• Vinegar and soap

    Updated: 2010-12-30 22:19:11
    I have started using vinegar and baking soda for basic cleaning. Generally I spread baking soda of the grime and then soak a rag in vinegar. When the acid of the vinegar comes in contact with the baking soda a chemical reaction ensues which works very well for cleaning (for extra effect heat the vinegar). [...]

  • On gratification

    Updated: 2010-12-30 06:17:30
    It is much more gratifying to say “I did that” than “I paid for that.”

  • Cold showers — one year later

    Updated: 2010-12-29 04:42:21
    When I went sailing on the bay for the very first time, the skipper told me two things: First, don’t get hit on the head with the boom: You’ll either die or you’ll wish you died. Second, if you fall overboard, remember to hold your breath before hitting the water. Otherwise, the cold water will [...]

  • Modified Navy Showers

    Updated: 2010-12-29 00:20:22
    According to wiki, a normal ten minute shower uses as much as 60 gallons of water. This means that the water tank of an boat or an RV(*) will be exhausted after a single shower. Therefore we’ll have to adopt to some kind of Navy shower. The thing I don’t like about Navy showers is [...]

  • How I would get out of debt (if I had any)

    Updated: 2010-12-28 00:19:07
    Okay, so maybe I am not the best person to answer this given that I never had any debt, like at all(!) But there are plenty of people out there who are in debt and wants to get out of it, and occasionally I also get the random question about it, so I figured I [...]

  • Choosing a retirement plan for extremely early retirement

    Updated: 2010-12-26 17:56:48
    Consumers are widely recommended to contribute around 15% of their paycheck to a retirement plan. The question whether to pick a ROTH IRA or a traditional IRA does not have a definite answer. For instance, it depends on whether one’s future [retirement] income is expected to in a higher tax bracket (ROTH) or a lower [...]

  • Social Security Do-Over is Over

    Updated: 2010-12-26 00:47:07
    Social Security Administration closes loophole to increase social security income

  • The SF 50 and Your Federal Retirement

    Updated: 2010-12-23 18:30:35
    The SF 50 is the official form the government uses to compute your federal retirement. Learn the importance of reviewing your SF50 forms and what to look for.

  • Financial Planner for Federal Employees - Micah Shilanski

    Updated: 2010-12-23 18:20:04
    Meet Micah Shilanski - Micah is an independent Certified Financial Planner for Federal Employees.

  • Your Personal Federal Retirement Consultation with Micah Shilanski CFP

    Updated: 2010-12-23 18:04:27
    Here's how you can schedule a personal consultation about your federal retirement with Micah Shilanski, CFP. Micah is an independent financial planner for Federal Employees.

  • Senior Citizens Helped Three Ways by Tax Cut Bill

    Updated: 2010-12-22 01:14:33
    First, the alternative minimum tax, was patched so that middle income senior citizens are not caught paying an incremental tax bill. For 2010, the AMT exemption amounts will be $47,450 for unmarried individuals and $72,450 for married individuals filing jointly. For 2011, the amounts will be $48,450 and $74,450, respectively. Next, the bill extends the benefit [...]

  • Is your lifestyle design robust?

    Updated: 2010-12-21 20:23:21
    In other words, do all the promises of a better life hold up? First, let’s consider the traditional lifestyle, so you can understand what I mean by the word robust. Traditionally, you’re supposed to work on maximizing your SAT scores, so you can get into a good college. There you will take on student debt [...]

  • The opportunity cost of early retirement

    Updated: 2010-12-20 21:19:14
    Adolescents have a sense of die-hard immortality that comes from having given no thought to their future. I realized that I wasn’t immortal when I was 21-22. This implied the full realization that my life span was finite although I hadn’t yet reached the sense of time that I have not that “old” people frequently [...]

  • A tale of three species part II

    Updated: 2010-12-18 21:17:24
    Soon the sheeple and the bears were worrying about an imminent downturn, but that was not the end of the story as supply had not gotten permanently out of line with affordable demand. After a brief correction in the green paint manufactoring industry, new sheeple were ready to take on economic risk spurred on by [...]

