Have been here a few weeks and realized that I've never done a formal introduction.
My real name is Andy. I've been known in various places as Otis since about 1992, so I answer to that as well. I'm an Indiana boy, born and raise. Still live within 100 miles from my hometown. Work has let me travel around the country a bit, and although there's prettier places to live (I'm especially fond of Colorado), my family isn't there, and we spend a great deal of our spare time with my parents, in-laws, brothers, etc. As mentioned in a previous post, I hate the winters in Indiana ... too much mud and gray skies. I'd rather move North where there's snow that stays for awhile (versus the bouncing we do between 20 degrees and 40 degrees for weeks on end), or South to where it isn't an issue. I prefer the colder climates, so North will probably be the eventual choice.
I'm 30 years old, and am a middle manager (section head) for one of the big 5 defense contractors. I'm possibly the youngest person to get my position in recent memory ... a few years back, you had to wait for your boss to retire or die for there to be an opening in management. I've had a couple of good mentors during my time there, which has helped me be in the right place at the right time for promotions. Most of the guys with my title/rank are old enough to be my father.
I'm a mechanical engineer by training and am about to finish a master's degree (Masters of Science, Engineering Management, company paid for). My wife has a computer science degree and also works for the defense dept developing financial databases.
We graduated college with significant debt, and if I could do it over again, I'd have lived with my parents a year or more and paid off Mr. Visa. (Note to parents out there, when your kids come home from college, and would like to live w/ you a bit, give them chores but don't treat them like they're still in high school).
Over the past 18 months we've been killing some of our bills. This year, we should turn the corner and begin putting away more into savings/investments than we're paying out to debt. The goal is to do "something different" in 10 years. That may mean I mow lawns for a living, it may mean I'm a charter boat captain, it may mean I stay home and watch the Smurfs and The Price is Right. Right now we don't know exactly what it means, other than we want to be FI enough to tell 'the man' where to stick it.
I've been influenced over the past couple years by certain books/movies ... it's an odd list ... The Millionaire Mind, Fight Club, The Matrix (it's all about control, and choice)., Good Will Hunting. I've even picked up a copy of Walden Pond recently.
My dream is to own a small fishing resort in middle Michigan that my family has been visiting for the past 25 or so years. It'll be a tough place to make a fortune, but an entirely enjoyable way to spend an early retirement. It sells about every 10 years, and was bought just last year. The timing just might be about right.
So that's me.
My real name is Andy. I've been known in various places as Otis since about 1992, so I answer to that as well. I'm an Indiana boy, born and raise. Still live within 100 miles from my hometown. Work has let me travel around the country a bit, and although there's prettier places to live (I'm especially fond of Colorado), my family isn't there, and we spend a great deal of our spare time with my parents, in-laws, brothers, etc. As mentioned in a previous post, I hate the winters in Indiana ... too much mud and gray skies. I'd rather move North where there's snow that stays for awhile (versus the bouncing we do between 20 degrees and 40 degrees for weeks on end), or South to where it isn't an issue. I prefer the colder climates, so North will probably be the eventual choice.
I'm 30 years old, and am a middle manager (section head) for one of the big 5 defense contractors. I'm possibly the youngest person to get my position in recent memory ... a few years back, you had to wait for your boss to retire or die for there to be an opening in management. I've had a couple of good mentors during my time there, which has helped me be in the right place at the right time for promotions. Most of the guys with my title/rank are old enough to be my father.
I'm a mechanical engineer by training and am about to finish a master's degree (Masters of Science, Engineering Management, company paid for). My wife has a computer science degree and also works for the defense dept developing financial databases.
We graduated college with significant debt, and if I could do it over again, I'd have lived with my parents a year or more and paid off Mr. Visa. (Note to parents out there, when your kids come home from college, and would like to live w/ you a bit, give them chores but don't treat them like they're still in high school).
Over the past 18 months we've been killing some of our bills. This year, we should turn the corner and begin putting away more into savings/investments than we're paying out to debt. The goal is to do "something different" in 10 years. That may mean I mow lawns for a living, it may mean I'm a charter boat captain, it may mean I stay home and watch the Smurfs and The Price is Right. Right now we don't know exactly what it means, other than we want to be FI enough to tell 'the man' where to stick it.
I've been influenced over the past couple years by certain books/movies ... it's an odd list ... The Millionaire Mind, Fight Club, The Matrix (it's all about control, and choice)., Good Will Hunting. I've even picked up a copy of Walden Pond recently.
My dream is to own a small fishing resort in middle Michigan that my family has been visiting for the past 25 or so years. It'll be a tough place to make a fortune, but an entirely enjoyable way to spend an early retirement. It sells about every 10 years, and was bought just last year. The timing just might be about right.
So that's me.
