Originally Posted by C.J. Ichiban

Whew finally finished this thread.

Grew up in Huntington Beach. Noticed really early on the value or lack thereof in a dollar. Saw some family members REALLY struggle (money, drugs, death etc) and some REALLY thrive (happy marriages, jobs, procreation) . Realized it has nothing to do with starting location and everything to do with attitude. But it is expensive and as 'A Car Dreamer' I knew my exotics would not buy themselves and I had to compromise and work smart and hard and tirelessly. I needed to make a lot of money. It was always a motivator. And UNLIKE Aunt Becky's kid- school was important and a means to an end. I NEVER wanted to have the college lifestyle. Don't care about sorority girls or whatever. Don't care about football.

Figured I'd play sports because it pays regardless of macroecon cycle. Loved watching the Lakers in 1980's-1990's. Have always loved California weather. But i decided baseball fit better than other sports so I decided that was the deal. No plan B, outside of getting great grades.

Lots of lessons young-

Booms and busts- mom was a mortgage broker, realtor, handy-lady and home improver. She got smoked in a hit and run accident...twice. She got hammered by S+L scandal/ DJIA crashed...she buckled down and came back each time. Her dad, my Grandfather was a mathematician and taught me to day trade as a 12 year old. So I hustled to mow lawns, saved up chore money and range traded through high school so I could buy a car. (GOALS)

Life goals are the primary driver of your focus and your efforts. Some people want to live on a lake, or be a lawyer. I wanted outcomes and knew that I needed certain process and success ratios or would never increase my chances or progress.

When I was a little kid, mom put me in Montessori. But S+L crisis and wham she lost a lot and then I'm in public school. Diverse cast in Socal. All races. Tons of languages. Lots of chances to get in trouble. Goals and motivation pushed me through hard times, and eventually through injuries that only desire to live the good life could keep me focused on.

I always had a 3.6-3.9GPA and scored a 34/36 ACT. Fountain Valley High School. In 1997-1998 our school was one of the top 20 academic schools in country. My GPA didn't even get me in top 1/4 of my graduating class! We had 4 kids get perfect SAT scores. But I also Played sports. Never had a hard time finding AP classes to take, in CA public high school I took AP Math, science, english, etc each semester. Used to sleep through AP Chemistry and still got a B+. Got in to every school I applied at: Dartmouth, Stanford, USC, Pepperdine, etc. Great grades and test scores but broke parents, Ivy League would have been cool but who cares. No money so I went to Junior College in Santa Ana (ghetto) and got a job. Anyone who says you can't get your classes and credits to advance in HS or College is not looking at whole picture...you make yourself. Not the teacher. You dig deeper to prove a point. Get smarter to challenge yourself. Destroy competition. Give the teacher an apple and maybe get tipped off about a pop quiz day before. Real world is about strategy and smarts!


Got a 3.8GPA taking 20+ units and was working on a triple major (no hot girls at Santa Ana College, they all go to Orange Coast College). I only cared about achieving the big goals. Eventually got my full ride to LMU (even after a lumbar stress fracture) and was astonished with how spoiled those pr-&k rich kids were. I was there on merit. They were mostly there for parties and proximity. I left early but could have pursued my other passion which was screenwriting and film.

Once I got a little money I began both buying cool cars and investing in cash flow properties in Orange County. Made it at 24 to MLB and gave up on the TV / Film backup plan. Then I moved to Texas and started buying more cars (more salary and no state income tax!). Bought a condo in Dallas in 2006. Thought I was so smart. "Real estate will make me rich"

2002: bought condo 335k in Huntington Beach. Rented it out, sold in 2018 for 605,000

2005, deposit on condo in Dallas for 500. Rented it, lived in it, rented it...
2019, probably selling for 405k. A loss that's
Only offset by the CGT worth of taxes I saved
While working in Dallas.

Home Tax in Texas is no joke. 2.1-2.7% housing tax! Plus, too much land. Even in Dallas- they just keep building. No scarcity. Dallas housing is like Aston Martin. Gorgeous stuff, no appreciation unless it's a weird unique one. Unless you keep house to buy cool guns etc no benefit to own!! Its a money pit to buy there.

CA real estate in:

SD
OC
LA
SB
pebble
SF

All expensive $/sq ft

But that's because that is either the most desirable spot to live or highest earning jobs nearby. I love the CA lifestyle and food. Only NYC can compare food wise.

I live in fresno now, left all the traffic behind. House is 2.5x size and 6 car garage for about 10-15% cost of my house in Corona Del Mar. LA, SF, Pebble, Sonoma all within a drive. My commute is 5-8 min. My daughter's school 6 min away. Love the food here (farm to belly). 3 tracks in 3 hours, 6 tracks in 5 hrs. It's hot here in Summer but not AZ hot.


I have lived in
CA
Az
VA
Tx
Ga
Fl
Ny
Ok

I'd only consider long term job or to live in 10-15 cities nationwide...nowhere is perfect. Austin, Scottsdale, Denver/Boulder, Pebble, CdM, Encinitas, Beverly Hills, Palisades, La Jolla Shores, Carmel Valley...only places I'd live forever and not want to travel a ton. I travel a ton now...but I like Fresno more then Dallas or Savanah, Georgia.

Goal now: grow the dealership group and end up owning a place in Pebble Beach. I like Pebble, it's like everything I love about Laguna and Montecito and Manhattan Beach but devoid of the density that crushes your spirit in traffic.


Whoever is still reading at this point, sorry.

Goal Lifestyle? That's the only thing that should motivate you to move. Forget the chatter about politics etc. We're on the GT3 forum. We'll have a bad day or week and go for a drive and smile. Can you recruit more friends locally to your car club? I don't want to talk too much in big groups- would rather go drive, go work, go make pancakes for my family. Have to work where working is most lucrative...otherwise you are working while wearing handcuffs. The job pays for the quality of life.

Originally Posted by mooty

work hard, play hard, have a goal.

Originally Posted by 4pipes

Originally Posted by 4pipes

Originally Posted by C.J. Ichiban

Mooty I left out the big *** house I could barely afford and took a risk to build/ flip in 90210 and made good money on...sorry. You are the only one who knows about that!

Originally Posted by Archimedes

This. I just don't think it's possible to be successful in life if you don't set goals. Too many people go through life aimlessly expecting life to just magically turn out great for them.

Originally Posted by mooty

I have this quote on wall, not sure where I got it

"to live is the rarest thing in the world, most ppl exist, that is all"

Originally Posted by Glyndellis

Many posters have claimed California has the best sports teams. That may not be true. According to the NFL draft, the 49ers are second and the Raiders are fourth. This implies the 2nd worst and the 4th worst in the country, doesn't it? As a true benchmark, it means they are not as good as the Cleveland Browns.

Just saying....