Early Retirement the Middle Way

West Coast Cost

2012-02-14T07:38:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day! Can you believe D and I couldn't find any Cinnamon hearts at the mall? Maybe they just aren't popular anymore?

We spent a day in town grocery shopping as well as checking out one particular neighbourhood in our research of potential places to move to. There was going to be an open house in the afternoon.

Here's what we concluded. The walk ability of the neighbourhood was great. Everything we use on a weekly basis is within a 15 min radius. We would be getting more in terms of specialty grocers.

The curb appeal was OK. The developments were in a transition zone between commercial and residential.

We both loved the "west coast" architecture. There were 2 bedroom, 2 bath 1450 sq ft condos with outside balconies/patios ranging from 450 - 1400 sq ft. The outside spaces and interior light were fantastic. Pricing started at $364000 with condo fees around $260/month.

Should we wish for single family homes, the prices would be in the $450000 - $700000 for a 3 bedroom, 2 or 3 bath with a double car garage (starter home) in a nice area. Nice area meaning near or part way up a mountain, golf course, winery.

So we would be up sizing in price and downsizing in space. Living up at the resort would be at least $150000 cheaper. Now we know what the price of poker is.

The Amsterdam Story

2012-02-13T11:01:00.002-05:00

D's boss is apparently still laughing over a story he told him about me in Amsterdam. I thought I had written about it but searching back here it appears I hadn't.

Also found out my subject tags and history search didn't work that well either but that's a different problem for another day.

The story begins in Berlin when I discovered and fell in love with a yogurt made by Movenpick. It tastes like whipped cream and my favourite flavour was mandarin orange/lime combo. I'm sure my cholesterol level shot up with each tablespoon but I didn't care.

In a land where you could buy a pint of beer at a grocery store for .35 euro, spending a few euro dollars per small cup of yogurt was a bit of a stand out. And again, I didn't care. I ate as many as I could. I don't drink milk but am a serious lover of whipped cream and cream in general.

Fast forward almost a year later when we visited Amsterdam and stayed on a houseboat. Imagine my delight (I believe I even let out a small scream of surprise) when I saw a large container of the dutch version of the Movenpick yogurt. Same coloured container, with the same print of the mandarin orange and lime slice on the front. I bought 2 each only costing over a euro each --cheap!

As soon as we got back, I tore open the tub and started scooping it down. OMG, did it ever taste good! D tried a couple of tablespoons and agreed it was so creamy and yummy. In my mind, I was trying to figure out where I could find a houseboat to buy and move to Amsterdam.

I was a 1/3 rd of the way down the 900 ml tub when I said to D I was going to dig down to the bottom to get to the fruit to balance out the creamy taste. So I dug and nothing. There was no fruit. I had manage to almost consume half a tub of whipped cream that tasted like the Movenpick yogurt.

It never occurred to me to google "slagroom" until now. I just assumed it was whipped cream and used up the rest of it (and 2 more containers) in my morning coffee (I don't drink morning coffee but happily did so as a whipping cream delivery system as D called it). Apparently I was doing a dutch thing without knowing.

Life Spectrums

2012-02-09T11:27:00.005-05:00

I watched a powerful documentary last night on depression that struck a deep cord within me. Here's the link to it, it has been divided into 5 parts with a couple of commercials at the start. Really worth watching. I haven't re-watched it but hope it is the entire show.

On the other end of the spectrum, I discovered Men's Journal magazine just before Christmas, en route out west. Never bought it before but I was drawn to it (beyond the Daniel Craig cover...). In depth articles and I like how the small print above the title says "Live the Interesting Life".

Clipping Along

2012-02-08T09:07:00.003-05:00

Aside from a pretty annoying (probably dehydration) headache, I've settled out here pretty well. Cannot say I'm motivated to do much even though the ski conditions are pretty great. It's nice to be able to the flex the "do whatever you feel like" muscle.

It takes a few days for the rest of my business banking to be completed due to the length of time required for money to be moved from one place to another to another. Yeah, it got done this morning.

I've also decided on something fun money wise. That annuity D has started paying me, for my overpayment towards the mortgage?

