Author Topic: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself  (Read 3317760 times)

CarolynM

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #250 on: October 12, 2012, 12:31:47 PM »
Hello, everyone!

I'm Carolyn and I discovered the blog yesterday (and spent my entire work day reading it!)


Self-employed-swami

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #251 on: October 12, 2012, 01:49:13 PM »
Hello.

I'm a late 20's lady who is married to an awesome fella, and I've always felt the drive to cut out frivolous spending, and pad the FU fund. I own my own business, and am $67,000 away from having my mortgage paid off, and I think MMM can give me the tools to not only motivate me, but also get my husband more converted to FI philosophy.  He grew up in a much different type of household than I (My parents never had credit cards, and paid cash for things.  I also grew up hearing 'no' a lot) whereas his fam spent to the maximum of their credit allowances, and sometimes beyond, so the idea of 'depriving' himself  (not buying everything you want, exactly when you want it) is slowly becoming more normal to him.

I quit my office job 2 years ago to become self employed, and I have an abundance of time off because of it.  (Hence the swami title).  I love my job now, and I very rarely dread it.

This forum also seems to be filled with other awesome people, who understand that saving can be much more gratifying than spending.  :)

marty998

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #252 on: October 12, 2012, 05:52:30 PM »
Hi I'm Marty, from Sydney Australia (are there any other Aussies on here?)

Started reading MMM a couple of weeks ago. Start to end, couldn't stop myself reading the lot.
 
26 now, set myself the goal of being FI in 9 years. Notwithstanding the sky-high housing costs here I reckon I can still do it.

cheers

mustachianit

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #253 on: October 13, 2012, 08:58:08 AM »
Hi,

I am Andria and my husband and I live in Chicago.  Started doing this last January and the changes are mind blowing.  I have never been so happy before.  ; )  So, grateful for learning about another way things can be done.  Hoping to retire at 54 which is better than 75.  Spending what I was spending before I do not think retirement would ever come.


Moskit

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #254 on: October 13, 2012, 10:55:02 AM »
Hi,
I'm from Buffalo. Started reading just a couple of days ago. Very interesting. I was never a spender, because always had to keep my nickels and dimes counted but it was very interesting to find out that other people share the same ideas of limited consumerizm.
I've immigrated to the US 10 years ago and finally have a stable source of income. Not huge, but enough to pay off all of my debts I accrued getting my aducation and let me retire at age 55 (this is a legal retirement age for women in Russia).
Looking forward to learn more from this forum.
 
« Last Edit: October 13, 2012, 10:59:46 AM by Moskit »

Geborgenheit

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #255 on: October 16, 2012, 06:07:53 AM »
Hi just discovered MMM today. I am a Brit living in Germany with an American husband and our 3 American-born kids. We have done OK in some ways but we are far, far away from any level of financial badassity. Hoping to read and learn but firstly pay attention to where our money is going! We live in a country where frugality is celebrated and virtually everyone (except me) rides a bike.

We have no mortgage as we sold our house when we left the US. We own our cars and have never had car payments. We have a good start on savings (200k +) but we are 43/44 and we have no current financial plan and nothing planned for retirement. This is our wake-up call and I'm actually very excited to find this site as I believe we should now be able to create a blueprint to move forward with. We have been good in the past at working together toward financial goals (such as never having car loans, paying down debt and making necessary sacrifices). We lost the plot since we had kids 12 years ago however and although we haven't acquired new debt we also seem to have squandered a lot of money on ??

Humbled and hopeful.

weston

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #256 on: October 16, 2012, 06:15:23 AM »
I'm Weston. I've been reading the blog since the very beginning and have been reading the forum on RSS feed for several months. I just registered a few minutes ago.

I'm 58, the father of 4 daughters with 2 granddaughters. I'm the sole shareholder in my own law firm specializing primarily in Immigration and Personal Bankruptcy law. My oldest daughter is also a lawyer and works for me. I was very pleasantly surprised by how many lawyers apparently frequent this forum.

