First three months of 2014 has been good even though there were some travel/event expenses in Jan. Got reasonably good bonus in Feb since company did ok, and there was a tax refund in March. Historically, our tax refunds are minimal since there is little variation in our financial situation and we have minimal deductions - no mortgage, no kids, max-tax on paychecks (W4 deduction code is zero).
After using Turbotax for last 10 years, we finally made a switch to TaxAct this year. How about $20 vs $70? While TurboTax has some nice features to auto populate W2, 1099 and other info from various sources, it did not make sense to pay $50 extra considering our simple tax return. TaxAct takes a bit of getting used to if you have been a long-term Turbotax user, but it was worth switching.
Last year we opted HDHP (High Deductibility Health Plan) and contributed max to HSA (Health Savings Account) so as a result we had to teach the tax software to treat it as tax-deductible item, with that and some other change, we got around $3.5K refund. I think HSA is another scam for rich (and healthy) to get richer - because outside of ERE community, only people who sign-up to HDHP are those who are healthy and can afford medical expenses so they can minimize the taxable income, and this works as long the medical expense is within the deductible limit for the year. I have not checked the non-employer sponsored plans, but I believe this might be true for them as well. It will be interesting on how things turn out when are are out in the wild from next year onwards.
DW had unexpected medical issue and we went to primary care first, who routed us to ER, and while she felt better on the way to ER and did not want to go in, I wanted to make sure we understood the situation so we can manage it better in case it recurs. Fortunately I was in town, and after 4-5 hours in the ER, they sent us home with no indication on the probable cause. We got the bill after a month and it was $16K and we did not even know the medical condition!! We were to pay around $3.5K after insurance payout, and DW was able to talk to the hospital, identify few frivolous items, etc, and in the end we paid just $320! Having never been to ER nor having any experience with it, it was a major eye opener on financial implications of medical issues! When we move out of bayarea, it may be a lot wiser to live (like border of Mexico) where affordable medical facilities might exist. If you have suggestions on countries/locations please share as I have not done much research on this.
Having grown tired of using Blackberry for the last 15 years, and knowing full well RIM will RIP in next few years once the funny money from patent trolling runs out (see: Rockstar Bidco), I have moved on to the world of Android. I bought a Moto G (no contracts), which is unlocked out-of-box, with quad-core processor, 2GB RAM, and 16GB internal flash memory, front/rear camera etc. It has few limitations: no external memory support, battery cannot be removed (Snowden would NEVER buy this phone), and it supports only 3G. I never found any bandwidth issues even though I use few bandwidth hungry/chatty apps. In fact, using 3G might be a blessing in USA as more phones are competing for 4G spectrum. I have used it in few countries and it works awesome. Here it is:
http://www.amazon.com/Motorola-Moto-Glo ... 00GWR373M/
Quad-core processor with 2GB RAM/16GB Flash for $200?! and technology like this was not even generally available on laptops 15 years ago?! How come our medical system is so fucked up to be super expensive when human anatomy has not changed all that much in say last 500 years? Even if we adjust it for few factors such as massive Medicare overcharging/frivolous treatments by hospitals, sue happy idiots etc., I believe following are some things that can be abolished right now even before we can start overhauling our crappy medical system:
- Requiring undergrad degree to pursue medical degree: Engineering students learn how to build massive structures such as hospitals, lab equipments, process control computer hardware and software for drug manufacturing etc, right after high school, and still somehow AMA thinks one needs a stupid undergrad degree before they can start messing with cadavers? Many countries do not have this BS practice and American doctors are no better than say Mexican or Indian doctors from what I have seen. This alone should save $100K tuition bill to start with and might allow more people get into medical field.
Rent seeking activity from AMA in terms of limiting number of doctors in the market to keep the medical treatment costs (hence salary) unreasonably high.
Not allowing outside companies to market/sell generic tablets here in the USA (I am not an expert in this area, and happy to be educated on this topic)
USA is not getting better when it comes to medical coverage, so most ERE folks would have to think about an escape plan if a medical disaster hits. I sure want that backup option if reasonable alternatives exist. I am all for being healthy, however I also recognize its limitations.
