Greetings from a Sunny Island

[HappyMinimalist]

DH and I have plans to ER in 2020 but it is hard to talk about it with friends who have a different take on life. Imagine my pleasure at happening upon this site with so many like-minded people! We worry about not socking away enough to make it to the end so it is heartening to read about folks who have taken the leap and thrived.
Just a short intro- DH is 51 and I am 49. Technically DH is the one who will ER in 2020 since I have been a SAHM for past 10 years. Our sunny island is not in the Bahamas, we hail from Singapore on the other side of the globe. Our ER will be self-financed with no SS or pension to speak of. However, we do have a provident fund which takes a certain percentage from his salary with an almost matching contribution from his employer. I will not go into details about our finances as Singapore is a small country and someone we know may read this but suffice to say Firecalc gave us 100% success rate for all scenarios.
We have been planning ER for a couple of years but it has taken on a sense of urgency lately. I have recently recovered from sciatica, this is the second time in as many years but this time it took almost 5 months for the pain to go away. DH's side of the extended family had a death and a broken hip. All these happenings left both of us feeling like time is running out, we want to ER, enjoy our time together, do the things we want to do before one of us gets struck down. I just read what I have written, sorry I seem to have gone overboard on the doom and gloom.

 

[euro]

Welcome to the board, HM! Sounds like you have been doing a lot of homework already. If you really end up getting 100% from FIREcalc the question I have is:" why wait until 2020?". Consider pulling the plug now - time is precious.

 

[HappyMinimalist]

Welcome to the board, HM! Sounds like you have been doing a lot of homework already. If you really end up getting 100% from FIREcalc the question I have is:" why wait until 2020?". Consider pulling the plug now - time is precious.

Thanks for the welcome, euro!

2020 is when our only DD goes off to college, we plan to send her to a university overseas so we can be freed up to travel. DH's current situation also gave us some incentive to hang around, his employer may be putting the business up for sale so DH could stand to get a payout should the new boss decide not to keep him.

 

[brucethebroker]

Welcome aboard!
I agree with euro, why wait?

We have found the same with some friends. Many do not think they can retire until age 70, if ever. Just work your plan and later you can invite them to fly over and visit.

Good luck!

 

[HappyMinimalist]

Thanks, Bruce, my reasons for not pulling the trigger was posted just before yours. It's true though, why wait when we already have our ducks in a row. Gotta have a think about it.

 

[Nemo2]

I have recently recovered from sciatica, this is the second time in as many years but this time it took almost 5 months for the pain to go away.

Been there, had that......hope you're seeing a physiotherapist, and continuing to do the exercises.....all the best!

(Have only been to Singapore once, and that was 54 years ago, but we met up with a fellow from there on our last trip, he did the Puerto Limon - Lisbon leg....an ex-banker...nice guy.)

 

[HappyMinimalist]

Been there, had that......hope you're seeing a physiotherapist, and continuing to do the exercises.....all the best!

(Have only been to Singapore once, and that was 54 years ago, but we met up with a fellow from there on our last trip, he did the Puerto Limon - Lisbon leg....an ex-banker...nice guy.)

Yes, I'm doing the exercises religiously, 15 mins twice a day. If I know I'm going to be sitting for a prolonged period of time, hairdresser's, dentist's or flights, I would bring along a small cushion for lumbar support.
Gosh, 54 years is a lifetime ago! Singapore was still part of the Federation then. Time to plan a visit to Singapore, maybe as part of a South East Asian tour?

 

[Red Badger]

Welcome HM & DH!

I retired last month, and mentally, it was like a parachute jump. But, I do have some contingency plans in the highly unlikely event that things falter (sort of like a reserve chute).

My last professional project was in, wait for it, Singapore! Definitely a HCOL area (except for the awesome food hawker stalls)! Getting a plate of authentic Asian food (from most all countries) for about 4$ US was pretty amazing.

It was also, by far, the safest large city that I have ever visited. Loved walking the quay - even a 4 AM, it was vibrant- - - and safe.

Enjoy your "team" retirement and try to avoid OMY syndrome. It was "coaching" here that convinced me not to stick around mega-corp any longer. It was good counsel.

 

[Nemo2]

Time to plan a visit to Singapore, maybe as part of a South East Asian tour?

So many places to visit/revisit....so little time (left).....we're doing our best.

 

[HappyMinimalist]

Welcome HM & DH!

I retired last month, and mentally, it was like a parachute jump. But, I do have some contingency plans in the highly unlikely event that things falter (sort of like a reserve chute).

My last professional project was in, wait for it, Singapore! Definitely a HCOL area (except for the awesome food hawker stalls)! Getting a plate of authentic Asian food (from most all countries) for about 4$ US was pretty amazing.

It was also, by far, the safest large city that I have ever visited. Loved walking the quay - even a 4 AM, it was vibrant- - - and safe.

Enjoy your "team" retirement and try to avoid OMY syndrome. It was "coaching" here that convinced me not to stick around mega-corp any longer. It was good counsel.

Congratulations on your ER! A parachute jump is exactly how I'd imagine ER to be, you take a leap out of an airplane when there is nothing mechanically wrong with the airplane, you just don't want to go where the plane is going. Does that make sense?
Where did you go that you had to shell out 4 USD for hawker fare? Newton? If you go to the hawker centres in the heartland you'd pay just 2.50 USD for your one dish meal.
I know for certain DH will have that OMY syndrome. We originally planned for his last day to be in May 2020 to coincide with his birthday. Now he's saying July because he needs to put the quarterly report to bed.

 

[Red Badger]

Congratulations on your ER! A parachute jump is exactly how I'd imagine ER to be, you take a leap out of an airplane when there is nothing mechanically wrong with the airplane, you just don't want to go where the plane is going. Does that make sense?
Where did you go that you had to shell out 4 USD for hawker fare? Newton? If you go to the hawker centres in the heartland you'd pay just 2.50 USD for your one dish meal.
I know for certain DH will have that OMY syndrome. We originally planned for his last day to be in May 2020 to coincide with his birthday. Now he's saying July because he needs to put the quarterly report to bed.

Makes perfect sense! And, like US Army airborne school, once one understands the fundamentals of parachuting, there little to fear - same analogy applies to retirement.

My mega-corp base camp was the Grand Compthorne, so I was stuck in a touristy area. The nearby hawker stalls were a welcome respite from the pricey digs (and usually mediocre food) along the quay. I tremendously enjoyed the low $$ as well as the authenticity of the cuisine of the nearby hawkers. I also hope they don't get squeezed out by larger commercial interests (was a fair amount of angst about that from what I heard / read).

I extended my date about two months so I could deliver a completed project to the production team. That allowed me to depart on a "high note" and avoid a project hand-off to a different project manager.

Best wishes on your FIRE journey!

 

[eastnortheast]

Welcome - Singapore is a great place. Had the pleasure of working there, and have visited there a number of times while in the region.

This board is very welcoming and a lot of great advice to be found here.

 

[HappyMinimalist]

Thank you so much for the welcome!

I agree this is a great place for help and information. People around me talk about early retirement as though it's as unlikely as encountering a unicorn whereas people on this forum take steps to make it happen.

 

[Koolau]

Welcome to the forum. We look forward to hearing of your adventures.

 

[latexman]

Welcome aboard. My wife, oldest daughter, and I lived in Singapore 1993-1995. I worked as an expat. We really enjoyed life there. I have fond memories of "pepper crab" at East Coast Seafood, strolls down Orchard Blvd, the "la", Singha beer, and many other things. My wife and I look forward to visiting there when we are empty nesters and retired.

 

[HappyMinimalist]

Welcome aboard. My wife, oldest daughter, and I lived in Singapore 1993-1995. I worked as an expat. We really enjoyed life there. I have fond memories of "pepper crab" at East Coast Seafood, strolls down Orchard Blvd, the "la", Singha beer, and many other things. My wife and I look forward to visiting there when we are empty nesters and retired.

Thanks for the welcome, sorry I haven't been on here what with some drama going on in my life.
Please do come back to Singapore when you are retired and perhaps stay awhile. The place is still a-changing, new train lines are now being built, when you visit again in a few years' time, everywhere will be walking distance to a train station.

 

[kcowan]

I worked in Kuala Lumpur for several years and love the whole peninsula. You cannot go far wrong moving back. And a short hop to Bali too.

 

[CoolRich59]

Our sunny island is not in the Bahamas, we hail from Singapore on the other side of the globe.

Welcome aboard HappyMinimalist.

I had the chance to have a short visit in Singapore several years ago (full day layover). I happened to strike up a conversation with someone else on my flight who'd visited Singapore before and tagged along with him for the day to see the sights.

What a beautiful place with so much to do and see. While it's unlikely, I would love to come back someday for several days.