At 58 I certainly don't believe that early retirement is going to be in the cards. My wife (who also works) and I have a less extravagant lifestyle than many of our friends who have lower incomes than we do. However, we have been in agreement for many years that one of our top priorities was to have our kids get quality educations without being burdened by excessive student loans. All 4 of them have worked during college but with 4 kids it was still a rather substantial burden upon my wife and I. I don't regret it for a minute, but now that our youngest is due to graduate next summer it's time to get real about putting more money aside for our retirements.

Hope to get a lot of inspiration and information.

Mr. Moneymustcash

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #257 on: October 16, 2012, 01:21:50 PM »
Hi,

I'm Mr. Moneymustcash, not to be confused with Mr. Money Mustache. I have just begun my journey to financial independence. I have already implemented many changes to my life and am enjoying the ride.

I live in Austin, TX

Woolie

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #258 on: October 16, 2012, 02:04:38 PM »
Hi all,

I'm a 34 year old single mom to a 3.5 year old little boy. Not long after my son was born I realized that my life needed to change. Since then I have been slowly minimalising my possessions and not spending as much money. Getting rid of the clutter has only increased my desire to have less, spend less and do more with my life.

So then I found MMM. And here I am to learn more, do more and be more!

Dr Dave

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #259 on: October 16, 2012, 11:33:39 PM »
Dave here. I am vet(erinarian) and live/work in Arizona. Serious long time lurker and blog reader, feel the need to join right about now, funk soul brothers.

happy

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #260 on: October 17, 2012, 06:06:58 AM »
Hi I'm Marty, from Sydney Australia (are there any other Aussies on here?)

Started reading MMM a couple of weeks ago. Start to end, couldn't stop myself reading the lot.
 
26 now, set myself the goal of being FI in 9 years. Notwithstanding the sky-high housing costs here I reckon I can still do it.

cheers

G'day Marty,

Yes, there's a few of us and I suspect a few more lurkers.  Every now and then an Aussie thread is posted, which is good, since there are some differences from US.. the high cost of housing within a cooee of Sydney being one of them.  I've found  The  General principles of Mustachianism  to be very applicable even so. Welcome!

mustache brony

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #261 on: October 17, 2012, 07:09:41 AM »
Hi,

I’m Andrew. I started reading in March (when a friend linked an article), and am finally delurking. I’m 27 and have found the principles of Mustachiansim to resonate (although still working to complete my entire list of mustache changes).

atlbrew

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #262 on: October 17, 2012, 02:25:15 PM »
Hi, I'm Michael and I am 27 and have been married for 1.5 years living in the New Orleans, LA area.  Have been reading the site for a while and reading the forums but finally decided now is the time to become active!  I am looking forward to it.  Have always practiced close to mustachian ways and never realized there is an entire community like me until I discovered this site.

noob515

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #263 on: October 18, 2012, 02:10:59 PM »
Hello everyone!

I just found this site a couple of weeks ago, and it's been inspiring so far.  A little about me: married for 8 years, working in Washington DC with a ridiculously long commute (however, I only drive 7 miles to the train station, and my train ticket is largely subsidized by my employer)... we just bought a modest house for $225k.  Combined income of $115k.  My student loan debt is $70k.  We spent many years digging my husband out of credit card debt and paying off HIS student loans, so I feel like I'm just treading water, financially.  My goal is to pay off the student loans asap.  Beyond that, I'm not sure yet.  (besides the obvious - to retire early!)

Anyway, I'm very excited to start implementing some of the changes from this blog/forum.  :)

FrugalHawk

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #264 on: October 19, 2012, 12:01:46 PM »
Hi! I have been reading MMM for a few months now. I'm married, my spouse and I are in our mid-20's. We have always been fairly frugal, and we will have paid off $108,585.20 + interest in student loan debt in 4 years, 6 months on an average income of ~85K per year living in major California cities.

I joined this community because there's no one in my "real life" who I can talk to about money issues. My current goal is to reach FI/ER in 10 years.