I'm going to take the first year of it just for myself. In all likelihood, I probably would have spent 30 - 40% of it had I not put it away so by the time the dust settles, I may end up drawing 4 yrs worth.

Travel Tales

2012-02-05T11:23:00.004-05:00

I'm writing from our hotel room. Our flight landing was aborted yesterday due to fog. So we spent the night at a hotel graciously provided by the airline.

As usual, there are the people who insist on complaining. Our new flight won't leave for a few hours so we'll be able to enjoy lunch here before departing.

D and I have somewhat confirmed our next trip in the spring. We will be returning to Germany and the Netherlands for 2 weeks.

I am awaiting the rental contract from the apartment rental company. Flights have been booked. Because it is spring, prices are higher. You pay more for warmer weather.

What balanced the higher flight prices was finding newer apartments more competitively priced making the over all trip cost reasonable.

Gaining Time

2012-02-01T07:44:00.000-05:00

Well I decided to deactivate my Facebook account indefinitely. I don't like the sounds of the new changes and am not thrilled with having to spend time figuring things out from a privacy perspective each time an update comes down the pipe.

Before I did so, I cleared out all my photos and any description on my profile, leaving just a bare bones profile to close down.

It may be naive to think somewhere my info still sits and I didn't really permanently erase everything I thought I did especially when I can come back anytime just by signing in. So should I need to contact someone, I still can while revealing what I think is minimal info.

I'm looking forward to gaining back more time.

Clean Up Continues

2012-01-31T10:00:00.002-05:00

Continuing in the spirit of clean up, I called a couple of places to put a stop to flyer delivery to our house, hopefully starting this week.

The process was simple enough. They ask for your name and number and tell you it is instant -- Fingers crossed!

When we go away for a couple of weeks, we pay to put a hold on our mail. But the flyers and local papers keep coming so you end up coming home to a full mailbox.

I guess we can ask someone to come by to pick up mail and flyers and when we had in house cat sitting, that wasn't an issue. Not that we don't, it has become an issue.

I don't like anyone having access to my house, even for checking purposes. Strange, you are probably thinking, but I don't. We don't have anyone check in on our other places either.

I figure I'll just deal with whatever comes.

Another Book Recommendation

2012-01-30T08:08:00.001-05:00

The geography of bliss : one grump's search for the happiest places in the world by Eric Weiner.

A lighter funnier take on the subject.

Book Recommendation

2012-01-28T07:57:00.001-05:00

Just finished a super book -- Against Happiness by Eric G. Wilson.

Getting Balanced

2012-01-26T18:43:00.007-05:00

I find people who don't bother to listen and remember really frustrating to be around. All of a sudden I am in the midst of being bombarded with them.

It is really hard for me not to take it personally. The Buddhist in me says experience it, do not judge or get involved as it will pass. Deep breaths.

On a unrelated note, I had a light bulb moment this week. I suddenly realized just how much balanced I had built into my life growing up.

The amount of music and art in my life at that time was a saving grace to me. Art and piano lessons for 11 yrs made sure it represented a good percentage of my week and served to balance the academic stressors.

I have been without a significant creative side to my life since I started my career. This week, I actually sat down at my piano and started to play again (Chopin Nocturnes). It was so enjoyable. I felt immediately the stress relief of using a different part of my brain.

When we were in Nice last fall, I used D's sketch book and did a quick sketch just for fun. I'm a painter at heart but had suddenly felt like drawing. It makes me really happy to see that side of me coming back.

A Good Morning

2012-01-24T10:13:00.003-05:00

For a change, I decided to take an early morning walk to do my banking. Usually I go in the evenings but the mild winter we've been experiencing has made for dry sidewalks and clear roads.

It was very pleasant. Saw a different piece of city life due to time of day. Postmen and construction workers going to work. Didn't realized how many people took public transit. Nice to say good morning to people.

Since we've been house hunting out of province, our eyes have been extra open to what we have here. It has so far made us more appreciative.

D has voiced his concern for my potential boredom from not having my career anymore. He also feels having my income is very valuable and that a fun job might not be as fun as it is in my mind based on my history of being self employed and in control.

