Is it really early retirement that we most want or do we want the absence of ...

[RobbieB]

I've owned 4 boats and I will own another. I like to go fishing and be on the river. And there is no fresher fish for supper than what was swimming in the morning. The essential "kill it and eat it" thrill and satisfaction rewarded.

I suck at philosophy, I just like to have fun!

[FUEGO]

I think I'd be happy living under a bridge*. As long as it had air conditioning, fast wifi, and a place to plug in my laptop.

* by bridge I mean a modestly appointed studio apartment.

[NW-Bound]

Well, it looks like the blog referenced by the OP is a popular one, but this is the first time I heard of it.

The blog author talked about inner peace, and against desire of things that often turn out to be overrated. And he alluded to Siddartha and his self-enlightenment under a bodhi tree. As we can recall, after a period of meditation, Siddhartha realized that happiness or nirvana comes from avoiding the misery of "greed or desire, hatred, and ignorance".

If a person wants 4 boats, can afford them easily, then it is not the same thing as another person who has to cheat or steal to get a boat.

I have often told the story of how Jim Clark, the billionaire founder of Silicon Graphics and Netscape as well as some other lesser known companies, got upset when he found out that someone else's sail boat had a higher mast than his own boat, which already held the record of being the largest sail boat at that time. His boat had to be larger, taller, and better in every way. It was such an extreme display of envy that I wonder if he could ever be happy. If he wanted to be richer than Buffet or Gates, he would never get there and would die very unhappy despite his billions. Would he also want to be the tallest, most handsome, fastest, strongest man on earth too?

[RobbieB]

I dunno, don't ever think on that stuff.

Perhaps it's that drive that makes men like Gates and Buffet and Jobs and earlier
Rockefeller and such to be the way they were. Dunno. Gates and Buffet seem to on the same page on giving it all away.

Good for them. And good for me. Do what you want to do because you want to do it, not because you want to "look good" for others.

[DrRoy]

I am OK with the general premise of the article. It is another way of saying "the grass is always greener . . ). However, hardly any of the examples fit for me. I have a great time on vacation. It is often quickly paced rather than slow, but I shoot to visit new places and see new things which are very enjoyable to me. Food and music that I like are not diminished at all when I experience them again. In particular, music that I like just grows on me more as I hear it again. I have of course done things that did not turn out the way I expected, but I thought it was odd that his examples missed the mark for me so much.

[ExFlyBoy5]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobbieB I didn't get the article either. Me thinks he is some "lost soul" out there seeking... Whatever he's not found yet.

Add me to the list. I even re-read it and still didn't get it.

[Sarah in SC]

Y'all might like this one from his site a little better, as it is "preaching to the choir".

How much of your life are you selling off?

[gayl]

I am currently unemployed and get where he's coming from.

To be totally honest, I am beginning to like it. What I don't like is the absence of an income stream to augment my meager pension. However, I think that angst will subside once I take SSA in 12 months

[Teacher Terry]

My career had BS because although I loved the work when you work for the government there is lots of crap. 7 months after retiring I was offered a chance to teach a uni course online and I love it. No BS what so ever. It is like being your own boss. I know I have something rare. I find great enjoyment out of trips, events, eating out, etc and don't really understand when others don't like those types of things. Fortunately my DH feels the same way.

[RioIndy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ziggy29 I suspect most of us get tired of emptying the BS bucket, and if someone can find a job that doesn't rapidly fill up said bucket, great. But most jobs aren't like that and most people aren't so fortunate.

This +1000. It is a sad shame the state of our current w*rking structure. We can safely assume that there are many, many people who have extremely valuable skills and experience, and these people would be happy to continue contributing these skills, but because of all the annoying nuances of the w*rk world and corportate BS, it is not fulfilling and so they choose not too. Can't blame them and will hopefully be making that same choice very shortly.

[unclemick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R Me, either. Before I retired, I had no idea how much fun retired life could be, even though I wanted to retire more than anything. For some reason I thought it would be like a long vacation. It's so much better.

I was a miserable layed off unemployed slacker until it dawned on me that I didn't have to work.

After that realization I made the mental shift between my ears to high class ER. I try to be outwardly grumpy even though inwardly I'm wing flapping happy.

heh heh heh - unless I slip.

[aja8888]

I get David's e-mailed blog also. Sometimes he does a good job of making me think about things I never think about. This week, he is making me scratch my head a bit.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarah in SC Y'all might like this one from his site a little better, as it is "preaching to the choir". How much of your life are you selling off?

Thanks! I'm definitely going to read the article....

Really, give me a minute, I will.

Honest.

I will, for sure.

Just as soon as I can bear to move past the beefcake photo there at the beginning.

[Focus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarah in SC Y'all might like this one from his site a little better, as it is "preaching to the choir". How much of your life are you selling off?

From the post:

Quote:

This is why early retirees advocate reaching financial independence — saving enough that you can live off the interest alone without touching the nest egg itself — before you shut off your career income. This means you can live to be 200 if you like, but you’ll need to save more than a twenty-year burn-off fund.

Live off the interest alone? Really?

[daylatedollarshort]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Focus Live off the interest alone? Really?

That is a fairly traditional investment philosophy, as in the sayings "Never spend principal" or "never eat your seed corn". I'm curious why you find it surprising?

There is a discussion on it on Reddit here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/financialin...the_principal/

[Focus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by daylatedollarshort That is a fairly traditional investment philosophy, as in the sayings "Never spend principal" or "never eat your seed corn". I'm curious why you find it surprising?

Hard to imagine it's feasible in this era of ultra-low rates.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Focus Hard to imagine it's feasible in this era of ultra-low rates.

You just need to have several million $$$$$ or be living on $15K per year, that's all.

[daylatedollarshort]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 You just need to have several million $$$$$ or be living on $15K per year, that's all.

Or multiple income streams in addition to dividend / interest types of income. Or Mulligan's utility preferred stock dividends, which I still need to look into.

[gayl]

I average 800-900 month dividends on way less than that. If I had 1m, it would be 2400 month dividends. So it is do-able

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by daylatedollarshort Or multiple income streams in addition to dividend / interest types of income. Or Mulligan's utility preferred stock dividends, which I still need to look into.

Focus was referring to living off the "interest only", not multiple income streams.