I'm not an early FIRE'r - will be 62 in September, so I can collect a check each month. That will cover about half of our expenses, and the rest will come from investments. Now that I've told him, I am partly relieved and partly scared. It's a really big deal to give up the security of a regular paycheck. But this job is eating me alive and I don't feel as if I have a choice.
House is paid off; no consumer debt. We eat a mostly vegetarian diet, and I cook at home. We raise our own veggies. I know how to sew. Hubby harvested a lot of wood when someone he knew was having trees cut down, so we cut some of our heating bills by burning logs. The only scary thing is healthcare - but in three years, I can go on Medicare. Hubby is 58, so he has longer to go. He hasn't had a paying job in two years; he is our gardener, carpenter, plumber, painter, and pretty much everything else except for chief cook and bottle washer. The adventure will begin at Christmas, which is my FIRE date. I know it will take them some time to find someone to replace me, and then I will have to train him/her. I think the boss thought I was bluffing at first to get more pay, but I told him otherwise.
