Long Absence

Wow.  It's been over 6 years since my last post. To be honest, my personal finances just went on autopilot after I bought my first home in January 2012. My personal finance situation at the time, although not ideal, was less dire than in my 30s. 

What has happened since then? I fell off the austerity lifestyle wagon of my 30s and started living my life. I turned 40 in 2012. Started traveling more, eating at nicer restaurants and increased my standard of living while still living within my means. Hired a personal trainer and successfully ran my first 5k and 10k in 2016. Quit my miserable job and moved to another state in 2017 to start another job. Bought a second home and rented out my first. Ran my first 15k, half marathon and marathon in 2017. Paid off my student loans completely in 2018. Hired a running coach in 2019 and PR'd my half marathon in 2019. PR'd my third marathon in 2020, right before the pandemic. 

When I look back at my financial struggles of my 30s and compare it to where I am today, I feel an overwhelming sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. In hindsight, I am glad I went through the struggles of my 30s. What felt like an immense, depression-inducing burden then, I now feel my student loan debt was a great character builder. 

I am now at an age where my peers are starting to freak out about their own personal finances since our respective retirement horizons (voluntary or forced) are within sight. They are now contemplating the same lifestyle changes and sacrifices that I was forced to make in my 30s. Welcome to the club! 😉

So where am I now? I'm going to turn 50 in a couple of years! 😲 Based on the Millionaire Next Door formula, I am doing better than the Average Accumulator of Wealth (AAW) but am not a Prodigious Accumulator of Wealth (PAW). Yet. The next stage of my life will be all about catching up and accelerating my savings and paying down two (2) mortgages.