A Simple Lesson on the Value of Money, Compliments of T. Edward Nickens

I'm one of the few who can say they knew famed outdoorsman and acclaimed writer Eddie Nickens before he became T. Edward Nickens. You are probably familiar with his work from his columns in Our State magazine. I met Eddie (he'll always be Eddie to me) during our time at UNC. Most of our time together was spent drinking cheap beer at He's Not Here or during my many stops at Sutton's Drugstore (where he worked) for their signature Orangeade. As fate would have it, our paths crossed again about 10 years after leaving UNC, at of all places, a 4th of July celebration at the NC State University Club where Eddie displayed a preternatural talent for winning greased watermelon contests. We attend the same church and our kids attended the same school. When we see each other outside of church it is often with a beer in one hand and our lovely wives by our side. I can always count on Eddie greeting me with "what's goin' on Mr. High Finance."

As it turns out, Eddie's been lying low on the whole personal finance thing, kind of like a covey of quail. His COLUMN IN THE CURRENT ISSUE OF OUR STATE proves I wasn't the only hardscrabble college kid learning lessons about personal finance during his days at UNC. Well done, Eddie, well done.