The Month Of Auckland: February 2025 Recap

by A Purple Life, posted in Blogging, Early Retirement, Early Retirement Updates, Film, Finance, Fitness, Food, Hobbies, Keto, Net Worth Update, Taxes, Travel

Hello and welcome to this month’s edition of Where In The World Is Purple 😉 ! This month I’m writing this while looking at local New Zealand birds frolicking in the leaves of thousand year old trees. The world is wild y’all 🙂 . So let’s get into what I got up to this month!

I Moved To New Zealand🇳🇿!

Auckland specifically 🙂 . As I mentioned a while ago, I was already going to go to Japan in March, but after adding visiting Japan in January to my calendar to help my Mom out, I realized that it would be a bit silly to go back to the US for a month only to come back across the world.

Also my Partner understandably said he didn’t want to not see me for months on end so he suggested us meeting “in the middle” which we then decided was New Zealand🤣. Despite the incorrect geographic knowledge (NZ is not “in the middle” of Japan and NYC), this plan worked out nicely because when I visited Auckland in 2023 without my Partner, I thought he would absolutely love it and wanted to share it with him.

This city reminds me of Seattle (a city we both love) in a lot of ways. It’s also mostly surrounded by water and is a hilly haven of unique coffee shops and delicious restaurants that often feature fresh fish. So we’re living in Auckland for 6 weeks and having a fantastic time.

It also doesn’t hurt that New Zealand is obviously in the Southern Hemisphere and has opposite seasons to the US, so we’ve been chilling in the summer sunshine instead of freezing our balls off in Upstate NY 🙂 . I’m behind on posting my excursions and food adventures on Instagram as usual, but feel free to check out my Auckland posts and stories (there’s a saved “Auckland🇳🇿” story highlight) to see what I’ve been up to.

After this, I will head back to Japan to meet up with some college friends, but this time my Partner will be in tow and I can show him what I love about that country as well.

I Did My Taxes

I keep telling myself that I’ll just “input the numbers” for my taxes, but not actually finish the process or file them. And I’ve proven myself a liar every time 🙂 . I once again used TaxAct to file my taxes for free because of a deal they have with the IRS. If you are between age 20-58 (or active military) and have an AGI of less than $84K, they’ll let you eFile your federal taxes for free. There are other companies that the IRS partners with that also offer free federal and state tax returns at certain incomes.

So I ‘accidentally’ completed my taxes. In 2024, my investment moves looked like this:

And I paid $0 in taxes on all of that investment income. The tax code really does favor investors 🙂 . And here are the posts I’ve written about the processes above:

However, I do owe about $400 in taxes, but that’s on the money I accidentally made last year (see the post below for details). A fair price to pay 🙂 . And obviously I set up my tax filing to not take that money from my account until right before the April 15th deadline because I’m petty like that 😉 .

But wait, there’s more! This year there was a small hiccup when I filed my taxes. I submitted everything and got the email I’ve always dreaded: my tax filing had been REJECTED. Uh oh! Luckily it was a small issue and it was described specifically in their rejection email, which I appreciated.

I forgot that I had bought a Healthcare Marketplace plan for a few months in 2024 and not just in 2025. Oops! So I had to fill out a form with my Marketplace Assigned-Policy Number, which is only given on Form 1095-A, which is supposed to be sent to you by your insurance marketplace.

Apparently my marketplace had sent me an email about going to their portal to see it, which I found, but when I clicked the link I discovered…their website was down for maintenance. Of course it was 🙂 .

So I went out to eat a delicious Birria Burrito in Auckland with my Partner and luckily by the time we returned, the website was back up and I could download the form I needed. I input my policy number into TaxAct and resubmitted my taxes and got an almost instantaneous email that my tax return was ACCEPTED! Phew!

