GreenMonsta Journal

Where are you and where are you going?
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Lemur
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by Lemur »

Level 5-6 is a notorious sticking point. I think it’s probably not much of an issue to get to level 7 and beyond independently. But to do so without creating friction with the family is a challenge if you can’t get everyone on board with post-consumerism living.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

Lemur, well said. It makes me think the journey will be longer for the family person, depending on where one starts. It feels that I am functioning at a “family Wheaton level” that is the average of myself/spouse and further skewed to the perceived need to provide children with education and experiences which are just products and consumption respectively.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

May 2023

54% savings (index funds, cash reserves)
11% housing
9% DS college cost
9% food
9% general spend (kid cost, household)
4% cell phone, utilities
2% Transportation (replace battery, gas)
1% Insurance premium
1% student loans


In May, we purposely held off any big home expenditures/projects in an attempt to boost cash reserves and get the overall savings rate back above 50% (it has fallen below a couple of months). Right now, keeping savings rate ~50% takes effort due to the constant desire to fix up the house. So financially, it’s currently a balance of fixing up the house (I don’t consider to savings rate) vs boosting cash reserves/buying index funds.

Allocation to DS education cost were higher this month. We paid off the last of his tuition that was due as well as his last month of rent before he came home for summer. Overall, he had a fair semester and now will be working all summer to boost his own cash reserves. So I am proud here.

AxelHeyst
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by AxelHeyst »

I liked your reflection on Walden greenmonsta. A quick add is that simplistic tradFI thinking is to save up a big bucket/pool of assets, then stop inflows by quitting and living off drawdowns/interest/yield depending on strategy.

Maybe Thorough balanced inflows and outflows, and that seems precarious.

But combine balanced inflows/outflows with some level of buffer, and now you've got an exceptionally resilient and responsible system. If inflows dip due to [any number of reasons] the buffer covers the adjustment period and prevents hasty or panicked decision making.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

Thank you for the response Axel. So far, I am thinking that the balanced approach will be my inlet to ERE. That of which being, accumulate a significant buffer of safety then tapering paid employment to an inflows=outflows level.

Deep down I know it will be difficult to flip a switch to turn off the “worker bee”. Realistically, I know I will need a set of dimmer switches. One to turn down my dominant trait (productivity, accumulation, etc) and the other switch to illuminate something else I am not quite sure about.


More thoughts on Walden:

As of yet, I haven’t read anything to make me believe Thoreau accumulated any financial capital prior to retreating into the woods. But what I have observed is that he likely built up a high degree of social capital before hand. This observation is based on: having approval to occupy/harvest an area of land; having multiple visitors during the retreat; having a flow of day jobs ready and available as needed. Social capital could have been more prevalent in his era considering the barriers that likely existed to financial markets as well as the flow of education/information on asset ownership in general.

Henry
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by Henry »

There is a new book on Thoreau that discusses this issue: "Henry At Work: Thoreau on Making a Living" by Jonathan Van Belle. There is an interview on First Things.

You are correct in your assumption. Thoreau was thoroughly brokeass. Emerson busted his cubits on the matter. He had a high regard for education but viewed it as a tool for appreciation of the natural world and self-sufficiency. He was actually an effective fundraiser. He did not believe in acquisition or possessions. That being said he died at 44 and looked twice as old but I guess that was par for the course. He was also devastated by the loss of his brother John.

chenda
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by chenda »

I started to read Walden and couldn't get past the first few pages. I thought the writing was bad. Given its popularity that might say more about me than Thoreau.

GreenMonsta
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Joined: Mon Dec 05, 2022 10:53 pm

Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

Henry: I am interested in reading more about Thoreau being that he lived not that long ago and in a society/context more easily understood by a modern.

Chenda: I must admit it’s challenging to comprehend. It is easier for me to absorb auditorily. While listening, I often have to repeat chapters.

An irony is that I contemplated turning it off around the time I started a chapter in which Thoreau discussed reading. Thoreau considered the common readings of his day to be no more than “child’s books”. He also stated that those who do not progress past “easy reads” might as well be illiterate. I am summarizing loosely but correctly I hope.

Anyways, I kept listening with that realization that I don’t challenge myself nearly enough with reading.

