Final Post – This Blog is Now an Archiv

Dear readers,
After many years on Blogger I have finally moved my new writing to a more stable platform.
This blog will remain online as a complete archive of all my old posts, but from now on all new articles will be published here: https://mrsdewlar.wordpress.com
Thank you so much for following me here over the years. Your support has meant a lot to me.
I hope to see you on the new site!
Best regards,
Mrs Dewlar

The Eternal Battle: Deductions vs Benefits

Let me be clear from the start: Sweden has the 8th highest tax burden in the world according to the OECD 2024. Yet some on the left consider it morally questionable that taxpayers are allowed to reduce their tax burden through ROT and RUT deductions.

To me, that view is completely absurd.

ROT and RUT are not benefits. They are deductions. To use them, you must first have paid tax in Sweden. It is simply a reduction of your taxable income — not free money. If you have no tax to deduct against, you get nothing.

Personally, I have never used either ROT or RUT, but I fully understand those who do. They already pay an enormous amount of tax and are simply getting a small portion back.

The Left, however, loves to call these deductions “benefits” or “subsidies”. That is a deliberate distortion. A benefit is something you receive without any contribution. A deduction is something you receive because you have already contributed and paid tax.

If the Left wants to play that game, I have no problem renaming everything:

Either we call all benefits deductions — and require that you must first pay tax to qualify.

Or we call all deductions benefits — and simply hand out the equivalent amount to ROT and RUT users with no requirement to have paid any tax at all.

The latter option would mean that far more people could suddenly take full advantage of the “benefit” — since they would no longer need any actual contribution to offset it against.

Then we might finally see who is really living off other people’s money.

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Why I’m Against “Everyone Else Should Pay” Mentality

I want to be clear from the start: I am against socialism and communism. I believe people should, as a general rule, bear their own costs — with a few reasonable exceptions.

In recent years I’ve noticed a new and rather ugly phenomenon.

Normal-weight passengers posting videos where they openly express frustration about having to pay for excess baggage, while filming overweight passengers who fly with carry-on luggage that is within the weight limit. Their argument is that their own body weight plus carry-on combined is still less than the overweight passenger’s total — yet only they have to pay extra.

This kind of thinking would have been unthinkable twenty years ago.

But since Millennials and Gen Z entered adulthood, the rules of the game seem to have changed. A generation that grew up illegally downloading music, movies and TV series appears to have developed a very different view of what “paying your own way” means. They are simply not used to paying for products or services — they have mostly just taken what they wanted for free.

I’m not defending the airline policy. I’m simply pointing out the entitlement behind the outrage: the idea that someone else should subsidise your choices.

And that exact mindset — “Why should I have to pay when someone else gets away with more?” — is precisely why collectivism will always fail. When you grow up believing the world owes you something for free, you naturally expect others to foot the bill for your lifestyle. That is not fairness. That is socialism in practice.

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The Transition to Growth Stocks is Driving My Competitive Side Crazy

The shift from being a pure dividend investor to also holding growth stocks has not been easy for me. I hate change. I really, really hate change.

My husband, the world’s most perfect husband, is thriving in this new setup. Of course he is.

What surprises me the most is that it’s not primarily my conservative side that is struggling — it’s my extremely competitive side.

For me, our portfolio isn’t really about money right now. It’s about charts and bars. Pretty colored bars that are supposed to compete with last year’s performance. And right now… we are clearly losing.

I even created a new chart comparing the total value of our holdings. But since I only have the starting point from January 1, 2026, there isn’t much of a race going on yet. Just a slow, painful start where I’m already behind.

I’m still convinced that this new strategy will pay off in the long run. We will catch up, and eventually we’ll get both better dividends and stronger total returns.

All I can hope for is that my hyper-competitive self survives the journey…

because right now it feels like I’m losing a race I didn’t even want to enter — and losing is simply not acceptable.

Some people get a participation trophy.

I get a husband who keeps winning without even trying.

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There Is No Professional Pride Left – And Somehow I Always End Up Doing Everything Myself

My uncle on my father’s side passed away on January 2, 2025.

