Re-introducing myself (Freebird)

[freebird5825]

Hi all
Long time no see! Been busy being FIREd. LOL
I actually found my 1st intro thread and had to laugh a bit...1st thread is duly repeated here and updated with [ ]
...very little has changed...
I will try to be here more often...winter is coming soon to a theatre near me and I don't drive in the snow unless I have to.
FB

Hello!
I am Freebird, age 50 and holding. The big 50 loomed and just recently happened...eek
I am already semi-retired at age 48 after w*rking as an engineer for 25 years.
I maxed out my 401(k) with a 5% employer match for over 18 years, converted it to a immed fixed annuity without tax penalty using SEPP, and was able to retire early.

Ah, Freebird found freedom....

I am a frugal spender and major league saver and DIY investor. I still drive my 1992 Honda Accord [still running at 130K miles and a new exhaust system/front end work/brakes/rotors].

My assets are primarily low cost no-load mutual funds, asset allocation is 51 stocks/49 bonds, income is from a pension (survivior benefit) and my own immed fixed annuity. My expenses are just the usual heat/light/food/gas [amplified recently by inflation].

I have a wonderful fiance, no kids except 2 dogs and 12 goldish [make that 9 goldfish] and live in upstate NY. The cost of living here is moderate compared to urban areas. I live simpler, cheaper, and happier.

My asset allocation is balanced at 51/49 (temporarily) until I see how my retirement income/expenses balance out after 1 year. [Note - it still is 50/50]
It was my 1st year anniversary of not working full-time on April 1st 2008. I picked that date on purpose, since it perfectly fit my attitude when I voluntarily resigned in 2007. Couldn't resist making a final statement. again.

I'm really glad I re-discovered this site. I was looking for a forum for early retirees.

Freebird

[bbbamI]

Whew...glad you're still alive and kickin'...and busy being FIRE'd!

[freebird5825]

well, thank you. still alive, still kicking...and then some. the mid century mark hit a few weeks ago, so i'll make being here more a part of my midlife crisis theme. LOL
it was funny to revisit and see what had changed in my FIRE situation since the debut here at the site. not much so i guess i'm just living a boring life.
see ya around the block!
FB

[W2R]

Welcome back!

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Quote:

Originally Posted by freebird5825 coming soon to a theatre near me

I just want to know how these theaters know where I live...

[freebird5825]

want2retire and cute fuzzy bunny

hi again! it's great to be back.

FB

[Moemg]

Welcome back , We missed you .

[CuppaJoe]

So glad to see you back. I think of you and your signature line often. Really! Just yesterday as I worked my way through a crowed museum exhibit. Yes, go placidly.

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moemg Welcome back , We missed you .

thanks.

i just needed a time out period to chill and regroup. this whole FIRE thing, especially the relax part, was very strange ground.n

but i'm fully FIREd now and will valiantly try not to drive ya all nutz!

let me know how I do, about a month from now....
FB

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CuppaJoe So glad to see you back. I think of you and your signature line often. Really! Just yesterday as I worked my way through a crowed museum exhibit. Yes, go placidly.

what a nice compliment! i think that deserves yet another line from Desiderata to be added into my signature line.

where was this museum? looks wild!

FB

[CuppaJoe]

"Never ask questions of someone who just acquired their first digital camera." This is in San Francisco. A local critic wrote a controversial review declaring Chihuly's glass works unsuitable for a fine arts museum. The artist is crying all the way to the bank. I agreed with the critic until I saw one of his gigantic glass works hung from the ceiling in one of the Rodin galleries; looks like a beautiful Christmas ornament. Maybe his other work will grow on me; the masses can't always be wrong.

BTW, I take great comfort and truth from the line you just added.

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CuppaJoe "Never ask questions of someone who just acquired their first digital camera." This is in San Francisco. A local critic wrote a controversial review declaring Chihuly's glass works unsuitable for a fine arts museum. The artist is crying all the way to the bank. I agreed with the critic until I saw one of his gigantic glass works hung from the ceiling in one of the Rodin galleries; looks like a beautiful Christmas ornament. Maybe his other work will grow on me; the masses can't always be wrong. BTW, I take great comfort and truth from the line you just added.

