One of the most fun parts of FIRE Life is meeting with fun people who pass through town. A couple of years ago, I met Tina. We talked about FIRE, bikes, and ate subs late at night. (I highly recommend the Grape Ape from Cheba Hut). I was supposed to see Tina again last summer […]
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Introducing The FIRE Olympics
I have something amazing to tell you about today. After more than two years of planning, I’m thrilled to be the first to let you know about an incredible event that will take place this summer: Longmont Colorado, arguably the epicenter of the FIRE movement, will host the first-ever, FIRE Olympics! Contestants will participate in […]
February 2021: Rays Of Light, Even If We’re Down $84,411
My main goal* was to build an investment and cash portfolio of $1,120,000* ($1,000,000 to retire on and $120,000 to pay off the house) in 1500 days**, starting from 1/1/2013 and ending in February of 2017. I made my goal in 2016, my 1500 Days are over, and I’ve left my job. In the interest of openness, I’ll continue to share […]
10 Questions With Escaping Silicon Valley
After an unplanned hiatus (#COVIDLife), 10 Questions is back! If you’d like to be featured, just follow the rules here. Please note that I have a bit of a backlog to work through, so it will be a couple of months before new submissions get published. Today’s feature is Escaping Silicon Valley (ESV). ESV is […]
Meet Me At EconoMe!
Want to know one of the best life tips for living a rewarding life? Here it is: Commit to projects that scare the shit out of you and make you deeply uncomfortable. Why? Growth doesn’t happen when you stay safe in your comfort zone. Think about it. Extraordinary accomplishments require extraordinary effort and discomfort: Want […]
The $50,000,000 Question
Woo, life has been busy! Mindy and I are going to take a break from home construction after the girls get out of school for spring break. We have one week to go! In the meantime, we’re tying up loose ends. One of the final projects is tiling our entryway. I like to make things […]
Home Sale: Mortgage Post-Mortem
Mindy and I just sold our old home. It had been a rental, but the numbers didn’t work well. We earned less than $3,000/month on a $600,000 home. We weren’t close to the 1% Rule. Hell, we weren’t even at the .5% rule. If we had pursued our original plan to put the home on […]
January 2021: Up $236,821
My main goal* was to build an investment and cash portfolio of $1,120,000* ($1,000,000 to retire on and $120,000 to pay off the house) in 1500 days**, starting from 1/1/2013 and ending in February of 2017. I made my goal in 2016, my 1500 Days are over, and I’ve left my job. In the interest of openness, I’ll continue to share […]
April 2022 Won’t Happen
Our lives have been pretty crazy lately. With the explosive housing market and the tenants moving out of our rental, Mindy and I thought it was a good idea to put the home on the market. We did that in January and had multiple offers within 48 hours. At the end of this week, we […]
The Ultimate Frugal Valentine’s Day Guide
The most romantic day of the year is upon us! Valentine’s Day! What’s more romantic than waiting 90 minutes for breadsticks at your local Olive Garden while risking exposure to a communicable disease? Pretty much everything! But I digress. V-Day isn’t easy. Expectations, hormones, and date budgets go into overdrive. But, don’t worry, I’m here […]
The Difficult Path To Wealth
A man who carries a cat by the tail learns a lesson he can learn in no other way. -Mark Twain Whenever the stock market takes a big dump, I feel a little giddy. Mindy and I are still in the saving part of our lives (she works, I don’t [Wife-FI? Spouse-FI??]), so corrections are […]
Tesla Test Drive: Butt Y?
If you’ve read this blog recently, you’ve noticed that I blabber on about Tesla a lot. I bought the stock back in 2012 and it has since gone to the moon. Yay! I didn’t buy the stock for any good reason. I just thought Elon Musk and electric cars were cool. Who needs an MBA […]
Stock Picking Experiment: Year 3 Update
In December of 2017, Dividend Growth Investor (DGI) asked me if I’d like to duplicate the famous Warren Buffett bet. For those unfamiliar, in 2008 Buffett famously challenged the hedge fund industry: Can you beat the S&P 500 over a 10 year period? Only one hedge fund accepted the bet and didn’t do well. Buffett, […]
2020 Review: Tesla Takes Off, Big Tech Dominates, And Friends
Yay, 2020 is over! We could all use a break from the drama. And the virus. But here in Colorado, life is still pretty good and I have much to look forward to in the new year. But, I’ll save that for another time. First, we must discuss 2020. Money This is supposed to be […]
December Performance Update, Day 2921: Up $156,573
My main goal* was to build an investment and cash portfolio of $1,120,000* ($1,000,000 to retire on and $120,000 to pay off the house) in 1500 days**, starting from 1/1/2013 and ending in February of 2017. I made my goal in 2016, my 1500 Days are over, and I’ve left my job. In the interest of openness, I’ll continue to share […]
November Performance Update, Day 2890: Up $284,823 (Short-Term Silliness)
My main goal* was to build an investment and cash portfolio of $1,120,000* ($1,000,000 to retire on and $120,000 to pay off the house) in 1500 days**, starting from 1/1/2013 and ending in February of 2017. I made my goal in 2016, my 1500 Days are over, and I’ve left my job. In the interest of openness, I’ll continue to share […]