My last day or work was in April of 2017, almost 8 years ago (!!!). Life has been pretty great, but it isn’t the Instagram version that you see influencers and media outlets bleeting about.
Our kids keep us mostly in Longmont. They’re in public schools (after home-schooling during COVID, there’s NO way I’d sign on for that again!). They also have busy lives with friends, sports, and school related activities. Because we’re geographically limited, our lives are more conventional than some FI folks who don’t have kids.
While all of that stuff on Instagram looks sexy and cool, it’s not where the base value of FI is. FI allows you to be:
- Resilient: If something breaks, I have the time to deal with it. It’s great being able to fix a dryer, complete home projects, and deal with the DMV without being stressed.
- Present: I can attend all of my kids’ events and volunteer whenever the school needs help. Mindy and I take long walks every day.
- Fit: I let myself go while I worked. It’s easy to not go to the gym when life gets busy. But now that I’m liberated from formal employment, I often go to the gym for 2 hours or go for a 6 hour hike in the middle of the day. I feel great.
- Helpful: I was able to jump in the car when my dad was dying and drive 800 miles at a moment’s notice.
And sometimes, these attributes are complementary. Because of a horribly planned addition (the roof slope on the right in the photo below), it was raining in my mom’s house. The water would flow down the roof and hit a wall. The horrible people who built the addition filled the junction with about 20 tubes of caulk. Just like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park, water will find a way and it did.
The rain would get into a wall and soak wiring which would then trip circuits. NOT good! Because I had the time and skills, I was able to jump in the car with a trunkload of tools and build a cricket:
I always make sure to get some fun in too. San Diego is a quick trip from Las Vegas, so after the roof was fixed, I went to San Diego and visited friends Jeremy Schneider (Need money help? Check out his CFP service, Nectarine) and Fiology David.
On the way back, I stopped at Indian Wells and saw my first tennis matches (the match between Arthur Fils and Danil Medvedev was outstanding!).
On The Cusp
But now our kids are 18 and 15. In less than 4 years, we’ll be empty nesters. At that time, we’ll be able to let loose with some bigger adventures:
- Big Walk: I’d love to do a very long walk. One of those trails like the Camino de Santiago where you don’t have to worry about food and and lodging sound awesome (Sleep is a challenge and I don’t need to make it any worse by camping!)
- Language Learning: I was a lousy Spanish student. Dunno why. I just didn’t take to it. I wish I had. But it’s not too late. Learning a language would be useful and it’s also great brain exercise.
- Repositioning cruise (digital detox): Many cruise boats spend diffeent seasons in different parts of the world. For example, some will spend winter in Mexico and summer in Alaska. Twice a year, the ship repositions. The cruise line still wants to sell space on the boat, so you can take these cruises at a discounted price. I think it would be awesome to spend a lot of time on a boat with just books and a laptop. No internet!
- Meditation retreat. The Hoffman Process was a great reset for my mental health. I’d like to try other setting changes.
- Live in different cities for a month or even a season. Instead of rushed trips, we’ll live in other places for at least a month.
- Themed trips. I’d like to do some extended trips with a purpose:
- Frank Lloyd Wright (FLW) road trip: FLW was one of the greatest American architects. While I’m not a fan of all of his designs, I like how he pushed the boundaries.
- Friends: I’m so fortunate to have friends all over the country and world. Thanks blog and FI community!
- Pacific Coast Highway (PCH): Spending time near the ocean never gets old. I’d love to drive or bike down the PCH.
- Tennis: Seeing a professional tennis match in person was really great. Perhaps we’ll travel the world to see others.
- National Parks: So much beauty to see in the world.
But being home too is really good too. We have a great network of folks in and around Longmont. Thanks MMM HQ! I enjoy weekly hikes and pot lucks at HQ with friends. And Colorado is a beautiful state with a lot to do. We can see Rocky Mountain National Park from Longmont.
And my life works better with a routine. And even a loose routine is easier to maintain at home.
So I see life post-kids looking like this: Mindy and I will have some bigger adventures, but carefully balance them with time at home. Perhaps we’ll build our travels around the temperature. I’m not a fan of the Colorado heat that sets in July through September, so maybe we’ll get out of town then.
FI Life has been great, just in a different way than some might expect. I’ve been able to spend considerable time with my children and that’s been incredible. In the end, it all comes down to having autonomy over your time. Even a full-time job is much easier to tolerate when you don’t have to do it for the money anymore.
Evolving With FI
It’s wicked to wish your days away. – Stephen King
It drives me pretty crazy when I hear people say things like this:
Only 873 more days until I hit my goal and can retire!
And I’M THE ONE typing on my 1500 Days To Freedom blog! It seemed like a good idea at the time. *sigh*
Life will be great when ____ mentality caused me to live in the future, hoping a big pile of money would make life great. It certainly made life better, but I overemphasized its importance. Money will solve money problems.
Make The Most Of Life Of It
So, I’ve come to this:
FI is great, but…. I thought that money would make me happy. You’re still the same person, just with a bigger number. Of course, you can (and should) use the money to work on yourself.
Enjoy your life wherever you’re at. If you still have a job and it sucks, find a different one. If you hate where you live, move. It’s not worth staying in a bad situation just to get to FI faster.
Always view life through a lens of gratitude. If nothing else, it’s great to be alive. (Consider the alternative!) I remind myself of this every morning. Before I even go for my morning pee, I open the shades, gaze out at the world, and give thanks. And then I quickly make my way to the bathroom before my bladder explodes.
If it takes longer, so what. I once talked to some people who wanted to install a pool and were asking if they should spend the money. They stated that while the pool was expensive, their children were young and loved to swim. They looked forward to the pool becoming a neighborhood gathering place. They were OK with it taking a little longer to retire. They were surprised when I enthusiastically supported the pool idea. My thought was this: On the surface, they were buying a hole filled with water in their backyard. But much more importantly, they were buying two decades of awesome memories. It would be a great use of money and the window to do it was limited.
I’m in Cincinnati at EconoMe, getting ready to head out for the first big event. If you’re here, stop by and say “Hi!” If not, perhaps I’ll see you around Longmont or some other corner of the world.
More 1500 Days!!!
You can also find me (and the dinosaurs) at:
