Product and Service Reviews

Masterfully Crafted: How ChatGPT Wrote a Compelling Article on the Power of Saving and Investing

Masterfully Crafted: How ChatGPT Wrote a Compelling Article on the Power of Saving and Investing

23 Comments / Blogging, Here's Why I'm Liking..., Investments, Product and Service Reviews, Saving / By / January 22, 2023

I’m both excited and scared about the concept of Artificial intelligence (AI) including ChatGPT, which is currently all over the technology news. The technical and engineering side of my brain is fascinated by the whole idea. The potential of artificial intelligence growing up and being able to make our lives easier in different aspects is incredible. We have 3 of those Google Nest Minis in our apartment (we got 1 for free and paid $1 each for the other 2). …

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We Got the Chase United Explorer Card… Again. Boom! Easy Free Travel!

We Got the Chase United Explorer Card… Again. Boom! Easy Free Travel!

6 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Product and Service Reviews, Spending / By / February 14, 2023

We just applied for (and got) the Chase United Explorer credit card. This time around it’s in Lisa’s name (my wife). What’s funny is that I really don’t think this is the best travel rewards card out there for a lot of people. There are so many choices and some others can actually be a better bang for the buck depending on your needs. For some reason though, we’ve come back to this card more than any other. I believe …

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Atomic Habits – The Powerful Keys to Making Changes That Stick

Atomic Habits – The Powerful Keys to Making Changes That Stick

14 Comments / Motivation, Education, Health and Fitness, Here's Why I'm Liking..., Life in Early Retirement, Product and Service Reviews / By / October 31, 2022

When I reached early retirement at the end of 2018, I gained the one big gift I was looking for in life… more time and freedom. That’s a true blessing, my friends, and I try not to squander it. I strive to use some of that “super power” to push myself to become a better person – both physically and mentally. Change is hard, but I like it. It’s easy just to continue rolling forward while doing the same old …

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Is It Worth It to Open a Credit Card With a Huge Annual Fee?

Is It Worth It to Open a Credit Card With a Huge Annual Fee?

8 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Life in Early Retirement, Product and Service Reviews, Spending / By / September 25, 2022

Yeah, this was something I was initially against. Why on earth would anyone pay that much money to open a credit card?! After several years of thinking that way, I’ve since changed my mind. And I recently applied for and got a credit card with a $395 annual fee!! It was something that we’d never done before. Premium cards like this are expensive and they never seemed worthwhile to us. Sure you get some good perks with them, but could …

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This Set of Dumbbells Is So Good That My Cheap @#$ Just Spent $300 on Them!

This Set of Dumbbells Is So Good That My Cheap @#$ Just Spent $300 on Them!

20 Comments / Health and Fitness, Here's Why I'm Liking..., Life in Early Retirement, Motivation, Product and Service Reviews, Spending / By / November 10, 2022

Working out is something I’ve made a priority in my life since reaching early retirement at the end of 2018. I’ve worked out at home, done different gyms, and even bought an over-priced set of dumbbells in the U.S. while we were living in Panama just so I’d have something to use when visiting. Now that we’re back in the U.S. to live, I needed to figure out what I’d use for my workouts here. I initially planned to use …

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The #1 Best Way To Track Credit Card Rewards

The #1 Best Way To Track Credit Card Rewards

8 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Here's Why I'm Liking..., Product and Service Reviews / By / February 14, 2023

We’ve been leveraging credit card travel rewards for several years now. It’s given us the ability to travel the world either for free or very inexpensively. The biggest hurdle though is figuring out a good way to track credit card rewards. I wrote in my post, Travel Rewards, 12 Free Flights Earned in 9 Months!, that I had created a spreadsheet to track credit card rewards for ourselves. I use it all the time and it’s a freebie I share …

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Taking Stock – A Breath of Fresh Air on the Path to Financial Independence

Taking Stock – A Breath of Fresh Air on the Path to Financial Independence

4 Comments / Product and Service Reviews, Education, Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE) / By / August 26, 2022

Several months ago, Jordan Grumet asked me if I’d like to read an advance copy of his new book, Taking Stock: A Hospice Doctor’s Advice on Financial Independence, Building Wealth, and Living a Regret-Free Life. I met Jordan at the personal finance conference FinCon a number of years ago. He was such a likable guy, interesting to talk to, and very insightful. That could also be why he’s run a successful podcast for years now. It’s called the Earn & …

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Planning a Road Trip… Learning From 3 Simple Mistakes

Planning a Road Trip… Learning From 3 Simple Mistakes

12 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Life in Early Retirement, Product and Service Reviews, Spending / By / July 5, 2022

In 2020, we bought a 2012 Honda Pilot and took off across the country for over a month. Even though we were planning a road trip this big, we didn’t focus too much on every detail. Instead, the goal was simple – take advantage of the less empty roads and sites during the pandemic and tour the country. Sometimes we’d sleep in the back of the Pilot, other times we’d do some tent camping, and periodically we could stay the …

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Why I Now Consider Visible To Be the Best Cell Phone Provider

Why I Now Consider Visible To Be the Best Cell Phone Provider

33 Comments / Product and Service Reviews, Here's Why I'm Liking..., Saving / By / July 27, 2022

The good news is that when you’re trying to find the best cell phone provider, you have several good options to choose from. The bad news is that the most well-known carriers are generally stupidly over-priced and they tend to nickel and dime you for everything. What many people don’t realize, however, is that you have other options. You can move to a provider where you can get the same exact coverage for a fraction of the cost. This is …

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The #1 Easy Way We’re Getting the Southwest Companion Pass

The #1 Easy Way We’re Getting the Southwest Companion Pass

8 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Product and Service Reviews, Spending / By / February 14, 2023

The Southwest Companion Pass is considered by many to be the holy grail of travel rewards. By letting you bring along a second person for free on all Southwest flights (except for a few dollars in tax), it can be a huge money-saver! Not only that, but the airline makes the Southwest Companion Pass extremely easy to use. It’s simply a matter of booking a reservation and once confirmed, tacking on your companion to it after. We’ve had the Companion …

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