I'm excited to learn more and perhaps contribute to this community.

Anguilla

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #265 on: October 19, 2012, 05:23:30 PM »
Hello all, Anguilla here (cause I love the island) 32, single , with no kids, no mortgage or rent, only debt is $14k of student loans which I will pay off next May. Just started making "good money" this year so I can save $30k a year once I pay off the last bit of student loans.

Planning to retire by 50. I could do it sooner, but I want to buy 2 pieces of property cash.

My Dad retired at 62 and has about $200k saved. He never had a car payment, cell phone, credit card, paid cash for his house, and was just overall a great example of FI. He gets Social Security of a little over $1k a month, (health insurance paid by state government he worked for)but his monthly bills are Gas/electric, cable/Internet and verizon landline for a total of $400 a month. My mom also gets SS of $400 a month and uses that for the grocery shopping.

If I didn't see it with my own eyes, I would have NEVER believed retiring early was possible!
I would have thought Mr. MM was lying or something because everybody makes it seem like buying a $300k house and having a car payment and credit card debt are a MUST!


Anyway now that I got a good paying job, I need to make sure I stay on the path to retire early. Oh and I live in the Baltimore area which is less expensive than the DC area but I use to hangout out in DC all the time (better night life and money pit).

dionysiandame

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #266 on: October 20, 2012, 04:21:38 PM »
Hey all, what's good? DD here, 28, married, no kids, one underwater mortgage, and no debt besides a car loan at $12,000 (I know I know!) and my student loan (which is at $7000 right now). My husband purchased the condo before we were together, but we've built a plan to crush our consumer debt before we start focusing on the mortgage. I have no credit card debt of my own.

I used to be one of those people Mustachians talked about, but as I've been reading and tightening my finances, I've gone from someone who makes over $50k a year and had NO savings, to someone who saves a little over $1100 a month and is still looking for ways to pare down.

Like some others, I'm in love with personal finance now, especially investing and saving, and there aren't many people interested in talking about these kinds of subjects.

Thanks for having me!

jmw13

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #267 on: October 21, 2012, 08:37:39 AM »
Hi, Im Jessica.

I had planned to do a minimalist Oct-Dec where my husband and I (no kids) didnt buy anything new.  In my frugal blog reading I came across a comment mentioning MMM.  As I was naturally curious, I found the blog and have spent the last 7 days doing nothing but reading every single post.

We are in debt 92.5K not including mortgage (majority is student loan, but i no longer consider that "okay" debt).

In the last week, I sold my 2012 Toyota Tacoma that I literally drove only to and from my workplace 3 miles from my house.  I replaced it with a used commuter bike for $250 plus $100 in biking accessories (helmet, lights, locks, etc).  Did a test ride yesterday, I will survive the rides to work, but I am looking forward to my legs (and butt) acclimating to this type of exercise.

We also looking at dropping the overpriced cell phone bill (which has been driving me nuts for years) and eliminating our crossfit membership since we feel comfortable on our and will start building our home gym at far less per month.  Another shocking revelation was the cost of one diet soda and one rockstar per day that my husband and I formally indulged in when looked at over a ten year period, that is also out the window! 

I cant help but be sick with the waste of my last 13 years since I first starting working at 15.

We are very excited to be aspiring Mustachians and look forward to Financial Indepdence.  Goal is to dig out of the hole over the next 4 years, then get on the FI pathway for another 7 years, retiring at 39...  Are you for real?!? :)

Self-employed-swami

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #268 on: October 21, 2012, 11:03:06 AM »
Good job Jessica on selling the taco.  They are fabulous trucks :)

ArizonaRed

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #269 on: October 22, 2012, 08:48:05 AM »
Hello everyone I'm Bruce aka Red. 
I was introduced to MMM a year or so ago by a friend who was reading ERE.  I bookmarked the blog and proceeded to forget all about it.  And now having voraciously read through all the posts on the blog in the last 3 days I wish I had read so much sooner!