For the past seven years, I have helped him with his income tax returns. So when he died, I made sure to complete and submit the final return for 2025. Three weeks ago I sent it in and thought, with a sigh of relief, that the estate was finally closed.

Oh, how naive I was.

Today my father (who is the executor of the estate) came with two new documents. One was an invoice for the bank account fee for 2025, and another for 2026 — even though the accounts have zero balance and should have been closed long ago.

My uncle had a will leaving everything to my father. To avoid any disputes with my cousins, my father hired a professional estate administrator and paid a proper fee for the service. The assignment was clear: handle everything and close the estate completely.

Yet here we are.

Despite the hired professional, it is once again my father — and by extension, me — who has to sort this out. Calling the bank, gathering information, explaining the situation, and making sure the accounts are finally closed.

No matter how many professionals we hire, how many documents we sign, or how clearly we define the assignment… I always end up doing it myself.

If you want something done right, do it yourself.

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Burned Bridges and a Husband Who’s Always Right

My husband is one of those rare people who always knows exactly what to say at exactly the right time.

I, on the other hand, am apparently a walking disaster who lights bridges on fire and then uses the flames as a flashlight to find my way forward.

It’s a classic catch-22:

I’m incredibly grateful to have him, because he has on several occasions come running with a fire extinguisher to save the bridges I’ve enthusiastically torched.

At the same time… it annoys me to no end that I always lose this particular competition. No matter how hard I try, he’s just better at being a decent human being. Some people get a trophy wife. I got a husband who puts out my emotional arson.

And the worst part? He’s so damn good at it.

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We Missed One Pension Plan – Apparently We’re Getting Old

There are nine years left until my remaining four private pension plans are paid out.

During the recent downturn in US technology stocks, I decided to sell off most of the funds in my two largest pension plans (which together represent almost 80% of the total value) and reinvest the money in funds with greater exposure to these stocks. With such a long time horizon, it felt like the right move.

My husband and I take great pride in having full control over our investments and pension plans. So you can imagine our surprise when he recently received a letter from Skandia informing him about a fifth pension plan that he had completely forgotten about.

Admittedly, it is his smallest one in terms of value. But after the recent reinvestments and with more than six years left until payout, there is plenty of time for the capital to grow significantly.

We really need to start compiling a complete overview of all our holdings……before the senile dementia sets in properly.

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Making Welfare Benefits Taxable – A Simple Way to Reduce Fraud

Sweden has a significant problem with welfare exploitation. This concerns both ethnic Swedes and immigrants – the issue is not limited to any one group.

Fraud takes many forms: from improper claims for care allowance to the use of multiple coordination numbers. A coordination number is a temporary identification number that can be compared to a Swedish personal identity number.

One effective way to reduce this type of abuse would be to make all welfare benefits taxable. If every form of support — income support, housing allowance, sickness compensation, etc. — became taxable income, all recipients would need to be properly registered in the Swedish Tax Agency’s population and income registers. This would make it significantly harder to maintain double identities, use fake or multiple coordination numbers, or have “invisible” recipients receiving benefits.

Making benefits taxable would not eliminate all fraud, but it would be one of the most powerful single measures to increase transparency and control. Several countries, including the Netherlands and Denmark, have moved in this direction with stricter registration requirements for welfare payments.

It’s time for Sweden to take welfare integrity seriously again.

“Varje förslösad skattekrona är en stöld från det svenska folket.”

— Gustav Möller, legendarisk socialdemokratisk före detta minister för hälsa och sociala frågor i Sverige

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Does the Interest Rate Weapon Still Work?

The Swedish Riksbank is currently led by Erik Thedéen, widely regarded as an interest rate hawk. He has maintained a relatively high policy rate despite weak growth and rising unemployment.

This stands in contrast to his predecessor Stefan Ingves, who introduced negative interest rates during a long period of persistently low inflation.

