As the Greeks went to the polls this weekend, I was focused on something much more important, Father’s Day.In light of the gloom and doom in the global markets lately, I have decided to write something on the lighter side this week paying homage to my father and some of the financial advice he has given me along the way, various pearls of wisdom that somehow became common sayings around the Kowalski household.My dad was not shy in expressing his feelings about things. Especially money.We tended not to agree on much in this regard but here are a few memorable quotes from Pops:“Budgeting is not eating less so you can buy more beer.”“The girls do like you to be tender. But what they really like is ‘legal tender’”.“Your portfolio is like a garden. You have to water it and prune it.“If you leave it untended it will wither and die. If you don’t pull out the weeds all the bad investments will choke off the good ones.”“Of course the realtor said that house was a great deal. Would you ask a barber if you needed a haircut?”“If you can’t explain it to me in five sentences or less I ain’t buying’ it.”“Why would you invest in a company that’s turning around? Does expired milk suddenly come good?”“Diversifying excessively is for idiots. If you aren’t sure about what you’re doing you do a million things.”“Money can’t buy everything but no money buys nothing.”“Wanna know why I carry pictures of you in my wallet? It’s cause I ain’t got any money to put in it. These pictures remind me where it all went!”“Best way to double your money is to fold it in two and stick it back in your pocket.”“The saying ‘it’s not how much you make that matters but what you keep’, is total crap. I bet I could save a lot more than you if I made $1 million and you only made $10,000.”“Nope the stock market is not fair. The fair is where nice hogs get blue ribbons.”“So what if you’re out of money. Bad planning on your part does not mean an emergency for me.”“Investing is not risky. It’s just that investors are dumb. Being dumb is very risky.”“Take control of your finances. Would you drive a car without your hands on the wheel?”“100 percent is more than 50 percent. Stay married.”“Kids are expensive. People say they bring ya joy. They actually bring ya bills and no hope to retire.”“Wanna become a millionaire? Take a billion dollars and invest it in an airline.”“The stock market and Vegas are the same. The only difference is in Vegas at least I get free drinks while I’m losing my money.”“Save as much as you can but don’t be too cheap. Tightwads are boring.”“Emerging markets will always be just that — emerging.”“They say gentleman prefer bonds. I say real men prefer babes.”“Options? Why the hell would I buy something that expires? I already own a burial plot for myself.”Happy Father’s Day Pops.