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Thread: Getting A Life (Your Money or Your Life sequel)

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    Getting A Life (Your Money or Your Life sequel)

    Well, sort of the sequel. Anyway, I just started reading it - again. While I have not formally put the YMOYL steps into practice, we do live a frugal lifestyle and do okay financially. The somewhat depressing part is that the basis of the book seems focused on "walking away" from formal employment and I know we will never be able to do that. While part of me is someone jealous of folks who do or can, another part of me is actually okay with continuing to work. I'm lucky to enjoy the majority of what I do and like the people I work with.

    With regards to debt/savings/investments - I rather happy that the only debt we have is the mortgage, which I can actually - visually - see an end too! And saving has always been one of my stronger points. Investments are where my weaknesses lie. But... I'll keep reading and, hopefully, learning.
    To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer." Mahatma Gandhi
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    Senior Member catherine's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by happystuff View Post
    Well, sort of the sequel. Anyway, I just started reading it - again. While I have not formally put the YMOYL steps into practice, we do live a frugal lifestyle and do okay financially. The somewhat depressing part is that the basis of the book seems focused on "walking away" from formal employment and I know we will never be able to do that. While part of me is someone jealous of folks who do or can, another part of me is actually okay with continuing to work. I'm lucky to enjoy the majority of what I do and like the people I work with.

    With regards to debt/savings/investments - I rather happy that the only debt we have is the mortgage, which I can actually - visually - see an end too! And saving has always been one of my stronger points. Investments are where my weaknesses lie. But... I'll keep reading and, hopefully, learning.
    Yeah, there are a few books/money gurus that promote that: you have Mr. Money Mustache with FIRE (financially independent, retiring early), and you have Jacob Lund Fisker with Early Retirement Extreme. From what I understand, those authors don't define retirement as never working again. I think they suggest earning/saving the money that will give you the choice to do what you want in terms of paid or unpaid work. Otherwise, I agree with you. My main goal in life is NOT to stop working, but I would like the option to not work. At this point, it's too late for me to "retire early" and I won't even be retiring at the age many people retire (average retirement age in the US is 63), but that's where I am right now.
    "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it--every, every minute?" Emily Webb, Our Town
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  3. #3
    Yppej
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    After reading about Medicare recently I am thinking I will have to work until I drop dead. There are so many different parts most of which recipients have to pay premiums for, and "free" Part A which I've paid taxes for all these years, only covers 80% of costs. When it comes to medical care 20% is a huge number if you're old and sick.

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    I read that book years ago and thought about it the other day. I wondered--did these numbers work out sustainably for them? I thought about them because they were in the Janet Luhrs book, too, and I was thinking about their book where they walked away from those jobs and she worked as a grad assistant for a while--so funny you mention them, I wonder how their numbers work out now. I was into this book and read it right after reading YMOYL and I wonder how they fared through some of the weird economic times we have had in the interim.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Yppej View Post
    After reading about Medicare recently I am thinking I will have to work until I drop dead. There are so many different parts most of which recipients have to pay premiums for, and "free" Part A which I've paid taxes for all these years, only covers 80% of costs. When it comes to medical care 20% is a huge number if you're old and sick.
    look into Medicare advantage, it's not an endorsement, I don't think it's a great program (mom on it), traditional Medicare is much better in all likelihood, but it is what people do if the supplemental insurance becomes untenable under traditional Medicare, you might be able to swing the supplemental insurance though, I don't think it's as ridiculous as medical costs before Medicare kicks in can be.

    I think it's VERY reasonable for people not to retire BEFORE 65, primarily due to medical costs (not everyone has that option as some are forced out of the workplace at a certain age but assuming one does). Because paying one's own medical costs at say 60 - yea you need a lot of money for that. And employers that cover medical costs after someone has retired are few and far between indeed (it's about as likely as getting a pension - yea good luck with that!). But after 65 there are some more options, if they aren't ideal, eh well how many of the HMO plans people have through work are either, much of the time.

    It's all well and good to say one will work into old age assuming people are willing to hire one for such, but what if one keeps getting into emotionally abusive workplaces? Like the emotional dysfunction in workplaces these days seems through the roof. Work was never the garden of Eden, it was work ok, it kinda sucks, but working conditions have gotten noticeably worse just in my working lifetime. And I don't even think I've even worked through any economic glory days and yet .... it gets worse and worse. And so "work it sucks, c'est la vie" becomes day by day survival. I suspect work stress may kill me at this point long before I even reach 65.
    Trees don't grow on money

  6. #6
    Yppej
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    Quote Originally Posted by ApatheticNoMore View Post

    It's all well and good to say one will work into old age assuming people are willing to hire one for such, but what if one keeps getting into emotional abusive workplaces? Like the emotional dysfunction in workplaces these days seems through the roof. Work was never the garden of Eden, it was work ok, but working conditions have gotten noticeably worse just in my working lifetime. I suspect work stress may kill me at this point long before I even reach 65.
    Sorry you are going through this. I was there also but this year finally got laid off and was able to go to a decent company. It's hard to look while you're still working. Most places wanted daytime interviews on short notice.

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    Senior Member Teacher Terry's Avatar
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    Joe D. died of cancer at age 57. Last I heard his girlfriend was still doing fine. Their investing strategy would not work well now.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Teacher Terry View Post
    Joe D. died of cancer at age 57. Last I heard his girlfriend was still doing fine. Their investing strategy would not work well now.
    Terry, the Getting a Life book was by a couple who knew Joe and Vicki and followed their ideas; they were in the original book, and then they had their own book-- now I can't remember their names! It seemed like they met at At & T and he bought her garnet earrings one year and the next he bought her YMOYL and the rest was history, or something like that?

  9. #9
    Senior Member Teacher Terry's Avatar
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    Yes Joe Dominquez but I could not remember her name. They were never married but lived together for decades.

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    I didn't realize the author died at 57, for him it really was your money or your life in some ways

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