A popular saying goes: “Inflation is taxation without legislation.” It is a critical view of monetary policy — the idea that inflation allows governments to reduce the real value of money without the political cost of raising ordinary taxes.

If you have 100,000 SEK in savings and inflation is 5%, that money only has the purchasing power of about 95,000 SEK after one year. You haven’t lost any kronor on paper, but you have become poorer in reality.

The winners from inflation tend to be:

• The government (especially with large debts)
• People with big loans
• Banks and financial institutions that can protect themselves

The losers are:

• Savers
• Pensioners with fixed incomes
• Employees whose wages don’t keep up with inflation

Both Ingves and Thedéen have struggled to consistently hit the 2% inflation target. One mostly undershot it, the other first overshot it before bringing it down. The fact that two governors with very different approaches both failed to hit the target strengthens my belief that the traditional interest rate tool is losing its effectiveness in today’s economy.

We may need new tools for a new economic reality.

One possible idea could be a Swedish digital krona with built-in value preservation. A portion of the money held in this digital currency could automatically be invested in a broad, low-cost index of Swedish productive assets — such as infrastructure, housing, and technology companies. This would give ordinary citizens a simple, automatic protection against inflation, while still keeping the money liquid and accessible.

Perhaps it’s time to think beyond just raising or lowering the interest rate.

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Not All Investments Are About Making Money

Some investments are about quality of life — and they often cost more than you expect.

Both the world’s most perfect husband and I have always believed in buying quality over quantity. In the long run, it’s usually the cheaper option.

Many years ago we bought a beautiful curved Howard sofa. It has served us incredibly well… until now. After years of faithful service, it has finally worn out and needs to be replaced.

I knew sofa prices had gone up. I just didn’t know they had gone that far up. A larger, good-quality sofa now costs well over $10,000.

I guess I’m officially old now. Because when I see prices like that, my first thought is still: “That can’t be right…”

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March 2026 Dividend Update – Reality Check

We have now received all dividends for March 2026.

As expected, it wasn’t quite as strong as my original forecast. We sold some of our dividend holdings to make room for growth stocks in the long term, which naturally affected this month’s payout.

That said, it could have been a lot worse, and overall I’m reasonably satisfied with the result.

Looking at the chart below, the difference between actual dividends received (where the green bar represents executed ordinary dividends and the red bar represents executed extra dividends) and my original forecast (blue bar) is unfortunately very clear.

Our only realistic chance of getting these two bars closer to the same height is if our holdings pay out significantly more special dividends than I currently expect, and if the US dollar strengthens substantially against the SEK in the near future.

This needs to happen soon if we want any hope of closing the gap this year.

Click to enlarge

March 2026 Dividend Update

We have now received all dividends for March 2026.

As expected, it wasn’t quite as strong as my original forecast. We sold some of our dividend holdings during the transition to add more growth stocks for the long term. That naturally had an impact this month.

That said, it could have been a lot worse, and overall I’m quite satisfied with the result.Unfortunately, the rest of 2026 will look significantly weaker compared to 2025. The shift away from pure dividend stocks means we will see lower dividend income for the remainder of the year.

I’ll share the charts comparing actual dividends vs. the original forecast below.

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From Personality Tests to Portfolio Changes – And My Husband Wants to Start Swing Trading

A number of years ago, I took an extensive leadership training course. I was skeptical when they handed out personality tests and took them under silent protest.

In hindsight, those tests taught me more than almost anything else.

I’ve learned why I react differently in different situations, and I’ve become better at understanding which of my traits is most useful at any given moment. Sometimes I even allow myself to use the “wrong” quality if it leads to the best outcome.

One of my strongest traits is that I dislike change. I’m extremely conservative by nature.

Our portfolio has been 100% dividend stocks for many years — with good results. But the world doesn’t stand still. My husband, who loves change far more than I do, and I have decided to evolve our strategy and add growth stocks as well. Although both strategies are long-term, I needed time to adjust. That adjustment period was barely over when he casually mentioned something about swing trading.

We’ve barely begun with growth stocks, and he’s already looking at the next step. Before I know it, he’ll probably suggest day trading too.

