We’re halfway done with 2018 and this year is both crawling and flying by. Let’s check in on my goal to decrease my spending to $18,360 this year ($18K + 2% inflation).
It’s that time again: Dividend Season! I look forward to it like I imagine people look forward to Christmas, but this happens 4 times a year! Let’s see how we made out this quarter. I received $881.27, which is awesome. That’s 42% more than last year! Since I started investing in 2014 I’ve received $7,380.32 in dividends – that’s almost a full month of my current salary without having to work that’s just dropped into my lap. Insanity! Let’s see if we can top that next quarter (Spoiler: I think we can 😉 ).
I’m continuing my series that catalogs tips I learned during my travels so you can have all the insider information. I’m currently writing this from a terrace at the base of 4 volcanoes – overlooking a lake. I had no expectations before coming to Ecuador, but I can now say that the nature views are absolutely breathtaking. Continue reading “Ecuador: A Travel Blog”
I’m not sure what’s going on in this picture, but I love it.
I don’t know where a lot of the “things” in my life come from. I was walking with my partner to the grocery store earlier and saw an awesome pen in the driveway – the type of pen I’ve been using to practice faux-lligraphy the last few days (my new obsession). My partner saw me reaching for it and exclaimed “don’t pick that up off the ground!!!” To which I responded “why not? That’s how I get a lot of my pens.” He was horrified. Continue reading “Gnomes”
This milestone feels weird to me and I’m not sure why. In January of this year I quickly hit $250,000 net worth thanks to a crazy market, which then entered a correction. It’s taken a few months to get back to where I was now. After adding in my latest paychecks and the market being up 3% we have arrived here. Continue reading “$275,000 Net Worth”
I keep surprising myself with what I say no to during this journey to early retirement. My friend and former colleague works at a company that offers discounted stays at a Four Seasons in Mexico. It looks beautiful (see above). Their rooms usually start at $400/night and we would get to stay for $75/night so $37.50/person/night. That’s a crazy discount. We would also receive half priced food and drinks…which would probably bring them to regular restaurant prices. Continue reading “Saying No To A Discount Vacation” 
One of the things I’m trying to work on is not putting things off for retirement. If there’s something that I want in retirement – I ask “Is there a way to bring it more into my daily life now?” My main driver for retirement is to spend A LOT MORE time with the people I love. And not just more time, but less distracted, more focused and less tired time. Continue reading “Bringing Retirement Into Now: A Visit From Mom”
I’ll be honest – I was scared for this flight from Seattle to Singapore. It would be my first 13.5 hour flight in economy (I know, princess much?) and it was also basically double the length of my previous longest economy flight: 7 hours. I was worried and thought this flight would convince me to dive even deeper into travel hacking and never ride long-haul economy again. I shouldn’t have worried. This flight on EVA Air was great and solidified my place as an international economy passenger.
Continue reading “Review: EVA Air”