I'm overseas working right now (Independent Contractor doing security for the gov't) so I've been creating lists of things to do as soon as I get home.  Luckily my wife is much more frugal than I have been and is excited for the changes.

While I haven't been completely Anti-mustachian (We have no debt other than a house that was bought in 2005 in Phoenix OUCH!) I have squandered far to much money.  I'm looking forward to beginning to work my way to financial independence!

thurston howell iv

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #270 on: October 22, 2012, 10:10:25 AM »
Hello, I'm new here. Been lurking for a bit but lately I've felt compelled to join the Mustachian ranks and maybe start learning something or being able to contribute.
I can't seem to get enough of this forum. It's Great.

Already started posting all over... Yippee.

When I get more brave I can spill the beans on my financial quagmire and see about getting some real world mustachian advice!
« Last Edit: October 23, 2012, 07:29:32 AM by thurston howell iv »

JulieB

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #271 on: October 23, 2012, 09:33:23 AM »
Hi all, I'm Julie from France. I've been reading a lot of MMM blog posts and forum, and decide today to join the community. Hope it'll help me and my husband to become more mustachian and contribute to the discussions.
We have zero debt, a pretty cheap car we don't use a lot because I go to work walking, and my husband uses PT (in France we're lucky to have a very developped Public Transportation, and nice sidewalks to walk everywhere) . Unfortunately we don't own a home as prices in Paris are way too high, so we're trying to relocate. I'm an engineer with 3 master degrees and my husband's an engineer too with a physics PHD. We're not really well paid regarding American wages (a little bit over 5000€ for both of us) so we're looking for another position in a less expensive place than Paris.

mattgregg

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #272 on: October 24, 2012, 02:21:32 PM »
Hello,

I'm Matt. I have been reading MMM for a couple months. I have recently decided to buy a house.

Cheers

Matte

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #273 on: October 24, 2012, 09:36:03 PM »
I'm Matt age 24, Maple Ridge Bc (town of 50 000 about an hour from Vancouver Bc) I have been frugal and entrepreneurial since I was pretty young.  I must say I like this site of outside the box thinking.  I have owned 17 vehicles, 3atvs, multiple boats, and made a profit off importing, fixing, selling most of them.  I have been working multiple jobs since grade 11, Most of the money going to cars insurance and gas.  Did one summer in fort mcmurray when I was 18, 29 bucks an hour in 2007, first taste of money, bought a corvette in the USA, drove it for the rest of my college then sold it after graduation.  Graduated an engineering diploma program at 19, hired months later, paid off student line of credit that winter, bought a house that winter, middle of the recession.  Used my student line of credit to make the downpayment and build a basement suite.  Paying off the line ode credit well making mortgage payments forced frugality on me.  Now I'm married, working on net worth, awaiting my findependance day.  Aiming for fi 40, Canadian tax and cost of living does not help.  Currently I have been able to create a net worth of about 120k between house appreciation/improvements, savings, rrsps and minus my 1 percent loan on my truck, corp plan loa, cost less new then 5 year old truck, not too mustachian but nobody perfect. 

extralean

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #274 on: October 25, 2012, 04:26:38 AM »
Hello Mustachians,

My name's Thomas, 26, and I've recently moved to Sydney after living in France for four years (I am Australian).  After reading every blog post, I am now focussing on building my 'stache and enjoying my life.

Looking forward to learning more as I sculpt my moustache.

T.


ruthiegirl

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #275 on: October 25, 2012, 09:01:48 AM »
Hey Gang,

I am Ruth, mom to my four little people and super wife to my amazing husband. 

I am new to the boards here, but certainly not new to the low-spending, Mr Mustache lifestyle.  We have lived a life of bounty and happiness on a single income while we raise our kids. 

While we have been good about living debt-free, we have not been so great about building savings and that, my friends, is the next big adventure for our clan. 

Cheers! 

jtmoney

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #276 on: October 25, 2012, 12:51:21 PM »
Hi, I'm Jesse.  I'm a single, 27 year old graduate student.  I currently don't have much net worth at all, but I also have very little debt (under $3000, and not collecting interest right now).  I have about two years until graduation and my goals include FI by 40.  So glad to have a place for reasonable discussion in todays consumerist society.  Glad to be part of the MMM crew.

