Spending

We’re on a Bus to Costa Rica Right Now! Here’s Why…

We’re on a Bus to Costa Rica Right Now! Here’s Why…

14 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), Life in Early Retirement, Panama, Spending / By /

You read that right… I’m typing this entire blog post while on a bus to Costa Rica. We took a taxi from our home in Boquete, Panama to David (also in Panama). Then we got on a Tracopa bus around 9 am that’s taking us all the way to San José, Costa Rica. By the time it’s done, we’ll have been on this bus to Costa Rica for probably 8-9 hours. You might think of this as a grueling day, …

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Is This Down Stock Market Problematic as an Early Retiree?

Is This Down Stock Market Problematic as an Early Retiree?

25 Comments / Investments, Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), Spending, Taxes and Financial Planning / By /

A down stock market? Is that true? Yeah, unless you haven’t been paying attention, the market’s been on a not-so-fun ride lately in the direction that most folks tend to fear. Most of last week was a stressful week for investors. By the end of the day Wednesday, 02/23/2022, all gains in the S&P 500 since 06/21/2021 had been completely erased. Thursday and Friday produced a pretty big uptick but not enough to compensate for the downward spiral the beginning …

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Stop Counting Pennies and Focus on the Dollars

Stop Counting Pennies and Focus on the Dollars

33 Comments / Spending, Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), Saving / By /

I have this problem where I’m always counting pennies in my head. Not literally, but rather that I’m always conscientious of all our spending… to a fault. Don’t get me wrong, being mindful of what you’re spending is a good thing. If you don’t know what you’re spending, it can become very difficult to get ahead. The problem, however, is that counting pennies isn’t as important as focusing on the bigger money. In other words, saving a few extra dollars …

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Going to the Movies in Panama: 5 Interesting Lessons Learned

Going to the Movies in Panama: 5 Interesting Lessons Learned

6 Comments / Panama, Life in Early Retirement, Spending, Travel and Vacation / By /

I’ve always been a little curious about going to the movies in Panama. How much different would it be from going to the movies in the U.S.? Are there subtitles in English or Spanish? Are the movies dubbed over in Spanish? Is it cheaper than what we’re used to seeing? What is the experience like in the theater – are the Panamanians talkers during the movie? We’ve lived in Boquete, Panama since 2019 and only finally went to see our …

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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 /

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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One of the Best Money Books I've Ever Read

One of the Best Money Books I’ve Ever Read

14 Comments / Product and Service Reviews, Debt, Education, Saving, Spending / By /

I just finished one of the best money books I’ve ever read. It’s vastly different than other books I’ve read over the years… and that’s a good thing. Alternating between reading fiction, non-fiction money-related books, and non-fiction books unrelated to finance works well for me. I love learning new takes on money but I don’t want to become completely absorbed in it. I also want some time for fiction to take me away periodically and allow my imagination to take …

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We’re Saving Over $800 on Our Trip to Mexico… Here’s the Plan

We’re Saving Over $800 on Our Trip to Mexico… Here’s the Plan

12 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Life in Early Retirement, Panama, Saving, Spending / By /

Moving back to the U.S. from Boquete, Panama next spring is going to be bittersweet. But we’re excited about our new adventures to come… starting with a trip to Mexico on the way back! It’s still hard for us to grasp that we’re not locked into doing the “normal” type of vacations anymore. Since we’re early-retired and Faith’s homeschooling, we have the ability to slow travel or just make up new paths in life on the fly. In this case, …

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We Don’t Need More Money... But I Want It!

We Don’t Need More Money… But I Want It!

40 Comments / Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), General Thoughts, Investments, Life in Early Retirement, Saving, Spending / By /

The guiding principle of the Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE) movement is to get to the point in life where you have enough and don’t need more money to cover your expenses. Once you pull that off, you’re golden. You’re now financially independent and never have to work another day in life again… if you don’t want to. It sounds great, right? And for someone that pulled it off at the age of 43 a couple of years ago, …

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Tigo Just Made International Travel Easier

Tigo Just Made International Travel Easier

12 Comments / Panama, Spending, Travel and Vacation / By /

Tigo made a new change recently and it’s something that can make life easier for those on some of their cell phone plans. If you do a lot of travel back and forth between different countries like we do, you might be familiar with the SIM card juggling you need to do (unless you have a dual-SIM phone). In the U.S., you can use a service such as Google FI or T-Mobile to give you free roaming in other countries. …

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Our Travel Perks Are Drying Up and That’s Big $$$!

Our Travel Perks Are Drying Up and That’s Big $$$!

11 Comments / Travel and Vacation, Life in Early Retirement, Spending / By /

Between free flights and hotels, zipping through security and customs, or relaxing in airline lounges, travel perks can be such a wonderful asset. And without a doubt, I love every bit of ’em! Over the years, we built up a nice stash of these things just by being strategic in our credit card spending. They’ve not only helped to make our travel more comfortable but also a lot cheaper or completely free. Well, it’s been a few years, but our …

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