Author Topic: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself  (Read 3317788 times)

Samsam

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #650 on: June 05, 2013, 02:09:32 PM »
Hi, I'm Sam - I am 25 years old and in a relationship.  A year ago I started a full time job as an engineer for a software company in Charlotte, NC.  I found this site a couple months ago and have already changed around some of my spending habits.  I now bike to work majority of the time and created a monthly budget.  My weakness is food!

BrianM

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #651 on: June 06, 2013, 06:00:57 PM »
Hi, I'm Brian and I'm from MMM's old stomping grounds of Hamilton, Ontario.  I wish this site had existed about 25 years ago!  It would have saved me a lot of time! I'm 57 and am retired - but continuing to work part time, mostly for fun.  I'm an engineer as well (McMaster MechEng class of '82), so many of the approaches MMM talks about resonate with me.

My frugality muscles are really starting to come to life after reading ALL the blog posts (yes, I'm one of THOSE).

Looking forward to finding creative ways to live the good life on less!

FastStache

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #652 on: June 07, 2013, 10:09:52 AM »
Hello everyone, I'm Eddie from Orlando.  I work as an Engineer and I'm 29 years old. I have been practicing some frugal habits, but I am nowhere near moustachian level.

I have a a beautiful daughter as well.

ESunday

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #653 on: June 07, 2013, 11:27:09 AM »
Hi
I am a college student attending Ohio State University. I was introduced to MMM by grantmeaname quite a while ago and I am loving the frugal lifestyle. I am currently trying to bike or walk to work more and resist all summer dress shopping temptations :) Luckily, I live with Grant and Russ so maintaining a frugal household is not a solo endeavor.

mostlyeels

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #654 on: June 07, 2013, 07:15:08 PM »
Hi everyone.  I found this site a couple of months ago through Retirement Investing Today, and just devoured the blog posts and then the forums.  The idea that I could be so close to early retirement had never occurred to me.  I've lost track of the number of times financial advisors have asked me what my financial goals were, and I never really had any, until I discovered this site (and others like it).

I'm 41, single, living in a what I've heard is a high cost of living city (Sydney).  No debt, good savings, but was never interested in investing until last year.

Finally bought a place of my own a few years ago (as a bonus, it's well within walking distance to work).  No mortgage, which is great.  It's an apartment, but I'd love a little house, something with a backyard to grow some veggies at least.  Together with a couple of friends I run a small business (30 employees), and if/when we eventually sell, that will probably be the catalyst for me to move out a bit further where I can do that.  For now, it's better to be close to work (always a trade-off).

I've always lived a semi-frugal existence without really thinking about it, with some lapses (expensive Italian espresso machine :), but never paid much attention to how much I was spending.  But I got a wake-up call after a week-long holiday recently; I got home and wondered where all my pay from the last month had gone!  It was truly a shock!

So now, with the help of MMM's blog posts and some great forum posts, I've trimmed my monthly budget from 64% savings rate up to 72% (net tax), and I feel like I'm on my way.  I find a lot of what's written here to be inspirational, so thank you all for helping me on my new path.

katieboo

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Financially Challenged frugal wanna be
« Reply #655 on: June 08, 2013, 10:41:37 AM »
Hi,

I found this site by researching hybrid cars and trying to decide if I should buy one. I live with my SO and his teenage son in a 4 bedroom house with a 3 car garage that SO originally bought for his ex-wife and her kids. I pay him rent and expenses which is really cheap for me. No kids of my own, just two dogs. I drive a 2005 KIA Spectra 5 hatchback that I bought new. No more car payments. The only other car I owned was a Ford Escort, which I also bought new. I've never owned a house, could never make the commitment. I've always rented.

My downfall is my six figure debt from law school, a very expensive decision I made to make a major mid-life career change. Not only that, I did not live frugally while in law school. I was too stressed out to worry about finances. Big mistake.

Now I've consolidated my loans and am going to apply for the public service loan forgiveness program, since I work for the government. Oh, yeah, even with a six figure school debt, I decided to take one of the lowest paying lawyer jobs out there, and I love it and my quality of life is very good compared to most private practice attorneys.

I live in a city where everything is really spread out and there is practically no public transportation. And I work in one of the worst areas of town, so living close to work is a bad idea. I certainly could bike to work, in fact I did that for three years when I lived in Japan, I would bike 45 minutes in pouring rain and in snow many times. In Japan, many people rode their bikes to school and to work and to buy groceries. But since moving back to the states I've always driven. Drivers here are not used to seeing cyclists, or pedestrians, and I believe there would be some risk to biking on the street. Sidewalks would be okay.

I'll be posting questions about car buying, and debt management on this forum. I've tried couponing, lost interest and I think I ended up spending more money that way. I'm simply not good with money or math.

Glad to be here.

