Fear or Love; What motovated you to RE?

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Eh, you've gotta be 15, maybe 16 by now...

[brewer12345]

Originally Posted by Sparky

So the question is: What motivated you most to RE?

September 11, 2001.

Interesting. That is also what motivated me to get the hell out of the city of my birth and never return (as much as possible). Nothing like being downwind of the charnel house stench of the burning twin towers rubble (with the smell continuing for months) to drive the point home.

[starry night]

Yes, for me, too, it is fear of missing out on the rest of my life. Who wants to spend it in workday/workplace drudgery??

If you haven't already, run up to Blockbuster and rent "Holiday", 1930's film with Cary Grant, Katherine Hepburn. He is a self-made man who only wishes to stake himself with enough dough to pull out early -- but he is sidelined by engagement to a rich girl who only wants to pile up more and more. He fell for the wrong sister. Anyway, one of the best exchanges is when he describes how he plans to take a Holiday - he "wants to save part of my life for myself. But there's a catch. It has to be part of the young part. You know, retire young, work old. Come back when I know what I'm working for." .......

Well, we've positioned ourselves so we won't have to come back into work (unless things REALLY go wrong around here, and GWB is doing the best he can to ruin it for all of us for a long time to come - don't get me started).

But I love the philosophy of this old movie, and it makes me realize that I am as young as I'll ever be again, and I've got to have these decades for my dreams while I can.

"Our life is closed, our life begins.
The long, long anchorage we leave.
The ship is clear, at last...She leaps!
She swiftly courses from the shore...
Joy, Shipmate, Joy!!"

Walt Whitman

Sailin' Away........Starry Night

[wallygator69]

Hi Kids,

Fear is keeping me from pulling the trigger. DW and I both 41, think were FI but inflation and Health Insurance scare the hell out of me.

Biggest fear comes from tech buble bursting. Lost much paper gains but also a substantial amount of real cash. (Off subject but that's why I'm in the mess with B shares and got in with the FA. Depression and loss of sensibility and just not wanting to think about Finances..) Much more diversity now but another crash early on wouldn't be good.

Set May of 2008 for Exit but could probably do it now but should be able to bank $80k this year, $40k next year and then I will most likely be out of business.

BUT, if Real estate Buble bursts and I lose 25% of my equity in Primary residence that wipes out $120k that was going to pay down Retirment home mortgage to about $80k.

So two more years pays off House with $40k left over provided no POP!

Kind of depressed myself.

I stink

Have a great weekend,

Wally