I’m glad making that change and resubmitting were so easy and I tried not to beat myself up too much about my mistake since this isn’t something I’ve had to deal with previously on my taxes, but it was still stressful for a hot second there 🙂 . So I’m going to pay more attention to random emails from my healthcare marketplace in the future even though it’s usually a document saying something I already know. It wasn’t this time, so I’m going to be more diligent going forward.

I Knitted!

My knitting hobby is getting serious 🙂 . So much so that I think I’m going to write a whole post about the topic and it’s already turning out to be very long and surprisingly similar to my post about how I learned Spanish.

I guess it is similar in that I’m learning a new type of skill, but wow knitting is way more involved than I gave it credit for 🙂 .

So I’ll save my various knitting-breakdowns for that post, but this month I learned a new stitch (Double Rib), a new technique (Switching Needle Sizes) and learned how to Read Stitches finally and was able to go from counting each stitch with my full attention, to being able to watch shows with my Partner while knitting this new stitch.

I originally thought that since almost all knitting is basically two stitches in different configurations, that it would be easy to learn new ones. I was wrong 🙂 .

So now I know better and will be more humble going forward. I discovered that switching between these stitches led to tension issues and that I definitely needed to use Practice Yarn for each new stitch I learn before using any fancy yarn from my travels.

Speaking of fancy yarn, I’ve decided to buy local yarn in all of the countries I go to this year based on what they specialize in! So this was my purchase in New Zealand:

And this is my WIP scarf based on a free pattern of a scarf that was worn in the OG LOTR movies:

I’ll be sure to post the full scarf on Insta when I’m done.

Another fun discovery this month was that I enjoy listening to audiobooks while knitting. I’ve never really gotten into audiobooks, but this might be my in!

I’m listening to Dune and it’s been awesome – the audiobook has music, which I’ve never experienced in an audiobook before. It definitely helps set the mood and immerse me even more into the story. This audiobook is 21 hours long and the book is over 800 pages so there’s a lot of knitting in my future 😉 .

I Hung Out With People

This month involved some of my usual virtual meetups, such as that weekly call with my Mom and Weekly Movie Nights where we watched the below. If you’re curious about my ratings of movies, I have a Letterboxd account here.

  1. What We Do In The Shadows
  2. Transformers One
  3. Sonic the Hedgehog
  4. Taylor Tomlinson: Quarter-Life Crisis
  5. Knives Out
  6. The Menu
  7. The Holdovers

TV Shows

  1. Black Cake
  2. High Potential (S1)
  3. Severance (S1)
  4. Silo (S2)
  5. Invincible (S2)
  6. Homestead Rescue

It’s been a lovely TV show filled month! I finally got to watch the new seasons of Silo and Invincible. I also rewatched High Potential while (semi) patiently waiting for Season 2 and finally got my Partner to watch Severance Season 1 with me in anticipation of Season 2 finishing in March.

I Read 12 Books

Here were my favorite reads this month:

  1. The Myth Of Making It: A Workplace Reckoning by Samhita Mukhopadhyay
  2. Deep End by Ali Hazelwood
  3. On The Mountain by Riley Hart

To see the other books I read this month and my ratings of them, I have a Goodreads account here. Overall I’m pleased with this number. I thought I wouldn’t have time to read much while running all over the world, but it looks like I did 🙂 .

Also my reading challenges in previous years to read different types of books and authors than usual, has resulted in me having more than a dozen new authors that I love and want to read everything they publish.

As a result of that, I have a new release from these authors that I look forward to at least every month as soon as it releases (or before if I’m on the ARC reader team 😉 ). All that to say, my year is packed with books to look forward to and I couldn’t be happier about that 🙂 .

I Wrote 4 Posts

In case you missed it, this month I published the below posts:

  1. I Was Supposed To Retire Today: How FIRE Can Go Better Than Forecast
  2. The Month Of Yuki Matsuri: January 2025 Recap
  3. How I Read 220 Books For $93 In 2024
  4. The Best Video Games I Played In 2024

And in “how is this my life?!” news – another article about me went live on CNBC to celebrate Black History Month:

I also met a reader when I was in Auckland. Hilariously she’s from Germany so I might get to hang with her again when I finally go to Germany in 2027. I’m also working on setting up a meet up with a NZ-based finance blogger before I leave.

