jesmine's journal

[jesmine]

The weird part about this is that I LOVE handyman hands-on projects on buildings and property that I own. Moving electrical outlets, replacing a roof, remodeling, replacing windows, masonry, dirt works, and plumbing are all things on my fun list. Is that work? Did I just buy a job when I bought real estate?

Investing in real estate is like investing in the stock market. Two people may get the same % returns for a similar portfolio, but one spends 5X the time on research and worry. Two people may have equal dollar amounts in real estate, but the one may have bought a solid brick house with simple roofline in a good neighborhood and never worry while the other bought a cash flowing duplex nightmare with vinyl siding plastered over uninsulated wood walls in an iffy part of town.

[jesmine]

I'm finding this forum to be a treasure trove of information and stories. Personal thanks to Jacob for the Herculean task of moderating and organizing this effort. I'm in my mid 30's and am now consuming podcasts and and youtubes directed towards retirees in their late fifties and early sixties to help with the transition from full time work into retirement.

On my mind is the categorization of wealth as equity and cash flow. Personally, I have emphasized cash-flow coupled with frugality like many who are early in their journey of accumulation. My focus is shifting towards managing and increasing equity of all kinds in order to modulate cash flow and incomes in their respective categories. More on this later.

[jesmine]

The journey is going well. I think about retirement every day and what it actually means. I have trouble defining success for myself and wonder am I really doing ERE? Am I really doing it correctly? What would Jacob do? All of which is bullshit, except for the fact that I have been super focused on the details and am learning to get the big picture oriented properly so that the details actually fit.

We got a permit for short term rental for the house we live in currently. We are remodeling it, doing 95% of the work ourselves so that we can live on one end in our soon to be finished apartment of 16.5 ft. x 23 ft. and rent the other end out. For the first time, all of our living expenses are covered by "passive income." I'm debating between quitting my w-2 job completely or cutting back to 2 days. Annual earning after taxes hit over 100k last year. I enjoy my job more than I ever have, but at the same time lost the fear of quitting. Even if I quit it completely, the rentals will take an hour or two per week to maintain, but I'm pretty sure I'll want to spend more time improving them. So am i really retiring? My greatest fear comes in the form of a thought. "Can I make $52/hour if I quit my job, the ERE plan fails, and I have to resume work." It's crazy talk. I'm capable, smart, able to adapt very quickly, AND I ENJOY MY JOB. After a couple weeks of not working, I won't miss it, and my life will by far less stressful. So the fear really comes from self-criticism and the perception that after I quit my job, going back would be a sure way of proving that I have failed. What bullshit the mind comes up with.

I'm starting to feel a sense of "what next" or "shit, that was easy. is this all there is to life?" But then having the weekly realization on my days off of work that I absolutely LOVE not clocking in.

BUT i'm addicted to the the perceived security of a steady job. For some reason my job income seems more secure than my passive income. This I need to work on.

I'm a busy man with all my side projects and working 4o hr. weeks. Somehow I've managed to slow down a bit. Since mid march, I took up the inner engineering course offered by Isha Foundation in India. I now do the the Shambhavi Mahamudra kriya twice a day. This practice takes me about 45 min. each session. It has changed how I manage my thoughts and emotions. In this regard I am more stable with decreased proclivity towards compulsions of all sorts. Food, sex, negative or manic thoughts, etc. I'm now excited to see how life unfolds instead of preparing for early retirement in fear.

[jesmine]

This remodel project feels like the biggest step in my ERE journey. Finding a place to live is the first step from Jacob's blog and for some reason I have the tendency to imitate details of ERE instead of applying the principles broadly and properly. The fact that DW and I have lived so long in a place that is too large has bothered me quite a bit. But in this case, finding a place to live is the last step before resigning at my job. Our finished living space will have a small bedroom/bathroom and combined kitchen/living room. Yes, you are seeing it right, heated hardwood floor using thermofin aluminum channel. I'm doing all the installations myself. Electrical, drywall, plumbing, you name it. A friend will be building and installing the cabinets. Finished area of something like 16.5x23. Once this project is complete, we plan to move in, rent out the side of the house we currently live in and hand in the resignation notice. I still have lingering thoughts about cutting back to 2 days a week, but I'm beginning to let go of that. I will be as busy or not as I would like and will be able to find enough of projects here on the farm if I want to create them. I can't believe we are here.

