Retch The Grate
Full time employment: Posting here.
hiking the PCT is one of the ideas I have for retirement! Not super compatible with my doggo unfortunately given the time commitment. How was the experience?
Retirement celebratory splurge?
- Thread starter The Cosmic Avenger
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hiking the PCT is one of the ideas I have for retirement! Not super compatible with my doggo unfortunately given the time commitment. How was the experience?
HI Bill
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Yes! I'm working an extra few months to be able to buy two top-of-the-line Mac Book Pros, a solid state RAID array (2 4TB SSDs), 2 dry suits, and maybe a new DSLR and housing. We plan to sell our condo, move overseas, and start extensive travels, so these are the base purchases we need to make to maximize the experiences we will have! Shoul d run around $25K.
audreyh1
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
We hike the PCT a week after retiring. A couple of miles of it LOL! We went up to it a couple of time from a neat B&B lodge we were staying in. The coolest thing we ran into was a father and daughter hiking it with a couple of pack lamas, and their dog which carried it's own pack.
MuirWannabe
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That’s great. Gotta start somewhere!
Retch,
It has been one of the top experiences of my life. I had planned to thru hike all 2650 miles at that time. But life happens, and now I’m a long section hiker of the PCT. I’ve done a little over 1000 miles of the trail to this point. The places seen, people met, things learned, and memories made are something I’ll always cherish. Hope to finish the remainder over the next 5 years. Obviously, I recommend it.
If not the PCT, I certainly recommend the JMT. Both share about the same trail for 200 miles through the most spectacular mountain scenery imaginable...John Muir’s ‘range of light’.
I hit baseline FI when I turned 50 last year, and me & my partner took a fantastic 3 week bucket list trip to Africa. Was it expensive? Yes! Was it worth it? Absolutely!!
I calculated the percentage cost of my NW, which equaled .015%. Knowing that I could die at any moment due to the proverbial bus, this seemed to be a ridiculously small sacrifice. I will happily die knowing I did it, and I'm ready to do it again!
We don't get to take it with us
I calculated the percentage cost of my NW, which equaled .015%. Knowing that I could die at any moment due to the proverbial bus, this seemed to be a ridiculously small sacrifice. I will happily die knowing I did it, and I'm ready to do it again!
We don't get to take it with us
poppydog
Recycles dryer sheets
We retired in April. Our splurge was to throw a big fancy dress party for family and friends at a local restaurant. It was a hoot! The next week we took a trip to New York (from Scotland) and Mrs PD had a shopping visit to Tiffany, Fifth Avenue. Helluva shop!
DrRoy
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
We have been RE'd for a year and a half. We have done some splurgy things, but I don't see one of them as a particular event to note the RE, they are all sort of part of the new normal. We bought a new car, but that was part of consolidating from 2 to 1. We took a guided photo tour of Patagonia (never paid for a big guided trip like that before). Right now we are doing a pricy remodel of our family room, but I had kept $ that was "off the books" for that.
OP
OP
The Cosmic Avenger
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I hit baseline FI when I turned 50 last year, and me & my partner took a fantastic 3 week bucket list trip to Africa. Was it expensive? Yes! Was it worth it? Absolutely!!
I calculated the percentage cost of my NW, which equaled .015%. Knowing that I could die at any moment due to the proverbial bus, this seemed to be a ridiculously small sacrifice. I will happily die knowing I did it, and I'm ready to do it again!
We don't get to take it with us
Very true! And at 0.015% of your NW, if you use a conservative WR of 2%, that's still only 0.75% of your annual budget! I've been filling in a lot of detail in the Fido RIP retirement expense estimator, and we're budgeting almost 1/3 of our whole budget (marked as discretionary spending, of course) for travel! Of course, that could change; we could buy a mobile home or vacation home and travel less as a trade-off, but we'll have to wait and see what makes sense when we're ready.
kcowan
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I spent a few months rationalizing duplicates of credit cards and accounts, getting better cell plans, and putting together my momentum stock portfolio. But in January, we extended our stay in Mexico from 3 weeks to 8 weeks. And we did a home swap to San Diego in May for a month.
brett
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We are still celebrating after five years.
Went in and came out the other end in reasonably good health, with good financial resources, still married to each other, and still embracing change.
