It’s been exactly 3 years since I became serious about my finances and as a result starting using the budget tool YNAB. In that time I’ve saved $129,653.89 on my own. That doesn’t include any stock market appreciation. That’s crazy. I saved an average of $43,217.96 a year despite being funemployed for a total of 6 months, paying big money to moving across the country and having 3 different jobs at 3 different companies. I also got a friend interested in the company and he ended up working there :). As a result I have some awesome YNAB swag and stories that make me fangirl. Continue reading “3 Years on YNAB” →
WOOOOAH! I wasn’t sure I would get here in 2017. I wasn’t sure I would get here at all to be honest. I’ve only seen a 1.3. on the scale two other times in my life: after starving myself for 3 months while living on a boat in the Mediterranean and after starving myself during my first 6 months in the workforce, which I’ve mentioned before.
We recently added a new hobby to our permanent repertoire. The stereotype of a Seattleite is a crunchy, liberal, outdoors person…and I must admit that’s pretty much accurate 🙂 . In Manhattan weekend activities included going to bars, going to bottomless mimosa brunch and complaining about your week. It was a bit of culture shock when we moved to Seattle because weekends are completely different. 
My partner and I have a kind of mantra. At random moments we’ll yell “No marriage! No kids! No pets!” and high five. Part of our life philosophy is “No responsibilities.” I’m not sure where this came from exactly, but I’m so glad we’re on the same page. We love the knowledge that we can decide at the drop of a hat to travel or change plans and do it without issue. If we had to find a babysitter, pet-sitter or anything like that I would feel held back. 
My Mom has been going through old emails to paint a picture of all the places we’ve traveled together. During her investigation she stumbled across an absolutely hilarious email I sent her 5 years ago. It was a response to an email she sent me with a link to an article about the different ways to retire early. Let’s see what my response was 5 years ago: 
I’ve been playing with the idea of owning a Kindle for over a year now. I vacillated between thinking it would be a helpful addition to my life and thinking it was too much for what it adds ($80). Currently I read on my phone or computer depending on where I am. I prefer actual books, but find them unrealistic to bring on a lot of travels. I also love the wonder of library eBooks that allow me to read anything without leaving my home (Laziness FTW?) 
I’m obsessed with data. I love tracking everything and then looking back and analyzing, optimizing. It basically gives me a high. When I don’t have anything to analyze and optimize I get a little sad and offer my services to friends. That…doesn’t usually go over too well 🙂 .