The fact that he hasn’t traded me in for a new wife after 32 years is honestly beyond me. I must have more personalities than I realize.

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My Husband Turned Off the Heat… and I Love Him Anyway

We live in a beautiful old building from 1870 in Stockholm with thick, beautiful walls. They keep us cool in the summer, but right now — after this long, cold winter — they’re still holding onto the chill.

Last night, the world's most perfect husband decided it was time to turn off the heating in the bedroom. This has nothing to do with money — our heating cost is fixed anyway. It’s purely a him issue. Apparently he’s starting to feel 'a bit warm' at night."

I, on the other hand, woke up at 3:45 a.m. freezing cold. The room was so chilly I could almost see my breath. Since then I’ve been lying on the sofa wrapped in a bedspread and two blankets.

I sleep with one winter duvet. My dear husband sleeps with two — because of course he does.

I love this man more than anything, but right now I’m seriously considering reminding him who the highest authority in this household really is. Happy wife, happy life.

If he wants his freezing wife back in the bedroom, the heat needs to go back on. Compromise is key in marriage… preferably one that doesn’t involve hypothermia.

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FSD Coming to the Netherlands – Implications for Sweden

There is still no official announcement from Tesla or Dutch authorities (RDW), but Tesla has started notifying around 1,100 FSD buyers in the Netherlands that they will get access to FSD (Supervised) from Sunday, April 12, 2026. The rest are expected to receive access in May.

This strongly indicates that approval is either already granted or very close. Tesla rarely rolls out features on this scale without regulatory clearance.

If the Netherlands gets FSD soon, Sweden should not be far behind. A summer launch here is realistic — if the current government acts quickly.

The timing is important. Swedish elections are in September 2026. Should the Social Democrats return to power, there is a significant risk that approval of FSD will be delayed. Given IF Metall’s conflict with Tesla Sweden, a left-wing government would likely put union relations before rapid approval of the technology.

We can only hope the current government makes the necessary decision before the election.

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Building a War Chest – A Difficult Transition for Us

We continue to add to our position in VICI Properties Inc. (VICI).

Because we currently lack a proper war chest, we could only buy a relatively small amount this time.

As lifelong dividend investors, we have almost always been fully invested. Our philosophy has been simple: money should work all the time. Cash sitting idle has felt like a waste. But we are now realizing that this approach needs to change.

Going forward, we want to build and maintain a cash reserve that roughly matches the size of our growth stock allocation. This would give us dry powder to act when real opportunities appear – instead of being forced to buy smaller positions or, worse, sit on the sidelines.

From experience, I know this mental shift will be surprisingly difficult for us. We’ve been wired for decades to stay fully invested. Sitting on cash feels unnatural, almost irresponsible.

Still, discipline demands it. We’ll see how it goes.

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My Father Turned 80 – And He Still Refuses to Retire

My father turned 80 on Wednesday.

We were invited to celebrate – but only after 7pm, because both he and my mother were still at work.

Yes, 80 years old. And still working.

He doesn’t need the money. He works because he was raised that way and apparently never learned how to stop. Work is his identity. Retirement seems to be some kind of foreign concept.

My mother continues working too. Her reason is refreshingly honest: “If I sit at home waiting for your father to come home from work, I’ll go crazy.”

So here they are — two pensioners in their 80s, still clocking in every day.

I’m starting to believe that a surprisingly large part of the work actually getting done in Sweden is performed by people who are technically retired. Many of them simply refuse to slow down.

Somehow, I don’t think my parents want to look — or feel — their actual age.

Right now they’re planning a four-week trip to America next April. New York for shopping, then renting a Tesla with Full Self-Driving to drive up to Niagara Falls, continue down to Miami, and finish with a Caribbean cruise.

They’ve already bought FSD for their Model Y here in Sweden, optimistically hoping that Swedish politicians will eventually wake up and legalize it.

I have to give them credit. For their energy, their stubbornness, and their genuine curiosity about new technology — at an age where most people have long since given up.