Went in and came out the other end in reasonably good health, with good financial resources, still married to each other, and still embracing change.
YVRRocketSurgery
Full time employment: Posting here.
Probably no specific celebratory splurge for me. However, I've been working a few years past FI to support a larger cash flow in retirement so it'd just be nice to lay off the savings pedal a bit more and be a bit looser with the spend.
Retiring has been complicated, but I've planned my splurge with a plane ticket to spend Jan & Feb in Mexico. The luxury for me won't be so much staying in expensive places, as in having the time and freedom to escape the worst part of winter.
BoodaGazelle
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Funny you should ask! Just FIRED one year ago. After so many years of working and wondering if I would be able to, now realize that not only could I, but can afford to take some trips easily.
So we are now looking at doing a 3 week cruise, probably including both the Western and Eastern Caribbean... I figure it will cost at least $10K... The other option may be a similar deal either in the Mediterranean, or else a European river cruise.
After working so hard and being frugal (at least as far as expensive vacations go), it is still hard to contemplate, but we are only 62 and 61, so remembering "Life is short" we may go for it.
So we are now looking at doing a 3 week cruise, probably including both the Western and Eastern Caribbean... I figure it will cost at least $10K... The other option may be a similar deal either in the Mediterranean, or else a European river cruise.
After working so hard and being frugal (at least as far as expensive vacations go), it is still hard to contemplate, but we are only 62 and 61, so remembering "Life is short" we may go for it.
capjak
Full time employment: Posting here.
Just got my Jeep Grande Cherokee High Alt. its awesome and it's rated to tow a boat or trailer (6200 lbs)
We are not big on parties. Never were. Never had one for any milestone birthdays or anniversaries. We just continue to live our day to day lives.
My brother, on the other hand, is into it and he plans to have one for he and his wife's 60th birthdays.
I would rather not waste money on things like that and use it for more practical things that make us happy.
My brother, on the other hand, is into it and he plans to have one for he and his wife's 60th birthdays.
I would rather not waste money on things like that and use it for more practical things that make us happy.
misterantsypants
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OK, honestly I nothing outlandish to report but this is my most costly splurge in retirement.
I decided to fly only in First Class. So for all my overseas flights I research flights on 777, 787 or 747 planes. All have spacious private pods with flat bed. My China trip is on 777s, I get pajamas, slippers and most importantly a sit-down bar with bartender, woohoo.
And if planned well it is affordable.
I decided to fly only in First Class. So for all my overseas flights I research flights on 777, 787 or 747 planes. All have spacious private pods with flat bed. My China trip is on 777s, I get pajamas, slippers and most importantly a sit-down bar with bartender, woohoo.
And if planned well it is affordable.
Red Badger
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DW and I are on our first Europe trip together. I have been here many times for biz. Her first time. We finished London on Sunday and are "recuperating" in Brussels (London pandemonium was a bit much, but worth it). I spent many weekends alone in Europe wondering if I could ever afford to bring my soul mate. DW is now having the time of her life. What more could I ask for?
Suggesting that you go and chase that dream. You get one go-round on this rock (and it moves fast).
Fedup
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We went to our favorite Island, Maui, for 2 weeks in December for immediate celebration. That was for my retirement. The following year, we spent 4 months in Europe. That cured us for spending that long anywhere. Now we only do about 2 months in Europe every two years.
YVRRocketSurgery
Full time employment: Posting here.
With all the travel discussion, maybe a tweak to my original thought.
We usually go on a trip in the spring so maybe we'll align it with my last day at work (the missus has to work a few more years to get more bang out of her DB pension) and go for a slightly longer trip.
Red Badger
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The answer to your question - Hell Yeah!!! Congrats on using an asset to and through full depreciation! RV sales folks now hate you, but bean counters admire you from afar.
And the memories - - - from both (young and elder) sides - - - more than priceless.
Fedup
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I missed being home, I missed my garden. Except for 6-8 weeks in one place in London, we were living in mostly hotels. That got to be tiring after a while.
Yes I can understand that. We’ve been in Greece for 4 weeks but have stayed in apartments which I prefer to hotels. However we have moved every 4-5 days which does get tiring. Always a balance between wanting to see more of a new place vs having enough down time to truly experience it.
