My Interview with "Eyes on the Goal" Blog

I was recently interviewed by Eyes on the Goal blog.

Run by Katerina Apostolova, Eyes on the Goal is about "personal finance for freedom seekers." Katerina has a goal of reaching financial independence within five years, and her blog is all about keeping her eyes on this goal.

In learning about financial independence, Katerina had listened to My Interview for "The Voluntary Life" Podcast. She then reached out to me and asked if I would be willing to provide a guest post for her interview series. Click on the image below to read the interview:

Thanks for the fun interview, Kate. I wish you the best in achieving your financial independence!

Happy 3rd Re-Birthday to Me!

Happy 3rd Re-Birthday to Me!

It's cupcake time, my friends! It's time to celebrate!

It has been three years since I quit the rat race. It has been three years of semi-retirement bliss. It has been three years of waking up on Monday mornings, endlessly grateful that I don't have to drag my butt into the office after a nice weekend. Nope, siree -- my life now consists of perpetual weekends!

Ingredients for a Tenday

Recently, I've been noticing myself thinking: "Today is a tenday."

"What is a tenday?," you ask.

Well, for starters, I should clarify that the term is my own device. I never intended to create the word; I just started using it.

Now, imagine a scale that ranges from 1 to 10. At the far left of the scale is the 1, which represents "not-so-hot." At the far right of the scale is the 10, which represents "flippin' fantastic." Given that scale, a "tenday" is used to describe a day that is a 10.

"Today is a tenday."
Coming across the words of Mary Oliver, chalked on the front steps of a home.

For the record, I experience sevendays. And fivedays. And occasionally, though rare, onedays as well. After all, it's very much part of the human experience to have ups and downs in life.

My Interview for "The Voluntary Life" Podcast

Over the years, I've consulted a number of resources about voluntary simplicity, financial independence, and early retirement. One of my most favorite resources has been The Voluntary Life podcast.

The podcast, hosted by Jake Desyllas, covers a number of topics related to entrepreneurship, financial independence, and freedom. Jake's podcast has been immensely helpful at providing inspiration and encouragement in pursuing my early retirement lifestyle.

I have spent literally hundreds of hours listening to The Voluntary Life. So, you can imagine my thrill in having the tables turned; Jake wanted to interview me about my early retirement story and how housesitting fits into my early retirement lifestyle.

Happy 2nd Re-Birthday to Me!

Happy 2nd Re-Birthday to Me!

It has now been two years since I took the plunge and quit my job. As this event was pivotal in achieving my new lifestyle, I like to celebrate this re-birthday! Happy 2nd re-birthday to me!

The Valuation of Intangibles

I recently sold my house.

This place ain't mine no more.

I bought this place a little over six years ago. I lived in it for 1½ years, and then I rented it to amazing tenants for the next 4½ years.

The house sold quickly, thanks to my awesome realtors, Sarah and Jamie Reece. As Shakespeare would say, Sarah and Jamie made the process as smooth as monumental alabaster.

    February 25: Tenants move out
    March 5: List on market
    March 10: Accept offer
    March 28: Close

Happy Re-Birthday to Me!

Happy Re-Birthday to Me!

I'm not one who enjoys celebrating my birthday. But this is an occasion I'm proud to celebrate: it was one year ago today when I took the plunge and quit my job. This event was pivotal in achieving my new lifestyle. Happy re-birthday to me!

My Stuff Owns Me

Since returning from my bike trip, I moved three times within 22 days:

1. From the sailboat in Portland to a friend's home in Seattle, where I stayed for a week.
2. From the friend's home in Seattle to a friend's sailboat in Seattle, where I stayed for two weeks.
3. From the friend's sailboat in Seattle to a house in Seattle, where I will be housesitting for two months.

Each time I have moved, I have also moved my belongings.

I don't own that much stuff anymore, as I went thorough a fairly decent downsizing effort earlier this year. Everything I own now fits in my little Corolla...

...well...aside from the Corolla itself, Shirley (my bike, which fits on the car's bike rack), the house, a box of valuable mementoes (which I'm storing at a friend's place), and a few boxes of stuff from my youth (which are at my parent's house).