Stachebound

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Re: Forum Ideas
« Reply #656 on: June 08, 2013, 04:35:32 PM »
Hi I'm a working mom of 3, living in Silicon Valley (CA) - with decent, although non- high tech salaries.  We are debt free except our house, which we owe about $368k remaining - market value is about $750-800k.

We save 38-45% of our income, depending on the month.

My goal is to pay off our house and start buying rental property for passive income. We are on our way to FI, but still in the beginning stages of figuring out how long it will take.

So glad to find MMM!

FrugalZony

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #657 on: June 10, 2013, 12:34:45 PM »
Wow, there's a name for what I have been trying to do for years, LOL! It's the MMM lifestyle!
I'm in my early 40ties, "only" have mortgage debt (which has stressed me out to no end ever
since we bought the house), but I will probable be done paying that off.
We live well below our means and I am very careful with money (much more than the hubster)
I can definitely use some help and pointers on what to tackle next.

It's so funny, I have had a hard time to get the hubby on board with my frugal lifestyle (he thinks
I am too much of a cheapskate/tightwad sometimes, just because I don't approve of any useless toys,
like trucks, boats and ATVs)

Then he discovered the MMM blog and all of a suddenhe is interested in all this. He pointed me to it and I started reading and I was like "duh honey, that's what I have been trying to tell you for years!!"
Glad he's more on board now!! He could probably use some of  your friendly face punches ;)

I think we are on a good track, but still have long ways to go. Looking forward to great discussions.



CompLB15

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #658 on: June 11, 2013, 12:04:19 PM »
Greetings all,

Just made it through all the blog posts, and I thought I would check out the forums.
From Ottawa, ON

Myrmida

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #659 on: June 11, 2013, 12:11:24 PM »
Hi!  I'm Linda, a middle-aged mother of a sweet almost-2-year-old boy.  I live with my spouse, our little boy and my mother-in-law.  My spouse and I have some very anti-mustachian that we are working on.  Before we had our little boy, we were a double-income-no-kids couple who spent money freely.  Now that we're on a single income (my spouse is a stay-at-home-dad), we have been watching our spending a lot more and correcting some of our bad habits.  I hope the MMM blog and this forum will help us.

TSR Capital

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #660 on: June 11, 2013, 04:14:54 PM »
Hello Mustachians!

I've been reading this blog for awhile and find it interesting.  I've learned a few things (like about Lending Club).  I'm already pretty far advanced on the cheapskate spectrum.  I don't own a car or a cell phone or any paid TV subscription, and I have no debt.  But I'm always looking for ways to make or save money.

I'm interested in investing and have started a mock portfolio that might interest some readers.  My goal is to beat the market  by at least 10% annually over longer periods of time.  So take a peek in here if you feel like it: tsrcapital.blogspot.com.  It overlaps with my real-world investment portfolio.


Iceplant18

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #661 on: June 13, 2013, 10:08:02 PM »
Hello all!!!

      My name is Brandon and I plan on living the majority of my life in a manner that Mr. & Mrs. MMM call the Mustachian lifestyle.  Being frugal and saving isn't something I'm new to.  In many respects I started doing it when I was 10 years old.  Back then I did it for different reasons though.  I was willing to forgo many small ticket items like eating out, nice clothes, and luxury vacations for the purpose of purchasing the big ticket items that I aspired to own.  Fast cars, my own house, a small sport airplane (someday).  The housing crisis hit me hard.  Really Hard.  I came really close to deciding to "strategically default" on my house.  I ended up not being able to stomach what I consider to be morally irresponsible and just stuck with the mustachian lifestyle for the past 6 years.  It's gotten me in a much better place financially and I may end up retiring in 4 years at the age of 36.  :-)  Why retire?  That's a question that often many of my peers ask me.  You all know why though.  ;-)  You're all mustachians. 

      One of my personal claims to fame when it comes to being frugal is my choice to switch to 2 wheels instead of 4.  By which I mean motorcycles instead of cars.  I live in sunny southern California and up until 5 years ago I thought riding a motorcycle was for idiots with average life expectancies of 30.  Now I don't see why everybody isn't riding.  20% the cost overall and significantly more enjoyable.  I still have a car but it's the car I bought back in high school which costs me like $30 a month to keep.  It's used for grocery runs and bad weather but that's about it. 

      Over the years I have focused my efforts like a laser on lowering my overhead costs so that I can live on less.  I've accomplished this not only with the switch to the motorcycle but also by aggressively paying down my mortgage debt and refinancing into lower interest rates, trimming down insurance policies, and avoiding taking on new debt no matter what.  I've also been renting out a room in my house for quite some time.  Once upon a time I needed about 50K a year just to get by.  At this moment I could survive on about 18K a year and be happy.   

     I look forward to conversing with you all about living this way.  Consumerism is sooo 20th century. 

basd

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #662 on: June 14, 2013, 03:13:56 AM »
Hi all, I'm Bas, early thirties, married with our first child on the way, working in IT. Working hard at paying off my student loan first, aiming on the mortgage afterwards. Also planning to start side hustling soon to support my projected lifestyle and become less dependent on my day job.

From what I've read so far this sounds like just the place for me!

sunnymidnight

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #663 on: June 14, 2013, 10:49:48 AM »
Hi everyone.  I live in the Yukon Territory which is gorgeous beyond description but isolation does present its own challenges including personal finances.  When a bag of kitty litter can cost $34 you learn to improvise.


MustacheMary

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #664 on: June 14, 2013, 01:19:41 PM »
Hi - another Canadian here.  Was on track for early retirement, but then "Life is What Happens When You're Making Other Plans." I'm enjoying the blogs and forum!

Stillworking

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #665 on: June 14, 2013, 03:14:09 PM »
Hi there. Enjoy the blog. Don't know if I'll ever be a Mustachian, but I'm trying to add some of their ways to my lifestyle. Thought I was doing pretty good financally until my first child was born, now have another on the way. The wife and I have tried to cut back some of our habits (eating out), which helps keep her at home to spend tons of time with our daughter (and soon to be little sister). Now thinking harder about when I'll be able to retire.

simondh

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #666 on: June 15, 2013, 07:27:14 AM »
Hi All, Been reading the blog for a while, but wanted to sign-up and introduce myself. I'm early 30s and very happily married (for just over five years). My wife is late 20s. We currently live in London, UK, but are moving to the US soon where I'll be working (but she won't because of visas). I want to make sure that with our move we don't get into any bad spending habits and we keep up our debt-free lifestyle and build up a good saving habit. I look forward to keeping up to date with the MMM community.

captainawesome

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #667 on: June 15, 2013, 03:07:16 PM »
Hello Mustache community.  Been following along for a while on the blog, figured it was time to get involved in the community.  Since I came across this blog and forum I have: sold my gas guzzing 2011 Grand Cherokee in favor of a used Mazda 3, dropped my Verizon family plan and gone over to pre-paid MVNOs, utilized Mint.com to track my already pretty well laid out budget (math major who uses excel A LOT), dropped our cable/internet bill to ~$14 a month.  Even though my life still has anti-mustachian habits, I think I have made a pretty drastic turn around.  I had saved a bunch of money previously thanks to the dave ramsey "system" but this has really opened my eyes to the money I was throwing away.  Glad I found this at 27 and not later in life!

mr muppet

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #668 on: June 15, 2013, 03:28:04 PM »
Hi all,

I'm Mike and a teacher in the UK. Just realised that my username could be mistaken I'm Mr M - definitiely not Mr MM!

Thanks for the forum,
MM

pachnik

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #669 on: June 17, 2013, 05:01:08 PM »
Hi. 

I found this blog about 2 months ago thru a link in a weekly email I get regarding Personal Finance from the Globe & Mail newspaper.  This is a Canadian newspaper and I live in Canada.  In the past the only blog I read was Gail Vaz-Oxlade's blog.  I've never signed up for any kind of Internet community before (I am 49 years old) but here goes. 

Generally speaking, I am okay financially.  I am grateful that I had parents who set a good financial example for me.  I didn't incur credit card debt and I put away 10% or so for my retirement.  Then I came across the MMM blog and it has gotten me thinking differently about money.

Anyway, more later - probably in the journal section of the forum.  It has been really great reading this blog and the forum posts.  Thank you.




jpfromCO

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #670 on: June 19, 2013, 03:38:26 PM »
Hi-

I'm a long time reader and new to the forum.  I live in CO with my husband and two young sons.  The necessity of paying a huge day care bill for my two boys recently made me reevaluate our spending.  I feel like we're on track, but have a ways to go.  My long term goal would be for both of us the work part time.

JP

misty1028

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #671 on: June 19, 2013, 06:56:35 PM »
Hi! I'm Emily - longtime follower, first-time poster. Newly graduated, living / working in DC :)

Fugawe

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #672 on: June 20, 2013, 12:25:45 PM »
Howdy folks,

My name is Dirk. Just found 3M's blog a few weeks ago and really enjoy the reading.
I've been furloughed since mid 2009. But being the son of depression era parents we've always been frugal. So I can't say the furlough forced me into the Mustachian lifestyle. But it did provide a helping hand! The first two things to go were the Verizon Fios @ $125/month and a full AT&T voice/data plan at around another $120/month. I reckon since June 2009 that simple act has hired
me a bunch more employee's. KACHING. I rigged up an HD antenna on a 30" pole and  get ~ 40 channels with lots of them in HD...and you can't beat the price!

Ahhh but still I'm a face punch candidate for being a car clown. I live a 10 mile round trip from work and I'm still driving that bitch every day. (a 1998 paid for hoop de doo Jeep Cherokee) The good news is I inherited (evicted a tenant who left a bunch of shit) two really nice bikes. A 27" GT Cirque and a really nice Specialized Hard Rock (from a bike shop in Boulder if you can believe it) I now ride to the grocery store (one of three depends on how far I want to go) or to find a hot spot somewhere so I can check Email and surf

SellenMachine

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #673 on: June 20, 2013, 02:18:30 PM »
Hey all,

I'm Matthew. I found this blog about 3 months ago, and it has inspired me to put my debt pay-off into high gear. I can proudly say that, In that time, I have paid off more than $8k in student and car loans. As of this past Monday, I am officially debt-free! I plan on keeping that way while I learn more and grow my stash.

=]

pirate_wench

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #674 on: June 20, 2013, 04:02:14 PM »
Hello everybody,

My name is Pirate Wench. I have been obsessing about early retirement for about 10 years now. Unfortunately, I am not there yet, but I am excited by this blog! I am ready to be punched in the face so as to reach my goals. I am a merchant mariner, so have a unique opportunity to semi-retire and only work 1-2 months a year while still having excellent health insurance and building a real pension...if I can get my act together. So far I have about $166,000 saved in retirement accounts (I'm 32), and own a rental condo that if sold in this market would bring me approximately $100,000 cash after taxes and realtor fees. I also part-own a house with my partner that I live in. Yes, these are two mortgages!!! Doh.

I wish desperately to buy a campervan and live down by the river.  I did that in New Zealand for three months, and it was awesome. Like I said, looking forward to some serious face-punching and growing my 'stache!

Flyfisherman

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #675 on: June 21, 2013, 10:19:32 AM »
Hi, I just wanted to thank everyone for the awesome advice I've received on this blog and forum.  I am a 30 year old graduate student about to get married. I've always been a saver but your anti-consumerism messages and easy suggestions on how to live the same or better quality life while spending less and saving more have been awesome.  I've already saved on car insurance, cell phone, and tv.  I've recommended the site to friends and family alike.  Keep up the good work and thanks again.

TKE Super Dave

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #676 on: June 22, 2013, 11:32:02 AM »
Hello Everyone. My name is Dave. I figured since I've started posting instead of lurking I should introduce myself. I'm currently living in Pittsburgh, Pa.  I started my financial Journey in 2011 to become debt free and only learned of FI and early retirement late last year. Wasn't sure it was truly possible, still not sure, but the more I learn the more I feel FI is possible if not early retirement.

I'll be cataloging my foray into knowledge and all things MMM in the journal section of this forum. I just posted my budget and current goals there so please hop on over and give me some feedback. You can view it here: Super Dave's Kryptonite.

I look forward to interacting with everyone.

BC_Goldman

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #677 on: June 23, 2013, 07:38:29 PM »
Hi, folks. I discovered MMM about a month ago. Right around the time I found out I was being laid off from my job. I started from the beginning and just reached the most current post this afternoon.

I'm 31 and had what I thought was a decent financial track record. I paid off my student loan last month (only borrowed $5500 for my final year). I was raised in a frugal family. In 1999 when I was working for the same company as my dad, I found out he was making $14/hr. I thought that was huge money back then since I was making $7. Earlier this year while doing some research, I discovered that we were actually right at the federal poverty level at that time. My dad was the sole income and my mom was a SAP. There were six kids in the family.

So I knew a lot about not spending money from when I was a kid and retained some of it into my adult life. Never carried a credit card balance from month to month. I was able to buy my own place at age 26 with an FHA loan. When I got my last job, I made the (bad in hindsight) decision to buy a nearly new car. I've stashed money into 401(k)'s and Roth's but don't have a huge amount yet.

Right now, I'm unemployed and may stay that way for a while as I can manage ok with what I'll be collecting on unemployment. Sad part is that I'm not seeing jobs around here for more than what I'm collecting on unemployment. That's the sad part about spending eight years working as a government contractor. Now I'm focusing on figuring out how to pare down my expenditures while I look for a new line of work.

cynicaloptimist

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #678 on: June 24, 2013, 09:47:04 PM »
Hey, I'm Jason.
I'm a fairly sharp guy that until recently, has had a really bad problem with procrastination and generally just kinda floating through life.

Just turned 30 and feel like I'm still able to be financially successful. 
I haven't read much on the forums, but I'm sure I'll spend dozens of hours reading through it, starting tonight.

Currently, the goal is to find a decent job, save up, and perhaps, down the road, start a business.
Looking forward to learning and exchanging ideas with everyone.

