One year left of this cubicle life. This is the time when all of those crazy questions start to pop up. "What the hell am I doing?" or, "This is crazy. I can't afford to lose my paycheck!" or, "I'll be bored out of my skull! Gotta stay sharp. Gotta stay working!" If I'm going to retire early at this time next year, I have some homework to do before I drum up the courage to quit my job. Anecdotal … [Read more...] about Do You Have the Courage to Quit Your Job?
Pay Off Your Mortgage in Five Years? For Reals???
We've been pretty aggressive with our mortgage pay down since we started making extra payments around this time last year. The goal was to have it paid off fully by January of 2019. Things have come up that'll have us reaching our target (hopefully) by January of 2020. In that post linked above, I shared the reasons why we're hell-bent on paying our mortgage off early. Mainly, not having a … [Read more...] about Pay Off Your Mortgage in Five Years? For Reals???
Airbnb Nightmares
A little over half way into the 2018 Airbnb experiment, a few things are becoming clear: 1.) Guests, by and large, are pretty damn decent people. 2.) Regardless of item 1., the folks who live at the condo units full-time simply don't like the steady stream of new people coming and going. What's an Airbnb host to do? I got wind of this after the recent board meeting of our condo association. I'm … [Read more...] about Airbnb Nightmares
Laser Eye Surgery – My Story
Zap! Perfect vision. That's what I'd thought would happen. Instead, I'm biding my time for 11 weeks since my laser eye surgery. I had PRK done on me. I can see and all, but it's not perfect. My left eye is doing alright at about 20/20 and I'm pretty happy about that. My right eye, however, is being a real bitch, and taking its sweet time to heal. The first 24-48 hours after my PRK procedure … [Read more...] about Laser Eye Surgery – My Story
Life is NOT a Clickable Link
I've got a special surprise for you today, readers. The following post comes to us from the Mastermind himself, Erik, of The Mastermind Within. Erik is practically a neighbor of mine (you know, the epicenter of FIRE bloggers, thanks to the highly motivational winters?) At any rate, I'm excited to pass the mic to a highly talented writer, and student of all things financial. Take it away, … [Read more...] about Life is NOT a Clickable Link
Everything You Need to Know About Pull-ups (Not the Diaper Variety)
Have you had enough of personal finance bloggers coming at you with their physical fitness makeovers? No? Well fine then. Cuz I'm about to fire up a few paragraphs about pull-ups. The end-all and be-all of strength exercises. And as a bonus, yours truly is going to be pulling another stunt (i.e., experiment) over the next several months. Let's get ready to pull our weight, … [Read more...] about Everything You Need to Know About Pull-ups (Not the Diaper Variety)
Should You Teach Your Children How to be Millionaires?
An article on Yahoo! Finance caught my eye this past week: 4 millionaire money habits to teach your kids, by Jeanie Ahn. I thought the advice was pretty good. Boiled down, you simply coach your kids to save, understand compounding, avoid frivolous spending, and be charitable. We can get behind that, right? Take these four pillars of smart personal finance and find ways to impress upon those … [Read more...] about Should You Teach Your Children How to be Millionaires?
Paying off Debt Is Not Rocket Science
Look at the latest articles on the wire about personal finance these days, and you'd think we've stumbled across the greatest discovery since Einstein declared that e=MC2. How I paid off $XX,XXX in debt is now a headline worthy read? I suppose if you wanted to, you could create a whirlwind of virality with a post on how to tie your shoes with your eyes closed. I guess we'll never know until we … [Read more...] about Paying off Debt Is Not Rocket Science
City vs. Suburbs: Why the City Always Wins
Thanks to being an urban planning major in college, I have a pretty good pulse on how cities develop, change, decline, and gentrify over time. Fair to say that some cities are better than others when it comes to emergency response times, access to clean, potable water, and parks. If I had a choice over where to retire, I would probably look for a mountain retreat, far away from the city AND the … [Read more...] about City vs. Suburbs: Why the City Always Wins
Happiness? Better to Pursue Purpose and Struggle Instead
Happiness? What is this elusive feeling we chase like a cat after a laser pointer. We're nuts about the topic. In a society that has all the material wealth it could possibly need, we come up short. We're bombarded with countless books on the subject. The Dali Lama has seemingly cornered the market. If you haven't read a book on how to be happier in the last few years, something's wrong with … [Read more...] about Happiness? Better to Pursue Purpose and Struggle Instead