In less fun news, I filed a DMCA takedown with the hosting company of a website that stole one of my articles. To do this, I once again went to Hosting Checker to discover the hosting provider and then went to their website to file the takedown request.

My friends over at Dragons On FIRE alerted me to this stolen article, which I very much appreciate. This thievery was particularly egregious because they didn’t even change or remove my links (some of which clearly say “a purple life” or point to my own instagram) or the screenshots I took. If you’re gonna scam, scam better 🙂 . That’s just embarrassing. Unfortunately having my work stolen has become an increasingly frequent occurrence in recent years.

Physical

Sleep

My sleep this month has been good! I was surprised by this since we’re staying in the heart of Auckland and have our windows open for the cool summer breeze, but yeah I’ve been sleeping really well.

The other reason I’m surprised by this is that after my Partner stopped being on vacation, he started working 6am-2pm to align with his meetings with his US-based company and I got up at the same time to support him. This also meant we went to bed quite early, but got up with the sunrise, which I love.

I was surprised by how quickly I got into this groove, but maybe it helped that I was already figuring out this new NZ time zone that’s 4 hours ahead of Japan. I hope this quick acclimation to new time zones continues in the coming months!

Food

The food I ate this month was amazing 🙂 . I didn’t give Auckland enough credit. I wasn’t here that long when I visited at the end of 2023 so I had no idea that Auckland is a food haven.

I can walk a few feet and see 5 unique little coffee shops and several different types of international cuisine that are all DELICIOUS! I also had this wild new-to-me food:

Because of all of this culinary exploration, I didn’t eat keto for most of this month. I was on keto for 39.29% of the month and took 17 days off keto. No regrets 😉 .

Exercise

My exercise routines are going really well! I guess my body really was looking forward to warmth and sunshine 🙂 . I’m back to my Running routine along with Yoga, PT Stretches, Squats, and Meditation. I’m also loving running in NZ in particular. It’s beautiful.

Mental

Learning

So it’s time for my favorite segment: Fun Facts Nobody Asked For! Here’s what I learned and explored this month:

New Zealand

  • New Zealand has a population of 5 million and 1.7 million of those people are in Auckland
  • There are 25 million sheep in New Zealand
  • Given its small population, the size of NZ surprised me when I first visited:
Source
  • I was surprised during this trip to see how New Zealand compares to Japan in size (and I threw the UK in there for fun):
Source
  • Auckland sits on 53 dormant volcanoes and 8 active volcanoes
  • Auckland has more boats per capita than anywhere in the world and Westhaven Marina is the largest yacht marina in the Southern Hemisphere.
  • The Sky Tower in Auckland is the tallest building in the country and it’s not just for sightseeing – you can walk around the edge of it or jump off the top of it with a bungee cord. We saw a few people doing that while walking by. It was scary to watch 🙂
  • New Zealand uses the written indigenous Māori-language everywhere, often without translation, which I thought was surprising and awesome. Here are some common words and phrases:

Aotearoa: New Zealand (meaning “land of the long white cloud”)
Kia Ora: Hello
Ka Kite: Goodbye
Nau Mai, Haere Mai: Welcome

  • I also learned some NZ slang and unique words:

Togs: Swimwear
Green Capsicum: Green pepper

Astronomy

During a night kayaking adventure to see bioluminescence, we also were able to see the Milky Way and several planets (Venus, Jupiter and Mars) along with unique Southern Hemisphere constellations, such as The Southern Cross (Crux) . It was a beautifully clear night and a new experience for me – stargazing while paddling around the ocean at night seeing small bioluminescent creatures light up in response to movement.

