Happy New Year! Before we get too far into the new calendar year, I wanted to look and see where we finished 2023. The stock market had quite a bounce back in 2023. After a -20% loss in 2022, the market jumped +26% this year. That nets out to exactly flat (+0.0%) over the full two-year period. Quite a volatile ride. Over longer periods of … Continue reading 2023 Bounce Back Year
Happy Twixtmas! Twixtmas? Yes, the time “betwixt” Christmas/Hanukkah & New Years. Say it to yourself in a haughty English accent and it might sound authentic … Twixtmas). Twixtmas is the latest way to describe the extended holiday season, formerly known as “Christmas Break”. It’s the time when many people are off work, or work demands slow dramatically because so many others are out of the … Continue reading Happy / Merry Twixtmas!
I took this cool picture on a hike with my friend, Russ (also retired), last week in a nearby state park. We took a number of hikes over the last few weeks on day trips away from our metro area – grabbing lunch at little places we came across. Former colleagues, we both recalled how busy MegaCorp used to be in December. As the last … Continue reading Enjoying The Amazing View
The week between Christmas and New Year’s have always been one of my favorites. I used to always take the week off of work – and enjoyed time off of school before that. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever held any responsibilities between the start of Christmas Eve and the last play of the New Years Bowl Games. Three years ago, just before I … Continue reading Between Christmas & New Year’s Day …
I think today’s quote captures most people’s quest toward a life of financial independence and retiring early (FIRE) as well as anyone could. I jotted it down several years ago on a Post-it note and had it stuck to my calendar in my office at work. People solve for their success in life in different ways. For me, it was working for MegaCorp for 27 … Continue reading FIRE Station Fun – Live Free
It’s nice to start the new year in an organized way and my wife and I have long practiced a habit called “Round-Up Day” to get our financials in order. Jane Bryant Quinn wrote about this useful concept in her book Making The Most Of Your Money. Once a year, you spend a day rounding up all of your bank statements, investment accounts, and checkbook … Continue reading Organized for FIRE – Round-Up Day
It’s been fun to have our family & friends out of school and work over the last week, but of course many will be back at the grind next Monday. Not us – since early retiring last April, we’ve been on one long extended weekend. It truly has been a complete lifestyle change! While it’s been well noted that 2016 has been an unusual … Continue reading FIRE Station Fun – New Year!
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