m741's ERE Journal

Where are you and where are you going?
m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

This is going to be a two-part journal update (yes, it's long... no one's forcing you to read). First I want to discuss where I've been psychologically since my last update. And then there's numbers for September.
I appreciated all the advice people provided, and the fact that other people are in the same situaton. I followed the most actionable advice immediately. I picked up some vitamin D and I'm taking 800 IU daily, in addition to trying to drink more milk. I've been doing this for about two weeks now and I think it has an impact. I'd say I feel ~10% more energetic - noticeable but not life-changing. Still - that's a huge return for a couple bucks down. I'll try upping the dose soon.
When I look at what I do each day, between work, commuting, sleep, and preparing from work, there's about 21 hours. That leaves 3 hours unaccounted for, that mysteriously disappear in a haze of web surfing and watching TV.
So I'm writing out what I want to accomplish over the next few years. I'm thinking in terms of concrete skills I want to develop, as if they were college courses. I have energy to spend 1-2 hours on them each weekday, if I stay focused. For me, the high priorities right now are: programming python/C/C++, learning German, and learning to play piano/harmonica.
So, I started up Linux Mint on my laptop and started doing some programming, and then checked out some cool Linux programs, and -- long story short -- I'm now contributing to a very small open-source project. I'm also trying hard to get good at using vim. I spent about 2 years treating it like notepad despite knowing it was capable of much more... already I feel the power, and I'm still a total noob.
I also contemplated my mood. Sometimes I'm sedate, and sometimes my thoughts verge on the solipsistic, grandiose, quasi-religious. I think we were born to be put under stress, and to conduct ourselves with humility, dignity, tolerance under that stress. Sometimes I pass the test, and sometimes I don't. Each perceived indignity is a chance to prove myself.
Honestly, my mood swings more than Benny Goodman. At the beginning of this week I was feeling quite optimistic about work and so on - thinking that maybe I would work longer than previously planned, save 700k-800k and then retire at 30 to live a luxurious life. By midweek I was under an enormous amount of stress and was thinking that I wanted to cash out immediately, fly to Thailand, and work part-time to make ends meet.
The market hasn't been too kind to me this month: I ended up just treading water, not increasing my savings. I continue to invest steadily off my cash reserve and hopefully this will pay off in the end. It takes some getting used to that I now have so much invested that I can make or lose a week's worth of savings in a single day.
I've also been doing some reading on Tynan.com (suggested in the blog thread). He describes the life I want to live in retirement - traveling for about half the year, renting apartments for a month or two at a time in exotic locations, and then returning home for the other half of the year. It's so appealing to me... I want to get started immediately. But I still have a few years to go.
I'm also pursuing minimalism more rigorously now. Today I sorted through and discarded a two-drawer dresser, getting rid of old CDs, notepads, electronics. I'm replacing my crappy stuff with much nicer, more durable stuff, and getting rid of a lot of junk that I just never used but thought I might, eventually. That includes books. Although I'm not purchasing the new Kindle yet (I have an old e-reader), I'm thinking I could do 75% of my reading on it, or a device with equivalent technology. Given that, I can aggressively eliminate books. I still have about 1000-1500 left... so it'll still take a while. But every step I take leaves me feeling like a better person than I was before.


m741
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Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

I only watch TV (except for sports) on the internet. So I don't sit through commercials. But if anything, that makes it even more addictive.


McTrex
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Post by McTrex »

Hi m741,
Your description of your mood swings regarding work sound so familiar! One day I'm ready to hand in my resignation and take a long sabbatical and the other I have a hard-working pleasant day doing the things I love to do.
My manager is great, my direct colleagues are great, most of the people I work with at customers are nice people, there are lots of other benefits to my job, so sometimes I really wonder why I'm complaining.
But then the stress kicks in, demanding customers with high expectations, writing designs which I don't like, high demands on myself...and I'm again ready to quit at a moments' notice.
I keep trying to figure out what it is exactly that stresses me out so much, so that at some point in the future I can find a job that contains less of it, but it's difficult to pinpoint the exact causes...
Anyway, it's good to hear from someone in a similar position!


m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

September was a tough month for me, but on the other hand, I feel that I handled it well and I'm pretty happy with the numbers, even if they haven't exactly increased from last month.
Total expenses were $2,007. Total income was $6,722, so I hit 70% savings! I'm also very close to my goal of $2,000 and really I should have hit it, if I had more discipline. And yet I feel there's *still* fat to trim. Given my current indulgences, $2,000 a month isn't sustainable. But if I continue to trim, it is. $2,000 is an awful lot, but what I really care about is expenses over rent. I spent $600 excluding rent in September.
Breaking down what means for me: I currently have 85 months saved. I'm 30% of the way to my savings goal. I've doubled my ERE savings so far this year.
If I adjust for cost of living - a comparable apartment in Portland, OR, or in most other areas of the country would be $600 - I would be 50% of the way to my goal, and have 147 months saved.
My expenses break down as follows:

Housing: $1400
Food: $214
Utilities: $149
Donations: $32
Entertainment: $21
Health: $105
Work: $61
Pets: $22
Cleaning: $3.29

Looking ahead, October is going to be an ERE disaster. I'm traveling, for one thing, so that's already an extra $1000-$1500. After that, November should be very low-key, another chance to hit $2000, and December should be higher than I'd want due to the holidays, but still managable. Early next year, I have nothing planned so I should get off to a good start for 2012, and then I'll be moving to a cheaper location. So I have plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
My goals for October:

Do at least 25 minutes programming every day
Write 1000 words a day
Get rid of a large tupperware worth of junk
Limit TV-watching to two weeknights every week


m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

Same area - but if I catch the right deal I can probably save a few hundred on rent each month. I don't need a 1-bedroom apartment (too much space), a studio should be enough for me.


