Like you, I started my journey in physics because I was in love with it. Getting all those degrees was just a natural progression along a passionate path.

I’m just glad that it only took me 4 years into my corporate career (I didn’t bother with a postdoc) to realize the silliness of it all. Something that helped me take the plunge and quit work last year was the look of disappointment in the older folks at the company. When they got ready to retire they were expecting some sort of trophy or medal, but the company promptly gave them a pat in the ass and got them off the books.

I think the mindfulness component of Buddhism is great. I have yet to fully embrace mindfulness, but from what I hear it can lead to a great deal of happyness.

The hard part is getting people to do what is necessary to put themselves in to a position where they can afford to make investments.

1. To ditch the car, use the bike to do groceries (up to 20 pounds). Use a backpack or big nessenger bag (without brazed-on for rear racks) or shopping panniers which you can even homemade to save some money (with rear rack).
2. Have a habit of stopping by in the park for a cup of tea (on a thermos), I do my chin ups and situps in the park too which take care of the other half of the exercise.
3. I find the ride on the foldable bike not like riding a bike (maybe due to the small wheel). My first bike is a foldable cost around 300 dollars and still uses it when my car has to go in for servicing so it go in the car and can ride out and later when the car is ready ride back to the shop. Other than that or on very short trips, it’s not been used much.
4. A cheap mountain bike would be the best all rounder. Maintenance is cheap and the 26 inch wheels 36 spokes are basically indestructible compare with 32 spokes or less 28 inch road bike. A good used one would be a nineties Trek 900 or even 800 series. 100 dollars supermarket bikes are not recommended as they rust easily and parts are bad. It needs to be at least 250 or more new for one that can last.
5. A road bike would have have he best speed but probably no brazed on for rear rack. Backpack/messenger bag will put the load around half (10-15 pounds). More maintenance and unless one can find a decent used one a starter would be around 500 or more.
6. Commuter bikes has upright riding position, easy ride, rear racks, very urban and useful but could be boring for some.
7. Best to try test ride and choose depends on your requirements. I have three bikes, foldable, low cost mountain bike and a fixie. 🙂
8. If I can completely ditched the car then it will be two bikes only, one for fun and other a workhorse. Any more will consumerism…

1. Fit is more important than anything else. A crappy bike that fits you like a glove will be more useful than the best bike in the world that fits you poorly.

2. New riders are terrible at determining if a bike will fit them so take someone along who can give you some advice who isn’t trying to sell you a bike.

3. Bike shops want to sell what they have on the showroom floor so if things aren’t feeling right don’t buy what they recommend. You might need one size up or down and they don’t want to bother special ordering it.

4. Tweaking the fit on a bike once you buy it is critical to getting the most from it. Generally this is free or you can swap parts at low cost if you need to. Again new riders are terrible at this so ask someone to help you.

5. Riding a bicycle should be a pain free experience. If your bike hurts you something is wrong. If you have done no exercise in a long time and the pain is not acute it’s worth keeping going to see if your body will adjust. But don’t drag this out too long before you get some help. Nothing saps your desire to ride like an uncomfortable bike.

The cheap land places tend to be populated by tweak ears, etc. (haha autocorrect). Tweakers.

Also, there are power-trippers, barking dogs, idiots. What JamieV said!

For me the test is to know what really gives me satisfaction, what adds value to my life; when enough is enough. I kept many of my frugal way of living from my poor student days. I apparently was green before it became a movement. Like many things in life, what I did not have subsequently rewards me!

I remember to have seen the following in a bookstore window in N.Y.

” You are rich when you can buy anything you want, but you don’t need any.”

We should all be so wise and lucky. Love this blog and appreciate to read/learn from everyone.

Call yourself a religious commune to keep the Feds out. Works for Bountiful, BC.

See:
http://aattp.org/galts-gulch-ayn-rands-libertarian-utopia-implodes-almost-instantly-after-launching/

My neighbors, a pair of Cajuns who survived the Depression, never ever had AC. They were also the type who built their own house and grew/raised/hunted/caught the majority of their food. ERE before ERE was cool.

The only equivalent of “more clothing” I’ve found for heat is to let yourself get really hot a few times when ther is no danger of heat exhaustion and plenty of water available. Beyond that, the aforementioned controlling of sunlight/shade and running fans is about all I got. Doesn’t make it pleasant, but it might allow you to fall asleep.

“At these times, I start to feel reckless. Years ago, when I was first getting
into the FIRE game, I set my target at $750K ($30K a year at 4%). We’ve blown past that, and looking back, I can’t believe I was so desperate and willing to compromise my future quality of life. It took another few years to get to $750K and a few more years to get to where we are now with an additional $650K which I can’t imagine foregoing in exchange for not having to work during those years. Just seems irresponsible.”

This is a reference to Socrates quote:

“The unexamined life is not worth living.”