SAF Group Term Life Insurance Gives Rebates

Just received a letter not long ago from Aviva.  It is basically a cash rebate of over $120 for my term insurance coverage under the SAF Group Term Life Plan.  I really do enjoy getting this rebates as it reminds me again that this is probably one of the cheapest term insurance plans available to most Singaporeans.

Considering that my monthly premium is around $50, it means that I have gotten almost 2 months of free coverage!  Insurance is a cost at the end of the day and where possible, it is always best to keep the cost as low as possible.

Query from Reader - $20K to Invest

I don't usually do this but I got a query from a reader recently asking me what safe instruments one could invest in that will provide a better return than fixed deposits (FD).  Based on the sketchy information provided, here are the following facts that I got from the very brief email:

•  $20K cash
• "Invest on something safe"
• Earn more than FD (which I assume stands for fixed deposits).

Firstly, I think the reader must ask himself whether the $20K in cash is really spare cash.  Has he/she set up an emergency fund of 6 months expenditure (or for the kiasu ones - 6 months income).  Without questioning too much, I assume that he/she has already set aside money for an emergency fund and this is really SPARE cash to invest.

Secondly, I deduce that the reader is probably risk adverse.  Capital protection is probably key to him/her.  Stocks with their high volatility are perhaps not suited for everyone (even though I strongly recommend it to most people).  

One of the few options I can think of is to invest in SGS bonds.  That will give a better return than FD.  However, at the same time, the returns from bonds are not spectacular at all (at least to me).  Personally, I don't invest much in bonds (not directly anyway).  

Any thoughts from other readers?

One Stock that Pays Monthly Dividends

Have been holding on to this stock that pays monthly dividends for a few months now.  The stock is Gamco Global Gold & Natural Resources Trust (GGN).  It pays a dividend of US$0.14 every month and is currently trading at US$13.69.  After accounting for withholding tax rate of 30% (since I am not a US citizen), the dividends is slightly less.  There are of course exchange rate fluctuations to account for too.

I just bought another 200 shares recently bringing my total holdings to 500 shares.

GGN is a close ended fund (CEF).  The fund's objective is as follows:

The GAMCO Global Gold, Natural Resources & Income Trust by Gabelli is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide a high level of current income. The Fund's secondary investment objective is to seek capital appreciation consistent with the Fund's strategy and its primary objective.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund will attempt to achieve its objectives by investing at least 80% of its assets in equity securities of companies principally engaged in the gold industry and the natural resources industries. The Fund will invest at least 25% of its assets in the equity securities of companies principally engaged in the exploration, mining, fabrication, processing, distribution or trading of gold or the financing, managing, controlling or operating of companies engaged in "gold-related" activities. In addition, the Fund will invest at least 25% of its assets in the equity securities of companies principally engaged in the exploration, production or distribution of natural resources, such as gas, oil, paper, food and agriculture, forestry products, metals and minerals as well as related transportation companies and equipment manufacturers

The dividends declaration for July, August and September 2012 also remains at US$0.14.

• The distribution for July 2012 will be payable on July 24, 2012 to common shareholders of record on July 17, 2012. 
• The distribution for August 2012 will be payable on August 24, 2012 to common shareholders of record on August 17, 2012. 
• The distribution for September 2012 will be payable on September 21, 2012 to common shareholders of record on September 14, 2012. 

Voltaire's Thoughts About Labour

Labour holds off three great evils:  tedium, vice and poverty.

True?

Work as boring as it seems wards off tedium or boredom.  Boredom can drive people mad.  Imagine having no purpose in life and having absolutely nothing to do.  So yes it does ward off tedium.  But work can sometimes be boring too after a while.

Of vice, it does ward off to a certain extent.  After all, it is during idleness that the children start disturbing the cats.

And with work, rightly should come some form of income.  Thus one who works ought not to be poor.

Armour Residential REIT

Have bought 500 shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT (ARR). ARR pays out US$0.10 per month in dividends. Its current share price is around US$7.00

Harvard Classics - Herodotus and Book of Job

I must have done at least 6 hours of pure reading yesterday.  And I sure covered a lot of ground though some of my reading was outside the "canon" of the Harvard Classics.  I spent most of time reading the Book of Job though I spent a greater part of the time wondering why this had been placed under the History of Civilizations section since the Book of Job was clearly a book that discusses about suffering (or in particular, why do good people suffer).  I guess it was helpful to see what the wisdom was about why suffering occurs and how some times, human wisdom has its limitations.

Reading Herodotus' Histories is tiring.  In the harvard classics, it is his second book that is inside and it gives an account of Egypt.  Or should I say ancient Egypt.  As much as I love history, the way it is told is actually a bit too detailed for my liking.

Harvard Classics - Five Foot Shelf of Books

I have started  into my reading habit once again.  And what better way to start by doing it in a structured manner rather than the current haphazard way in which I conduct my reading.  Have been reading Harvard's Classics, which is supposed to be the "Western Canon" of books worth reading in order to attain "a liberal frame of mind or way of thinking".  I was tempted to try Adler's Great Books but then decided to start with the original so-called "canon" first before I proceed on.

This whole exercise is just a way of educating myself for free. Almost like obtaining a liberal arts education except without the need to attend lectures/tutorials/etc And besides,  I love to read.. (Oh gosh, how much I miss school).

Well, it will certainly be a challenge as there are a total of 50 volumes worth of books. You can find all the books online (which means you save lots of money too) in this link:  http://archive.org/details/harvardclassics

 I am getting started on the section regarding History of Civilization (refer to Volume 50 for the introduction to the Readers Guide).  I guess it sure beats reading from Vol 1 to Vol 51.  

If anyone else is interested in getting started on reading the Harvard Classics too, feel free to comment!