Whether that’s admirable or slightly worrying… I haven’t quite decided yet.

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Media Spin and Propaganda: Same Numbers, Completely Different Stories

On Tuesday April 7, Statistics Sweden released the Flash CPI for March 2026.

The figures showed a mixed picture:

• CPIF (Riksbank's main measure) fell to 1.6% - significantly below forecasts
• CPIF-EX dropped to 1.1%
• Meanwhile, the regular CPI rose from 0.5% to 0.6%

SVT and Expressen chose to lead with “Inflation fell”, focusing on the KPIF numbers that suited their narrative.

Dagens Nyheter and TV4 instead went with “Inflation rose”, highlighting the regular CPI.

Same statistics. Two completely opposite headlines.

This is not journalism. This is narrative shaping and agenda-driven reporting. Swedish mainstream media once again proves how they selectively cherry-pick numbers to push their preferred story — especially when it comes to the economy and the government’s performance.

The Riksbank’s next monetary policy decision is on May 7. It will be interesting to see how Governor Erik Thedéen, a well-known interest rate hawk, justifies keeping the policy rate unchanged even though inflation has now been at or below the 2% target for a long time.

Out of Thedéen’s 40 months as governor, the inflation target has only been reached 16 times within the tolerance band.

Why I See Socialism as the World’s Most Perfect Pyramid Scheme

For transparency and my own agenda: I am politically very far from the Swedish Social Democrats, the Green Party, the Left Party, and socialism in general.

After reading a post on X, I finally understood why I truly dislike socialism so strongly.

The author described socialism as the world’s most perfect pyramid scheme – and the more I think about it, the more accurate it feels.

Here’s the simple mechanism:You take money (through taxes) from one person who works (voter 1) and distribute it to four people who do not work but live on various subsidies (voters 2, 3, 4 and 5). In electoral terms, you lose one voter but gain four. The political payoff is enormous.

This is not a new idea. The Swedish Social Democrats understood this dynamic very early on and built much of their long-term power on it. By expanding the group of people dependent on the state, they also expanded their voter base.

It’s a system that rewards dependency and punishes productivity. And once enough people live off the system rather than contribute to it, the pyramid becomes almost impossible to dismantle democratically.

That is why I view socialism not just as an economic policy, but as a political strategy designed to create and maintain power.

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I Was Skeptical – And Then Russia Invaded

I’ve been skeptical for years about how much influence the environmental movement has had on European energy policy.

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, that skepticism turned into something much clearer: we had made ourselves vulnerable.

By aggressively phasing out nuclear power, countries like Germany and Sweden became heavily dependent on Russian gas. Russia saw the weakness and exploited it.

Here in Sweden we shut down perfectly working reactors, driven more by ideology and fear than by facts and long-term thinking. Now, only five years later, we’re already talking about building new nuclear power. The cost to Swedish taxpayers runs into many billions of kronor.

The bitter irony? Some in the environmental movement are now slowly admitting that nuclear power should be considered fossil-free. But this realization comes far too late. The damage – both economic and to our energy security – has already been done.

Hindsight is easy.

But some mistakes were foreseeable. When ideology wins over engineering and common sense, the bill always arrives – and it’s expensive.

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A Realistic Update on Our 2026 Dividend Goal

At the beginning of 2026, I confidently declared that this would be our best dividend year ever. Looking back, I probably jinxed the whole thing by being so certain about it.

After shifting part of the portfolio from pure dividend stocks to a combination of dividend and growth stocks (mainly AMZN and TSLA), the expected dividends for 2026 have now been revised down by 16% compared to the original forecast I made on January 1.

This means that all my charts will now show a clear deficit between the actual outcome and the forecast I set at the start of the year.

However, I’m still hopeful that the total value of the portfolio will increase over the full year. In the end, that’s really the only thing that matters.

Lesson learned: Maybe I shouldn’t announce “this will definitely be our best year ever” quite so loudly next time.

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Major portfolio shift

We have made major changes to our holdings.