Birds

I’ve seen some new birds around Auckland, but my birding list exploded when I visited Tiritiri Matangi Island. Here are the birds I saw this month:

Tūī, North island Robin, White-Fronted Terns, Red-Crowned Parakeet, Pied Shag, Spotted Shag, Yellow-Crowned Parakeet, Rifleman, Bellbird, North Island Saddleback, Kokako, Whitehead, New Zealand Pigeon, Stitchbird/Hihi, South Island Takahe, Fantail, House Sparrow, Kelp Gull, Rock Pigeon, Silver Gull, Spotted Dove, Caspian Tern, Fluttering Shearwater

South Island Takahe – Source

This month I also learned that birds have dialects! This is shown in regional variations in their songs kind of similar to how humans have different accents.

Flora & Fauna

I also saw some other wild things on Tiritiri Matangi, such as the Tuatara, which stayed surprisingly close to me. It’s an ancient reptile (kind of a living dinosaur) that can live to be over 100 years old and if needed, not eat for a year according to my tour guide.

We also saw a Wētāpunga, which is a terrifyingly large insect (don’t Google it if you don’t like bugs!) that luckily is nocturnal so it was asleep when we stumbled upon it on a tree trunk. I’ve never seen a bug that big. We also saw an Auckland Tree Weta, another large insect, as well as Cicadas. And we saw the aftermath of a Puriri Moth that creates diamond shaped holes in trees while they grow for 3-6 years before emerging with wings, but no mouth…which reminds me of the terrifying lifecycle of glowworms.

I also learned about some cool plants, such as Flax, which the Māori used to make ropes and it’s one of the strongest natural fibers on the planet. When European colonizers arrived, they discovered that the Māori ropes made with flax were way stronger than theirs were, so flax became one of their first exports to make stronger ropes.

I also saw Silver Tree Ferns and learned that Māori used to use them to light their way home because their silver color reflects moonlight and seem to glow at night.

Creativity

My creativity this month went really well though my wordiness in retirement continues to be surprising:

But luckily, despite my accidentally increased word count, I’ve still found time to write when I get the urge and meet my every Tuesday deadline. I also seem to be fully recovered from PurpleMas, which is good.

I made a list of all of the posts I want to write this year and it’s already more than the 52 Tuesdays in 2025. Oops! I guess I’ll have to keep writing until I finish my list 😉 .

Emotional

My emotions were good this month. My theory that I’m happier in warm and sunny weather continues to prove true. It’s also been great to explore gorgeous New Zealand and all of its natural wonders, birds and volcanoes. Being in beautiful nature also keeps my spirits high 🙂 as does showing a beautiful country to my Partner for the first time.

Money

What even is money 😉 ? But seriously, I barely think about money anymore and that is beyond wild to me. Instead of counting cents like I did at the beginning of my career in NYC to make sure I could eat that week, it’s not a concern anymore. I have enough that my comfort and convenience comes first over saving a buck.

For example, in New Zealand they’re very transparent about credit card fees. I believe usually those fees are already included in a slightly increased price, but here they make you approve it like an additional transaction. It’s only about 2% of the transaction so not a lot of money at all and it’s in line with what I would pay in the US without realizing it.

But a younger me would immediately be seeking out an ATM to avoid those fees for a little extra change in my pocket. However, this 35 year old me is not 🙂 .

I don’t feel like making sure I spend a certain amount of NZ cash before I leave or even keeping track of cash in my tiny wallet, so I’m just going to pay the fee for the convenience. How far I’ve come 😉 .

When I pay attention to money, I realized that my net worth hit another all-time high earlier this month of $915,041.33 and then I ended the month like this:

Conclusion

And that’s what I got up to in Auckland, New Zealand🇳🇿! It’s been a fantastic time and my Partner loves this country so much he’s already asking when we can come back. So we’ll be back soon NZ 🙂 .

Next up, I’m returning to Japan🇯🇵 with my Partner in tow to watch the Cherry Blossoms bloom. Until next time!

