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Here's the story. Due to deteriorating eyesight in her left eye, DW has not driven in almost 3 years. Her stated major reason for this is her inability to determine the precise location of the car in a lane, especially at night. Her vision has been cleared by her opthalmologist and the state as...

DW and I recently bought our "retirement home"and today we received the insurance company's estimate of the new homes "replacement cost". This has got me thinking about the appropriateness of the replacement cost approach to homeowner's insurance. In our current home, I think that it makes...

Hey all, we spend a lot of time talking about life expectancy and how it might be "different now" . Often this involves financial planning, sometimes health issues and even, on occasion, philosophy. I think that the single best discussion of life expectancy changes in the developed world is...

Hey all, we just got back from a month away from home, including three weeks in Hawaii. The thing that struck me was just how much I missed engaging in two of my hobbies that require sizable "toys". It just isn't practical to drag a harpsichord and a telescope along on an airplane. How do those...

DW and I have been discussing where we might want to settle when she finally decides to retire. She came up with the idea of splitting our time between the Big Island of Hawaii (winters) and somewhere on the mainland.* Since we have a 3 week trip to the Big Island coming up (our 3rd trip there)...

Last time I saw DD#2 we spent a little time talking about savings, investing, and early retirement. SIL brought up the "won the game" metaphor - he's a regular reader of some early retirement blogs. So, we talked about where we felt we were in the "retirement game." For some reason basketball...

I always enjoy others' posts on their freedom anniversaries so I thought I would burden you with another of mine. I'm not promising a great deal of coherence, more a brain dump of random thoughts. I will start with the startlingly obvious comment that retirement is infinitely better than w*rk...

I enjoy reading about all of the hobbies that people are enjoying in their retirement. I've been thinking, a very dangerous thing DW tells me, that I have some hobbies that I would characterize as "high maintenance". If I don't participate in them regularly, they cease to be fun because I...

Do any of you have any experiences with oil royalties, especially selling them? DW's grandfather had many small royalty holdings on wells in OK and TX. These are increasingly becoming a pain the patootie. When he dies, they were split up and passed on to DW's mom, DW and DW's brother. Then...

Because we have a lot of DIYers on this list, I thought this topic might appeal. What are some examples of just downright weird, goofy, or almost implausibly shoddy home repairs that you've come across? I know that none of you would have perpetrated any of the examples, but you might have come...

Haven't seen a thread on this aspect of Class reunions. I just received an invite for my 40th HS class reunion. There is almost nothing that could get me to go, not even the bargain basement pricing - $38.50 per person. This includes Dinner, Soft Drinks, Beer and Dessert at one of my...

While reading the thread on meal preparation services I was intrigued by some of the hints that cooks were dropping about their meal preparation process and some of the attitudes that people seemed to be expressing about the relationship of grocery shopping to meal preparation. So, I guess...

OK, a lot of you answered in the what is your wallet thread, but let's see just where ER people carry their wallets. Mine is in my left back pocket. Cell phone in left front, keys in right front. Right back pocket is reserved for golf scorecard on the course.

As many have observed, one of the great luxuries of retirement is being able to run errands when others are at w*rk. However, it takes some time to learn the local behaviors. I've noticed a few things about Northern Virginia that strike me as odd after spending the first 47 years of my life in...

This week saw a significant increase in my social life what with a quick visit from one of DW's high school friends and the on-site delivery of the products from my 100 hour per year side gig. As a result I hit something of an ER conversational trifecta: DW's friend started the ball rolling...

My BIL's 60th birthday is coming up and DW wants me to make him a gift. In 1983, DW and BIL's grandfather had a professionally produced recording made of his piano playing. We seem to have the only copy, on cassette tape, of course. I've transferred the tape to digital format, but am wondering...

Had a eureka moment, thanks to W2R, when reading the ongoing rural/small town thread. I thought that this was incredibly insightful and I didn't want to hijack that thread so... What is it that makes your COMMUNITY feel like home to you? How long did it take for you to settle in? What made...

I've been following a few recent threads about health issues and didn't want to hijack them. DW is 56 and has had a lupus diagnosis for about 15 years. Up until about 12 months ago, she really didn't have any severe issues - an occasional flare and some constant (minor) joint pain. However...

OK, because I have seen a number of odd requests for help addressed to this group I will add one of my own. For reasons that escape me, my older daughter has gotten herself appointed to a community landlord-tenant relations board. :facepalm: I would like to give her a book for Christmas along...

Has anyone else seen oddball changes to the Fidelity homepage/login process? For the last few days the "Today's Market" update on the homepage is showing me the S&P percentage change to 6 decimals. I didn't realize I needed to know it that precisely. Also, for the past few days, when I log...

We've been streaming internet radio through our Amazon Echo and PC but we are beginning to think that a dedicated piece of hardware would be better for the kitchen/living area. Searching ER.org site, I haven't found a recent discussion of internet radio hardware. I have one friend who uses an...

Hey gang, DW and I have been talking over what we might be wanting in a location once she retires in a few years. So the other night we each, separately, created a list of what we would like out of our home situation over the next 10-15 years (until our early 70's). The good news is that the...

That was the subject line on the email I sent DW this morning. We had a really busy weekend and she had no time to go to Giant to buy the loss leaders that are the only reason we shop there. I do most of shopping at Aldi. So last night she made up a list and said, I quote, "I tried to keep it...

This week marks two years since I hung up the yoke. A few reflections on this past year and thoughts about the future. Some observations on this past year: 1) There is such a thing as too much golf for me. 2015 saw about 150 rounds (and that was with a six-week layoff with shingles). In 2016...

Sometimes I am easily amazed. I placed an order with Oxford University Press Tuesday night and the item was delivered to me this afternoon about 3:30. It was a $25 dollar item and shipping was only $9. Picked out of the warehouse, flown across the Atlantic and to my door in approximately 70...