The Dresden Files > DF Spoilers
Wizard finances
Mira:
--- Quote from: g33k on December 12, 2022, 06:32:09 AM ---Yeah, but struggling to make ends meet -- make rent, eat his BK, drink his coke, and a regular visit to Mac's -- was a recurrent theme for the first books.
--- End quote ---
I doubt that Harry will ever be a champagne and caviar type of guy, at some point if he survives I wouldn't be shocked if he retired to his grandfather's farm. I bet Eb is comfortable financially, yet
unless he is decked out in formal wizard robes we see him in overalls and driving an old pick up. Harry is a lot like his grandfather..
g33k:
--- Quote from: Mira on December 12, 2022, 12:30:01 PM --- ... I bet Eb is comfortable financially, yet unless he is decked out in formal wizard robes we see him in overalls and driving an old pick up ...
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Note that ALL wizards have to drive very-old vehicles (if they want a reliable vehicle)! But unless Eb wants to attract "fancy antique car-owner" attention -- there in Hog Hollow, Missouri -- he needs to drive something pretty low-profile. An old pick up fits right in!
I'd put long odds on Eb having a "Mike"-style mechanic in or near Hog Hollow (unless he's taken the time to learn to be his own mechanic (which seems entirely possible, to me)).
I'm guessing Ebenezer has a few meaningful-to-him luxuries, but mostly doesn't bother with "fripperies." I also presume he has some pretty-substantive resources in various obscure locations: properties he owns, hidden bank accounts, treasures hidden in hard-for-muggles-to-reach locations, etc.
Ed0517:
--- Quote from: g33k on December 12, 2022, 06:59:00 AM ---Magically-insightful financial info would seem to be among the most-lucrative options.
Knowing how & where to invest -- and not to invest -- looks like a winning strategy.
--- End quote ---
Where, though, do his insights come from? Sight into the future is not very reliable... it sounds like it can come and go. And time travel is a no.
--- Quote ---Harry seems to have a talent for "finding" -- I bet he could "find" all sorts of unclaimed valuables, in the right places. He could be a gold-miner, a treasure-hunter, etc.
--- End quote ---
I think when he finds stuff he has to have a link to it - like from a previous owner. He doesn't find all lost pearl necklaces, he finds Mrs. Smith's. So Spanish gold from a wrecked galleon is a no-go. Or a less ethical Harry could decide to find 90% of what he can to turn into the client, and 10% he finds and keeps for him.
--- Quote ---If willing to break mortal law, wizards could smuggle amazingly well... veils (or simple illusions) to hide valuables, Ways through the nevernever to bypass customs entirely, etc.
--- End quote ---
THIS, he could do. Human trafficking. Escorting drug mules. Or even carrying it himself.
--- Quote ---Vigilante wizards could magically-spy on drug-lords, sleep them, and swipe a bunch of their cash.
But also, it's clear different wizards have different proclivities & talents. Some will likely be more-inclined to some pursuits than others. I presume not every wizard has a relatively-easily-monetizable talent... but that most do (if they aren't burdened by the kinds of ethical qualms Harry seems to be).
--- End quote ---
and, of course, he was offered a contract from Marcone. Heck, he might not have had to actually DO anything. Might have been paid for non-interference. Or a rare consult - like when someone uses magic against Marcone, Harry comes in and says "Ah, the old exploding heart spell. Third time this week."
Ed0517:
--- Quote from: g33k on December 12, 2022, 04:50:44 PM ---Note that ALL wizards have to drive very-old vehicles (if they want a reliable vehicle)! But unless Eb wants to attract "fancy antique car-owner" attention -- there in Hog Hollow, Missouri -- he needs to drive something pretty low-profile. An old pick up fits right in!
I'd put long odds on Eb having a "Mike"-style mechanic in or near Hog Hollow (unless he's taken the time to learn to be his own mechanic (which seems entirely possible, to me)).
I'm guessing Ebenezer has a few meaningful-to-him luxuries, but mostly doesn't bother with "fripperies." I also presume he has some pretty-substantive resources in various obscure locations: properties he owns, hidden bank accounts, treasures hidden in hard-for-muggles-to-reach locations, etc.
--- End quote ---
Actually, don't we hear how waxed and maintained Eb's pickup is? a 1930's pickup with a fresh coat of wax draws plenty of attention... what I am wondering if no one ever notices that old man McCoy has been living there for forever - old men knowing you stayed away from his farm when they were kids... 80 years ago? and he was old THEN? At least Hearne had crooked lawyers providing Atticus with new identities every so often
Mira:
--- Quote from: Ed0517 on December 15, 2022, 12:03:39 AM ---Actually, don't we hear how waxed and maintained Eb's pickup is? a 1930's pickup with a fresh coat of wax draws plenty of attention... what I am wondering if no one ever notices that old man McCoy has been living there for forever - old men knowing you stayed away from his farm when they were kids... 80 years ago? and he was old THEN? At least Hearne had crooked lawyers providing Atticus with new identities every so often
--- End quote ---
Not only that, but a 1930s pickup in good condition is considered an antique and quite valuable. Your point about no one noticing that the same old man has lived on this farm for the past 200 years is a good one, but can be gotten around. We don't know how isolated the place is, so if no goes around there, they may not know. Eb is quite capable of putting up the type of wards that unless he wants someone to come onto the place, no one could or would. Also there are a lot of abandoned places in real America, one drives by them on country roads all of the time. So if Eb created an illusion of this,no one would bother to check if anyone lived there or care.
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