Surio
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Post by Surio »

Hello @m741,

Thanks for saying Hello back in the "Amish Economics" thread, bruv!

Big "Hello" to you too. :-)
I am currently preoccupied trying to find some alternative income streams to help with my ERE goals (some kind of freelancing that is India compatible, so to speak). So, to help me focus I took time off like @Maus with an internet fast of my own.
I am still not finished with figuring the alternative streams, but thought I might pop in to say hello.
What can I say, I just like the bunch of you all too much to stay away too long :-)


m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

I haven't watched TV for a few days. I've also sworn off (permanently?) the website that most monopolized my time - it was a sort of endless content stream. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't meaningful to me. TV took up 1-2 hours a night, the website took up the rest. Given that I can check blogs during free time at work, I'm left wondering:
"Now what?"
It's a great feeling!


akratic
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Location: Boston, MA

Post by akratic »

Nice!
Consider canceling your home internet and selling your TV. Strike while the iron is still hot!
As you pointed out, you can do your internet stuff at work. Watch important TV events at friend's, and don't watch the unimportant ones. And you can always batch catch up on your hulu shows in six months when you're sick or something.
If you're not careful, all it will take is a bad day at work, and you're back on reddit again. (I'm just guessing at your endless content stream! And I'm assuming you work like I do, with bursts of motivation that eventually fade.)
As for now what, I recommend a social hobby. Here's a list of the type of social hobbies that other software engineers in my network enjoy:

- hiking/backpacking club

- rock climbing gym

- improv everywhere

- board/card game night

- ultimate frisbee team

- NYC group couch surfing events
PS: you can also do your vim/python/C/C++ learning in the office...
PPS: for learning piano, this thing is amazing: http://synthesiagame.com/


m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

Great minds think alike!
I actually went without internet for about 6 months when I moved into my current apartment. It was doable, but there's too much useful stuff out there.
As for watching TV - I watch TV shows on my computer. I occasionally use my TV for watching movies from the couch, or for football on Sundays... but it's not a concern. It's the crack cocaine of TV + no commercials + full season torrents that is concerning.
I've tried to teach myself at the office. After all, it would look like I'm working even harder. I have O'Reilly's Safari available to me. But I want to be able to relax, wear more comfortable clothing, take out my contacts, etc, so it's not a great solution. Besides, I can work from home and access Safari there. I won't be giving up internet access any time soon, though I'm considering downgrading from Fios, probably at the same time I switch apartments.
Also - Synesthesia is awesome. I used it for a while when I was learning piano, then got distracted. I'll return to it when I'm interested in piano again. Very addictive.
I'll see if I can find people to meet up with for backpacking/frisbee/board games. It's definitely worth checking out.


m741
Posts: 1187
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:31 am
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

Another month down! I was anticipating that this would be "disaster month," but it didn't turn out so bad.
I took a vacation in Europe for a bit over a week, and consequently was faced with a decision: should I include my expenses there, or not? I deliberated quite a bit and finally decided that it was a bad idea. That means that although I bought food on vacation, there's a week where it appears that I didn't buy food. Additionally, I didn't record expenses quite as diligently as I ought to, during the middle of the month. Consequently I think they're a little bit low.
Total expenses were $2,485. Total income was $6,737, for a savings rate of 63%. The trip to Europe was about $1650 total, so if I included that I would still have a savings rate of 40%. Outlying expenses included a few expensive wool clothing purchases, a few books, some Christmas lights, and a trip to Atlantic City (that's a different trip than the trip to Europe and *is* included in the numbers). I don't gamble and the AC trip was actually because I wanted to see an event there. But I spent the night with some friends so it totalled ~$140.
Luckily, the market recovered during October, and I ended doing well for the month, despite my profligate spending. I usually stay away from posting these numbers, but I hit $200k in total savings as of November 1!
Expense breakdown:

Housing: $1400
Food: $266
Utilities: $115
Donations: $32
Entertainment: $50
Health: $101
Work: $52
Pets: $30
Cleaning: $28
Clothing: $98
Other: $159

My financial goal for November is for my expenses to be Rent+$500. For me, that totals $1900. It's a challenge but I'm excited about it. Oatmeal and beans! It's totally reasonable.
---
One thing going through these numbers drills home is that "big" changes really do have a major impact. For instance, I spent a ton of money on things that are luxuries: nice wool shirt and wool socks, a trip to Atlantic City, some books and video games, etc. And yet, my expenses are at the same level as when I was struggling to hit $2500 when I owned a car. That's one reason I'm so excited that I'm changing apartments early next year (around March). I believe that will save me about $300-$400 per month.


tjt
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Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2011 6:06 pm

Post by tjt »

One thing going through these numbers drills home is that "big" changes really do have a major impact.
Exactly! After making the major changes (dropped a car, downsized house, moved close to work) a really bad month is still less than half what I was spending before making those changes.
Nice job, and congrats on your milestone.


