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I retired at age 36 (I'm nearly 50 now) and got divorced 8 years into early retirement. So I unexpectedly found myself in the dating pool again in my 40's. I dated for a year before finding my new partner and we've been together 2 years now. The fact that I am retired has not been a major issue...

I will turn 50 in a couple of weeks and I am in the process of building myself a small cabin in the mountains. It’s located only 1/2 hour away from my primary residence so I plan on enjoying it on a weekly basis.

I rarely get asked because panhandling is illegal here.

I also keep travel journals, where I mix writing, sketching, and watercolor painting. It’s a fun way to record my journeys.

In Europe, some airlines (even mainline airlines) limit cabin luggage weight to only 8kg. So using the lightest bag/case possible is very important. And yes they do check weight on occasion.

I've had a pretty bad experience with Booking last year and I'm now more likely to book directly from the service provider instead. In my case, I booked a flight and not a hotel. I used Booking and everything went smoothly. Then, a few weeks later, the airline (Turkish Airlines) sent me a...

When I met my now ex-wife we were both in graduate school, working towards the same degree. When we got married, we had similar jobs (same title, same salary more or less). Neither one of us had much to our name at the time. When we divorced we split everything 50/50. But I have a net worth 2...

I kept a handwritten journal for many years, early into my early retirement. I used to write daily in it but at some point life got too busy to be able to keep up and I lost the habit. I still have those handwritten journals and I like to read them again every once in a while. Every time I do...

I can surely relate. I recently realized that each distressing event in my life had provided me with the fuel needed to make big, positive changes with long-lasting benefits.

I spend an average of $350 a month at the grocery store, by myself. It includes all the things I typically buy at the grocery store - food, cleaning supplies, laundry detergent, paper products, etc… Alcohol is not included. I mostly shop in France but my partner lives in Switzerland and I...

I qualify for Swiss citizenship by descent, though I don’t plan on applying for it at this time. I’ve looked into it however and the process seems pretty straight forward.

I moved abroad to be closer to family about 8 years into early retirement. I had not planned to move at all in retirement but, due to some unforeseen events, the opportunity presented itself and I took it. Moving sucks for sure, but it was for the better as far as I am concerned. Because moving...

I am FIRE’d and will turn 50 this year. My AA is roughly 50/50 equity/fixed income (in my case the fixed income is fixed value). Income from real estate easily covers my regular expenses, and I pull from the stock/bond portfolio as needed to pay for extras.

No kids no regrets either. I do have a fairly close-knit extended family but it is not always the panacea. Family can be a source of support, happiness, and emotional fulfillment. But it is also true that nobody can hurt you like family can. Jealousy, greed, gossips, betrayal, etc… the people...

1) Trust your intuition 2) Put yourself first 3) When people show you who they are, believe them

People never cease to amaze me… I worked in a bank when I was younger and I received a call one day. It was a woman who informed me that her mother had passed away that morning. She requested that her mother’s money be transferred to her own account immediately. Her mother’s body was not even...

For 2023 my top ten expenses are: 1) travel 2) groceries 3) income/social taxes 4) gifts 5) watercolor supplies 6) HOA fees 7) furnishings 8) home build 9) home improvement 10) gasoline

When I look at my friend group, I see one major trend: all my friends without exception are foreign or, if they are local, they have lived abroad for a significant amount of time. Otherwise, they do come from a broad range of socio-economic, religious, and educational backgrounds. I’ve mostly...

I am rather cash-flow poor. I have a commercial real estate investment that pays me rental income on a quarterly basis and a couple of savings accounts that pay me interests on an annual basis. The rest of my money is locked in investment accounts that generate no taxable income whatsoever as...

I am in France. I paid 0% in income tax but 16.3% in various social taxes (kinda like FICA taxes in the US but over here these taxes are withheld on all income sources).

I developed a fear of flying back in the late 1990's. I love going to the airport to watch airplanes take off and land, I know that flying is the safest mode of transportation, I know that airplanes have backup systems, that they are built to handle serious turbulences, that airplane pilots are...

I live in Europe and I’ve driven all over the continent. So far I’ve never been flashed by a radar (fingers crossed) but no one is immune to getting a ticket and I know that it’s only a matter of time - especially with the new generation of radars that can detect all kinds of violations beside...

My grandparents died at the ages of 74, 76, 85, and 89. My parents are still alive (ages 75 and 76) but I noticed a significant decline in vitality around the age of 70 for both of them. Calculators usually give me a life expectancy of 85. I still financially plan to age 100 for now (I’ll turn...

I have not yet received any substantial amount of money from anybody dead or alive. And since I'm not quite 50 years old yet, I'm not thinking about making any substantial gift of money to anyone at this time. I don't have children and I only have one niece. But she's still young and not...

My favorite Class B RV? The free kind ��. My sister purchased a class B RV 3 years ago and she invites me once a year on a sibling-bonding trip so I get all the advantages and none of the inconveniences. We're in Europe so our RV options are quite different from the US. The base...