De Cluttering

2012-01-20T08:31:00.000-05:00

D dropped off 2 garbage bags full of our clothing to our local donation center. He said it felt good to be free of it. I think it is a great continuation in our lives to rid ourselves of excess stuff.

Though I'm having trouble with convincing D to part with some books. Since moving over the ebook side of things, my attachment to novels have all but disappeared. However I do own a few beautiful coffee table books I will keep this time around.

Looking around our house with the mindset of potentially moving does make clutter decision making easier. It is a great exercise whether one is moving or not. We've gotten broad quotes on cost of a cross country move. Sounds like a lot to me so I'm thinking less is less.

Rude Delivery Guy

2012-01-19T08:26:00.001-05:00

I made a complaint to Purolator yesterday. It was my 3rd encounter with an angry and rude delivery guy who is impatient and making up delivery rules I was sure wasn't true. So I called him on it as well as with customer service.

Customer service sided with me and the district manager will be getting in touch with us to resolve the issue. All I want him to do is to do his job without complaint or confrontation. His job isn't rocket science. I'm fine with never seeing him again.

New Home Buyer Expectations

2012-01-18T09:14:00.004-05:00

D and I like to watch real estate shows, especially ones featuring first time home buyers. Once you've seen a couple of them, it is easy to pick out the trend in what people "ought" to be looking for in a new home.

On the flip side, as a fairly seasoned home owners, makes us wonder what's wrong with us because we didn't think to look for some of those list things that are so important to the first timers.

We don't have granite counter tops in any of our properties. Nor was it a requisite for buying a house. There have been some fiery tempers displayed on the show from the lack of them. And what is wrong with Corian? They cost similar to marble but won't stain like marble can.

Those people haven't learned that stone counters don't have anything to do with the quality of food that comes out of the kitchen. Granted, it is a nice look.

What is the issue with "pop corn" ceilings that some have? The trend started as a way to diffuse light in a bedroom or dining room so the ambiance is more gentle. But everyone hates them.

I think people just get in their head to like this or don't like that because they hear others doing and saying the same things, instead of thinking for themselves.

A starter home is a starter home. Some of these peoples' budgets almost make me laugh. They expect the world (3 - 4 bedrooms, 2 + baths, great neighbourhood, large amount of green space, hardwood floors throughout, finished rec room, granite counters, stainless steel appliances, large back yard, double or triple car garage) for $125K in Texas or the Mid West (almost doable) or $350K in Toronto. They would be lucky to find a town home in Toronto. I can't believe what you can buy in Texas.

In a pretty small kitchen, granite counter tops are a $3000 - 4000 upgrade. Whereas I'm thinking that same money can go a long way to towards things that would really increase quality of life, like a backyard patio set, BBQ, fence, furniture etc.

Mobile Working Possibilities

2012-01-17T09:42:00.005-05:00

It has been a big news week. D got the OK to be able to work remote from anywhere in Canada! We have been working/waiting on this for a few years. Our heads are spinning with possibilities and we have been busy with pro/con lists as well as searching the mls.

One of the potential big issues with leaving Ontario for me is my career. It would mean retirement. I'm not keen on starting again in a different province doing what I have been doing. So that would mean more "fun" jobs what will likely pay no where close to what I've been accustomed to earning.

We have come up with a couple of "sub- full out" move away plans. I call them our chicken/toe in the water plans as a way to make liquidating assets and moving easier.

D and I have different time lines. He would like the move to happen within 3 - 5 yrs. I'm thinking asap because that is how I tend to be. But I also realize the lifestyle we have been able to enjoy with me working too.

We are planning to spend some time with Realtors found in the east and west Canada (leaning west) before making a firm decision. This is shaping up to be an extra interesting year.

Travel Necessities

2012-01-13T10:16:00.003-05:00

My passport is nearing its expiry date. In my research into faster ways to get it renewed, I stumbled upon this super visa service site which not only helps you get travel visa (for a fee of course) but has the handy chart of the world's visa requirements.

Check out the requirements for a Brazilian tourist visa for fun...

Because a lot of countries have requirements that your passport validity must extend 3 - 6 months past your departure date, I always feel like I am getting jipped 6 months. This time around, I'll be cutting it closer.