Forgot to add - I was fortunate enough to stumble across these forums while looking for forums specifically for men with moustaches, because I'm bringing my handlebars back.
« Last Edit: June 24, 2013, 09:54:58 PM by cynicaloptimist »

Westrum

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #679 on: June 25, 2013, 05:29:46 AM »
Hey all!

My name is Emil. I'm a 23 year old lad from Norway! I've been reading this blog and forum for a month or so, and decided to join the community.

I work as a automation engineer at a hospital. I earn decent money, and I'm in the process of buying my own house now.

Cheers!

Marmot

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #680 on: June 28, 2013, 11:15:19 AM »
Hello Everyone,

I'm Mike. I am 29 and live near Chicago. I work in Health Economics at a medical association; my fiance works in the financial unit for a very large company.

I am very interested in investing, saving and being economical; we track all of our expenses and income using mint.com. We do not have any debt as I just finished paying off my school loans for my grad degree.

We have been working to reduce our expenses (cut cable, switch to no contract cellphone plan, etc.), though still have plenty room for improvement. We are currently on pace to saving about 35% per year of take-home though want to get that closer to 50%.

We are going to be buying our first home in the next two years; we are considering a 2 flat, so we can rent out one unit and live in the other. I figure that this is a conservative way to get into real estate.

Looking forward to learning from the community and contributing!


mustachiogirl

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Just Found My Tribe!!
« Reply #681 on: June 28, 2013, 01:21:54 PM »
Hi All,
 
I'm Victoria and I'm a recovering financial idiot!! (Everyone now say...WELCOME VICTORIA in your best 12-step voice!)

I have literally decimated my finances, and now that I am beyond the shock, anger, and grief, I am ready to rebuild my financial future. I am a single-mama and in the course of one year I managed to lose my job, get my home foreclosed, sold nearly every possession we owned (to get the deposit together for an apt.), spend every dime of my very small 401k, and piss off every credit card company that had loaned me money. The final straw was having to get Medicaid to pay for a surgery my daughter. While I am deeply grateful that her surgery was covered, it was a humilating experience. In fact, it was the experience I needed to really look at how I had gotten into this mess, and what I would do to get out.

I have found a great-paying job, and I have also started an online business that has been profitable from day-one (I am selling on Ebay). I am still at ground zero though, as I have no savings, and am playing catch-up on my bills. But I have a plan, and a burning desire to turn my life around. And now I have found Mr. MoneyMustache and a tribe of Mustachio's to help me on the way. Yay Me!!

bikeknit

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #682 on: June 29, 2013, 02:02:43 PM »
Hi,  My name is Chris and I'm a bit older than the average persons here.  I'm 60 and just skidding my way into retirement this year.  Friday was my last full time work day.  I'll be working apx. 15 hrs per week until the end of the year - then I'll be done.  I was raised frugal, never made a lot of money and while I didn't save much in early adulthood, I never took on much debt.  And always had a plan to pay it off when I did. 

For those who don't have the kind of income that MMM had, I can attest that it may take you a bit longer, but there is a bit of freedom in everything that you save.  And finding other people who don't need to buy their way to happiness helps to reinforce a less consumerist  and less frenzied lifestyle. 

Glad to meet you all.

awaddell

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #683 on: June 30, 2013, 07:38:03 AM »
Hey I'm Adam,

I'm really excited to be here! I'm 26 years old. I got myself out of $58K of grad school debt as well as other miscellaneous loans. I am on a warpath to becoming FI within 15 years by saving/investing at least 50% of my take home pay. I look forward to learning as much as I can from you all :)

Luigi

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #684 on: June 30, 2013, 06:05:50 PM »
Howdy.  My name is Luigi (it's not, though).  I'm from Tucson, AZ, and have been moderately frugal by necessity since I was a wee lad, aside from a few years when I was making more money than I was responsible for.  At least I didn't get myself into trouble with it.  I'm 28, now, and hope to retire to China with my wife one day.  At least that's my plan for now.

in2themild

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    • in2themild
Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #685 on: July 02, 2013, 09:00:35 AM »
Hi there - my name is Jim and I am from New Hampshire and I am 29 years old.  I am homeless, but it is not as bad as it sounds.  In late May, my long term girlfriend and I quit our jobs, sold our house, bought a truck camper and an F250 (both used, in cash, of course) and will be spending the next year travelling North America.  We have both been fans of MMM for a long time and have used many of his principles to allow us to take this road trip as we had recently found ourselves drowning in unnecessary cash (me from my job as a mechanical engineer for a medical device R&D company and she as the COO for an animal shelter) but poor in the time to spend it on our passion: travelling.  We are currently waiting out some bad weather in Wells, ME before we head up the coast to Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and beyond.  We are attempting to park for free as much as possible to avoid wasting money at camp sites, so if anyone has some extra room in a driveway or pasture between here and say the Hudson Bay we would love to hear from you!!!

in2themild

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  • Taking a year off at 29 to travel the country
    • in2themild
Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #686 on: July 02, 2013, 09:05:06 AM »
By the way - feel free to follow our blog: http://in2themild.blogspot.com/

a.g

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #687 on: July 02, 2013, 08:05:50 PM »
I am homeless, but it is not as bad as it sounds.  In late May, my long term girlfriend and I quit our jobs, sold our house, bought a truck camper and an F250 (both used, in cash, of course) and will be spending the next year travelling North America.