Captain and Mrs Slow

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #277 on: October 26, 2012, 06:58:44 AM »
Hi Rob here

I'm Canadian, a house husband and married  to the same lovely lady for 28 years but no kids. Currently living in bike unfriendly Madrid and moving to very bike friendly Munich next year (hence the name Captain and Mrs Slow as we tend to be the slowest bikers around).

We paid off a ton of consumer debt over the past 7 years but paying debt off was a piece of cake compared to this savings thing, it is proving to be quite a challenge so hoping people here can help out.

We do own a small apartment in Frankfurt (will be paid off by age 65 and then give a bit of income) but currently rent in Madrid and will do the same in Munich when we move next year.

We won't be retiring early but I do expect our retirement will be comfortable.

Deano

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #278 on: October 27, 2012, 03:20:57 PM »
Hi there, Dean here. My wife and I live close to Hamilton Ontario. I've been somewhat frugal for quite some time now but both my wife and I have found ourselves in well-paying jobs that have made us realize we're lucky indeed. We're looking to make the most of the money we make while still leading enjoyable lives...yes we realize this is possible!

We own a home (no, the bank still does, we're working on it though) and walk to work. We have one car between us...used and paid for. We both had some pretty serious debt that is now all gone so we'd like to make sure we never borrow again. I'm constantly dismayed by the culture of consumption we live in but I'm no monk. I enjoy nice things, I just make sure I don't abuse the privilege I have.


jrhampt

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #279 on: October 28, 2012, 10:08:30 AM »
Hi, I've been posting in the forums for a while but have never introduced myself.  I found MMM through ERE.  I've also been a regular reader of GRS, FMF, and FinancialSamurai.  I liked a lot of Jacob's stuff, but his lifestyle was a little too spartan for me, and GRS wasn't quite extreme enough after I had paid off student loans and started to grow savings.  I think MMM has the perfect balance (probably because he is targeted toward higher-earning professionals who could really be saving a lot more than they are without even feeling a pinch in their lifestyles).

My husband and I live in New England with no kids and one evil cat.  We purchased a home 4 years ago and that is our only debt.  We do have three cars (two fuel-efficient at ~ 40mpg and one Jeep), which is not very Mustachian of us.  I'd like to get rid of the mortgage in the next 5-7 years while continuing to max out tax-deferred savings and contributing substantially to taxable investments.  Our savings rate is a little over 50% of gross and still room to grow. Together we have a goal of $1M liquid investments in 4-5 years. We continue to find more ways to optimize our consumption and lower our spending thanks to ideas from the blog and the forums, and my husband was recently able to switch to a lower-stress job with a small paycut.  He works in the energy industry, while I work in insurance informatics.  Hiking, biking, camping, and the library are our favorite low-cost activities.  We live almost right on the Metacomet trail and there are lots of great short hikes to do close to home.

pac_NW

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #280 on: October 28, 2012, 11:43:13 AM »
Hello all - my name is J.  I am new to the forum and have been reading MMM for the past year.  I have been near the decision of semi-retirement for the past 18 months and still wrestling with how to go about it - the actual mechanics of leaving a job I love (but consumes too much personal time), making changes to become more self-sufficient (am very into urban gardening), thinking about a new career direction which allows me to spend "work time" on issues like the environment, and then the all important question of rebalancing my portfolio to support the next thread in my life.  Not quite "middle age" - prefer to think of the 40's as the new 30's.  Moved in the past 3 years to a more affordable locale than previous and work from home when I am not on the road (which is often). Also working on convincing my family about this new step as it is a big deal to "give up" a revenue stream in exchange for a new direction.  So, I joined the forum this weekend to really dive into these topics and explore them with you.

madmax

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #281 on: October 28, 2012, 09:22:45 PM »
Hi,

I'm Max, I live in the bay area. I'm 26, recently married and I've been fighting a losing battle against the high cost of living in this area and just decided to take things to the next level by joining mmm. :-)

Cheers

NWstubble

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #282 on: October 29, 2012, 11:29:37 PM »
Hello All,

Been lurking for a while now and decided it was about time to contribute and take part in a great online community. Late 20s, married, no kids yet. We had our financial awakening several years ago and have been debt free and building our 'stache the last few. However, I am all about the continual learning process and constantly seeking to optimize so I look forward to learning from all of you and maybe sharing some of our experiences as well.