ExpatERE
Posts: 220
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Post by ExpatERE »

Congrats on your total saving amount, that is awesome!! If you have already ditched the car and you cut your rent early next year your savings rate will really kick into overdrive. Nice...


dragoncar
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Post by dragoncar »

Celebratory lentils all around!


palmera
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Post by palmera »

@dragoncar hehehehe


m741
Posts: 1187
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Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

November Results
First, a note: I'm going to be putting my observations, tips and thoughts on a blog called SkillsFIRE I started with some of the other people here.
November was a very solid month, though I didn't achieve my spending goal.
Total income was $6,831; total expenses $1972. Savings rate was 71.5%. In sum, I have 84 months, or 7 years saved, I'm about 30% of the way to FI. I had my highest ever amount of actual dividend income this month, and also my lowest expenses thus far (first time total expenses were below $2000). If I use my standard-of-living adjustment of $600, then I have 10 years saved and am 40% of the way to my goal.

Also good was the past week in the stock market. I was tired of another month of stagnation/losses despite my savings rate so the returns were good for my morale.
That's the good. On the other hand, I did not meet my goal of $1900 total expenses. Also, I'm closing in on a point where, even if I reduce my expenses a little bit, there's not much else to cut. That is, with the exception of rent (I wouldn't live in such an expensive area if I were retired, so although reducing rent will allow me to save more now, it doesn't have the same leveraged effect of reducing general expenses). Finally, next month will be more expensive - it's the holidays. If I can spend under $2,400 in December I will be happy.
Expense breakdown:

Housing: 1400
Food: 178
Utilities: 117.57
Social Life: 60
Donations: 32
Health: 51
Transport: 54
Work: 52
Pets: 16

I'm not going to set an ERE goals for December. I have family visiting me and I don't want to be counting pennies when we go out to eat.
However, I do want to start getting healthier. This weekend I'm going to plan out and write down an exercise and dietary program, and start following it next week.
---
This past month I really felt the travel bug. For the first few weeks I was dreaming of camping and hiking the Appalachian Trail, was well as the Pacific Crest Trail. I read a few websites and watched a few youtube videos and I really just wanted to be able to get outside and breathe some fresh air.
Then, the next few weeks I was dreaming about international travel. I read a few travel books and added a few slow travel/long-term travel websites to my RSS feed. I don't know if this is a wise move right now with a few years still left to go. On the other hand, it does help to have a goal in mind, even though things might not ultimately play out the way I had in mind.


bluepearl
Posts: 80
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Post by bluepearl »

@m741

congrats on the savings %! This was close to 10% improvement over last month! And you have the priority straight about Dec... Enjoy the family gatherings..
Just curious... how can you publish your results so quickly? Are you estimating your interest income? Or is the int inc from your bank posted prior to month end? thanks.


m741
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Location: Seattle, WA

Post by m741 »

I manually add up all the dividends I received (and usually a few are still pending) each month to get my 'actual' income. This is usually about 10 different sums/month and I enjoy doing it ("Oh, I earned $30 from PEP in November" or "Wow! EHI got me $45 this month"). Dividends received is available as a category on my investment account. I also track theoretical investment income, which is just my ERE-eligible accounts (ie, non-401k), multiplied by 4%. This is what's plotted in the chart. Finally I track 'average investment income'. My investment account calculates what it thinks my annual income from all positions would be, including dividends/coupons, and I divide this by 12.
I like having these 3 measures because they give a good picture. Actual income is what's really hitting my pockets. Theoretical income is what I would earn if I invested all my cash at a moderately high dividend rate. Average income is what should be hitting my pockets based on what I own, but smoothed so it doesn't jump if many dividend dates happen to line up on a particular month.
Does this answer your question?


bluepearl
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Post by bluepearl »

Thank you for the detailed explanations :)


ExpatERE
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Post by ExpatERE »

I'm getting to the same point with expenses. You can only get so low and maintain it. I have a little more wiggle room and then its just maintaining.
You won't be alone in not meeting your spending goals next month. I have some travel plans for the end of the month that will far exceed my own spending goals, but it's the holidays and I'm perfectly ok spending in an area that is important to me versus the mindless spending I once did.
Have a great December.


George the original one
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Post by George the original one »

You know, if you really want to break through the $1900/mo budget, the single biggest obstacle is your housing expense: $1400 of the $1900 is housing... that's 73% of your budget for housing!
I'm really impressed by the low costs you've managed in all other areas. And for NYC, that's really amazing.


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