Current Projects and Experiments– An Update
I’ve been experiencing some writer’s block recently. When I look at my list of topics to write about, brainstormed a few months ago when I started Mammon Sense, nothing jumps off the page at me. I’m still frugal-ing along, buying index funds and using coupons. Have I run out of things that are interesting and exciting enough to write about? I don’t think so, but I’m not getting psyched up to write as much.
Despite feeling uninspired as a writer, I’m getting lots of other stuff done. The kids are well into their last years of middle school and (homeschool) high school. The church program year has started up again, so I’m going to choir practice and helping plan youth activities.
I’ve also kept busy with a few personal projects over the past couple months. Instead of some practical tips or a new way to talk about why retiring early is a worthy goal, here’s an update on what I’ve been up to.
1) I’m studying Spanish using Duolingo. Duolingo has several advantages– it’s free, available whenever I have access to the internet, and purports to help people learn faster than in a classroom environment. When I started last month, I took a mini placement quiz which revealed that I’ve retained some basics from the Spanish classes I took back in high school. Duolingo promotes spending a short period of time every day for consistent progress. I’m not perfect about signing in to do my daily fifteen or so minutes, especially on Sundays or days off from work, so I’m generally getting in five days a week of practice. I like that Duolingo includes lots of listening exercises, where I can hear someone say a phrase and then write it out or reply to it. Fortunately, most of the listening exercises have an option to hear the phrase slowed down, indicated by a turtle icon. The only annoying Duolingo feature is constant prompts to upgrade to a fancier paid version. If you miss a few questions in a row, the system will require you to stop working on that section unless you upgrade to get unlimited attempts. But it’s free, so I’m not complaining.
I began this project with the goal of being able to communicate with Spanish speaking customers at work without using a translator. There’s only one Spanish speaking employee at my job, and she’s understandably weary of being the go-to interpreter. I really appreciate it when she helps me with sales pitches to Spanish customers, and I compensate her when she helps me lock down deals. I’d like to get to a point where I can handle these customers myself, rather than having to coordinate schedules with her and pay for assistance.
2) I’ve ramped up my running. I’ve even been seen on the streets well before 7am, which would have been unimaginable a few months ago. My initial goal was to improve my mile time and edge out my kids, thereby proving that I’m still very young and hip. While I’ve participated in weekly family mile runs since we started homeschooling KidSense, I hadn’t done much longer running, and very few solo outings. Starting about three months ago, I’ve incorporated a few pre-work runs a week, steadily increasing my mileage. I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how quickly the gains are piling up. This morning I knocked out a nine mile run before breakfast!
Now that I’m getting acclimated and actually enjoying the runs, it’s time for me to ramp it up with some goal-setting. I’m crossing my fingers that I’ll convince another family member to join me in training for a longer race. In the meantime, I’m using the Nike Run Club app to keep track of my mileage and kick in some extra motivation. This free app keeps track of my distance, pace, and total time. I’ve also started experimenting with the app’s guided runs, where a pre-recorded coach offers instructions and encouragement throughout different types of runs. There are a lot of running apps out there, and I landed on the Nike Run Club one based on high reviews, and of course, the $0 price tag.
3) I’m abstaining from alcohol for six months. (Shockingly, this has been helpful with the running.) To my surprise, this has been my favorite experiment over the last three-ish months. While I wouldn’t have considered myself a heavy drinker, I’ve enjoyed a beer or two most evenings for years. Drinking is culturally central at my job, and before I had kids I was more of a participant. For the last few years, I’ve taken a month off alcohol once a year (Dry January, Sober October, etc.), planning ahead to pick months without many social occasions.
I’m taking a more extended break this time to better examine my relationship with alcohol and decide if it’s serving me well. As KidSense nears adulthood, I’ve been thinking about how I hope she handles alcohol in the future. I’ve realized that if I could keep her from ever trying it by skipping it myself, I’d do it in a heartbeat. I would love to spare her the risk of addiction or other potential consequences. But would I consider giving myself this gift?
Roughly halfway through this experiment, I’m not totally sure. I certainly enjoy a glass of red wine with a fancy steak, or a cold beer after a long day of yard work. Fortunately, I’m starting to find that the non-alcoholic beverage market is more exciting than tap water and overly saccharine sodas. I’ve found several decent NA beers, available at local grocery stores and many of the downtown restaurants. I’m a big fan of the NA beers from Athletic Brewing Company and Uncool. I’m looking forward to trying more options during the next three months and beyond. While I’m still not sure what the long term future will look like, I imagine that if I decide to reincorporate alcohol, it will be on a much smaller scale, a special occasion treat only. The positive effects of skipping alcohol– increased energy, improved sleep quality, flatter belly, fatter wallet– are obvious and well worth the minor sacrifice.
Let me attempt to bring this around to the FIRE focus of this blog: Early retirement is a waste if you spend the following decades sitting around watching television. I want to achieve financial independence ahead of the normal schedule because I have lots of stuff to do. Important stuff! To be ready, I need to do more than save and invest aggressively. I need to prepare mentally, physically, and spiritually for the next phase of life which doesn’t revolve around having a job. Learning new skills and optimizing my health are important steps on the way to FIRE.