We shifted from a 100% dividend-oriented strategy by selling some positions and concentrating more on growth stocks.Our portfolio now consists of 84% dividend stocks and 16% growth stocks — mainly Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) and Tesla, Inc. (TSLA).

One potential challenge with this shift will be knowing when to sell the growth stocks once they hit our targets. We have far more experience simply buying and holding dividend stocks as long as nothing major changes.Another challenge might be my own patience — which has never been one of my strongest traits.

I’ll need to give these growth stocks time to reach their full potential.

Exciting times ahead!

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Finally some free lunches

The last month of Q1 really delivers when it comes to extra dividends. I am grateful that the companies below are providing us with these extra payouts, especially as we have repositioned the portfolio — moving from purely dividend stocks to also including growth names such as Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN).

Capital Southwest Corporation Common Stock (CSWC), ¢6 with pay date March 31, 2026

Fidus Investment Corporation Common Stock (FDUS), ¢9 with pay day March 20, 2026

Main Street Capital Corporation Common Stock (MAIN), ¢30 with pay day March 27, 2026

Sixth Street Specialty Lending, Inc. Common Stock (TSLX), ¢1 with pay day March 20, 2026

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Trump: The Real-Life Kinder Egg – Volatility on the Outside, Patience Surprise Inside

President Trump clearly uses different tactics depending on the target—and I've felt it firsthand.

His tariff rollercoaster has driven me nuts. As a Swedish investor in the US market, every wild swing hits my portfolio hard, and when the dollar tanks, my USD gains turn into pocket change in SEK. Americans get to keep the full upside without that extra currency gut-punch—I get both market chaos AND a Krona shock. Thanks, Donald, for turning my retirement savings into a tragic comedy. Lots of people just shrug and call it “total lack of patience.”

I’ve tried to zoom out and assume there’s more beneath the surface.

Tariffs are a cheap, fast weapon: slap them on via executive order, get MAGA cheers, then walk them back or negotiate. Classic Art of the Deal move.

But yesterday (Feb 28), he suddenly showed massive patience with Operation Epic Fury: months of planning, huge regional buildup, intel work, and tight coordination with Israel (and probably Saudi Arabia). Surgical strikes that took out Khamenei + up to 40 top leaders, missile factories, nuclear sites, and IRGC bases—without kicking off a full ground war right away.

So anyone who still calls him a “real-estate playboy with the attention span of a gnat”… maybe time to rethink that one.

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AI Affects Most of the World's People – Whether They Realize It or Not

Roughly speaking, AI adoption varies sharply across generations (based on 2025–2026 data from sources like Deloitte, Pew Research, OECD, and Stanford AI Index).

Baby Boomers (1946–1964) use AI the least and often have the strongest opinions about it—despite limited personal experience. Only about 20% of Boomers have tried standalone generative AI tools, compared to much higher rates in younger groups (Deloitte 2025 survey).

Generation X (1965–1980) has started adopting AI, though many still rely primarily on traditional search like Google. Those who use it often treat it as a glorified search engine rather than a deep tool to simplify work and daily life—though adoption is rising fast (OECD ICT Usage Database 2025).

Millennials (Generation Y, 1981–1996) increasingly integrate AI into both private and professional lives, with consistent daily/weekly use for productivity, parenting, finance, and more (TheySaid 2026 analysis; Deloitte 2025).

Generation Z (1997–2012), or Zoomers, leads in daily AI use—for studies, entertainment, creativity, and practical benefits. Around 70–76% have used standalone generative AI tools like ChatGPT, the highest rate of any generation (Deloitte 2025; Master of Code 2026 stats).

Generation Alpha (roughly 2010–2024/2025) is growing up with AI as a completely natural part of life, much like cars were for Baby Boomers (whose parents, from the Silent Generation, 1928–1945, often had to save for years for their first one) (McCrindle Research; Britannica 2026 definition).

