A Journey of Mindfulness--the Remaking of Life in Midstream.

[IlliniDave]

... Maybe it is a good thing that you haven't had as much contact with family as you had anticipated?

That's possible. What's doing the most to limit overall family interaction is that we have a few that have opted out of covid vaccines and my aunt (who has taken over family matriarch duties since my mom passed) refuses to interact with them in person, which has kept the family gatherings small. And the excluded branch of the family is the one most prone to drama. As difficult as it is at times, I do have to say that relocating back here and being able to interact with my dad in person at least a few times a week helps me sleep a little better at night.

A few random updates to my monthly check-in.

Q1 2022 was my second-worst quarter on record as far as net worth contraction measured in dollars. Percentage-wise I was down about 3%. Most of that would have been mitigated if I'd have adjusted what I'm using for the value of the hideout based on the new valuation notice I received from the state, which reflects the jump in real estate values in the area. I'll probably adjust it slightly upward after the roof and foundation work is complete. But my general philosophy is to lowball such estimates when estimating my net worth. I'm still looking to add a tract of land to my holdings as a diversifier/inflation mitigator.

Taxes did not turn out as bad as I feared, I escaped federal penalties by a comfortable margin and between federal and 2 states I owed a net of about $450. I did up my federal withholding on the annuity. That might not have been necessary but whenever the markets are herky-jerky I have some funds that tend to throw off increased cap gain distributions. My goal is to try to stave off having to send in quarterly estimated tax payments as long as possible.

My plan for the day is to get my rowing machine put back together and try to use the next couple months to whip myself back into some level of fitness in preparation for outdoor season. I should have done it a while back but used waiting for my housing situation to settle out as an excuse to put it off. I'd like to shed about 10 lbs off the 192-193 I weigh presently by mid-June.

[Scott 2]

Do you intend to sell the hideout at some point? I've landed on keeping my home out of net worth calculations. I figure the inflation hedge is already reflected in my expenses.


The handful of times I've had to do quarterly estimated taxes, I opted to pay the penalty instead. It's a very reasonable amount:

https://www.irs.gov/payments/underpayme ... ls-penalty
https://www.irs.gov/payments/quarterly- ... ent-of-tax


Do you have access to a concept 2 rower by any chance? There's a v02 max test you could use to track progress. I'm just starting a cycle focused on this, running over the next 16 weeks. My starting score was a 36:

https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/ ... calculator

[IlliniDave]

Do you intend to sell the hideout at some point? I've landed on keeping my home out of net worth calculations. I figure the inflation hedge is already reflected in my expenses.

...

Do you have access to a concept 2 rower by any chance?

Hey Scott,

Yes, it is likely I will sell the hideout at some point, 12-15 years down the road. Possibly sooner if I opt to move my full-time residence up there at some point. I keep my home (although don't own one at present) and the cabin and a small interest in a rental property in my net worth calculations, but the calculation is just a curio. I keep a second calculation of just invested assets which excludes real estate and funds in the bank. That calculation is what I do financial planning with.

Yeah, it's a Concept 2. I'll have to check out the calculator for the score. I suspect mine is pretty low, haha. I've never been mistaken for an endurance athlete.

Hopefully I can keep any underpayments minimal or nonexistent. I know it is not sound logic, but my goal is getting a very small refund every year.

[IlliniDave]

T + 9 mos and all is well.

I haven't tallied up all my financials for the month yet, but I should easily come in about 20% under my lil' monthly annuity deposit.

My main focus has been looking into picking up and outfitting a fishing kayak. On the surface it seems like a fairly simple task. But somewhat like guitars, fishing is a domain where I'm susceptible to a bit of YOLO, and there's some technology available that will eliminate a lot of the major hassles of fishing solo from a small watercraft. A big one is integration of GPS with small electric motors (aka 'trolling motors'). The big benefit there is that the gps guidance/control can be used for two things: one is to 'anchor' the boat (use the motor to offset current and/or wind) and the second is one can "lock" their current course and heading and again let the motor fight any current and wind. The main benefit with the latter would be during the travel portion--using the motor to maintain heading on blustery days so while paddling all I have to do is provide thrust.

That may seem like a small thing, but my estimation is that excluding days with thunderstorms and/or outright dangerous winds, probably one day in three is too windy to fish effectively and another one day in three is windy enough to make it enough of a struggle that I'd be inclined to go for a hike or something instead.

