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Roadtrip: Part 1

May 29, 2017 by Mr. 1500 Days 31 Comments

Ask the Readers takes a break for a couple of weeks while I’m on my trip. Instead, I’ll regale you with tales from the road.

I loaded the girls into the car bright and early on Thursday morning. We spent an evening in Ankeny Iowa before moving on to the Twin Cities.

 

Adventures in the Land of Uff Da 

I’m looking Iowa, and feeling Minnesota*:

Question that people frequently ask me: Are you a farmer?
Me: No, but I play one on TV.

I don’t stay at the Bedbug Inn. However, I really hate staying at luxury hotels where there is a charge for everything. A hotel must have free Wifi and breakfast:

Yes.

 

Pancake Miracles

And what wonderful times we live in: I had never seen this device before, but the Pancake Machine was a little miracle:

My enthusiasm for this device knows no bounds.

Press Here and 1 minute later, juicy pancakes shoot out of the machine.

I always loved the waffle makers at the breakfast bars, but the Pancake Machine raises the bar. Waffle makers can devolve into chaos if a hotel guest doesn’t spray the anti-stick stuff on the machine. Some smart engineer noticed these issues and invented the Pancake Machine. The company that makes this device is going to make a lot of money.

I salute you Pancake Machine Engineer! Miracles never cease.

What kind of sorcery is this?

But I digress…

On the first evening in the Twin Cities, we went to a place on the Mississippi River for pizza:

Moai on the Mississippi.

I spotted this guy making a nest in the eyes of one of the Moai. He wasn’t thrilled that I was taking his picture, but agreed not to sting me if I showed him the pancake machine.

On Saturday morning, we went to the Minneapolis Farmers’ Market. And there was a dinosaur (but no pancakes or pancake machines):

Minneapolis:

I love the Midwest. My current home-state of Colorado is nice, but I grew up outside of Chicago and the Rocky Mountain State isn’t quite the same. Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota feel like home.

The wonderful thing about financial independence is that you can be wherever the hell you want to be. When I have a longing to be home, I can just fire up the car and return to the Land of Beer and Cheese (Wisconsin), nice people (Iowa and Minnesota) or corruption (Chicago).

Life is good.

 

Part 2

This week, I visit the Physician on Fire before heading across the UP to stay near Mackinac Island.

  • Will the Physician on Fire try to give me another prostate exam?
  • Will I successfully pull off the Pancake Machine heist or will I be apprehended?

Tune in next week for answers to these probing questions and more!

 

*Outshined

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Filed Under: Something Completely Different Tagged With: Iowa, Minnesota, roadtrip

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Team CF says

    May 29, 2017 at 5:15 am

    That pancake machine is brilliant! The pancakes even look good. The marvels of modern technology 🙂
    Have fun and good luck with planning the heist!
    Team CF recently posted…Real Estate Report – May 2017My Profile

    Reply
  2. Mustard Seed Money says

    May 29, 2017 at 5:42 am

    Oh man I’m super intrigued by the pancake machine. I need one like now.

    I went online and found that they call it the “Quick Cakes Machine” but I prefer the pancake machine like you
    http://www.americanquickfoods.com/

    I then tried to see it in action on Youtube and have to admit I probably looped this 10x and each time was more thrilling than the next. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C57SRlI2ORM

    Plus the music for the video is awesome.
    Mustard Seed Money recently posted…The Power of Self-TalkMy Profile

    Reply
    • wendy says

      May 29, 2017 at 9:38 am

      And did you see the second longer video about how to load the mix!? Don’t forget to burp the bag!!!

      Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 29, 2017 at 12:44 pm

      The machine is brilliant! And the maker of these things must be killing it; once you buy the machine, you buy the mix from them too.

      Reply
  3. Linda@Frugal Turtle says

    May 29, 2017 at 6:26 am

    Have fun on your trip! Remember to visit the Surly brewery in MN!
    Linda@Frugal Turtle recently posted…Essential Camping Gear for That Amazing Camping TripMy Profile

    Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 29, 2017 at 12:44 pm

      Done! And it was magnificent!!!