  • How to get wealthy on minimum wage

    Updated: 2010-12-18 00:18:34
    This is an interesting challenge which I believe I could do if I had to. To reiterate: This posts shows what I would do. As always, I am not you, and it is your responsibility to decide whether you want to and whether you need to hire a certified financial professional to consult before following [...]

  • Dec 17, Full-Time RV in Europe

    Updated: 2010-12-17 16:22:05
    Ten years now in an RV in Europe. We havn't seen Belarus yet but have seen everything else in-between from Morocco to Egypt to Moscow to the North Cape

  • A tale of three species part III

    Updated: 2010-12-15 22:08:15
    Profits in the land continued to erode and businessmen began to realize that without increased consumption it would be impossible to support the excess factories and the massive amount of debt they had taken on. The government tried to help by given everybody some money, but most just paid off some of their debt postponing [...]

  • Dec 15, Frugal Living Blog

    Updated: 2010-12-15 20:33:34
    The Frugal Living Blog is my mini journal about frugal retirement living.

  • What do you see when you look at someone?

    Updated: 2010-12-14 22:06:56
    Thoughts on contingency and what could happen… Before we moved we used to live in a middle class neighborhood. Okay, so everything is considered middle class these days, so to be more accurate, this was considered a blue collar neighborhood in one of the highest income mid-sized towns in the US. Home prices ranges from [...]

  • Dec 14, A Monk Reflects on Approaching Retirement

    Updated: 2010-12-14 16:15:08
    When I looked at this page, I was taken by the idea that retirement is a dare. I think this brother has some interesting things to share. You might think so, too. (Click the link below to read the blog Monks Do Not Retire.)

  • Rant on society’s expectations …

    Updated: 2010-12-14 03:11:35
    If I may … It seems that certain people take issue when certain other people decide to opt out of the “popular choice”, here, a lifetime spent working for the sake of accumulating stuff, in other words, a typical career. One of the most common complaints can be traced to the first half of the [...]

  • Why Early Retirement Extreme is a bad name

    Updated: 2010-12-13 04:48:47
    When I started the blog I debated what would make for a good blog name. One of the names considered was “Extreme Early Retirement” but I found that that name had already been “parked”. Early Retirement Extreme was free though and ERE also made for a better acronym than EER. In retrospect, here slightly more [...]

  • Will a Black Swan Appear in Your Retirement?

    Updated: 2010-12-10 15:37:01
    The “Black Swan Theory” refers to unexpected events that have dire consequences. Since retirement is associated with a financial world that is not fully understood and the knowledge to make good decisions is not always present, unwelcome surprises do occur. Even without retirement’s Black Swans, small mistakes can lead to unfortunate consequences, but with their [...]

  • Making a Comfortable Retirement a Reality

    Updated: 2010-12-07 21:50:00
    Making a Comfortable Retirement a Reality by America Saves 7. December 2010 11:50 Susan Weinstock is CFA's financial reform campaign director , leading all media , coalition , public education and grassroots efforts . nbsp Susan has more than twenty years of communications , research , advocacy , grassroots and legislative experience protecting consumers . nbsp Prior to joining CFA in 2009, Susan worked in a number of different positions at AARP . nbsp Like most people , I should spend more time thinking about retirement . nbsp Unfortunately , it mostly comes to mind for me on cold mornings when the alarm clock starts buzzing . nbsp The good news is that there is a wealth of information on this subject on the Internet and it would behoove all of us to take advantage of it . nbsp

  • The FERS Supplement - Little Known Benefit for Some FERS Federal Employees

    Updated: 2010-12-03 23:36:50
    Have you heard of the FERS Supplement? Many federal employees haven't heard about this special benefit for some FERS who retire before age 62. Could this help make early retirement a reality for you?

  • The FERS Supplement for Special Provisions

    Updated: 2010-12-03 23:35:22
    The FERS Supplement is a unique benefit for some FERS who retire before age 62. Learn about the FERS Supplement rules for Special Provisions federal employees.

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