It gets even more interesting with adding a sonar with charting/gps capability that integrates with the motor which allows one to put waypoints on a map and let the bells and whistles take the boat from point-to-point through the series of waypoints, letting me do more fishing than navigating.

All this science/technology is out there for kayaks already, much of it is highly desirable for folks who use kayaks to fish big water (oceans, Great Lakes, etc.).

Sunday I went to the local largish river to test paddle a few fishing kayak models. A large storm system had passed through the day prior so it presented both just shy of howling wind and above normal current. Paddling the fishing kayak was a little better than paddling a canoe solo in the same conditions but it made it clear to me that without the bells and whistles it would essentially be as frustrating at times as trying to fish out of a canoe which means I just wouldn't use it frequently enough to make it worthwhile.

Then there's the land transportation part of the puzzle. Aside from toting it back/forth between Illinois and Minnesota, I've identified 60+ lakes withing about an hours drive from the cabin with easy public water access. All the bells and whistles make car top transport a chore (would have to remove the seat, motor, battery, sonar equipment, and all the associated connecting hardware before/after every every excursion off my home lake in MN, plus before/after every trip I'd make from my home base in Illinois. A small trailer solves much of that, but to get one of sufficient quality that I'd be comfortable using 50+ times/year including multiple 400+ mile interstate journeys (plus adding a hitch to my vehicle) is spendy.

I have had a budget made 7-8 years ago for my early retirement years watercraft, and to put together the boat I think I want is about 3x that budget. Even at 3x the original budget it's a whopping 0.25% of my net worth and is below what I've managed to save out of my first 8 mos of retirement annuity, but thinking about sinking that much is bothering me. I happened to be at a local shop that sells regular fishing boats (i.e., "bass boats", etc.) and talked to the owner for a while. A fully tricked-out "walleye boat" can easily get up into the 120k-140k range, if you can even get one. He was only able to get one new boat for the entire season due to supply shortages and will likely go out of business this year--the bait and tackle part of his business keeps his lights on at the store while the boat side of the business is what keeps food on his table and his lights on at home. Comparatively, even the most expensive kayak/kayak transport option I am looking at is well under 10k.

So I've now scratched off the possibility of upgrading to a regular boat in the out years when I'm too old to feel like, or unable to, paddle around. And I'm stuck in analysis paralysis regarding my short term situation.

This may be one of the most irrelevant posts ever made on ere, but it's what's on my mind now. I've managed to injure my left hand from too much guitar playing so have had to put it down for a week or two in hopes that will allow it to heal up without medical intervention which leaves me a lot of time to stew about fishing.

[white belt]

Have you looked into any of the pedal drive kayaks?

[Scott 2]

For where I'm at, the "what will you all day?" posts are most interesting. So very on topic!

Do you have any active recovery built into your guitar playing? I'd probably:

1. Use a broccoli rubber band to do finger extensions
2. Use dexterity balls to encourage blood flow
3. Do some self massage and stretching of the hand and forearm
4. Extra credit - joint floss the wrist


Is there a way to rent the cool kayak and try it for awhile? I sometimes find it hard to balance my frugality and my infatuation with the perfect solution. Maybe I'd really enjoy the premium product, maybe I'm just itching to see how it works.

[MBBboy]

An 8 year old budget for a boat simply doesn't stand up to current prices - too many things change over time. There's no good academic reason to feel married to it.

Considering it's 0.25% of net worth AND you're retired, I think you just go ahead and get this thing. What was the saving and planning for if not for this? What's the point of excess money after you are dead? Considering this is a relatively physical activity, your window to enjoy this hobby is short. As long as you make a good value purchase, I think you're all set personally. Even if the amount of money is trivial, you still want to be a good steward

[IlliniDave]

Have you looked into any of the pedal drive kayaks?

A little bit. My "home" lake in Minnesota is about 60% inside the BWCA. Due to a creative interpretation of the original legislation that formed the dedicated wilderness area in 1964, pedal drives are not allowed. So I'd really be restricting myself in my own back yard. My lake is connected to two others inside the BWCA that I have unrestricted access to for day trips so long as I take the motor off, and with a hard-to-get motor permit could even leave it on. But no pedals allowed on the northeast portion of my lake and beyond. So I bailed on the idea pretty early.

