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Hey, welcome. Glad you found this place.

Normaltown USA is a plain-English guide to money and health for regular people. No jargon, no scare tactics, no ten-dollar words where a one-dollar word will do. Just how this stuff actually works, the way I'd explain it to a friend across the kitchen table.

Who this is for

You work hard. You pay your bills. You pay for health insurance every single month. And money and healthcare still feel rigged against you, like everybody got a handbook except you.

You don't need a finance degree, and you don't need more guilt. You just want someone to explain the game in normal words so you can play it a little better. That's the whole job here.

Who I am

I'm David. I spent 25 years in web design and marketing, and 25 years making music and touring. My wife and I have two little girls, and somewhere along the way I got tired of being confused by my own money and my own medical bills. So I did the homework, and I write down what I find. More on the About page.

I'm not a financial advisor. I'm a guy who takes good notes. You make your own calls.

What I write about

Three things, all in plain English. Here's where to start on each one.

Money for normal people. Why you feel broke on a decent income, where it leaks out, and small moves that actually help.

• Why You Feel Broke on a Good Income
• The First $1,000: Your Family's Shock Absorber
• The 5 Money Leaks Busy Families Miss
• The Real Cost of Carrying a Credit Card Balance

Health, and the bills. Why the system works the way it does, and how to stop overpaying for it.

• Nobody Gets Paid to Make You Well
• Why You Got a Big Bill With Insurance
• The Cash Price Secret Hospitals Don't Advertise
• What Is Health Sharing? An Honest Plain-English Guide

Saving in something that lasts. A calm look at why the dollar loses value and where bitcoin fits, as savings, not gambling.

• The Dollar's Slow Leak, Explained Simple
• Saving vs. Gambling: Where Bitcoin Actually Fits
• Your First $20 in Bitcoin, Step by Step

If you only read three

1. Nobody Gets Paid to Make You Well. The one idea that explains most of your surprise medical bills.
2. Why You Feel Broke on a Good Income. Why earning more doesn't always feel like more.
3. Saving vs. Gambling: Where Bitcoin Actually Fits. A calm take on the loudest topic in money.

Where my family actually landed

I'll be straight with you about this up front, because it comes up a lot. My family of four left regular health insurance for a health sharing service called CrowdHealth. I write about it because we use it, and I'll always tell you the honest limits: it's not insurance, there's no legal guarantee a bill gets paid, and it's the wrong fit for some people. Read who it's wrong for before you read anything else about it.

If you join through my link with code NORMAL, you get your first 3 months at $99 a month and I earn a referral bonus if you stick around. It costs you nothing extra. I'll say so every time a link pays me.

My promise to you

I tell you the downside too. If something has a catch, I say so in the same breath. No bait-and-switch, ever. I'd rather lose the sale than lose your trust.

Stick around

I post something new most days, short enough to read with your coffee. Bookmark the home page, grab the RSS feed, or check the FAQ for quick answers to the questions I get most.

Glad you're here.

David