When people say they "don't understand what AI is for," they often miss how deeply it's already impacting their lives—even if they don't actively use tools like ChatGPT. Global generative AI adoption reached about 16.3% of the world's population by late 2025 (roughly 1 in 6 people), with over 1 billion monthly users of standalone platforms like ChatGPT (Microsoft AI Economy Institute 2025; DataReportal/Kepios 2025).

Here are just a few concrete examples of AI's real-world impact today:

Healthcare

• Diagnostics: AI analyzes medical images (X-rays, MRIs) for early detection of diseases like cancer.  
• Drug development: Accelerates discovery of new drugs and vaccines.  
• Robotic surgery: Delivers greater precision.

Finance & Banking

• Fraud prevention: Real-time transaction monitoring to spot anomalies.  
• Robo-advisors: Automated, personalized investment advice.  
• Credit risk assessment: AI models quickly evaluate risk.

Manufacturing & Industry

• Predictive maintenance: Forecasts machine failures to minimize downtime.  
• Quality control: Computer vision inspects products on assembly lines.  
• Supply chain optimization: Streamlines warehouses and logistics.

Cross-industry applications

• HR & recruitment: Screens candidates and predicts performance.  
• Administration: Automates repetitive tasks and data entry.

AI is already embedded in everyday life for most people—some just haven't realized the full extent yet. And with adoption surging (e.g., more than one-third of individuals in OECD countries used generative AI in 2025, with fastest growth among older adults from low bases), the gap between awareness and reality is closing fast (OECD 2026 announcement; Stanford AI Index 2025).

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I am officially old

This Monday I got my first-ever pension payment — and although it'll be another nine years until the next one, receiving it left me with very mixed feelings.

This was a one-time payout, so I decided to invest in a small number of shares in Amazon (AMZN), Pfizer (PFE), Realty Income (O), and UnitedHealth Group (UNH). We've chosen to deviate from our initial strategy of focusing solely on dividend stocks by adding a smaller allocation to growth stocks — hence the inclusion of Amazon (AMZN).

Of the five private pension insurance policies I have in total, I somehow selected age 55 as the starting payout age for this particular one, which was disbursed on my 56th birthday. In hindsight, I really wish I had set age 55 as the payout age for all five policies, because honestly, no one cares about my money more than I do.

For example, in two of the four remaining pension policies, my options are limited to funds only — and even then, just the ones the occupational pension company has approved and included on their platform, rather than any fund I might choose myself. The remaining two pensions were the most recent ones I acquired, and that's when I had the insight to opt for a type of pension account that actually allows me to invest the contributions directly in shares/stocks.

Today, only one of the five pension insurance policies is still receiving ongoing contributions. The other three are now on their own, growing through investment returns without any more additions from me.

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Anonymity becomes anarchy

Almost all customer service reps in government and private companies now use fake names. Governments and companies do this to shield employees from threats by dissatisfied customers upset with decisions or service. I empathize with the need for protection, but this approach only treats symptoms, not the root cause. Unfortunately, anonymity creates other serious problems.

In my view, these have been greatly exacerbated by the explosion of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. I know several studies claim remote work has neutral or even positive effects on productivity. But these must be weighed against potential biases.

For example, the 2026 Remote Work Well-Being Survey (published February 5, 2026, by CoworkingCafe) reports mostly positive effects: 62% of remote workers say they get more done at home, and over half report better focus. Yet CoworkingCafe benefits indirectly but substantially from continued remote/hybrid work growth—as a platform that lists and promotes coworking spaces as a "solution" for remote workers needing variety or collaboration.

Since the pandemic, remote work has surged dramatically. In my experience and opinion, this has caused a clear drop in service quality from both companies and public authorities. I'm convinced remote workers often underperform compared to on-site work.

Remote setups make employees "invisible": shortcomings—or outright failure to do the job—rarely carry consequences. No consequences → private companies risk long-term decline or bankruptcy as frustrated customers switch to competitors.

This market pressure doesn't exist for government agencies funded by taxpayers. I believe they should face some form of competition too—so they actually have to earn their funding.

