Nomadic-ERE Year 5 - Wanderlust Prevails

Where are you and where are you going?
classical_Liberal
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by classical_Liberal »

Great story! I love history from a personal perspective. Even reading broad macro-history, I always try to think of what it would be like for an individual in those times. How would I have gotten through? This makes me grateful for the time/place in which I have been placed and wonder if I appreciate it/take advantage of it enough.

I wonder if this makes it easier or harder for you to enjoy the fruits of their/your labor? I mean, surely your grandparents want you to have an easier life, afterall why else would have they worked so hard. OTOH, it could also make you feel like you owe it to them to make the most for the next generation(s) as well. I think emotionally, this can go either way. Still, it's hard to untrain the mind from what is obviously multiple generations of crazy work ethic.

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Seppia
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by Seppia »

Thanks for sharing. Makes me think how incredibly spoiled I am.

horsewoman
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by horsewoman »

You are also lucky that you know so much about your family history! Here, on the "other side" (Germany!) most old folks are incredibly tight lipped, which makes me suspicious that my grandparents were either outright nazis or at least supporters. It is very frustrating growing up with obviously traumatized parents and no one telling you anything. There is a growing body of research about how those circumstances are wrecking German families even to this day.

While it always makes me cringe to read what Germans did during the war I'm glad your grandad resisted! It is so very unfair that he had to bear such repercussions for standing up for his people. It is very understandable that it would influence his outlook on life and on the upbringing of your mother. Thanks for sharing!

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

Thanks mooretrees, I hope to be able to share a lot more than numbers in here. There is a lot of personal backstory that shaped this journey, along with some awesome work stories that I can't share in detail till I'm on the other side. All in due time :)

c_L, it's a very interesting perspective to have. I spent 14 or 15 summers living with my grandparents in Poland., there were only two TV channels during the 90's. I spent most of my time helping around the orchard/house, and listening to a ton of stories from both sets of grandparents. Let me tell you, they were the original Renaissance folk. From permaculture for food, to bodging solutions, to repairing/reusing various items beyond their intended purpose, etc.....it was a necessity to live anything resembling a normal life. We talk a lot about social capital, and back then it was more important that monetary capital. Who you knew, and more importantly had a good relationship with, could literally save your life on a regular basis. Many of the things we take for granted today, they made due without. It created a scarcity mindset, I imagine much like survivors of the great depression in the USA. It also left a generation of people, who suddenly had access to western goods, international food, and finally in the past decade.... "credit", feeling like they have to make up for lost times. So society has gotten much more status oriented and materialistic, but that work ethic and pride in what you do is still there in many ways. I know it influenced me from a very early age. Having learned about the value of money and hard work at a very early age (as indicated in my first post in this thread), I was always looking to earn a buck, even as a 7 or 8 year old kid, soliciting grandparents neighbors to let me pick fruit for <$1/hr, and eventually starting full time work here in the USA by the age of 12 (I lied about having working papers when I scored my first after school/weekend job working at an ice cream parlor, just before my 13th birthday).

To answer your question. I think it makes it easier at this point. Knowing this history, I appreciate everything so much more. And whilst I think it's good to have work ethic, my grandparents taught me to work smarter and not harder. I am blessed enough to have spent 5 weeks with my grandpa (from story above) this summer, and we got to talk about ERE, semi-retirement, and heck....even the strings that were pulled to be able to make those 5 weeks happen. He was extremely proud of my for putting family and *life* above work/career. My own fathers laboring and subsequent neglect of family life, taught me how I didn't want to live. I nudge my dad every week to call it quits, because he still puts in 60 hour weeks and is basically at traditional retirement age now. Even joke around that I'll retire before him at this point. One of the biggest lessons from my grandfathers story, is that if you want it bad enough, there is always a way. The fact that he was able to basically redo life at the age of 36, really opened my eyes to the fact that if things don't work out with this whole ERE thing, it's never too late to start over....

If anything, I feel like I owe it to them to live my best life....and not waste it by answering to someone else.

@Seppia, me too. Hearing much more about their lives in great detail, makes me extremely grateful, not only for when/where I was born, but to have the perspective and understanding of just how crazy life was, seemingly not all that long ago. It's also why I strongly identify with my Polish heritage, and really love spending time there, and can see myself living there at least semi-permanently in the future, especially while two of those grandparents still live!