      Reply
  4. Kate says

    May 29, 2017 at 6:29 am

    I’m glad Minnesota is treating you well! People give us a hard time about the winters but the quality of life here is actually really good.

    Enjoy the rest of your road trip!

    P.S. love the Soundgarden reference 🙂

    Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 29, 2017 at 12:45 pm

      Agreed, the quality of life is awesome! I love all of the parks and green space.

      Reply
      • Kate says

        May 29, 2017 at 6:27 pm

        Forgot to ask – was that Psycho Suzi’s you were at??

        Reply
  5. Owen @ PlanEasy says

    May 29, 2017 at 6:31 am

    Whoa, that patio on the Mississippi looks great. Sounds like a great trip so far. Hopefully you pull off the pancake machine heist 🙂
    Owen @ PlanEasy recently posted…First-Time Home Buyer? Boost Your Down Payment!My Profile

    Reply
  6. Mrs. Groovy says

    May 29, 2017 at 6:42 am

    Love the pancake machine but I must make sure Mr, Groovy doesn’t see it!

    Nice to see you having so much fun (except for the prostate exam).
    Mrs. Groovy recently posted…Mr. Groovy Talks Some More Trash and Fritz Takes Control of Joe’s Mom’s BasementMy Profile

    Reply
  7. FullTimeFinance says

    May 29, 2017 at 6:48 am

    In all my travels I can’t say I’ve seen a pancake machine either. Was this a chain or a mom and pop hotel. Inquiring minds want to check out the machine.

    Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 29, 2017 at 12:46 pm

      This was a Quality Inn! Not the Four Season, but not the No-Tell Motel either…

      Reply
  8. Fervent Finance says

    May 29, 2017 at 7:16 am

    Mackinac Island is cool for sure. But I’m sure the kids will LOVE the smell of horse poo on the island.
    Fervent Finance recently posted…To Buy or Not to BuyMy Profile

    Reply
  9. ESI Money says

    May 29, 2017 at 7:17 am

    Say hi to the Midwest for me. I’ve lived in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, and Missouri, so it’s home to me too.

    But I do like Colorado better. 😉

    Bring us home a pancake machine!!!!
    ESI Money recently posted…Stop Making Money ExcusesMy Profile

    Reply
  10. Wade says

    May 29, 2017 at 7:24 am

    Outshined…great song.

    So sad about Chris Cornell. Not sure why his death has brought out the nostalgia.

    Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Temple Of The Dog..this was just after I graduated from high school. Those CDs and song were the start of independence and college.

    I’ve been watching a lot of YouTube videos of Chris, Eddie and their early work.

    I am from West Central MN (live in Fargo now). Our typical “crappy” weather will great you. Sorry about that. It doesn’t get nice until June 15th. Then 6 days later, the days start getting shorter. Oops.

    Have fun on the trip despite the weather

    Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 29, 2017 at 8:10 am

      Yeah, Outshined is a great tune; easily my favorite from Soundgarden.

      I like the clouds here in Minnesota! It’s a nice change from the perpetual sunshine in Colorado…

      Reply
  11. Mrs. Picky Pincher says

    May 29, 2017 at 7:59 am

    Duuuude, that pancake machine is kickass!! I’ve never seen one of those before, but that’s a brilliant idea. I hate the old/cold pancakes at hotel breakfast bars that are probably cooked the night before. Yuck. But this is neat! 🙂 Sounds like you had a great trip; enjoy that early retirement!
    Mrs. Picky Pincher recently posted…What’s For Dinner? May 26My Profile

    Reply
  12. Brian says

    May 29, 2017 at 8:32 am

    I make pancakes for the kids every weekend. I may need to invest in one of those machines. 🙂

    Save travels. Looks like a great time so far. Watch out for POF and his latex gloves!
    Brian recently posted…Eliminating Debt to Make Your Investments Really Pay OffMy Profile

    Reply
  13. Friendly Russian says

    May 29, 2017 at 9:35 am

    Seems like you are having fun, that’s great. And this pancake machine is a badass.