[jesmine]

I'm learning SRT after refusing to pay an arborist to trim/cut down a very large tree. I am getting jealous of FFJ's treehouse project.

So here's the idea.



And of course, this is the dream view. This is taken from 50 ft from the base of the tree, and the tree itself is on a small hill.

[jesmine]

Inspired by Dan Price's hobbit hole and Jacob's ERE five years ago, I proceeded planning and building one after it's kind. I have a goal to live out of here for a minimum of one year.



The winter months are quite cozy and dry.



It's the summer months that get humid and uncomfortable. An AC window unit is too noisy and makes it feel too cramped.



I think the only thing I actually paid money for was the concrete/mortar, the electric heat wire in the floor, and the chopped fiberglass and linseed oil in the dirt floor. The wood had been in the barn or somebody's basement for 50+ years, the brick from a church remodel, the counter and sink/faucet from dumpsters, etc etc. It's insulated with old foamboard and is wrapped in multiple layers of used greenhouse plastic.



I think a good treehouse would make a complimentary summer abode. I don't know how high mosquitoes will fly to suck my blood, but for all the time I was in the trees, I didn't get a single bite even though on the ground I was getting bit left and right. I'm trying to solve the logistical issue for good, safe, and cheap way of accessing the treehouse at 50ft. Even if I find a way to install in/out ducting to a AC window unit away from the hobbit hole, it's essentially a bedroom where you can make tea and heat up some food. Variety is a spice of life.

So far, many people have stayed here as a night getaway but we don't have the heart to monetize it quite yet.


Cafe/bulk food/meat deli is a mile away. Conceivably, we could walk everyday for our one meal. I think there would be considerable parallels to life lived at sea in a sailboat.

[jacob]

That is so cool! How high is the ceiling?

As far as the skeeters go, building on stilts is actually a thing in some indigenous cultures. It cuts down on the malaria load. Unfortunately, American skeeters fly up to 25ft, but if you're in a tree...

[theanimal]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing. I love the idea of a winter hobbit hole and summer tree house.

I'm trying to solve the logistical issue for good, safe, and cheap way of accessing the treehouse at 50ft.

One thought is that once the tree house is built you could attach a top rope to an anchor somewhere on the structure and go up and down on a fixed ladder with a harness and some prussick knots or an ascender carabiner. Then you could rappel down.

[Western Red Cedar]

What a great hobbit house! I talked about the book The Starship and the Canoe in my journal a while back. The author spent three years living in a tree house in British Columbia. The video link offers a few images of his set up around the 2:00 minute mark.

The Starship and the Canoe was quite interesting and has some ERE parallels. It follows Freemon Dyson and George Dyson. Freemon Dyson is a world renowned physicist who was trying to develop a spaceship using atomic explosions to propel the craft. His son George basically drops off the grid and ends up living in a treehouse, 95 ft. of the ground, in British Columbia. George is perfecting his own kayak and baidarka designs based on indigenous boats that were no longer used or in fashion. I naturally gravitated to the story of George Dyson and his adventures along the BC and Alaskan shorelines. It was pretty wild to see everything that Freemon and George accomplished that wasn't even covered in the Book. Here is a short video with visuals of all of this:

https://vimeo.com/124182572

[jesmine]

That is so cool! How high is the ceiling?

Around 4 ft at the entrance sloping upward to about 5 ft in the back. I can stand up in the skylight and almost fully stretch out my hands. Everytime I wake up or can't fall sleep when I go to bed is the only time I seem to be able to remember that I want bars fastened to the ceiling and/or walls to monkey around with.

The video link offers a few images of his set up around the 2:00 minute mark.

Thanks for this. I do like the element of inaccessibility for the physically incompetent... If I would start sleeping up in a tree on a regular basis, DW would absolutely love me if it didn't mean climbing up a knotted rope or swinging ladder. It's a small problem. We'll figure it out.

Honestly, I have this growing sense that settling into retired life will be a big adjustment for my mind and body that is accustomed and seems to enjoy the hustle and bustle. I think this is actually going to be my biggest problem. I can distract my mind/body with work that "needs" to be done.

I am learning to become more conscious about each decision that I make instead of "developing good habits." It seems to me that whether it's a good habit or bad habit, the habit part is the unconscious part. It may seem "easier" to resign to compulsive behavior even if it is deemed a good habit, but ultimately a conscious choice is optimal and preferred over habits for one's wellbeing.