Winemaker
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Silverton, Ouray, what beautiful places! I'll bring some wine......
20 years ago Silverton was not an expensive area. It was pretty remote in the winter. Do they have skiing there now?
Silverton, Ouray, what beautiful places! I'll bring some wine......
Hermit, Winemaker, yes, there is a ski 'area' there now, which is more of an extreme skiiers dream come true. 'All thrills, no frills' is their motto, with no easy way down....
I broke out of my [-]miserly[/-] frugal shell this week. I had a colonoscopy and instead of doing the day prior prep and the day of recovery at the old motor home out in the boondocks, I stayed in a nice motel just down the street from the hospital where the procedure was done. Much more convenient. It hurt a little to pass up the free breakfast the morning of, though.
BTW, the procedure went fine. "No issues. See you 10 years."
Pretty much in the same boat here, albeit a smaller boat. I too am spending far less than I could and haven't really tapped into principal yet, and without any natural heirs I suspect I will be leaving a large inheritance to several charities and/or lucky friends, distant relatives, etc. A "high class problem", some would say, but still it's something I sort of struggle with. Honestly, though, I'm pretty happy with my spending and don't feel I'm depriving myself in any significant way. I have been loosening the purse strings a bit more over the past year, and I hope this continues. Definitely somewhat of a learning process for me, going from an ultra-ultra saver for my entire adult life to more of a "free spender" now that the saving phase is behind me.
I test drove 3 nice used vehicles a couple days ago and left the dealer thinking that I was on my way to making a purchase. But, I slept on it and my frugal gene kicked in overnight and started making excuses why I shouldn't go through with it. My mother had her hopes up as she wants my current vehicle...it has AWD and heated seats (winter climate) and her older vehicle has neither.
My advice: Take some time reviewing the overall impact of the purchase to your standard of living and whether you have enough to cover whatever happens as you age. Chances are this purchase would not move the meter one way or another. So, in that case, make your Mom happy!
My future is about as solid as one can hope to get...a fed gov COLA pension. I'm sure I'll end up with a newer vehicle within the next few months....I'm "almost" there
Although my mother won't buy a newer vehicle, she would accept my car if I got a new one. But, she will never actively look for a newer vehicle because as she says: "I don't drive that much and can't justify it". But, she has a 20-year old 2 wheel drive pickup truck that is way too light in the back end and it scares the hell out of me on icy roads (winter climate)...and I'm no shrinking violet behind the wheel . The peace of mind that I would get if she had my AWD Subaru is definitely a factor...
I see her purchases on our joint CCs but I only question them to verify the charge. She buy a lot less than she used to. And much less than my first.My DW buys lots of stuff but I don't ever see the bills or CC.
I see her purchases on our joint CCs but I only question them to verify the charge. She buy a lot less than she used to. And much less than my first.
My husband doesn't have a clue what I buy because I pay the credit cards. He never cares about money. I take care of everything. He said he was embarrassed when his boss asked how did he plan for his retirement. He didn't know how to answer.
He said if he didn't marry me, he would learn on his own.
Ditto. We have one niece between us and she didn't even send a thank you card for an expensive wedding gift we bought her. Boy, that's gonna cost her.
Ditto. We have one niece between us and she didn't even send a thank you card for an expensive wedding gift we bought her. Boy, that's gonna cost her.
DW discusses most of her acquisitions with me, not for approval of the money but just because she wants to share. Whatever works!It's her job to review the CC's so I never know what she is doing. This is a real advantage in my view. The fact that she has her own income to pay her bills is really great and a good way to set up our finances. Easy to attribute income for tax as well. The less "discussion" about personal expenses the better I think.
This thread is helpful to me. With a potential launch date in 3 yrs (55-ish), I continue to run financial and mental exercises on this. As many have said, most of us on this site are wired to be "relatively" frugal and have LBYM more significantly than others which is why/how you RE early. I say relative because there are some on this site living on $25K yr and others on $250K yr in RE. None the less, I'm betting both profiles applied similar principles to get to ER. I am fortunate to make a good living and still significantly LBMMs. My DW has more vices than me that can add up, but mine tend to be larger 1 time pops (I.e. New nice cars). Over the last yr or so I have started saying WTF and DW and I have been a little more indulgent. I suppose part of my logic is I am getting some of these pricier things out of my system before I RE so I can cross them off the bucket list. As we have been used to a certain standard of living, there is much I think I don't want to give up in RE. As all my RE income will come from my investments, switching from accumulation mode to withdrawal mode is already a mental block for me (even though I know that's what it's there for). At some point, maybe 1 yr out from RE I will do a more formal test run with DW to see how we really may spend in RE. Right now my plan is to create 2 buckets... 1) basic expenses fixed and reasonable living expenses as if we were living in say the last recession again (belt tightening) and then 2) basics + trips/stuff/indulgences. I wonder sometimes if it's tougher for those who live at higher incomes/spend rates pre RE to spend at similar levels post RE? Again, I know it's all relative, but would be curious to hear from those who may fit in this box and did they continue to spend at higher burn rate in RE (say $200K+)?
We also have this same spending 'problem'. Have portfolio and assets in upper 7 figures with a healthy six figure annual dividend income. But we are spending much less than we could, as if we had a quarter of that. Haven't touched any principal, and still reinvesting most of the dividends. With no children, we have no worries about legacy, so we are looking at ways to ratchet up the enjoyment of the money. We did just buy a nice property up in Silverton, Colorado, and also planning a two week ski trip to austria next winter w/first class travel and all the trimmings. So we're making progress, but old behaviors die hard.
I find it easy to splurge, I'mma gonna order up half a grand (10 lbs) of colossal king crab legs direct from Alaska next day air.
I haven't done that one yet and it's about time. Fourth of July baby! Like I need an excuse -
My husband doesn't have a clue what I buy because I pay the credit cards. He never cares about money. I take care of everything. He said he was embarrassed when his boss asked how did he plan for his retirement. He didn't know how to answer.
He said if he didn't marry me, he would learn on his own.