Random Thoughts in These Unusual Times

Random Thoughts in These Unusual Times

20 Comments / General Thoughts, Life in Early Retirement, Panama / By / March 30, 2020

Random thoughts everyone… get ’em here while they’re hot!  I decided to make this week’s post a little different. Times are crazy right now.  With the COVID-19/Coronavirus pandemic wreaking havoc, it’s surreal to think about how so many folks throughout the entire world are at home right now.  Some are self-isolating while others are being required to be in lockdown. Regardless, I don’t know of a time like this in this modern age.  This is something new to the world.  …

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My Home Workout during the Lockdown in Panama

6 Comments / Health and Fitness, Life in Early Retirement, Panama / By / March 26, 2020

I’m usually not a fan of the home workout because I don’t feel like I’m getting a strong enough workout in… not enough bang for the buck so to speak.  It also doesn’t help having distractions around (kids, anyone?) so it tends to take much longer. I recently talked about how I’ve been on a roll going to the gym here.  Even since that post, I started adding a little more variety into my regiment and changed how I was …

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The Recession - The Ultimate Test for Early Retirees

The Recession – The Ultimate Test for Early Retirees

30 Comments / Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), Investments / By / March 24, 2020

Well boys and girls, like it or not, we’re soon to be in a recession – if we’re not there already. The COVID-19/Coronavirus pandemic appears to be the black swan event that became the catalyst for the downfall of one heckuva long bull market. To try to contain the virus and flatten the curve, many businesses were ordered to shut down temporarily.  In many places, bars, wineries, breweries, and restaurants (sometimes with the exception of takeout or delivery) were forced …

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My 2¢ on the Coronavirus, Stock Market, and Other Fun

22 Comments / General Thoughts, Investments / By / March 16, 2020

Well, folks, between the fear of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the roller coaster of a stock market, life has really changed for us all in the blink of an eye.  For some, it may be some minor inconveniences and for others, it could be a real punch in the face. I initially wasn’t going to write a post on this because I figured that everyone and their brother are already on it.  However, sometimes it’s good to hear different perspectives.  …

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A Beach Vacation Totaling $405? Yes, Please!

A Beach Vacation Totaling $405? Yes, Please!

18 Comments / Life in Early Retirement, Panama, Travel and Vacation / By / March 7, 2020

Who doesn’t love a good beach vacation?! The magnificence of the ocean in both sound and sight is something I could just take in forever.  Throw in some sand, palm trees, and a couple of drinks and it’s hard to beat that tropical atmosphere! I’m used to going on a beach vacation every year or two with family or friends.  It’s an awesome, but expensive trip to look forward to that I’m sure many of you are familiar with doing. …

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Finder Interviewed Me about the FIRE Movement!

Leave a Comment / Guest Posts, Podcasts and Other Appearances / By / March 4, 2020

I’m excited to share that I was just interviewed on Finder! If you’re not familiar, Finder.com runs the popular site that helps others make better life decisions.  Whether it’s finding a new credit card, buying a home, or getting health insurance. I was actually surprised to see how many different areas Finder provides help with.  They currently have over 50 categories with comparisons and guides.  On top of it, all the information is free, which we all know is my …

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Only You Can Change Your Life… Seriously!

20 Comments / Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), Health and Fitness, Motivation, Panama / By / March 2, 2020

Only you can change your life.  Only you can change you. I was jogging back from the gym the other day and it reminded me of something.  I absolutely hate going to the gym.  I’ve talked about it before, but I do – I hate it. So then why do I do it? Because I want to be a better me. That’s it.  That’s the only reason.  It would be so much easier to sit on the couch and drink …

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Net Income on Our Duplex Last Year… Negative $7,400!!

18 Comments / Investments, Real Estate, Self-Employment, Taxes and Financial Planning / By / February 27, 2020

I might not be the smartest businessman, but I keep thinking that a negative net income in regards to your rental property for the year is not good. And just over $7,400 in the red makes it so much worse! Ouch, what the hell happened?! This duplex was supposed to be another stream of income that would help level out the bumps from rockiness in the stock market over the coming years.  Last year though, proved to be a particularly …

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What’s It REALLY Like to Live in a Foreign Country?

30 Comments / Geoarbitrage, Life in Early Retirement, Panama, Travel and Vacation / By / February 18, 2020

We’ve now been living in a foreign country for six months.  If you’re not familiar, we moved to Panama in August of 2019. We had visited the country in the summer of 2017 as a sort of recon mission along with my brother and sister-in-law.  Don’t worry, we had plenty of fun while there, but the real goal was to determine if we could see ourselves actually living there. The cities we scoped out included Nueva Gorgona, Coronado, El Valle …

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Is FIRE the Finish Line or Just the Beginning?

22 Comments / Financial Independence / Retire Early (FIRE), Life in Early Retirement, Motivation, Self-Employment / By / February 11, 2020

Looking back on my own path to financial independence, I treated the whole thing like a race in my mind.  Reaching the finish line was the utmost important goal. As I continued to make more money every year through raises, I saved more and more.  But the other side of the equation is cutting expenses… and cut expenses we did! In my mind, if it wasn’t a necessity, I really had to think about if it made sense to spend …

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