When I come home from Hawaii, I'll have 6 weeks to get a new passport before my probable next trip -- Nothing booked yet but I'm looking.

Now that I've studied the world visa chart, I've decided I'm going to tackle the countries that don't require a complicated or expensive or time consuming visa application first. Mentally I'm lumping countries into easy, moderate and hard.

It would be great to find a similar chart for travel immunization and combine the two to get a realistic view of what it will take and the real costs of going to those places.

Cost : Purchase Price

2012-01-12T07:39:00.003-05:00

Our recent plumbing bill brought an important point to light. At first I felt the $332 bill was too high. We were charged a 3 hr labour rate when it didn't take 3 hrs.

Additional time was charged for travel. I was a bit miffed about it. We used someone from out of town because they were good. Next time we'll find someone good locally.

But what I wanted to get to was this. Even though the bill was $100 higher than I was expecting, the cost of our house maintenance as a percentage of the cost of our house is actually pretty small.

When we started to think in those terms, it was easy to evaluate our other properties in the same way we would consider car reliability. So our main house is like the Honda of homes. Very reliable, minimal maintenance costs.

The cottage and ski condo has been higher maintenance relative to its cost so more like German cars -- fun but there is a much higher cost to maintain. With respect to the ski condo, we haven't had to fix anything per se but I'm using the yearly condo fees as the measure.

Over the 9 plus years of cottage ownership, we've replaced the well, the pump, the stove (fridge is next) and the roof. Some people may add the cost of gasoline to get there and back. And in our case, we have the monthly cost of the Turbo Hub.

I'd like to think that most of the big capital costs for that location are done and should last a long while. Other things like newer windows and bathroom are a want and not a must have, just like landscaping.

Food Rant

2012-01-08T18:13:00.000-05:00

I've entered into the cranky phase of my dietary change. The first month I felt great, then cheated a few times while in France and once before Christmas (client gave me some homemade peppermint and chocolate bark) and since then I've felt less than great.

D went through it too and has since moved to feeling pretty good. I hope I move through it soon.

I've tried some soy alternatives and the only thing I really like is Starbuck's Cafe Mocha with soy (no whip). The soy and sherbet ice cream bar was awful and soy creamer made my tea taste horrible.

I miss table cream, whipped cream and cake and pizza like crazy! And our kitchen desk is piled up with tins of cookies and chocolates given to us we cannot eat (will be given away).

This must be what withdrawal feels like. Other than the above, can't say I really miss eating eggs or almonds or pineapple or peanuts or clams.

D's First Prepayment

2012-01-07T08:10:00.000-05:00

D's post tax bonus showed up today and we are pretty happy about it despite the large tax bite (about half). Once the 2012 tax season rolls around, we'll get some of it back from the overpayment.

We applied most of it (I like round numbers) to "the car portion" of the mortgage. I prefer to keep the two separate in my mind. It was D's first prepayment experience and he now knows what it feels like to make a decent dent into the number. He liked it.

There was some back and forth as D debated whether he could afford the time off to come with me to Hawaii. In the end, he didn't want to use up so many holiday days (11) for this trip (Hawaii is not in his top places to see) so he is holding out to see where I go next 'cause he's pretty sure there will be another.

Pretty Christmas Views From Ski Condo

2012-01-03T18:35:00.001-05:00

A New Year

2012-01-02T11:37:00.002-05:00

We were really glad to have gone out at Christmas time. Originally the plan was to stay home and have a quieter time but this past season was the quietest we had primarily due to the economical slow down.

We experienced minor amounts of noise and just moderate crowds vs previous years where there were slews of kids running up and down the hallway. As selfish as this sounds, we enjoyed it. Tried a couple of new restaurants this year.

There were enough people to make the resort festive but not so much we got irritated. I'm sure the resort would have liked to be busier. We'll be back in about a month to help out the local economy.

Our new year's eve was spent on the plane home. We found a restaurant open for breakfast on New Year's day and ate a good meal there, followed by afternoon movies. Great way to begin another new year.

The only coming home surprise was a mailbox stuffed with mail. We paid to have our mail held (to give the illusion we are not away) so D is going to look into speaking with someone about what happened, how to prevent it, and getting our money back.

