First, two stories.
Ferrari Fallacy
You may have seen me on Good Morning America (GMA) recently. I was with the family in California when a producer from the show called and asked if they could interview me. I said, “Sure!”
GMA sent a camera crew to Hermosa Beach. We were staying at a pretty nice place that we weren’t paying for. Yay, points! In the hotel parking lot was a red Ferrari.
The interview started at the hotel, but midway through, we moved to the beach. On the way, we passed the Ferrari. I glanced at it and said, “That looks like fun!” The cameraman replied, “Oh, we thought that was yours. It’s not?” To which I replied, “You’re here talking to me today because I don’t drive anything like that.*”
*Our Honda Element turned 20 this month!
First Class Family
I was visiting relatives this past weekend when I overheard someone talking about me. This family member must have have heard my story because she said this: “Carl must fly first-class now.” I smiled as I heard someone else explain that first-class wasn’t my style. I’ve never flown anything better than economy.
Lifestyles Of The Rich And Famous
When I was a kid, there was a TV show called Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. The host (with a fancy British accent) showed the audience how the wealthy lived: large estates, exotic cars, butlers, boats, horses, helicopters, caviar, on and on.
The people featured on Lifestyles were living ostentatiously. It wasn’t an accurate representation of what most wealth looks like. Most of the wealthy are stealthy.
I also wonder how happy the people on the show were with their lives. Were they buying all of that stuff because it made them happy? Or, were they putting on a display for others (like being featured on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous!)?
Lifestyles Of The Happy And Content
What if instead of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, there was a show called Lifestyles of the Happy and Content? How different would the lives look on that show? I can picture it and it would feature scenes like this:
- Joyous times with friends and family
- Comfortable, but modest houses and cars
- Biking and walking
- Gardening
- Hanging out at the library
- Making stuff in the garage
- Simplicity
It would be the most boring show ever. Also, there would be no advertisers because there would be nothing to sell the 4 people who watched it. Clearly, this show would never get made.
Visions of Wealth
Who am I to judge? If a Ferrari makes you happy, go for it! (I was once a watered down version of this.) If having a wide seat in the front of a plane is what you live for, blow the money on it.
However, I don’t think that most really know what makes them happy. Friends, commercials, billboards, neighbors, co-workers, and social media all have ideas for you, but most of them are trying to sell you something or get you to live like them. Happiness is deeply personal and you have to figure it out for yourself. It’s not easy.
The older I get, the more I like to keep life simple. More stuff means more things to think about. More things to think about means less free time and more mental overhead.
Mostly, I just want to be.
More 1500 Days!!!
You can also find me (and the dinosaurs) at:
Mile High FI podcast:
Also here:
- Facebook: Facebook group and page
- YouTube: My channel is mostly devoted to home improvement, but I have some other material coming up soon too.
- Instagram: Pretty pictures of dinosaurs, sunsets, and nail guns!
- Twitter: Spontaneous, often insane, ramblings
- Coworking space: On the surface, MMM HQ is a coworking space. Look a little deeper and you’ll see that we’re really building community. The members of MMM HQ are some of the finest people I know.
“You’re here talking to me today because I don’t drive anything like that.” Fantastic line!
Thanks!
Biking, walking, trips to the library, time with family and friends, all music to my ears! Though a backyard oasis would be a splurge in these hot CA summers.
Carl,
Thanks as always for posting your thoughts in your blog.
This really resonated with me:
> The older I get, the more I like to keep life simple. More stuff means more things to think about. More things to think about means less free time and more mental overhead.
I am with you 150% on this. I moved last year and while I took the opportunity to ditch a bunch of junk in the process (NGL, it did hurt to get rid of some of the old computer parts I had been toting around since I was a kid, like the 80287 math co-processor and the AMD K6 CPU I had in a box, along with some old 5 1/4″ floppy drives and a 40 MB HDD from my first PC, but those things just sat in boxes and took up space and mental bandwidth). I unloaded several hundred pounds of junk, yet after I moved I still felt like I had too much junk. And that’s just on the “stuff” front. I am definitely in the mode of preferring simplicity in many areas (automobiles, the next one will probably be an EV, finances, etc).
Nice work!
I’m taking a break from decluttering to write this comment. It’s amazing the amount of stuff humans can accumulate. It will probably take us a couple of months to get through it all. Oof.
And yeah, a simple life is a happy life.
Hey Carl,
I could see you in a red Ferrari ????. It will suit you.
I watched GMA interview. It was great. The anchor made a mistake at the end saying you retired at 47. That provoked a thought inside me. Are they really listening and paying attention? It’s a very serious topic and definitely not entertainment.
I know you have lot of upcoming travel. I want to take you to India in future and be your local guide. You and Mindy would enjoy a lot.
Oooh, I’d go to India, but a Ferrari probably isn’t in the cards!
I agree with everything you said except the part about only 4 people would watch Lifestlyles of the Happy and Content. Do a search on YouTube for. Northern Italy homesteader and you’ll see showcasing a simple life is fascinating to millions of people. I think they are hungry for a different version of what life can be.
Hmmmm, interesting. Perhaps this is a reaction to consumerism gone off the rails? I like it.
I happened to attend a wedding full of high-rollers in 2015; the groom was a childhood friend of my wife. He struck it big doing dot-com stuff and successfully transitioned that into a good deal more entrepreneurship. But he never forgot his roots, and his eight-figure-net-worth peers at this shindig seemed to really enjoy giving him crap about driving a Prius and seeking out cheap haircuts and flying coach.
That’s exactly the vibe I got here. His life is still exactly what he wants it and he doesn’t give a damn about the frilly bits that everyone else seems to focus on. Pretty rad, really.
That guy is awesome.
The cow is awesome!)