Awesome. Gotta love the initiative. I too am homeless (Van dweller) by choice, and am excited for the adventure you guys have in store!! Enjoy the road, and I gotta say you have a great user name ta boot!

Iliya Moroumetz

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #688 on: July 02, 2013, 10:57:25 PM »
Hello.

My name is Chris and I'm 34, single, and in the process of turning my life around by going back to school to become a chef after couldn't find work after I initially graduated college back in '09.  I just found the MMM not too long ago and since I too would like to live in financial independance without the need for the ubiquitous conspicuous consumption and I rather be the master of my money instead of its slave.

I would rather spend my days doing things I love instead of working to live, which is why I am still going through the articles here.  I hope to learn a lot from this site and, someday, become financially independent.

NellGwyn

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #689 on: July 03, 2013, 12:47:51 AM »
Hello, forum!

I discovered MMM back in December, read the whole blog from the beginning, and have been lurking on the forums ever since. I live in Chicago, and I'm currently waiting tables while going to school for a second bachelor's in civil/environmental engineering, so I've been applying the wisdom of Mustachianism to be able to pay for my current schooling in cash (since that's pretty much my only option) while living on a tight budget.  My first bachelor's is in theater...not a wise financial move -- and even worse, I went to grad school in New York for two years (racking up $45K in student loans) before realizing that I'm utterly unsuited for a theater life, dropping out, reevaluating myself, and moving back to the Midwest. But that was several years ago...I've made my peace with my many mistakes and am on my way to a better career and hopefully eventual financial freedom!

Thanks to this site, I've switched my phone to Ting, canceled cable in lieu of Roku, discovered the advantages of Costco, and recently started using YNAB, all of which I love, but I am still far from being a badass. Like so many others here, I'm an INTJ/P, so chances are I won't feel the need to post very much, but I look forward to learning even more from you all and am happy to join the community!

Maseroni

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #690 on: July 03, 2013, 08:56:57 PM »
I have been reading MMM since the Fall after hearing MMM being interviewed on the CBC. The message really resonated with me.

We are a long way off from early retirement at this point. Honestly retirement is a goal, but financial independence is the real goal for me - it means having options - early retirement being one of many of those options.

We currently live in Burlington, ON just beside Hamilton where MMM says he grew up. My wife and I have two kids.

I am not normally a forum kind of guy, so this should be an interesting experiment. Normally I'm more of a lurker than a poster, but I will try to contribute where I can so I'm not just taking without giving.

Looking forward to this journey.

Free_at_50

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #691 on: July 04, 2013, 07:49:48 AM »
Hi all.  This is my first post.  My wife and I started out together over 30 years ago, raised a great family, and have always lived well below our means having set a goal of early retirement early on.  In fact my wife has been retired for over 5 years already!  :)  I on the otherhand have always been shy to pull the trigger up until recently that is.  I have to say this forum has truly clarified for me the whys and hows of being in a position where work becomes a hobby and not something you are forced to do.  For those of you just starting out on your journey you are well advised to follow all of this great practical advice which our current society easily overshadows in this age of communication/consumerism.  This forum does wonders to counteract those influences.  I look forward to continuing to learn from all of these great minds!  A toast to Mustachianism!

Financial Threedom

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #692 on: July 06, 2013, 01:17:57 PM »

Hello all.  I have been following and reading MMM for a bit over a year, I think I just stumbled upon the blog after searching for finance blogs.   I have been trying for months to register, but wasn't having any luck.

I have a finance background, and have worked in banking, and currently work in the finance field.  It has always been a passion of mine.  The bank was nothing but selling to people instead of teaching them how to budget, or teaching them about money, so I had to get out. 

Im currently aiming to retire by 49, (which all my coworkers love to laugh and scoff at), I am currently 37, this may seem late to most on here, but I did not have the luxury of having "the incomparable advantage of having to work for what you get" growing up, and was actually encouraged to borrow money for education, etc.  So needless to say, that set me back quite a bit. 

I live in Canada and I am married and have a nearly brand new baby boy.



Tom Bradford

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #693 on: July 06, 2013, 06:53:50 PM »
Hi.

