Congratulations Robert!

My brother-in-law Robert is now winding down his work career and plans to retire in about two weeks.  A big congratulations goes to him as he has planned this phase of his life out very well!  He is only 56 years old and has built a new retirement home in the Colorado mountains.  Well done.  We wish him and his wife Sherri the very best!  Robert has worked a professional occupation he also is one of the most skilled craftsman that I know.  He can do anything from cooking to woodwork to blacksmithing!  I’m sure that he will have many rewarding years in retirement.

I have worked in the financial field for most of my work career.  Plus I read a lot about investing and being able to retire early.  Most everyone can also retire earlier than the full retirement age by just saving a portion of your income over several years.  Starting a regular routine of savings early is another key.  Whether it is 10% of your income or 20, 30, 40, or 50%.  The larger the savings or earlier in your life, then the earlier is may be possible to retire.

It is quite easy to calculate.  If interested I can provide some more information (A).  It’s mostly about learning to live on less.  Buy used vehicles versus new.  Know where every dollar goes.  Don’t have any debt except a home mortgage.  Pay off any credit card balances each month.

Being able to retire totally debt free and having the freedom to travel and see all the this great country is something that we feel truly blessed.  It has been an incredible journey so far.  And more to come!

I’m investigating changing to a new credit card.  Still have some more research to do.  My current card pays 1.5% cash back.  The rewards cards are either cash back or else you earn points toward airline mileage.  Some cards come with a large amount of bonus just for signing up.

I have about 75% of our expenses routed through this card.  If I obtain a 3% card and route all expenses to this new card, it would be worth about $100 per month.  So, it is worth it to take 2-3 days to go deep research and weigh all options.  I’ll report back in this blog of my findings.

Today, we started with some packing to get ready for our trip tomorrow to Tallahassee.  It will be about 160 miles and will take about 4 hours with stops.  I hope to leave Destin at 9:30 am and then arrive around 1:30 pm.  It will just be for one night, so we will not set up our camp chairs or tables.

I also washed and waxed the camper over the last couple of days, while Trish did the laundry.  At 40 feet and 13 feet tall it makes it somewhat of a challenge, but will keep the fiberglass looking new and shiny.  I use a telescoping brush to wash and then my aluminum ladder and a bottle of Meguiars and a few micro fiber towels to shine it up.  Older RVs can begin to look rough with heavy oxidized fiberglass, so I hope to postpone that process and protect our investment.

Take care and God Bless!

A – Disclaimer: The information provided is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered legal or financial advice. You should consult with an attorney or other professional to determine what may be best for you.