Henry
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by Henry »

Despite us sharing first names, Thoreau is brutal. I will never pick him up again. It's not my path. If someone was interested in reading him, I would suggest that they expand their study to include mid-19th century US, New England and theological history.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

June 2023


76% savings (index funds, cash reserves)
6% housing
5% family activities
4% general spend (clothing, work equipment, healthcare, household)
4% food
2% cell phone, utilities
1% tax costs
1% student loans
1% transportation



June was a strong month for savings. This was mostly a result of no educational/university expenditures for DS (summer) but also a slew of income that came in June. It was a 3 paycheck month for myself but also my DW received some extra income from side projects she does along side her full-time gig. It felt good to attain a 76% savings rate. I attribute it to a Goldilocks’ scenario of low/no big expenses as well as unusually higher inflows. Both of these factors are not current norms so an ongoing 70%+ savings rate will remain aspirational.


June Physical performance:

Miles Ran: 15; Goal 60
Push ups: 98
Push up Max: 30; Goal 75
Miles Walked: 7



After becoming inspired by some journals concerning of health, I’ve decided to give mine more focus here. Running is enjoyable to me. It is my go to activity for cardiovascular health. Walks are helpful in that domain but also stack nicely for family time. Push ups don’t have any special place in my heart but I need to get my upper body in shape. Ideally, I can get a pull up bar in place soon to work the other important upper body groups.

I have set goals for running and push up max. These goals consist of what I would like to achieve and be able to sustain long term.

Running:

Running 60 miles per month is my goal. I have run this amount before in a 1 month period but to sustain this mileage as an ongoing monthly average will be a challenge.

Push-ups: In my early 20s, I remember being able to do 75 push-ups without stopping. Now I can only do 30. So with that said, 75 feels like a lofty goal. What gives me hope is that when I was able to do 75, push-ups weren’t something I really focused on. So when younger, I was probably capable of doing more had I strived to.

Running is enjoyable, push ups not so much. So I plan to end each run with a max set of push ups. Also, at some point, I want to get a pull up station made. I think it would be equally beneficial/motivating to track pull up performance.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

My family and extended family traveled to the beach for a 3 day getaway. The cost of travel was reduced as the hotel was paid for with credit card points. It was a trip that was definitely made with the family’s youth at mind. All the kids are mostly young adults to teens with my DD being the exception and pure kid. Day 1 was spent riding roller coasters. On day 2 we played at the beach, road go carts and ate at a locally famous restaurant, a place we had taken the kids to many years ago. Day 3 was spend at a water park before the drive back home.

Some thoughts/observations I had during the trip: friction arises during my attempts to pack food/avoid restaurants and when I say no to souvenirs; I tend to consume alcohol when on vacations with extended family.

During long car rides, trips to amusement parks and water parks, I try to pack sandwiches and other food. I am down for the experiences that the parks offer my loved ones, however I can provide them with food. I don’t need the parks to feed us. Let us utilize the rides, slides etc., but keep the overpriced chicken tenders. Same with souvenirs. A digital picture provides an excellent memory. Please keep the $30 dollar shirt. I have trouble communicating my disposition when DD or DS asks for park food or souvenirs. I say a quick “I packed you food “ or “we didn’t come to buy souvenirs”. I do wish I was better at giving my family experiences that are 100% pure fun but also 100% pure non consumer. But, this is an area I am not skilled. So I compensate by buying experiences and then I look like a scrooge during the activities.

As for alcohol, I seldomly drink. However, when I get around adult extended family members, I become a social drinker. Usually this happens on vacations and holidays where multiple days are spent together. I think there are a couple of factors at play. One factor is that I am introverted and not a great conversationalist. With a few drinks I become quite social and fun to be around. Also, I don’t like the inefficiencies and money spending involved with the outings and drinking relaxes this mental discomfort. In either case, it is a short term fix but alters my overall feeling of wellness for a day or 2 afterwards.

Overall, I believe my family had a great time. My DD and DS especially enjoyed and made great memories with their cousins. As for me, I struggle with the cognitive dissonance involved with the buying of fun while at the same time wanting to teach my children to be efficient and cost conscious.

ertyu
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by ertyu »

What's the carrot?

As in, right now, you're just denying your kids things. Have this boring sandwich that you could have had any day at home instead of this new experience eating out together. Have a picture instead of this shirt that you think you'll look really cool in. Etcetera. So why would they want to do that??

I suggest, forget about the money. Call it "tuition fees" whatever. And then go, "If we eat sandwiches rather than park food, we can put the 65 dollars towards Y More Desirable Experience instead." They must feel like they're winning doing this, not like some numbers on a piece of paper are more important to you than their happiness (I know they're not, but do they?)

black_son_of_gray
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by black_son_of_gray »

Regarding Thoreau (and Emerson for that matter), I have definitely found him to be one of the more challenging reads out there. That said, I reeeeeally like Life Without Principle.