This Year Next Year

2011-12-31T13:08:00.000-05:00

I don't have any desire to write up my annual review. My mind has already transitioned to 2012. The next 2 yrs of spreadsheets are very similar. I guess that means I am not expecting month to month life to change too much.

We don't have any lofty financial goals, just keep plugging along with monthly savings. Not expecting any major changes in work. Outside of full retirement, my work load is as small as it is going to be. Hopefully D's work will continue to be predictable.

I want to continue to simplify our home and life next year. Already have a list going of donation items for when we return home. No firm directions for 2012 travel. I tend to let opportunities guide me, finances pending. Our yearly return to France is the only set thing.

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

1st Trip 2012

2011-12-29T14:54:00.000-05:00

The first trip for 2012 has been booked. Destination will be Hawaii for a couple of weeks. I've never been and am excited to get an overview of the islands.

I'm quickly finding out that helicopter tours are what people rave about and are the scenes from which people think of when Hawaii is mentioned. Not surprising, they are the most expensive tours. I'd like to take some surfing lessons. And eat some great local food.

Can't believe it has already been a week since I last worked. It hasn't felt like that long and it will be another week before I return to work. Not going to rush the time. I'm enjoying not having a schedule. This year was full of running around.

Quality Issues

2011-12-27T15:58:00.001-05:00

Against my better judgement, I purchased a "no name" hand held massage device to replace a 14 yr old one one its last legs. They are excellent for sore muscles after work or workouts. We have one at home too.

At the mall the other day, we weren't able to find an exact replacement. So in desperation, I bought one that didn't look too durable (from one of those stores that well stuff you see on TV commercials) without checking on the return policy. Once we got it back home it worked for less than a minute.

I called and spoke to the gentleman who helped us and was told they didn't have a return policy, just an exchange one. The news didn't impress me but it was my fault for assuming. I don't want another one and have found some other things on their website we will exchange for tomorrow when we return.

Contrast that experience with a phone call I made to Bose this morning inquiring if they service and sell replacement ear cushions for my noise cancelling headphones.

I had a couple of instances on flights in this year where I experienced shocks to my right ear during an in flight movie. The gentleman I spoke with helped me troubleshoot whether that was caused by a faulty line or not.

We narrowed it down to the 2 prong connector that some planes require and he promptly sent me a replacement for free. My job was to use the headset with my iPod and computer to see if I can reproduce the shocking feeling. If not, then the headset is fine. It has been fine.

What a different experience dealing with a company that stands behind its products! I thought I was going to be buying a new headset ($399 + tax) and now I will just be replacing the ear pads for about $40 instead with shipping free, plus the free 2 prong adapter.

He really was discouraging the idea of my buying a new headset. That's not what you expect nowadays. Should the day come I need to actually consider a new set, I can buy just the headset part, (use my existing battery and line) for just $109 + tax. So I would never need to spend the original amount again. Pretty awesome news!

I'm going to buying their in ear bud headphones as well. The ones that come with iPods are in my opinion, pretty awful. Plus the rubber around it disintegrated ages ago. I've been using my Blackberry ones.

The Electronic Cleanup Continues

2011-12-26T12:21:00.002-05:00

I cannot adequately express how much better I feel since clearing out excess email subscriptions and old emails.

In this dense electronic age, I've found myself increasingly bombarded with self and non self inflicted emails. What a time waster it is just servicing it daily. As my emails can also be read on my Blackberry and tablet, I'm potentially dealing with them three times.

I've opted to cancel forwarding all my email accounts to my tablet. I'm going to look at it for my phone as well. The clean up continues!

Next up will be Facebook. I'm not a huge user and I use it to keep in touch with friends that I am not able to see in person. Thus my list isn't large and I love looking at others' photos as most of my friends are out town/country.

I think I will also eliminate some peoples' updates -- those friends who have a habit of updating every minute of their day thus clogging up my news page. Or those people who have decided to use Facebook to continually sell stuff.

D and I had a simple Christmas dinner this year. We had giant shrimp cocktail followed by homemade bacon potatoe leek soup and a candy apple. Hope everyone is enjoying their Christmas holidays.