almost off the books, so we have done our job.

The Back Nine

Now, let’s look take out the crystal ball to peek at the future. As I have outlined, my plans don’t always work out, but what the heck. Turning 60 still seems like I must be talking about someone else, but it is my own big birthday only 62 days away (not that I’m counting!). Working in large corporate America is taxing. While financially rewarding, it can take a mental toll. I still feel sharp, vibrant and like I can make a difference with what I bring to the table. So are changes on the horizon in that respect? I certainly think more about that possibility today than ever before.
The Mrs. and I live in a house too large for two people, so at some point, change will come in this way too. What will retirement look like? As I train for a 10K race in May, I know I am in decent shape. I also know these things can change in a hurry. The dream is to travel to far away places as well as to wherever our kids and grandchildren will be. My hope is that we do not wait too long!
And of course, my favorite passion. Watching these kids continue their journey. Mrs. Dadsadvice and I are blessed in so many ways and we know it. I thank you all, dear readers for indulging my look back with a brief look forward.
The snow has made me feel rather nostalgic.
The Dadsadvice today is do not get too attached to your plans. They can and will change. What looks great going in, may not look so good coming out. And that is perfectly fine. What we think we want today may not be what we want tomorrow. We only make decisions based on the information we have at that moment. It is unfair to look back and say I should have done it differently.

Thought of the Day

Sometimes it is healthy to sit and reminisce, and sometimes we can get stuck looking backward for too long. I know that we all are somewhat guilty of wanting things that are unimportant. As someone wise said recently, you will never see a hearse pulling a U-Haul. In other words, you can’t take stuff with you to the next destination. A look back to easier times helps keep that in focus.
What are your dreams for the future? What are the near term goals you’ve set? How about longer term? Are you still thinking you can make the pros?
Let me know….and enjoy the winter!!