@horsewoman, it's a tough dynamic that I can't imagine. I don't know about current sentiment in Germany, but I don't think the younger generation of poles holds any grudges. Not everyone was angels on this side of the border either. In post WW2 communist Poland, many poles turned around and joined the communist regime, turning on their fellow countryman. It was a very polarized place to live. It greatly affected my own family, because my other grandfather, had to bend the proverbial knee.....but I'll save that part of the story for when I have more time.

EdithKeeler
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by EdithKeeler »

Thank you for sharing about your grandparents’ journey, and your parents. I think that to truly understand ourselves, we need to be tuned in to our family’s stories. They shape us more than we realize.

2Birds1Stone
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Re: 28 Days To Semi-ERE - Backpacking, Thru-Hiking, Van-Living & Shenanigans!

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

September has been beautiful here. Cool mornings, nice days, and little rain. Sadly I haven't taken as much advantage of it as I would have liked so far. Been slacking on running, with only one 5k for the month. Riding my bikes a bit more vs. August, and actually ducking out for a MTB ride this morning.

My gym closed down, after over a decade of being a member and going 3-4 days a week I need to find a new one. It's a bit hard since most try to get you to sign a 1 year contract, and I won't be here as of end of March, and very likely sooner than that. I know many here "work out" at home but I really like to do heavier weightlifting and use equipment that is only available at gyms.

Work continues to have its ebbs and flows, occupying more of my time with each passing week in September, though nothing to crazy for now. I'm continued to be amazed by the crazy business practices in this startup culture. It's strange going from a Fortune 1000 corp to a place like this, where I actually get reprimanded for following process and doing things ethically. I won't miss it one bit.
Last edited by 2Birds1Stone on Fri Feb 05, 2021 3:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.

take2
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by take2 »

Seeing as how you’re looking at a bit of extended travel it will be difficult to join a gym during that. Perhaps you should start doing the type of exercise that you can maintain whilst traveling. Check out Freeletics if you haven’t already - all body weight that you can generally do anywhere.

I get the heavy weight lifting but unless you’ve already found out a solution for that it may be better to take the opportunity now to see what you can do without needing a gym.

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

@anesde, since we are slow traveling, and likely spending at least a week or more at each location (with several 1+ months) I plan on joining gyms and paying for day/week passes when possible. I'll definitely get a 1 month membership in Chiang Mai, Bali, and 2-3 months in Poland. But you do bring up a great point, and it's something I should figure out now, rather than when I'm actually needing to workout and dealing with so many new things at once. My love for the iron is strong, it's been my therapy for many years. It's something I've contemplated about nomadic life, travel, thru-hiking etc. The other is being able to MTB/bike regularly. I will miss that dearly, and sure you can rent a bike here and there, but it's typically very expensive, and I won't have the proper gear (clip in shoes, padded shorts, etc) with me.

Work Ramblings

I wish I could share more details, but public forum and all of that.....

Redacted - thank you for y'alls feedback.
Last edited by 2Birds1Stone on Tue Sep 17, 2019 2:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.

suomalainen
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Help Me Get Fired, Literally"

Post by suomalainen »

Ehhhhh, take this for what it's worth, since I have no experience with a similar situation, but if you really don't care about whether you get fired, two options in my mind:

1) if you're angling for severance, maybe taking the high road and (loudly) complaining about how you're being asked to do unethical stuff and (loudly) refusing to do so may be a way to do it. I wouldn't go out of my way to be an obnoxious asshole, but certainly you can react proportionally. If you are called out in public, react in kind - politely, but firmly. If you are asked to do something in private, politely and firmly decline in private, but if you feel that something unethical is happening, you may consider stating that you are not comfortable with what you are being asked to do and you would like an HR representative present for the next meeting or you would like to discuss the issue with HR. I think what you're going for is "principled pain the ass" and not "belligerent, insubordinate jerk".

2) if you're angling for milking the cow for as long as you can until they can you (and reputational risks be damned), go for the fade - start doing less and less in quantity and quality until they decide you need to go.

Ultimately, I think you need to pick the path that allows you to feel good about what you're doing, whatever that may be, after taking into consideration whatever aspects you may feel are most important.

