T-minus 40ish years until I'm a millionaire.

Last night I had a conversation with a friend about financial matters. He explained things about mutual funds, options, puts and calls, etc. I just opened a Roth IRA (like a proper adult!), and I sought his knowledge because he's been trading for some time now. The conversation was quite informational, but also overwhelming. We barely scratched the surface of it all, and the vocab list rivaled that of the Episcopal Church's.

[Sidenote: I'm gaining in my Episcosavvyness. I know where the sacristy is.]

By the end I concluded that the stock market sounds like an ultra-calculated casino. I may come from a gambling family, but my retirement fund is too fresh and small to toss around at the moment.

All trading aside, a Roth IRA has been something I've been thinking/researching about for months. According to this guy on Quora, it's the best way to get rich:

I'm not super interested in actually becoming a millionaire, but if it's that easy to have some late-in-life assurance for myself and my family, why the heck not?

There isn't an age limit on opening this account, so you should basically do it as soon as you have income, even if it isn't much. Compound interest is where it's at. 

Who knows, maybe I'll get brave and start trading in a few years. For now, mahjong gambling at home on Christmas sounds much more appealing.