Insightful post.Thank you. My wife and I retired 8 years ago. It was two years before that that we made ourselves debt free, no mortgage, no credit card debt, no car loans. We were making more money at the tail end of our careers so we were able to do it while still making max contributions to our retirement accounts. I can tell you from experience that no debt gave us a true sense of relief and confidence heading into retirement.
Wonderful post. Thank you. Back in the day I was a hippie, now both of my "hippies" are trying to run my life. Osteoarthritis, the doc tells me. Not fun. There's likely a procedure in my future. And just to remind me who's boss, my body has decided to throw in what an MRI later today will probably tell me is sciatica. To quote a line from some movie, "Who's in charge here!!?" Clearly not me.
We're in the pickup business for two of our grandkids and, yes, it does make you hungry. Tomorrow night we'll be having German food at a pub that runs a.month-long Oktoberfest!
We recently also had a "lumpy" expense when our 20-year-old central AC unit died without warning. Ok, maybe the 20-year thing should have been a warning. So there went $10,000 we hadn't been expecting to pay right now. This on the heels of treating ourselves to a huge (70-inch) upgrade to our TV watching, along with a trip to Hersheypark with two of our grandkids. We're seven years into retirement and generally very conservative in our spending so all is good. Our spending philosophy is "Save money on what we need so we can spend on what we want." The kids break our chops when we use coupons so much and make trips to Costco, but so far so good.
Forget the financial stuff here, Jonathan. The key takeaway for me was Roy Rogers! My wife worked at one as a teen in Maryland. She loved working there, interacting with people and, of course, the roast beef sandwiches. Since there are no Roy Rogers any more in Connecticut, we have to stop at least once - no, make that twice - whenever we visit Maryland. She usually even tracks down the manager to thank them for another wonderful experience!
I struggled to hit the "like" button on this, Jonathan. How do you "like" someone's battle with such an awful disease? How do you "like" seeing someone whose work you've learned so much from for 30 years struggle so much? Yes, I hit the "like" button, but I don't like what you and your family are going through. May you take comfort knowing all your work has meant - and continues to mean - so much to so many.
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Insightful post.Thank you. My wife and I retired 8 years ago. It was two years before that that we made ourselves debt free, no mortgage, no credit card debt, no car loans. We were making more money at the tail end of our careers so we were able to do it while still making max contributions to our retirement accounts. I can tell you from experience that no debt gave us a true sense of relief and confidence heading into retirement.
Post: Should You Stop Contributing To Your IRA?
Link to comment from February 10, 2026
Nicely done! And so true. I use TurboTax and I actually enjoy the process. No judging please.
Post: Tax Filing (A Teeny Tiny Rant)
Link to comment from February 2, 2026
Are we married to the same woman?
Post: Grocery Shopping for the Mildly Obsessed
Link to comment from January 8, 2026
Whew!!!!!!
Post: Grocery Shopping for the Mildly Obsessed
Link to comment from January 6, 2026
Wonderful post. Thank you. Back in the day I was a hippie, now both of my "hippies" are trying to run my life. Osteoarthritis, the doc tells me. Not fun. There's likely a procedure in my future. And just to remind me who's boss, my body has decided to throw in what an MRI later today will probably tell me is sciatica. To quote a line from some movie, "Who's in charge here!!?" Clearly not me.
Post: Retirement Conversations with my Joints
Link to comment from November 14, 2025
We're in the pickup business for two of our grandkids and, yes, it does make you hungry. Tomorrow night we'll be having German food at a pub that runs a.month-long Oktoberfest!
Post: I Really Don’t Get It, But I Guess That’s OK
Link to comment from October 21, 2025
Go for it!
Post: What They Don’t Tell You About Retirement: Part 1 – Everything Breaks
Link to comment from September 6, 2025
We recently also had a "lumpy" expense when our 20-year-old central AC unit died without warning. Ok, maybe the 20-year thing should have been a warning. So there went $10,000 we hadn't been expecting to pay right now. This on the heels of treating ourselves to a huge (70-inch) upgrade to our TV watching, along with a trip to Hersheypark with two of our grandkids. We're seven years into retirement and generally very conservative in our spending so all is good. Our spending philosophy is "Save money on what we need so we can spend on what we want." The kids break our chops when we use coupons so much and make trips to Costco, but so far so good.
Post: What They Don’t Tell You About Retirement: Part 1 – Everything Breaks
Link to comment from September 5, 2025
Forget the financial stuff here, Jonathan. The key takeaway for me was Roy Rogers! My wife worked at one as a teen in Maryland. She loved working there, interacting with people and, of course, the roast beef sandwiches. Since there are no Roy Rogers any more in Connecticut, we have to stop at least once - no, make that twice - whenever we visit Maryland. She usually even tracks down the manager to thank them for another wonderful experience!
Post: My Money Memories
Link to comment from August 7, 2025
I struggled to hit the "like" button on this, Jonathan. How do you "like" someone's battle with such an awful disease? How do you "like" seeing someone whose work you've learned so much from for 30 years struggle so much? Yes, I hit the "like" button, but I don't like what you and your family are going through. May you take comfort knowing all your work has meant - and continues to mean - so much to so many.
Post: Extra Innings
Link to comment from July 10, 2025