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Help Me Get Fired, Literally"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

suomalainen wrote:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 9:05 pm
Ultimately, I think you need to pick the path that allows you to feel good about what you're doing, whatever that may be, after taking into consideration whatever aspects you may feel are most important.
Thanks, Suo. I PMed you some clarification and a followup question.....not sure if it sent because my sent/outbox is buggy on these boards.

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unemployable
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "The Silent Crescendo"

Post by unemployable »

2Birds1Stone wrote:
Mon Sep 16, 2019 5:56 pm
So, maybe y'all have some good ideas on how to engineer your own layoff?
Not only did I give this advice, but also you commented favorably on it. So I take it work now feels like work again?

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

unemployable, see you on the flip side.

cimorene12, THANK YOU. I didn't buy the book, but the conversations on various forums and interview on Radical Personal Finance were very helpful.

The sequence of events has been initiated........godspeed to us all.

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

Finished Micromastry last week, and picked up Atomic Habbits and How I Found Freedom In An Unfree World, yesterday. I think the timing is good for these two books. I have been following closely @wolf's journal and like the focus on process and systems to making changes in my life.

Work is an absolute rollercoaster right now. I doubled down on your advice @unemployable, and have been openly and honestly responding to various requests. No more politicking or sugar coating things for optics. Feathers are being ruffled. It feels good.

The end is nigh.
Last edited by 2Birds1Stone on Fri Feb 05, 2021 3:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

You guys, leaving your job is expensive when work pays for so many of life's conveniences :)

Today I rode my Tesla hoverboard to Best Buy, where I purchased a laptop. I'll have to mail in all company assets in the next two weeks, so I've been transferring over personal files, getting access to all of my accounts, setting up software I use for personal stuff etc.

Deciding between COBRA and eloping and getting on SO's health insurance. Have until the end of October for that choice....eloping means an extra $1500-2000 tax return, and we were doing it next year anyway.

I replaced my 4 year old Garmin triathlon/smartwatch which was on its last breaths. Got a great deal on a used 935, and sold my old 920xt for half of what I paid for it back then.

Giving notice on Monday, which is also a Jewish Holiday, so I'll be "unavailable" by 1 PM.

Happy Rosh Hashanah to all of my Hebro's

Still have to figure out what to do about cell phone, which employer is currently covering.

take2
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by take2 »

Elope. You can still celebrate later as you were planning anyway but no reason not to if you’re 100% sure.

COBRA is stupid. Get on her insurance.

Scott 2
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by Scott 2 »

Even if it costs you a couple grand, I'd avoid making the story "we got married for health insurance." It will become part of your shared history as a couple. People ask about your wedding, for the rest of your life. Make it about her.
Last edited by Scott 2 on Fri Sep 27, 2019 5:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.

take2
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by take2 »

Scott 2 wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:56 pm
There's no chance of them letting you go and qualifying for unemployment?

Even if it costs you a couple grand, I'd avoid making the story "we got married for health insurance." It will become part of your shared history as a couple. People ask about your wedding, for the rest of your life. Make it about her.
Interesting take. For the record I’m not advocating making your story about health insurance. A wedding (which you aren’t planning on anyway?) doesn’t have to be the same as getting legally married. I’ve had a few friends who got legally married before (in some cases well before) their weddings for various reasons but typically related to immigration. I don’t see health insurance as any different to that.

Given your SO is on board with your overall plans (including eloping) I assumed she wouldn’t have issue with this. Of course you should ensure she doesn’t before deciding, but in general separating the legal element from the emotional one isn’t (or shouldn’t be) a hard jump to make.

classical_Liberal
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by classical_Liberal »

2Birds1Stone wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:30 pm
You guys, leaving your job is expensive when work pays for so many of life's conveniences :)