Guess I was a moustachian (UK spelling) long before MMM  - stressing myself as a lawyer to the point of a breakdown and suicidal thoughts in the UK in the early 80's I was 'saved' by the brilliant BBC comedy series "The Good Life" and John Seymour's books on the self-sufficient life in my native Suffolk.

As a result my wife and I gave up the rat-race - she was deputy editor of the local paper - sold up everything and moved to New Zealand to be far from the madding crowd.   This was in 1990 when I was 40 and I haven't done a day's 'work' since although my wife took a job as part-time secretary to our local and tiny primary school.

The move to New Zealand enabled us to purchase a lovely house and 10-acres debt-free in a beautiful coastal area with sufficient left to invest in a varied, though all-paper portfolio.   Before finding this site I had nothing serious underlying the math of what we were doing - just a back-of-the-envelope calculation that the portfolio should on the basis of historic returns be enough to provide for us as well as keeping pace with the effect of moderate inflation.   Now, with 23-years experience and having survived a couple of global financial crashes as well as a crippling rise in value of the $NZ as a result of Wall Street's looting of the US, I can more than confirm MMM's 4% rule.  We have lived it and are wealthier now than we were when we 'retired' 23-years ago despite the fact I'm still not 65.

However we do have some non-Moustachian helps - and hindrances.  Perhaps the biggest help is that we never had children - a huge saving financially and, I have to say, something neither my wife nor I regret even now when it's far too late to reconsider.  I have a strong suspicion that anyone born in the last twenty years might have cause to curse their parents for world they were bequeathed, with global warming, peak oil, peak water, a collapsing ecosystem, WMD's in the hands of lunatics, 'democratic processes' favouring the handing of power to immoral sociopaths, et al.

Another major advantage we have enjoyed is two housecows giving us >2-gallons daily of free full-cream milk for coffee, butter, cheeses and yoghurt, plus 400kg of organic beef for the freezer's anually,  a six-head flock of sheep giving us wool and mutton, chickens for meat and eggs, a bay full of fish and sea-food at the bottom of the road, a benign climate supporting all-year-round veg from the garden and our own apple, pear, citrus and avocado orchards and thousands of acres of woodland on the surrounding hills providing free firewood for our cooking and house-and-water heating needs.

Also on the plus side is New Zealand's social services - free healthcare and accident compensation + universal superannuation to come.  And on the one occasion we did need it an emergency helicopter flew in to take one of us to hospital - as an ambulance would have taken hours just to get here -  at no cost to us.

Our anti-moustachian downside is the price of our lovely location - it's a 2.5 hour drive to our nearest town for the essentials we need, over a poor and mountainous road making a grunty car an essential - when we do go to town we need space to hold a lot of shopping and/or some major items and we need 4-WD with a high clearance to deal with the worst that an in places unpaved rural road can throw at us in the winter.   So although we try to go to town only once a month, our fuel bill is still not very dissimilar to our monthly supermarket bill and probably our greatest single regular outlay.

And having two cows to milk twice a day means we haven't been able to take a vacation for, oh, 15 years.  Still that's less of a consideration when you live in a place other people take vacations to.

The one problem I have faced with moustachianism is filling the time.   There are always little things to do around the place, but still there are times when, depite everything, having 24/7 free can make boredom a problem.

In his blog MMM treats security in purely financial terms - having a diversified portfolio, a cash reserve, the ability to earn again if necessary - but my ultimate security is that if the shit really, really hit the fan I think I am living in one of the few places in the world today where I could survive in reasonable safety and comfort even if money had no value at all.
« Last Edit: July 06, 2013, 06:55:27 PM by Tom Bradford »

Hextejas

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #694 on: July 07, 2013, 11:00:25 AM »
Howdy folks and nice to meet you. I just found your site by chance and still can't remember how I got here.
I am 73, retired and have been so for about 8 years. The Mrs. is 57 and will be retiring at the end of Sept. this year. At least those are the present plans.
What  I worry about every day is if she will have enough $$$ to last her so she won't have to re-enter the labor force at age 85. Longevity runs in her family but she is not so concerned about it. Her philosophy is that if we have to live on less, we will.
We live in Houston, TX with no plans to move.
Hobbies include reading, bicycling, eating at ethnic specialty restaurants, refurbishing old fountain pens and shaving brushes, gardening, vermicomposting, plus others that I no doubt have forgotten.
We both want to try our hand at golf so that is on the bucket list for next year. We are both beginners but she is far and away the better athlete so I am prepared to get my butt kicked.

I am looking forward to seeing what y'all (<----Texas talk), have to say.

Oh yeah, that had to have been the toughest registration process I have ever been through.

Bye for now

Michelle119

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #695 on: July 07, 2013, 07:42:32 PM »
Hi Everyone!

I found the MMM blog a month or two ago and just finish reading from the beginning of his writing.  Someone on another series of discussion boards enlightened me to this blog.