If you’re interested in the other weekly and monthly retirement updates I’ve written, they’re all here:

Weekly (2020)

  1. Early Retirement Week 1: The Freak Out
  2. Early Retirement Week 2: The Vacation
  3. Early Retirement Week 3: The Whiplash
  4. Early Retirement Week 4: The Heartbeat
  5. Early Retirement Week 5: The Election
  6. Early Retirement Week 6: The Trophy
  7. Early Retirement Week 7: The Train
  8. Early Retirement Week 8: The Challenge
  9. Early Retirement Week 9: The Question
  10. Early Retirement Week 10: The Game
  11. Early Retirement Week 11: The Recharge
  12. Early Retirement Week 12: The Holiday

Monthly (2021)

  1. The Month Of Rest: Early Retirement Month 4 (January 2021)
  2. The Month Of Birds: Early Retirement Month 5 (February 2021)
  3. The Month of Change: Early Retirement Month 6 (March 2021)
  4. The Month of Atlanta: Early Retirement Month 7 (April 2021)
  5. The Month of Portland, Maine: Early Retirement Month 8 (May 2021)
  6. The Month Of New Hampshire: Early Retirement Month 9 (June 2021)
  7. The Month Of The Northeast: Early Retirement Month 10 (July 2021)
  8. The Month Of New York State: Early Retirement Month 11 (August 2021)
  9. The Month Of City Hopping: Early Retirement Month 12 (September 2021)
  10. The Month Of The Southwest USA: October 2021 Recap
  11. The Month Of Santa Fe: November 2021 Recap
  12. The Month Of Family: December 2021 Recap

Monthly (2022)

  1. The Month Of Freezing My Balls Off: January 2022 Recap
  2. The Month Of Thailand: February 2022 Recap
  3. The Month Of Spring(?): March 2022 Recap
  4. The Month Of México: April 2022 Recap
  5. The Month of Mérida: May 2022 Recap
  6. The Month of Seattle: June 2022 Recap
  7. The Month of Washington State: July 2022 Recap
  8. The Month Of New Hampshire: August 2022 Recap
  9. The Month Of Maine: September 2022 Recap
  10. The Month Of Acadia: October 2022 Recap
  11. The Month Of Argentina: November 2022 Recap
  12. The Month Of Holiday Cheer: December 2022 Recap

Monthly (2023)

  1. The Month Of Snow: January 2023
  2. The Month Of New Hampshire: February 2023
  3. The Month Of Sea: March 2023
  4. The Month Of California: April 2023
  5. The Month Of Seattle: May 2023
  6. The Month Of Chicago: June 2023
  7. The Month Of Montréal: July 2023
  8. The Month Of Troy, NY: August 2023
  9. The Month Of Australia: September 2023
  10. The Month Of New Zealand: October 2023
  11. The Month Of Puerto Vallarta: November 2023
  12. The Month Of Warmth: December 2023

Monthly (2024)

  1. The Month Of Family: January 2024 Recap
  2. The Month Of Costa Rica: February 2024 Recap
  3. The Month Of San José: March 2024 Recap
  4. The Month Of The Solar Eclipse: April 2024 Recap
  5. The Month Of Arizona: May 2024 Recap
  6. The Month Of Upstate NY: June 2024 Recap
  7. The Month Of Montréal: July 2024 Recap
  8. The Month Of Canada: August 2024 Recap
  9. The Month Of Iceland: September 2024 Recap
  10. The Month Of Switzerland & Italy: October 2024 Recap
  11. The Month Of Amsterdam: November 2024 Recap
  12. The Month Of Holiday Cheer: December 2024 Recap

Monthly (2025)

  1. The Month Of Yuki Matsuri: January 2025 Recap

What’s a fun fact you learned this month?

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One thought on “The Month Of Auckland: February 2025 Recap”

  1. Great post, thank you! I love that you just live without even thinking about money day to day…amazing! I have a question about High Potential…how did you watch it? Looks like you have to buy it on Amazon.

    Reply

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