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A month of Sundays

The world's most perfect husband has been receiving retirement money every month for the past 3.5 years from one of his private retirement plans. Although it's good that he has access to his own money, it felt a little terrible that he turned 55 and started receiving pension money.

At the beginning of the year, I received a letter from one of my pension administrators, which is completely normal since you always receive information about how the insurance developed during the previous year. What was abnormal was that they would pay out this insurance. Since I hadn't contacted them when I turned 55 last year, they were now going to sell the entire contents on my 56th birthday and wanted an account number for payment. I, who was convinced that I had chosen 65 as the first payment date for all my private retirement plans, was completely shocked.

When the worst of the shock had subsided and I was starting to look forward to investing this money that will arrive at the end of this week or the beginning of next, the world's most perfect teenager came with a request.

He will be taking his final exams for his IB Diploma Programme in April and May this year and was wondering if he could get a tutor. The exact same thing happened last fall when I received a small inheritance. Unaware that I had just received the money, he asked if he could get a tutor for his SATs. Since he did exceptionally well on the SAT exam, I cannot say no to this.

So once again a large portion of my money goes to the world's most expensive accessory...

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We just don't speak the same language

The world's most perfect husband and I have been together for almost 32 years. Over the past year, we have spent pretty much every hour of the day together, and before that we worked side by side for 10 years. Spending so much time together has made us truly understand, unlike when someone says it, that men and women have very different ways of expressing themselves.

Despite this realization, I can still, albeit very rarely, get incredibly irritated with him when he doesn't understand what I mean or am trying to say. Aside from his lack of ability to express himself as a woman 😉 (Dr. Phil said it best; your husband is a man, not your girlfriend) I love him more than anything and can't imagine a life without him.

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No free lunch during January

Assuming I haven't missed any announced special or supplemental dividend on any of our current holdings, we'll receive our first special dividend of the year next month.

It is Capital Southwest Corporation (CSWC) that pays a special dividend of ¢6 on March 31, 2026.

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Arrh

Although we will perform better this year compared to last year on a full-year basis, it annoys me immensely that not every month in the current year performs better compared to last year.

The reason for this is that we have sold some or parts of certain holdings, which has resulted in the month for the dividend being changed.

It's always a competition!

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Spot on

For the first time since I created my Google Sheet, I have changed the ratio between SEK and USD. Until December 31, 2025, I calculated that 1 USD was equivalent to 10 SEK. With the unexpected strengthening of the Swedish krona in 2025, I was forced to change the ratio to 1 USD = 9 SEK.

This change was entirely consistent with the January 2026 results as my expected dividends were almost exactly the same as our actual dividends.

It will be exciting to see how the Swedish krona maintains its current value against the rest of the world's currencies in 2026.

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Austrian School of Economics for the win

The Swedish Central Bank (Riksbanken) needs reform - I used to think the "interest rate weapon" was just outdated and clumsy. Then I discovered the Austrian School of Economics goes much further: central banks aren't merely flawed; they're unnecessary and actively harmful.

Listening to Klaus Bernpaintner explain Austrian economics - and why the dominant Keynesian view of central banks is flat-out wrong and makes people poorer - finally put words to what I've long felt but couldn't articulate. I've always bristled at talk of "the market" as some mystical, independent entity. Bernpaintner nailed it: quote "Marknaden finns inte. Det är bra eller dåliga affärer." (The market doesn't exist. There are only good deals or bad deals.) unquote.

Good deals create real value through voluntary exchange, honest pricing, and genuine entrepreneurship. Bad deals waste resources, often because prices are distorted by artificial credit, subsidies, regulations, or political favoritism. When politicians and central banks meddle - handing out grants, propping up failing ventures, or manipulating interest rates - they don't "help the economy." They force-feed bad deals, crowd out good ones, and set the stage for malinvestment and inevitable busts.

If we stopped the subsidies, bailouts, and monetary tinkering, truly viable businesses and innovations would thrive on their own merits. Anything that can't stand without crutches from the state probably shouldn't exist in the first place.

Turns out I'm more Austrian than I ever realized...

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