I met up with an old friend this week on a visit to my hometown of Racine WI. He had retired four years ago and said he “wasn’t happy without something to do” and went back to work at his old job half-time. I wondered how common that feeling was among early retirees and found an online thread where people addressed the question, “Are you … Continue reading Are You Happier In Retirement?
Today is ‘National Relaxation Day’. It’s recorded in Chase’s Calendar of Annual Events, after being proposed by Chase’s 9-year old grandson, Sean Moeller, in 1985. I celebrated the day by mowing the lawn. For me, that’s pretty relaxing. After all, I’ve had a busy week. On Monday we played pickle ball. Tuesday was a 37-mile bike ride – my longest ever. Wednesday I played tennis … Continue reading Relaxation Day
It was only a couple days after the horrific assassination attempt on former President Trump, when the texts started coming. No tragedy, however dreadful, is missed by the political campaigns in their quest to raise money. It’s not the first text like this that I’ve gotten this year. I didn’t sign up for anything from Trump or Biden. I certainly wasn’t looking for Trump’s “love”. … Continue reading Political Campaign Exemption
I often read articles & posts where young people are bemoaning their financial lot in life. They complain about student debt. The gripe about limited opportunities. The grouse about job prospects. I’ve always believed they were being prematurely pessimistic. Yes, the economy is a bit ‘wobbly’ these days – but there is no crisis. Sometimes it seems everyone wants to play the victim these days. … Continue reading Every Generation Better …
This past Saturday marked an amazing 8 years since I told my boss I was quitting for a life of early retirement. As my wife often says, “the days & weeks are sometimes slow, but the months and years fly by.” Related: FIRE Milestones – Formal Resignation Notice This weekend, as I contemplated where those 8 years went, I thought about the many blessings that … Continue reading Eight Years Doubled
We’ve left the below-zero cold of Minnesota for our annual Winter Summerland escape… Florida. We flew down a couple weeks ago and are renting a Beach Jeep & Bungalow in Delray / Palm Beach County. On the flight down, I noticed this Fortune article with some good news. It suggests Gen Z is fundamentally changing tipping practices. How? They aren’t doing it! Even at sit-down … Continue reading Tipping Trends & Palm Beach
How do you say “I’m retired” without saying it? Simply be patient when you are faced with a delay. Early retirement changes our relationship with time and people seem to notice right away. I made a couple stops the other day that proved this out. I was at the dental office and the hygienist said the dentist was going to be delayed a little bit. … Continue reading No Worries. No Hurry.
We got to Europe last week and on the first day had a great lunch with another American couple we were paired up with at a garden table. Alex was an accountant from Albuquerque who was often in Europe, with an American client in Germany. Before the bill came, I asked him to remind me what the tipping custom was. He said to simply round … Continue reading The American Tipping Contagion
Numbers, numbers, numbers. Even though my career was in brand, new product, and corporate strategy, I was always very good with numbers. Sometimes people would think I had a finance background. I could tear apart an income statement, market research survey, pricing/margin structure, marketing budget, or ROI better than most. I remember that I could very quickly – almost instantly – add, subtract, multiply, divide, … Continue reading Mathematical Acuity Lost
You’ve probably already read that Jimmy Buffett passed away this weekend at the age of 76. A lot has been written about Buffett, but I thought I would add a few words on his music and philosophy on life and how it relates positively to our early retirement lifestyle. I’ve mentioned Buffett quite a few times in my posts and feel like I’ve learned a … Continue reading Jimmy Buffett Lifestyle Legacy
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