There are so many pithy lines, and a ton of relevance to ERE.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

Black_son_of_gray: Thank you for the mention of Life Without Principle. I gave it a read along with Ishmael over the last couple of weeks.

ertyu: Reading your response reminds me to take on my kids’ perspective during these family activities. I try to teach them that one can have fun while also having restraint (mostly through modeling). But I think I can do so in more diplomatic ways that shows I care about them instead of the numbers involved.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

July financials


57% savings (index funds, cash reserves)
10% housing
8% family activities/vacation
8% food
8% general spend (school supplies/clothing, healthcare)
4% cell phone, utilities
2% transportation
2% insurance premium
1% student loans


SWR: 12.5
NW: 8x annual spend

My savings rate has been improving. This month was a normal income month so it provides a good indication of where my family is stabilizing with inflows/outflows. Rare cost this month consisted of a small family vacation and annual back to school spending for DD. These were offset by decreased/no university support to DS (Summer).

We had a few small house projects but cost were minimized in that we did the work ourselves and materials were relatively inexpensive. Projects included: installing a new mail box; replacing kitchen sink drain; replacing some screws in our metal roof. We still have some big projects around here that are on the agenda (counter tops, trim work, painting outside). I think we feel okay with them being on hold right now while we are making tremendous improvements to our NW by focusing on savings.



Intellectual

I have been reading Lemur’s journal. I appreciate how he adds in family, diet, weight, exercise, job, mental health. I gain much value from the holistic journals. Actually, they are helping me view ERE more holistically.

Along those lines, I finished reading Ishmael and also completed Life Without Principle. Ishmael opened my eyes to how population and food demand are creating stress to our biodiversity. It also got me thinking about the concept of being “man” among the earth prior to the agricultural revolution. On Life Without Principle. It’s difficult to explain what I get out of reading Thoreau. It does sheds light on how simple one can live at a time when culture has everyone all but convinced that the only worthy pursuits are work and wealth.



July Physical performance:

Miles Ran: 46; Goal 60
Push ups: 440
Push up Max: 45; Goal 75


I have been running on average 4x per week. I complete pushups at the end of most runs. These runs have been great for my mental health. They increase my clarity of thinking, provide a youthful feeling and also a taste of freedom. The freedom component I believe results from owning the 30 minutes-1 hour to pursue a meaningful task that is under my own volition.

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

August financials:

62% savings (index funds, cash reserves)
10% housing
8% general (family activities, projects)
7% food
6% DS college
5% cell phone, utilities
1% transportation
1% student loans

SWR: 11.4
NW: 8.78 annual spend

This was an average income month. However, I am glad to report our spending dropped this month. DS returned to university so this spending returned. But otherwise, there weren’t any large expenditures.

Intellectual ERE:

I read Fooled by Randomness by Taleb. After reading it, my listening to CNBC contributors and “expert” analysts are not the same. More so, I am viewing the contributors as those with the current “hot hand” and we viewers being the ones fooled into thinking the hot streak is permanent. If you add in enough market opinions (millions?), statistically a few opinions will be correct. When those opinions are correct, we as financial media consumers consider these folks as markets prophets instead of beneficiaries of random luck. I still enjoy some CNBC viewing. But I can’t help but to smirk when the contributors reference their individual “track records”. On the flip side, more so, I respect and appreciate the opinions of the old market veterans. I am talking about the old guys/gals (value investor type) who are more skeptical of the latest trends.

Family ERE:

Also, currently reading My Side of The Mountain by Jean Craighead George. I am reading this with my DD.
My goal here is to establish non-consumer forms of enjoyment with my DD. Reading to each other, discussing plots and foreshadowing is very meaningful and doesn’t involve “bought experiences”.
My choice of this book was a little arbitrary. It seemed wholesome for a young reader and classic in nature so I picked it from a mix of our unread children’s books. What started arbitrary became quite serendipitous as the book so far has been much like a children’s fiction version of Walden!

August Physical performance:

Miles Ran: 54; Goal 60
Push ups: 140
Push up Max: 50; Goal 75

Distance ran and push up maximum both improved this month. In August, I continued to run 3-4x/week. I did much fewer pushups but my maximum still improved from 45 to 50. I continue to enjoy running and consider it a hobby. Push ups are purely uncomfortable.

sky
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by sky »

My Side of the Mountain was one of my favorite books as a child.