I wonder if the Met Museum of Art in NYC has any of his work. i worked with a lot of optics in my career, and the interaction of white light and glass has always fascinated me.

BINGO! Corning Glass Museum (NY) has one of his works. it is very close by to me. ROAD TRIP!!!! Corning Glass Museum is a real treasure to behold.
http://www.chihuly.com/installations..._Img0042B.html

I've never been to Frisco. I got close, San Jose and Monterey, on a business trip years ago.

Desiderata has been and probably always will be the most beautiful composition I've ever run across. i used the opening line as my senior class picture quote in high school. nobody understood it. that was the best part. it caused some people to think about it.

FB

[harley]

I like your sig line too, but I can't read it without slipping into it's satirical twin -
"Go placidly
Amid the noise and waste.
And remember what comfort there may be
In owning a piece thereof."

[CuppaJoe]

Art review: Chihuly at the de Young

Gotta love this kind of controversy; don't think I've seen a Hi, I am thread moved to the soapbox yet. The critic ends his review with:

“Educated viewers cannot look for long at Chihuly's work without wishing there were something to think about. So they think about something else. The capacity to hold our attention, in the moment or in reflection later, is a mark of significant art in an era when mass media work hard to abbreviate attention spans so as to cut costs and decapitate questions.

The history of art is a history of ideas, not just of valuable property. Chihuly has no place in it, and the de Young disserves its public by pretending that he does.”

The something I thought about was taking pictures, here's another one, I call it "The Burghers of Calais Critique Chihuly":

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley I like your sig line too, but I can't read it without slipping into it's satirical twin - "Go placidly Amid the noise and waste. And remember what comfort there may be In owning a piece thereof."

LMAO

good one. this could turn into quite a thread...

Go placidly amid the noise and toothpaste
And remember what comfort there may be in ingesting fluoride...

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CuppaJoe Art review: Chihuly at the de Young Gotta love this kind of controversy; don't think I've seen a Hi, I am thread moved to the soapbox yet. The critic ends his review with: “Educated viewers cannot look for long at Chihuly's work without wishing there were something to think about. So they think about something else. The capacity to hold our attention, in the moment or in reflection later, is a mark of significant art in an era when mass media work hard to abbreviate attention spans so as to cut costs and decapitate questions. The history of art is a history of ideas, not just of valuable property. Chihuly has no place in it, and the de Young disserves its public by pretending that he does.” The something I thought about was taking pictures, here's another one, I call it "The Burghers of Calais Critique Chihuly":

Soapbox? Is that new since I was last here (spring 08 )?

hey, i'm enjoying the art pics.

art critics are like food critics...sometimes the porridge is too hot, other times too cold. and until Goldilocks shows up...LOL

FB

[Martha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by freebird5825 BINGO! Corning Glass Museum (NY)

Makes me think of a museum of dishware for the frugal.

[W2R]

Hey Martha, that is not only my dishware but my exact pattern!!!

I felt spendthrifty when I bought my Corelleware at Wal-Mart, though. I could have gone to a thrift store for plates, but NO... had to have brand new ones. Maybe now that I am better off, I will look for prettier dishware once I retire and move north.

[CuppaJoe]

Yes, Freebird, the Soapbox is new, you might enjoy it because you can put it on ignore and avoid the intense political and news discussions. It's a separate category like Hi, I Am or Life After FIRE.

I'd love to go see the Corning Glass Works. When I moved in '93, the apt. was last re-modeled in the '70s. After a while I started buying CorningWare from the '70s and acquired a large collection of pots like this. I still use them to heat water on the stove, and they make the best boiled egg cookers.

[freebird5825]

Yes, Freebird, the Soapbox is new, you might enjoy it
oh, i could get hooked in there way too easily..
but i will cruise through and see if there is a soapbox that fits well.

I'd love to go see the Corning Glass Works.
ROAD TRIP! j/k
you've got a very LONG way to drive

When I moved in '93, the apt. was last re-modeled in the '70s. After a while I started buying CorningWare from the '70s and acquired a large collection of pots like this. I still use them to heat water on the stove, and they make the best boiled egg cookers.
i see stuff like this at (gulp) garage sales. it's usually damaged though.

FB