Cheers,

NWstubble

Scooby Doo

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #283 on: October 31, 2012, 07:47:03 AM »
Hello everybody!

I'm 33 and live in Scotland - I got here via a link to the 'True Cost of Commuting' article, as my current commute has gone over an hour each way (it was 35 minutes when the motorway opened 7 years ago!), and I've been moving towards a Mustachian outlook over the last year or so in any case.

Now it's time for the next level, especially with a Scrappy Doo on the way!

Self-employed-swami

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #284 on: October 31, 2012, 09:34:00 AM »

Now it's time for the next level, especially with a Scrappy Doo on the way!

Congratulations!

CanuckStache

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #285 on: October 31, 2012, 09:52:01 AM »
Hey All. I'm a Canadian currently living in the US (New Orleans). I've always considered myself pretty good with money, but went through a few things in the past few years that really shook me up financially.

I'm a 32 year old self-employed internet guy, and have made good money all through my 20's. I travelled the world and basically have been semi-retired since 23-24 years old. I unfortunately didn't save much money - I saved enough for a 20% downpayment on a condo which I bought about 4 years ago and had a few $k in the bank. I wasn't living large, but very much taking advantage of the lucky cards I'd been dealt.

Then, I went through a costly divorce which was very unexpected - right after I paid for all my ex's education - and the same month as that started, my business took a major turn for the worse (90% drop in income). Flash forward to about a month ago and I was sitting with about $80k in debt (not including mortgage). I was drowning and not making enough money to cover the debt payments. Then, I got lucky and managed to sell off a chunk of my business for $90k. It was hard to do (considering I could have sold it a few years ago for $500k+) but the market changed and so had my life. It gave me the opportunity to wipe the slate clean so to speak.

So today I'm sitting debt free, minus the mortgage (which has $310k left on it). I'm intent on never letting my financial guard down again, and being more diligent about saving. I have to admit despite being very frugal I definitely suffered from "lifestyle inflation".

Right now I'm in a good place. Great new relationship, and she's on board with the frugal lifestyle. Business is starting to pick up again, but still pretty far behind what I was making before. My condo is rented out and paying for itself, and our combined rent and utilities are only about $1000 a month.

Anyways, glad to join this community - Great information in here, and I'm looking forward to contributing some of my experiences as well.

nvestysly

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #286 on: October 31, 2012, 06:51:26 PM »
Hello I'm nvestysly (invest wisely) - I bookmarked this web site many months ago and just now came around to reading some of the blog (starting at the beginning).  I like what I see so I decided to join.

I'm 53, DW is 50 and we've been retired for over a year.  Yeah, I know... kinda lame in Mustachian terms but soooo much earlier than most people we know.

Most influential book - The Richest Man In Babylon.  Second most influential - Your Money Or Your Life.  Lots of other good reading material out there.  I try to read a few books on the subject every year.

Hobby - travel in our RV and working with Habitat for Humanity RV Care-A-Vanners.

Thanks

togetoutoftheratrace

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #287 on: November 01, 2012, 02:17:33 PM »
Hi.

I'm Adam, and I'm in debt up to my eyeballs.

Hi I'm Kevin and I'm with Adam :-)
I'm from Seattle and live in Texas with wife and two kids. Have a strong desire to retire early with passive income in Hawaii where my wife is from
« Last Edit: November 01, 2012, 02:19:04 PM by togetoutoftheratrace »

crystalwheel

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    • Texas Treasure Box
Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #288 on: November 04, 2012, 09:13:56 AM »
Hi all!

