Early Retirement Extreme Forums

Likely targets will include: long production runs (like the original Beetle), commuter econoboxes (Corolla, Civic, Elantra), fleet cars (Crown Vic), work vehicles (Econoline). I think this is the best way to ensure your car will be reliable and that there will be a surplus of resources/parts to sol...

Agree there's so many intricacies. I'm just now starting to sort through the bullshit, so my observations are really limited to just a normal, relatively healthy guy who's a bit pudgy and kinda tired of trying to figure out how to not be so pudgy, and my a-ha moment borders on "well, duh"...

The other suggestions mentioned all sound good. Only they would require one to be fairly settled in one place. I'm interested in techniques that can be used while travelling and don't involve much / any bulky or heavy equipment. If you want more specific solutions then it would help if you further ...

Our servicemen see and hear and do things that us civilians are spared, and I respect and am grateful for that, but I am at a loss for my dad's complete lack of self-preservation. He hasn't seen a doctor in over 20 years, and when I told him point blank that his physical ailments are a result of hi...

It’s pretty easy to replicate the soak and wash cycle of a typical machine using various low tech methods already mentioned in this thread. However, if you are line drying then you want a way to replicate the spin cycle. This is what gets most of the water out of the clothes so everything can dry in...

I just discovered that Steven Rinella (of Meateater) wrote a two volume series directly in line with the theme of this thread. Thanks for posting this resource. Although I did purchase a crossbow, I didn't have time this past year to go hunting. However, with my semi-retirement in the next few mont...

Perhaps people are looking for title or status but sometimes we are looking for greater responsibility. I know that my job satisfaction grows with increased responsibility, as long as I am given the authority to execute the changes I desire. It is also eye opening to see things from different level...

If you're looking to finance it may be easier and cheaper to get a margin loan than a traditional mortgage, or pull assets from IRAs, which can't be put up as collateral. Can you elaborate on this? 30 year mortgage rates are between 6-7%, while Fidelity margin loan rates are 9.5% for assets from 25...

Grist, not an argument: Simon Sarris on culture/movements/scenes being created in small spaces and then assembled in larger ones . Interesting article. I'm not super well-read in Silicon Valley history, but I know it's something that has been covered extensively. Everyone is always trying to create...

Whereas I look at abundant, cheap, DIY friendly energy collection and storage, and think “Why would I limit my energy use? Why not size up the system, and see how the world changes with unlimited heat and hot water? Why wouldn't an ecovillage be built around the efficient collection/distribution/st...

I think hooking the windmill up to an air compressor is more interesting. https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2023/07/human-powered-air-compressor-and-energy-storage-system/ Thanks to the Amish, conversion kits, albeit expensive, are available to turn common electric tools like table saws and routers...

A pressure cooker combined with a hay box probably is the most efficient way. Bring the pressure cooker up to pressure for n minutes less than it takes to get the food ready. Switch off the heat. Put the pressure cooker in the hay box for n minutes. I think the most "efficient" method usi...

The microwave is almost always going to be more efficient for heating/cooking small amounts of food. However, if you really want to reduce your energy consumption when cooking something that requires long and slow heat (like beans), I recommend looking into thermal cooking strategies. The basic idea...

Substitute triggering/outrageous for interesting or entertaining. The algorithm would count it as attention all the same. If you find inter-tribal collaboration engaging, then the algorithm will show you more of that. It is hard to completely avoid low-information density outrage, but I learn a lit...

However, I would agree that the trend towards work-from-home has somewhat obliterated the largest carrot offered by FI. In my social circle of millenial/gen z mostly yuppie peers, this is the biggest factor that stops them from having any interest in FIRE. I'd imagine if MMM lived his younger worki...

Another concern was the tremendous power consumption of modern computers. Summer room temperature gets above 85F+ here and I wanted to avoid adding a 700W space heater on top of the afternoon sun. Also, the GPU could have been cheaper (EVGA 1060 for around $75 used + the power draw of that is low e...

This is a very interesting thread for me to read through. It seems alcohol serves a different function for different people. I still drink, however for me alcohol is and has always been a "social drug". I never get an urge to drink when I'm by myself and can go weeks without drinking if I ...

Anyways, I agree with your observation about mind-body relationship, and it is my intention to focus on increasing my fun with "movement" while not focusing on my weight or similar movement-metrics. I think Slevin wrote on some thread here that body-building/weight-training is the male eq...

True enough. The cold weather hypothesis is interesting. I just picked up a copy of "A Really Big Lunch: The Roving Gourmand on Food and Life" by the great writer, Jim Harrison. He also hails from Michigan, was quite attractive although heavy-set, and I was recalling his take on how you n...

@7, given your recent studies and your big interest in dating dynamics, you should be a data scientist for a dating app. Although they'd probably prefer a guy, since it's guys who have it hard there, to the extend of paying to get preferrential treatments (IOW, men are customers, while women are pr...