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mountainFrugal
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by mountainFrugal »

My Side of the Mountain and Hatchet are two of my favorite children's books. There is also a sequel On the Far Side of the Mountain. I remember enjoying that as well, but not as much.

edit: looks like it is a trilogy. I will have to read the third one!

GreenMonsta
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Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

-2 topics on my mind this evening.

1: Today we put our car in the shop. We have had it for 10 years (bought it new). It’s been a decent car until recently. About 1 year ago, the back up camera, radio and navigation started failing. This summer, the AC started to be inconsistent. And very recently the power steering system has been giving warnings of a future failure. The power steering concern sealed my decision to get it assessed/fixed. Car problems always bring about anxiety in me. It probably stems from childhood and breaking down multiple times on the side of the road. I bought this vehicle new 10 years ago as to not have similar concerns for my own family.

In the years since the purchase, my DW has changed to a work position close to home;actually walking distance if needed. My work transportation is provided by my employer. When my family goes out of town for travel, we mostly use rental cars to avoid the wear and tear on our aging vehicle. All that is to say, we have lessened our needs for a personal car. Not entirely though.

So I am going to hold strong in not purchasing anything new. Instead, elect to get this thing fixed and maybe receive 5 more years from it. While these car problems and upcoming repair bill is anxiety provoking, I have decided that the financial impact will be negligible to our overall situation. That silver lining is a direct result of our frugal lifestyle.

2. I want to improve in my time management. More specifically, I need to eliminate waisting time on my phone/internet. I have goals that require extensive time commitments to family, work and health. I don’t watch TV but internet is a major time suck. Every minute I spend looking at news articles, stock market activity or social media pages, is time subtracted from reading with my DD, making home cooked meals, working on the house, finishing a work assignment or running.

Side note, I don’t consider the ERE forum as unproductive internet usage. It adds to my intellectual and personal growth. Mostly by reading journals and keeping myself accountable in mine.

GreenMonsta
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Joined: Mon Dec 05, 2022 10:53 pm

Re: GreenMonsta Journal

Post by GreenMonsta »

September financials:


56% savings (index funds, cash reserves)
10% housing
9% general (house project, family spend)
9% food
6% DS college
6% cell phone, utilities
3% transportation
1% student loans


SWR: 11.45
NW: 8.73 annual spend

Income and spending was steady state in September. We purchased some trim work and a 16 gage nail gun for a home project. We also paid an auto shop to diagnose our car. The shop recommended replacement of the power steering system, oil leak repair at the valve cover gaskets, new tires and a whole list of other repairs. I paid them for the diagnostics but deferred the repairs. The car gets us from point A<—>B. The power steering is doing just fine currently. I don’t know how much longer the car will last. Every month we keep/utilize this vehicle, the less of a “big deal” it’s eventual replacement becomes.

The September market pullback was a drag on our NW. Our high savings rate did some heavy lifting which kept our SWR mostly unchanged.


Intellectual ERE:
I am not currently reading or listening to any particular material. Instead, I have been spending more quiet time reflecting on current life and future goals. I’d like to find an interesting audiobook. I tend to limit myself to free material on the Libby app or audiobooks on YouTube but it seems I have hit a roadblock in the free material realm. I may hit the library soon and try to find a physical book.


Family/ERE:

I finished reading My Side of The Mountain with my DD. It was a great book to introduce principles such as self reliance, connecting with nature, cooking for oneself, and simple living. I would recommend it to parents that want to expose their children to Walden (ish) principles.

Less ERE but family oriented, DD and I watched all of the Rocky movies together. She throughly loved them which made me happy.

DW and I started adding quarter round to our baseboards which is the last step to finishing the floors we put in earlier in the year. We already owned a chop saw but had to acquire a nail gun to complete the project. I have used a nail gun in the past but this is the first one I have owned. It will come in handy for a lot of other projects around the house as well as other crafts/hobbies.

I introduced my DW to some ERE material via an interview with Jacob on Through Conversations. I think it was well received and understood on her part. Afterwards, I gave her an introduction in Wheaton Levels.


September Physical performance:

Miles Ran: 76; Goal 60
Push ups: 282
Push up Max: 60; Goal 75
Pull ups: 45
Pull up Max 5; Goal 10

I met my monthly run goal with 76 miles completed. I ran on average 4 days/week. Push up max improved nicely as well to 60 reps. Still short of my max rep goal here.

I found a pull up bar in a local park. At least 1x/week I include said park in my running route and perform 3 sets of pull ups. I’ve set a max goal of 10 pull ups.

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