I completed Ernie Zelinski's book "How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free" and liked it a lot - while repetitive at times, it offers many ideas on how to think about retirement, how to prepare for it, what to expect in retirement, and what kind of thinking help/hinder continued enjoyment of retirement. I have read tons of financial, and other retirement related books in the past, and this book stands out in terms of the issues it addresses, and the solutions it offers. For me, this book states the seldom mentioned but crucial fact that retirement is a full-time work in itself, and it is best to view it as a retiring from paying work, and not from life, so retiree must actively seek endeavors that result in positive engagement. It is obvious once read, but his experience from living early retirement first-hand must have been a major factor in him acknowledging and emphasizing - he spends time laying things out on what to expect - and for me, knowing a priori that retirement is not all sunshine and kittens confirmed my own views. Fortunately, there are ways to address this in short-term at least.
OTOH, the book romanticizes retirement as a state of being free from work related issues such as forced hierarchy, soul crushing work, demanding bosses, etc - I could not fully identify with this as the things he complains at work have rarely been an issue for me. Sure, work sucks sometimes, but I am happy to have worked all these years than busy finding engaging activities in retirement. While I could continue to work for few more years with no big fuss, what delighted me was Ernie's wisdom in articulating that retiring early presents a chance to explore side roads, a luxury which only a few fortunate ones can afford, and if early retirement ever ceases to be enjoyable in spite doing all the right things, there is always that option of getting back to work. Late retirees, however, do not have this luxury as it is too late for them to correct/relive mistakes. For me, just that realization alone was worth reading the book.
I am definitely looking forward to March next year and taking some time off, however it is uncertain to me how long I will find it joyful. My current thinking is to give ERE a try by pursuing outdoors activities full-time for next 4 years, and if what was "fun" starts being boring after 4 years of soaking-in, I could pursue working part-time. Unfortunately, jobs available for part-time are usually the ones in backwaters of technology. So, if part-time gets boring as well, I might go back to working full-time.
The book is honest in stating that retirement is not some sort of utopia and this is especially true for those desiring active engagement in certain aspects of life. Retirement has its own set of challenges and they need to be weighed against other choices such as part-time/full-time, being consultant to stay distant from office politics, and working from home to minimize the pressure to socialize. The book states that, apparently, such existential crisis during retirement is very typical of men, and not women. Here it is:
http://www.amazon.com/How-Retire-Happy- ... 96941949X/
In case it is not obvious by now, I am a glass half-empty kind of a guy, and I have plenty to learn/reflect-on when I am out in the wild with loads of free time
Finance update:
Anyways, at current rate of savings, we might reach $150K mark in October this year, a full 8 months ahead of original July 4, 2015 target. Instead of taking off in November this year, we plan to work till end of March 2015 since there are few things we need to sort out, such as selling the house, two vehicles, complete Trust paperwork, etc. Regarding selling the house, we will likely go FSBO (For Sale By Owner), and if you have experience with FSBO, I would appreciate your summary on what is important. We have read FSBO book by George Devine
http://www.amazon.com/For-Sale-By-Owner ... 413310958/
I finally jumped on the Lendingclub bandwagon, and invested 10K. I picked low yielding but high quality notes, and since I am not in it for maximizing money per se, it still seemed like a good place to park some funds.
Having never been a fan of spending loads of money on food, and being addicted to spicy food, here are some cheap eats that I frequently prepare at home:
- Zesty Japanese noodles: Yakitori Soba (Costco) 1 pkg, add frozen peas, frozen vegetables (Costco), leafy greens, some water, microwave covered for 5 mins, add to taste: soy sauce, chili powder, lime juice, black bean garlic sauce http://www.melaniecooks.com/sam-choys-y ... stco/2471/
Spicy potato & veggie masala: 2-3 Masala burgers (trader joe), add frozen peas, frozen vegetables, leafy greens, some water, microwave covered for 5 mins, chop masala burger, mix; avocado optional http://www.fooducate.com/app#page=produ ... FD45A4D471
Spicy Peruvian rice: 1/2 package Chimichurri rice (trader joe), add frozen peas, frozen vegetables, leafy greens, some water, microwave covered for 5 mins, mix; avocado optional http://www.fooducate.com/app#page=produ ... 31380C180E
All of the above are awesome with a can of Monster. There you go - cheap/healthy food, with monster energy to kick even a red bull in the nuts
Thank you for reading, comments welcome.
Next update: end of Q2.