Today I rode my Tesla hoverboard to Best Buy, where I purchased a laptop. I'll have to mail in all company assets in the next two weeks, so I've been transferring over personal files, getting access to all of my accounts, setting up software I use for personal stuff etc.
Ebay has a very robust secondary market laptop selection, shipping is cheap. You could easily save 50%.
2Birds1Stone wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:30 pm
Deciding between COBRA and eloping and getting on SO's health insurance. Have until the end of October for that choice....eloping means an extra $1500-2000 tax return, and we were doing it next year anyway.
You actually have 60 days of free insurance with cobra because you have a 60 day election period from the last day of service. Fill out the paperwork stating you are going to take it, but just hold onto it. Send it in if you need to use your insurance. Use the time to find a much cheaper non-ACA compliant short term policy unless you want to elope. If you don't have preexisting conditions, there is no need to take out an extremely expensive ACA policy or COBRA until you get some subsidies for ACA from your new lower income next year. If your policies last day of service is end of october, you can ride out the 60 day cobra until next year anyway.
2Birds1Stone wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:30 pm
I replaced my 4 year old Garmin triathlon/smartwatch which was on its last breaths. Got a great deal on a used 935, and sold my old 920xt for half of what I paid for it back then.
Doesn't your phone have an app for that?
2Birds1Stone wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:30 pm
Still have to figure out what to do about cell phone, which employer is currently covering.
Mint mobile. $15/mo for 3gb with a year of service, hotspot included. They have an intro deal where you can try it for 3 months at the same price without the year commitment. Or you can get more data if you need it. I think 8gb for $20. If you use this let me know because I have an affiliate type link that'll make me a few bucks.

There, I just saved you at least two grand!
2Birds1Stone wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 4:30 pm
Giving notice on Monday, which is also a Jewish Holiday, so I'll be "unavailable" by 1 PM.
Holy shit!!! Congrats!!!

2Birds1Stone
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by 2Birds1Stone »

@anesde, it's definitely stupid. Cobra comes out to ~$640/month for me. Even for two months it's a LOT. c_L saves the day with his post about free insurance through Cobra. Though I wonder how effective that would be if I needed insurance in an emergency (which is the only way I would really need it).

@Scott 2, we were planning on eloping anyway, and getting legally married quietly before leaving the country for our trip, then throwing a big party when we got back. Skipping the whole wedding thing in favor of a 1 year honeymoon of globetrotting instead.

c_l, how does that work if I crash my MTB and need to go to the hospital because I broke my leg, or some other sudden emergency? No pre-existing conditions here, so I only need the insurance for something like sudden illness or injury. I am training for and doing a 6 hour endurance MTB race at the end of November, so the risks of this are much higher than your average couch potato, and I ride an eSkateboard @ 25 mph.

On the laptops, I looked at Ebay/FB Marketplace/refurbs etc. My criteria was pretty narrow, as in I wanted a gaming laptop that weighed 3 lbs and had a 14" screen. I found a steal at Best Buy on an Asus Q406d zenbook (https://www.bestbuy.com/site/asus-14-to ... Id=6338824) $700......which is nothing if it lasts a few years.
classical_Liberal wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 5:46 pm
Doesn't your phone have an app for that?

There, I just saved you at least two grand!

Holy shit!!! Congrats!!!
Haha, not exactly. I use real time heart rate during training, and several times a week at that. I also love many of the other features of these Garmin watches which track stress, non exercise activity levels, and motivate me to get off my ass more often. I hate running with a cell phone, let along my Note 8 phablet. Ditto for MTB/cycling. My last one cost ~$175 after I resold it, and used it for 4.5 years. Well worth it to me. It's also my everyday watch.

I'll check out Mint, but I won't be needing a year, as we are leaving the country for 12 months in March.

You seriously did save me a ton on Cobra potentially, though we might still elope for tax purposes. My gross income this year is 4X my SO's so using a marriage tax penalty calculator, come out ~$2k ahead filing jointly vs. unmarried separately. The plan was to get the legal marriage done before leaving in March anyway, but I guess we could wait in the off chance I change my mind at the last second ;)

And yes! Holy Shit! Thank you very much! I can't wait to post more thoughts, feelings, plans, etc.

I need to formulate a strategy once the dust settles. Y'all should prepare for a recession now that 2B1S will be living off his assets.

classical_Liberal
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Re: Semi-ERE Experiment - Month 4 - "Launch Sequence Initiated"

Post by classical_Liberal »

2Birds1Stone wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 7:39 pm
c_l, how does that work if I crash my MTB and need to go to the hospital because I broke my leg, or some other sudden emergency?
My understanding of COBRA is that if you elect to keep it within the 60 days, the policy is backdated to your last day of previous service. BUT, you would have to back pay the premium as well. Obviously that's well worth it if you end up in the ER and have decent coverage. The reason I say fill it all out is because, in a worst case, where your end up in a situation you physically can't, it's all ready for someone else to mail it in for you.

I was just poking fun at you, because you went on a spending spree :lol: Seriously, congrats man!

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