    P.S.
    My wife makes great pancakes, one day we will invite to for pancakes breakfast.

    Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 29, 2017 at 12:47 pm

      “P.S. My wife makes great pancakes, one day we will invite to for pancakes breakfast”

      I’m holding you to that!

      Reply
  14. Amber tree says

    May 29, 2017 at 10:58 am

    Great fun, except maybe the prostate exam…!

    Enjoy your roadtrip and show us more marvels of technonlogy

    Reply
  15. Mr. Tako says

    May 29, 2017 at 6:20 pm

    Haha, funny road trip post! That pancake machine looks cool!

    We just got back from a road trip. I’ll have to do a writeup about it too!
    Mr. Tako recently posted…Profitability Doesn’t Matter?My Profile

    Reply
  16. Jason says

    May 29, 2017 at 7:19 pm

    That pancake machine does look good. And your pictures make me miss home. Minnesota will always be home and I look forward to being closer to FI to visit more often than just once or twice a year.

    Reply
  17. Motorcycle Training London says

    May 30, 2017 at 1:08 am

    haha great fun! That pancake machine looks amazing!

    Reply
  18. Lily says

    May 30, 2017 at 2:43 am

    I was under the assumption everything good in MN is on sticks. Will there be food on sticks in part 2?

    I legitimately need that pancake machine though. I run BnBs – this girl’s got people to feed.

    Reply
    • Mr. 1500 Days says

      May 30, 2017 at 6:56 am

      Ha, and I thought it was in dishes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotdish !

      This week, I will try to eat something on a stick. Wish me luck.

      Reply
  19. Steve Poling says

    May 30, 2017 at 4:13 am

    you tell us about the pancake machine and don’t research whether it’s made by a public company, its market, its competitors, and what it offers the investor? i suspect Benjamin Graham would whup your butt. (But John Bogle would tell you to enjoy your vacation.)

    Reply
  20. Mary says

    June 1, 2017 at 7:04 pm

    I am with ya on the free breakfast. When we travel we like to stay at Drury Inn whenever we can because they also have free dinner! And you even get free cocktails! Can’t beat it.

    Reply
  21. Daniel says

    June 22, 2017 at 1:20 pm

    The pancake machine!! We ran into this the past weekend (at a Holiday Inn Express), my kids loved it and luckily the pancakes tasted good (because I made a mistake and turned my back on the children, and 4 button pushes later we had 8 pancakes)…….

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. The Sunday Best (6/3/2017) - Physician on FIRE says:
    June 4, 2017 at 1:56 am

    […] invaders, also known as the 1500s, swung through for a few days on a Midwestern road trip. With a shared interest in bikes, beers, and financial independence, kids about the same age, and […]

    Reply

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Freedom!

My goal was to build a portfolio of $1,000,000 by February of 2017; 1500 days from the birth of this blog (January 1, 2013). And hey look, I’ve since retired!

Investments only (primary home excluded)
1/1/13 (The Start): $586,043
1/1/14 (1 Yr Later): $869,635
1/1/15 (2 Yrs Later): $987,351
1/1/16 (3 Yrs Later): $1,057,961
1/1/17 (4 Yrs Later): $1,257,128
1/1/18 (5 Yrs Later): $1,527,701
1/1/19 (6 Yrs Later): $1,549,440
1/1/20 (7 Yrs Later): $2,035,040*
1/1/21 (8 Yrs Later): $3,379,746**
1/1/22 (9 Yrs Later): $4,762,642
1/1/23 (10 Yrs Later): $3,112,821

2023: Investments only
1/1: $3,112,821

Overall
2023 investment gains: $0
Investment gains since 1/1/2013: $2,526,778
Net worth***: $3,342,821

* The big jump between 2019 and 2020 was partly because we bought another home, but kept the previous (much more expensive) one as a rental. We have since sold it.

** Tesla.

*** Includes our primary home equity in addition to our investment portfolio.

Finally, we still have about $290,000 in mortgage debt (which I love!). No regrets about the debts!

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