This weekend, the final four NFL teams will face off to see who will meet in Super Bowl LII. Despite the decline in TV ratings – which experts attribute more to key markets shifting with team fortunes than perceived lack of patriotism – the Super Bowl remains the most visible & celebrated sporting event of the year. We live in Minnesota’s Twin Cities of Minneapolis … Continue reading Would You Vacation At The Super Bowl?
If you are looking for one reason to NOT retire early, I would suggest you study the cost of individual health insurance. I knew this would take a jump when I left MegaCorp a few years ago, but given the politics messing up this market, I continue to be astounded at how it has gone. You can see from the chart below that our health … Continue reading Health Insurance – Biggest Concern for Early Retirees
We’re back to “No Responsibility January” at the Fire Station. Last year I noted that January has become a pretty chill month for us with me not working, my son off from college, and my wife no longer working her part-part time job. While it seems like the rest of the world is back to school or work – we’re just goofing off. With time … Continue reading “No Responsibility January” & Travel Planning for 2018
Is it time to rebalance your early retirement portfolio? With the Dow Jones breaking 25,000 this week (I remember when it broke 1,000!) – and after posting 37% growth since the 2016 Presidential Election – maybe it is time to look at your balance of stocks, bonds, and cash and ensure that you have not become overweighted in equities? The year 2017 was a great … Continue reading Dow at 25,000 – Time For A New Year’s Rebalancing?
“Staying busy in early retirement?” people ask me all the time. Yes, I guess I can say that I’ve found literally MILLIONS of things to do, since I chalked up a healthy 4,548,220 steps in 2017. How do I know? Well, about 6 months before I quit working in 2016, I started tracking my daily activity. I’ve kept track of it every day since – … Continue reading 4,548,220 Steps to 2018
At the end of the year, the media is full of retrospectives on the top news events and celebrity stories, so with that in mind, I set my thoughts to what are the biggest news happenings that have affected people on their journey to financial independence and retiring early (FIRE) in 2017. Here’s my list (in no particular order) … TRUMP BUMP – The stock … Continue reading Top 7 FIRE News Stories of 2017
I worked in brand marketing during my career and have an affinity for old print advertising. On my personal Facebook feed, I spent the last 25 days countdowning to Christmas with vintage ad each day of the month. The illustrations and products really give a fun glimpsed into Christmas Past. Collecting and posting these ads might seem like kind of a funny thing to spend … Continue reading 25 Days of Christmas – Vintage Ad Countdown
It’s been fun to spend a few days Christmas shopping over the last couple weeks. I started a week ago on Monday and went on a full blitz yesterday – stopping at 19 different stores before I was done. Today I’ve been wrapping and watching a couple cheesy Hallmark Christmas movies (check out this funny Hallmark Christmas movie drinking game). When we exchange gifts with … Continue reading Thrifty Thursday – Christmas Gift Challenge
Last year I suggested a few books that I thought people might find to be great last minute gift ideas. Maybe personal finance books aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, so I thought I would add another suggestion to the list that is a lot more fun: Ernie Zelinski’s How To Retire Wild, Happy, & Free. Before I get to this newest recommendation – here are … Continue reading Holiday Gift Book Recommendation: How To Retire Wild, Happy, & Free
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