The rationale is that pedal drives weren't "in common use" in the area in 1964 and prior, so they are prohibited. The prohibition was ultimately upheld in federal court. There are 7-8 lakes wholly or partially in in the BWCA where small outboard motors are allowed by permit, and on those same lakes, electric trolling motors are also allowed, but in it's wisdom the USFS has decided the much more eco-friendly pedal drives (and sails which some kayakers use) are not allowed. Sometimes activist conservationists and the 9th circuit are conservation's worst enemy.

Someday if I get tired of hauling a kayak back and forth between IL and MN I might consider a second one for use down here, and might consider a pedal drive for it.

[IlliniDave]

An 8 year old budget for a boat simply doesn't stand up to current prices - too many things change over time. There's no good academic reason to feel married to it.

Considering it's 0.25% of net worth AND you're retired, I think you just go ahead and get this thing. What was the saving and planning for if not for this? What's the point of excess money after you are dead? Considering this is a relatively physical activity, your window to enjoy this hobby is short. As long as you make a good value purchase, I think you're all set personally. Even if the amount of money is trivial, you still want to be a good steward

Yeah, that last sentence is the key. It's really not a go/no-go analysis. It's the age old cost/convenience trade more than anything. And stupid stuff--like I've never pulled a trailer before and the logistics of mundane stuff like gassing up at a crowded station or finding somewhere to park in the early morning hours at a rest stop on the "trucks/cars-with-trailers" side are new issues I'd have to work out on the fly. I tend to embark early on my long drives, like 0300 early, and you'd be surprised how many semis overnight at rest areas. They usually line both the inbound and outbound ramps as well as filling all the spaces. I'm thinking an empty Gatorade bottle under the seat might become a required item for the rides, ha!

Today the guy that runs the local "paddlesport" shop is going to show me his technique and let me try to load one of his rental/demo kayaks on top of his vehicle so I can place the chore on the iDave PITA-scale. If it's super easy I might invest in a bunch of quick-connect adaptors for the seat, motor, sonar, sonar transducer, etc., and just deal with the hassle of breaking down the boat for all my little local jaunts. Beauty of a trailer is except for a long interstate trip, I could leave the boat put together. Much quicker in and out of the water, meaning I'd likely use the yak more often.

[jacob]

Then there's the land transportation part of the puzzle. Aside from toting it back/forth between Illinois and Minnesota, I've identified 60+ lakes withing about an hours drive from the cabin with easy public water access. All the bells and whistles make car top transport a chore (would have to remove the seat, motor, battery, sonar equipment, and all the associated connecting hardware before/after every every excursion off my home lake in MN, plus before/after every trip I'd make from my home base in Illinois. A small trailer solves much of that, but to get one of sufficient quality that I'd be comfortable using 50+ times/year including multiple 400+ mile interstate journeys (plus adding a hitch to my vehicle) is spendy.

What about a folding boat/kayak? They've come a long way over the past 10 years.

[IlliniDave]

...
Do you have any active recovery built into your guitar playing? I'd probably:

1. Use a broccoli rubber band to do finger extensions
2. Use dexterity balls to encourage blood flow
3. Do some self massage and stretching of the hand and forearm
4. Extra credit - joint floss the wrist


Is there a way to rent the cool kayak and try it for awhile? I sometimes find it hard to balance my frugality and my infatuation with the perfect solution. Maybe I'd really enjoy the premium product, maybe I'm just itching to see how it works.

"Finding the perfect solution" joins obsessing over good financial stewardship even while not constrained as a common foible of mine, haha!

I've spent enough time in canoes and the short time I got to paddle Sunday in a couple models (including the one I'll probably get) I have a good sense that I'll get a lot more enjoyment out of it with some of the propulsion bells and whistles. The guy who runs the local shop also runs the concession/boat rental at a nearby state park and he's got a bunch of kayaks there for daily rental, but I believe the water here is still to cold for them to rent yet. Water temp + air temp > 120F is the constraint for that as well as their guided trips. They made an exception for me Sunday because they judged me a "seasoned paddler". At the park on the lake, the rentals are pretty bare-bones and I'd need a bunch of my own stuff that I haven't bought yet to build it into something similar to my target.

An aside, electric car technology is making it's way into the marine world. One can now get a 50 Ah 12V battery Lithium something-or-other battery that weighs 16 lb versus about 46 lb for a typical traditional ~40 Ah SLA deep-cycle marine 12V battery. The catch is the batter cost is over $950 versus about $125 for an oldschool battery.