I'm Crystal and we (husband Noel) live in Central Texas.  We are retired...me just since 10/15/2012...yea me!

We have two adult children.  Son 24 is graduating from UTSA in December, Daughter 22 - is still in school, currently lives with us but is planning to move out in January. 

Current total debt is $15450.57. 

This is for a Morgan portable building for my business and is being paid for by that business. 

I have until  April 2013 to pay $7,590.00 of that at zero percent and until September 11, 2013 for the remaining 7860.57...so I'ma pretty busy with that goal right now!

Glad to be here!

RIVERMAN

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  • Boxes should be looked at from the outside
Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #289 on: November 04, 2012, 04:09:31 PM »
Finally there are others who realize a difference between being 'cheap' and 'frugal'.  I am 34, married, two kids (6yo and 9 months) and live in oregon. My greatest advantage in life was growing up poor with a mom who was an accountant. I have stumbled into mentors in life who without knowing helped me appreciate the importance of time over making money but knowing you need the latter to enjoy the former.

Graduating from SO University  I have a degree I never use, though I in no way regret having it. I almost retired in 2007 at 29 not knowing the worlds 2nd depression was entering full swing.

Im a building contractor and have owned several rentals since I was 20. In the last few years I almost lost everything. I had 7k left in the bank and a paid for home worth 300k. I sold my home, invested in good real estate deals and began rebuilding net capitol again. Luckily, its not what you make, its how much you spend that helped me through.

I have paid off my house again, and now build spec homes with cash (as my credit was decimated as I lost all of my rentals) My net worth is around 1million again and I plan on building rental properties that are paid for. I plan to 'retire' in the 1-2 years.

It has been a real challenge but you can never stop believing or losing sight of your goal. Being frugal is a lifestyle with long term rewards that most people living for the 'now' cannot see. I am constantly learning and shaping my economic paradigm and find this blog encouraging and insightful.

thanks to everyone, keep it up!

trinny

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #290 on: November 05, 2012, 03:26:05 PM »
Hey all,

My name is Ana and I've been reading the MMM blog for quite a while and finally decided to join this fine community of like-minded individuals.  I've always been a fairly frugal person and I enjoy finding non-traditional ways to solve life problems. 

For example, about a year ago, I started blogging my experience transitioning from a high carb (overweight and tired) lifestyle to a low carb one (30lbs lighter and full of energy!).  Any other low carbers out there?

I haven't blogged in a few months due to a hectic life, but I'm hoping to start up again soon and am thinking of doing a series on how to eat low carb on a Mustachian level food budget or something similar.  It's been quite an interesting challenge for me!

Anyhow, I've enjoyed all the tips and tricks I've found here to create an even better lifestyle and I look forward to learning more, growing my money mustache, and helping out wherever I can as time permits.

Glad to meet you all!

The Taminator

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #291 on: November 07, 2012, 10:33:20 AM »
Hi all.  I'm The Taminator. I'm just about to turn 40 and live and work in downtown Toronto, Canada. I'm debt free other than the remaining mortgage on my condo, about $204k. I'm virtually obsessed with FI and ER and am now trying to figure out how to make it happen. I've just started a new relationship and we've got some pretty great ideas going forward, though the relationship is still too new to implement them. It does make me excited for the future. It's pretty awesome to be with someone (finally!) who is almost as committed as I am to the ways of the 'stache. Once we move in together sometime next year I will have to take on some debt but it's small and we can power through it.

I'm looking forward to learning even more about investing, primarily in real estate, from the forums.

The Taminator

Phoebe

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    • Phoebe's Journey
Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #292 on: November 08, 2012, 10:46:21 AM »
Hi I'm Phoebe.  I started out very anti-mustachian and racked up $65K of debt after graduating college, but have since paid it off and now have a pretty decent stache of about $250K.  My husband and I are 28 years old, banking about 75% of our income, and looking to find ways to bring out cost of living down even more.