I am 25, married to my high school sweetheart for almost a year. We live north of Boston in a small town with our 1 year golden retriever. We have some student loan and car debt from our younger days when we first got out of college. We are attacking this debt plus part of mortgage before we have kids. I'm hoping to be a a part-time stay at home mom while still maintaining working as a CPA/real estate sales agent. We are hoping to retire early as well so getting a head in the next few years is going to be key. I'm hoping I will find some new ways in saving money and some like minded people who want to get the best of their lives!

downstreamvee

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #696 on: July 08, 2013, 09:16:39 AM »
*Falls from the sky and lands on face*
*Dusts self off*

So, hello!  I'm Travis.  I've followed the blog for a little while, but have yet to poke around on the forums.

Until today! (Menacing laugh)

I'm 29, right at the cusp of all things 30 and beyond.  People keep telling me that it's a magical time full of sunshine and rainbows and one's life's theme song is perfectly rendered by the Gin Blossoms.

That sound about right?

Sofa King

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #697 on: July 08, 2013, 10:02:18 AM »
Hello everyone! Have been reading MMM for a few months and LOVING IT!!!  Was already doing alot of this but great to hear other people's situations and how they deal with them. I will be 100% DEBT FREE in early 2017 as long as I can keep things going like they are now. I am obsessed with being DEBT FREE!!!  :  )

Dulcimina

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #698 on: July 08, 2013, 12:01:15 PM »
Hi, I'm Dulcimina.  I'm early 40s, office jockey, and small-time landlord.  I'm hoping to quit the rat race by the time I'm 50.  I'm still working on my retirement philosophy though, trying to retire TO something I love rather than simply to escape FROM a job I hate. Would also love to learn basic handyman skills to fix things at the rental instead of just picking up the phone all the time to call a contractor.

I found MMM through ERE.  I'm a little old to be early, and if I was truly extreme, I would have retired already. But MMM seems to fit better with my philosophy of frugality tempered with a few luxuries.

I live in a very small condo that's about 2.5 miles from work.  I will never commute by bike, and by never I mean, maybe.  In the meantime, I take the bus, which gets me there in 20 mins.  Many evenings, I walk home as that day's exercise.  That way, I don't have to worry about being sweaty when I get there.

I take my lunch every day, initially to be frugal, but later because it was easier to eat paleo if I prepared things myself.  It's funny how that one move (paleo) changed so many other spending habits.  For example, I get the Sunday paper for the coupons and to see what was on sale that week before making a weekly trip to CVS or Target.  I'd go to pick up some Coke Zero or M&Ms, and would end up buying a lot of other things that I needed. I just realized today that I don't go to those places anymore, because there is nothing for me there, unless I need toilet paper or deodorant or something.  (Note to self: next time, splurge on the nice toilet paper.  A 24 pack of janky tp lasts a long, long time when you're the only one using it.)

 

golden1

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Re: Say Hi and Introduce Yourself
« Reply #699 on: July 08, 2013, 12:15:36 PM »
Hi,

I have been reading this blog for about 2 months now and I have really enjoyed it!  I am 40 and have a long way to go to retirement but I am more impressed by the philosophy behind "Mustachianism"  of not being wasteful, less consumerism, more thoughtfulness and appreciation of the amazing wealth that we do have being in a first world country in this time in history.   I also, being an engineer, really can get into the whole life optimization idea.  It just suits my personality.

I have made great strides personally in the last year - I had credit card debt (I know!, I know!) that I have finally paid off.  I have been searching for a new goal now that I am cash flow positive.  After reading the blog obsessively for a few weeks I went into action!

June - "consumerism purge" - stopped buying pretty much anything that wasn't necessary - I did a full inventory and purged a lot of items that I didn't use any more which helped me see how meaningless spending just piles up in the form of stuff that just gets forgotten.  I started meal planning and cut my grocery bill from $900 to $650 for a family of 4 without too much problem.  I will continue to keep cutting down. 

July - so far - I broke my spending freeze and bought a bike!  I can't commute yet - my current job is 20 miles from home, but I am on the look out and if I can find a job within 5 miles of my work in my field, I will apply for it.  I plan on using the bike for weekend errands and trips to the library - another thing I did last weekend was renew my lapsed library membership.  I also found a really nice chair for my den on craigslist for $60.  I have always been a big fan of craigslist and got my living room set last summer from them.

This months challenges are related to eating out/coffee shop purchases.  I am going to use the free coffee at work and avoid my $3/day iced coffee habit except for one day a week.  I already bring my lunch most days.  I want to reduce the amount of take out food down to a few times per month. 

I don't think that I will ever get to be as hard core as some people here, but I am enjoying making challenges for myself and slowly working my way to a happier, free life.

Thanks for reading!