Regarding active recovery: yes to 3. The instructor I'm working with, on medical advice (2 opinions) had to totally quit playing for 2 full years after completing his university program, and I'm doing his routine he used for the 2 years he couldn't play. But he had severe tendonitis in both hands. For me it's all in my left thumb. He's been back to playing for 16 or so years with no troubles.

Right now doing banded extensions with the thumb would aggravate the condition. I'll look into 2. 4 I don't even know what that is, ha!.

I am also wearing oneof those carpal tunnel wrist braces when I sleep. My first indication of an issue was waking up with a painful thumb on occasion--sometimes if I'm tossing around while sleeping my hand/wrist would get all scrunched up under my pillow. Dunno if that helps other than I haven't woken up from pain in my thumb since I started wearing it.

[IlliniDave]

What about a folding boat/kayak? They've come a long way over the past 10 years.

Hmmm, never heard of those. When I'm getting my rooftop stowage "lesson" later I'll ask those guys what they know about them, then Google later. My brother has an inflatable boat he uses on small water around here. He brought it up to MN one year but the equivalent types of water up there tend to support only small minnows because most of the water freezes each winter, and it was unsuitable for even medium-sized lakes. The bow is blunt and rounded and doesn't slice through the water at all. I don't think that's what you mean, but the boat did fold up when deflated .

Thanks!

[Scott 2]

The tip of the flossing rabbit hole:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VU335EgIJqY

It's another way to get into the soft tissues and break up adhesion. Some say the flushing of blood out of the extremity with compression, then letting it rush back in, also helps. Ideally you get the aggravated body part feeling good enough that you can strengthen around the painful ROM. Both what it hurts to do, and the opposing action. Mobilizing and warming up before the activity can make it less injury prone, as well.

As I'm getting older, I find rest makes my pain stop, but doesn't let me return to an activity. Without mobilization and strengthening, when I resume my movement, the pain comes back. If I take a more active approach to the problem, I can often continue my activity instead. Sometimes I'm even getting the pain to go away entirely.


The stewardship problem is an interesting one. Our wealth isn't at that point, but I can see where a value based consideration enters in. One could argue directing the money to a product or company you support is another form of stewardship.

I'm running into something similar looking to by used items. If I can negotiate the price down $100, but the other person needs that $100, do I really want to? What if I'm selling something and knocking $20 off matters to their quality of life? Maybe getting the best price isn't winning.

Lately, I've been giving more thought to the idea of being generous in transactions. Paying a fair price has downstream effects.

[IlliniDave]

The tip of the flossing rabbit hole ...

The stewardship problem is an interesting one. Our wealth isn't at that point, but I can see where a value based consideration enters in. One could argue directing the money to a product or company you support is another form of stewardship ... Lately, I've been giving more thought to the idea of being generous in transactions. Paying a fair price has downstream effects.

Thanks, my plan with my thumb joint is to just to give it a rest from the demands of wrangling a guitar neck and let it heal as much as it can on it's own while continuing the stretching/massage etc. Then start back up and be a little more mindful of what's going on. I expect I'll detect one particular movement type that is at the root of it, and depending on what that is determine how to correct my technique so that I'm no longer injuring it. If that doesn't work I'm not sure what's next. Perhaps coincidentally, perhaps not, one of my sisters who does both physical therapy and massage therapy for a living is looking at having surgery one one of her thumbs (been diagnosed with arthritis, fwiw).

I've started being more inclined to "buy local" whenever it's at least reasonable to do so, as well as being a little more biased to made-in-US, or at least mane in N. America, products. If I proceed with what the plan looks like at the moment, the motor, kayak, and trailer, are manufactured in the US, and the sonar in Mexico. I'm sure at least some of the electronic piece-parts are made on the far side of the Pacific, but on some level I'm trying to be a good neighbor. Likely younger me, as well as a hefty fraction of the people I know, would say I'm wasting money in this particular venture--I could probably get a dirt-cheap made-in-China trailer that I could modify for a kayak from my local harbor freight rather than a high quality specialized kayak trailer made in Washington. But I'm inclined to opt for a good probability of long years of trouble-free use and helping maintain good-paying US manufacturing jobs. One of the perks of making it across the finish line with generous margin.