I recently started a blog to document our journey:
http://allyouneedisenough.blogspot.com/


Rufus T. Firefly

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #293 on: November 08, 2012, 06:48:05 PM »
Hello all.  I am a new to the forum but have been a follower of MMM for about a year now.  Trying to implement the great advise I read here from MMM himself and his loyal followers.  I'm 43, single parent of one adult/teen trying to make up for lost time.  I exhibited many of the bad habits read here and hope to slowly but surely make permanent changes for the better. I look forward to the learning experience!  I'm a Journeyman Chevrolet Auto Mechanic for 17 years/25 years total experience.  If anyone has auto service/repair inquiries, I'd be happy to help.  FYI, diagnosing vehicles online is pretty tough. 

forward

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #294 on: November 08, 2012, 08:12:19 PM »

Hello,

I've been reading this blog/forum for the last month or so and I thought I should introduce myself. 
This site is a complete eye opener for me.  I have always been frugal but it was just my natural approach to things.  I would save some money and then spend a chunk.  Once I read this, I realized what my goal was and what I need to work for = FI and its actually achievable! 

In the weeks before I arrived here I was planning to buy a new (used) car.  Bad idea.  I will keep my 2002 for a while longer.  Funny thing is, its a CRV, and I always thought it is a frugal choice, I now realize, not so much. 

I am making some changes but one concern is that I tend to lose interest in things after a few months.  So I need to work to stay on here and allow the good people here to keep me motivated.

Thanks for your help.

Our UK Correspondent

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #295 on: November 09, 2012, 04:30:14 PM »
Hi, Andrew here. Really enjoyed reading a lot of the material here and felt it was time to join in. Happily married, no kids, 2 good incomes and we are saving well for FI. I have learned a lot from the site, but interestingly, the main gains have been reminders of lifes very simple pleasures. As an example, I used to buy sandwiches, bottled water and tea (see my name) at work. Expensive, and consider the packaging I was throwing out every day. I now buy fresh bread every day from a local bakery, its delicious. I bring my own water bottle. I also bring my own tea. Cost has been cut fourfold, at least. There is no packaging, so good news for our planet. And, I am supporting my local independant baker, which feels like a good thing to be doing. FI is so much more for me than DCA, Safe Withdrawal Rates and Asset Allocation. Its really about sustainable living for myself and, hopefully, some of those around me.

Its an intrinsically satisfying way to live.

Cheers,

A

annabel

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #296 on: November 12, 2012, 06:32:30 PM »
Hi, I'm annabel; 41 and divorced. I have been following MMM for at least a year now; at first I pooh-pooh'ed his style but now I take what serves me so it's all good. I'm actually starting to like him.

I have an excellent-paying job but I live in the Bay Area (super-expensive). Have a nice investment portfolio, a stash of cash, house not underwater (I bought when the market bottomed out), 4 year-old car paid off, no CC debt. My challenge is that thanks to my bad former partner choice I am now paying a ton of child support. I need to get through the next 5 years on breaking even with my revenue (maybe even saving some?) and watching my investments grow. I am currently working with a financial counselor - I was an extreme anti-mustachian and never even had a budget. I need a lot of hand-holding right now.

Long term goals are up in the air. I like my job and want to continue working and putting away money. I wouldn't mind retiring on a sailboat in the Caribbean eventually :)

annabel

Iank

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #297 on: November 12, 2012, 08:04:06 PM »
Hi I'm Ian. I live in central Illinois and have been following MMM for quite a few months now. A co-worker did a little financial presentation for employees and mentioned MMM to us. I immediately checked it out. Super awesome stuff here!

k9

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #298 on: November 16, 2012, 02:57:51 AM »
Hello all.

My name is K9. I'm from France and I'm thinking about growing my own mustache.

DreamingofFreedom

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #299 on: November 17, 2012, 09:46:44 AM »
Hi all!  I'm a fairly recent MMM convert.  I'm a 25yo with a fair amount of student loan debt, but I'm now looking at retirement in ten years.