Two pedantic life lessons

My dad drummed the following items into my head over the years, and I realized that not everyone has the pedantic dad or avuncular aunt :) to provide these bits of advice that have served me well.

1) Never, ever buy a timeshare. They are ripoffs. The bottom line is that if they are charging, say, a 10,000 for a guaranteed week for life (plus about a $1,000 a year to maintain the property), they are actually charging the 52 people who buy in a total of 520,000 PLUS $1,000 a year (equivalent to about a second 20k because if you put the 20k in a bank and earned 5% you'd get 1k a year).

2) Never, ever buy whole life insurance. Term life is the way to go. For more info, see:

http://www.fool.com/foolu/askfoolu/2002/askfoolu020725.htm

Seriously, it is also a ripoff, and don't let any insurance salesperson talk you into it.

If you follow these rules, you'll thank me later freshmen!