[sky]

I use a trailer to haul my rowboat, it is way too heavy to cartop.

Having built a heavy duty boat that I can barely lift, I would recommend a simple lightweight canoe over the types of fishing kayaks that are very heavy. Try to find a wide flat canoe for optimum stability.

[shaz]

I traded in my kayak for a paddleboard a couple of years ago. I don't fish off it so I don't know how it would work for that but I do know you can get attachments to hold fishing rods, motors, beer, etc. I prefer the paddleboard on flat to flattish water because it is easier to transport, easier to store, and when I find a nice cove I can sprawl out on the paddleboard and take a nap if I want to. Also I can use it comfortably earlier in the season because it has good insulation from cold water. I alternate sitting and standing when I am paddling unless I am crossing a long expanse in challenging wind in which case I sit the whole time. I have done up to 2 hours at a time this way and regularly out-paddle people in kayaks. My rooftop rack is 2 pads that each have a single strap to hold it on the car. It is simple enough to set up that I remove the rack each time even when I am using it every few days.

It might be worth trying out a paddleboard before you commit to a kayak.

[IlliniDave]

I use a trailer to haul my rowboat, it is way too heavy to cartop.

Having built a heavy duty boat that I can barely lift, I would recommend a simple lightweight canoe over the types of fishing kayaks that are very heavy. Try to find a wide flat canoe for optimum stability.

Hi Sky, thanks for the thoughts. I've put a lot of hours in fishing from a tandem canoe, and a fair bit in a solo canoe. I considered a solo canoe for a long time but the stability just isn't what I want. The best for that are supposed to be Old Town, and for a solo I'd be looking at 55 lbs versus around 80 for a 12' Yak. The Yaks are essentially impossible to flip, even when standing, and that's a big consideration fishing early spring and late fall in northern climes. The weight delta is pretty big difference for a carry/portage (in addition to the fact no one has come up with a good yolk for a fishing Yak yet.

For general multi-purpose trips into the wilderness area a canoe is superior. For everyday fishing in Illinois and out of the park in Minnesota a fishing kayak wins hands down. The one I bought for myself has quick connect portage wheels and at 80 lb with gear removed turns out to be a manageable "push it up on the SUV rooftop" exercise. I tried it a few times with an identical boat on someone else's vehicle. As I age further I might go to a small trailer because it wasn't fun. But afterward I watched a bunch of youtube videos and there seems to be easier ways to do it than the way he showed me.

I'll be able to outfit the boat with quick-connect adapters so everything (motor/battery/gps-sonar unit, etc., will go in and out reasonably quickly. All that plus the cross bars I'll have added to the roof are significantly cheaper than a small kayak specific trailer. Crazy what those cost, but I don't have time before I leave for Minnesota to work out finding an alternative very small trailer suitable for long interstate trips and adapting it for the kayak.

[IlliniDave]

...
It might be worth trying out a paddleboard before you commit to a kayak.

Those don't look real easy to fish off of! I'm sure people do it, and I'd bet if you're somewhere warm they'd have advantages at times. Do you go out in it in cold weather or on cold water? Looks impossible to stay reasonably dry even on days that aren't rainy.

Since tomorrow is my birthday I took the plunge yesterday and bought the kayak I've been looking at, and the motor I wanted. Having dabbled in gps nav in my prior life, the nerd in me gets all warm and fuzzy having gps guidance on a 12' plastic kayak. If I get it put together right it's have its own LAN (NMEA 2000). The only thing I haven't quite figured out yet is if there's a way to get a live weather feed. In a number of the places I fish I won't have cell coverage.

[sky]

I have this trailer, it seems to be good quality: https://genesistrailers.com/product-info

However if you can get it on the rooftop, that is more convenient and less yard storage space for the trailer.

Which kayak did you get?

Throughout my latest build I told myself this is the last boat that I will build. But now that I am almost done, I am thinking about a skin on frame kayak: https://capefalconkayaks.com/

I would love to get a Hobie Adventure Island.

[shaz]

I have used a paddleboard on the ocean in Maine and on reservoirs in the Colorado mountains neither of which had warm water and stayed warm enough. If you have waves slapping up when you are sitting then you will get a wet rear. My paddleboard is more stable than any kayak I have used but most of my kayak hours were in a playboat on whitewater so that isn't saying much.

Congratulations on getting your kayak.