The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley – “To a Mouse, on Turning Her Up in Her Nest With the Plough, November, 1785” Robert Burns
Hi. As I write this I am approaching my 61st birthday. I have been working towards Financial Independence (FI) since I was about 16. I seem to have chosen the 40+ year path to get there!
More J.D. Roth than Pete Adeney
Sometimes I feel like an old hippie but I get excited to see younger generations doing things more sensibly with their money (at least in the FI community).
Along the way, I made some mistakes, did some things right (blind squirrel finds an acorn every now and then) and would like to see if I can be of service to other seniors who are preparing to retire and to the younger generation who may not yet have the scars that come with experience.
The FIRE community consists mostly of bloggers who either Retired Early (the RE in FIRE) or plan to. Some, like J L Collins, are retiring closer to a normal age. I believe there are others like me, who may have tried to achieve this but life got in the way. I understand and hopefully can provide an alternate voice for those who also find themselves in this situation.
My acronym might be FIROT – Financially Independent, Retire On Time (maybe FIRT?). Of course one hopes to maintain good health, to be able to enjoy this what we have built.
I have been building wealth though. I enjoy my job (most of the time, let’s be honest) and it is close by so I don’t have the horrible commute that others complain about. I get paid well and my base expenses are reasonable. Our net worth is growing enough that one of these days I will pull the switch. Or life will happen and it will decide for me. I figured out a while back that I don’t control the universe (that was a relief, imagine the responsibility that would actually entail).
I want to thank Brad and Jonathan at Choose FI for inspiring and encouraging me to begin this journey. They have a great podcast that covers many topics that are important to this community and a private facebook page where questions can be answered.
On a personal note, I am married over 36 years. We have raised two wonderful children. Both have graduated college and begun their journey into the working world. My daughter recently married a great guy. Both embrace at least some aspects of FI and are off to a great start.