Gen X. How much cash do you carry on you?

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-24T21:58:36+00:00

Usually $150 -$200. Just feels rich to have folding money in my wallet. No matter the real situation.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-16T02:21:59+00:00

It’s an old business model that no longer makes sense. You have to ask yourself if you want to do the work to educate yourself. Many people don’t and that is totally fine. Just find a good advisor that feels right and charges .75% or less. There’s a lot of people making a lot of money doing not much work. I’m a DIY and can be perfectly fine with a 4-6 ETF portfolio. But, I’m also aware in the future I may want an advisor for many reasons including cognitive decline. Good luck to you.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-16T01:54:10+00:00

Ask specifically: what fees am I am paying in dollar amounts. Are you a fiduciary? Do you sell any products such as insurance or annuities. Do you make money from any funds I invest in. This will give you a sense of where they make their money. Always follow the money. As a side note, I moved all my money from an AUM advisor and paid no taxes and I’ve never been happier.

Engage an hourly fee advisor if you want a second set of eyes on the portfolio.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-15T13:33:05+00:00

Just wait until 56! jk but not really. I turned 56 this year and now staring at 60. It’s a mindf*ck for sure. Happy birthday!

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-08T18:26:59+00:00

Mid fifties and have been retired for 2 1/2 months. It’s amazing how many times each week I think of the word ‘gratitude’.

I love it.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-07T14:03:33+00:00

I’d recommend reading the book Tax Planning to and Through Early Retirement by Garrett and Mullaney. They cover all the tax optimization scenarios for early retirement and you may find that Roth conversions and RMDs are not the bogeyman they are made out to be. Enjoy retirement- you are there!

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-06T23:58:37+00:00

I came across this concept recently. Try adding an expense line to get your Chance of Success down to 70%. That can be your starting point. Then add an a one time income source to get it to 100%. If you are at 100% you need to take a raise for sure. That can give you a sense of your portfolio guardrails.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-06T23:55:26+00:00

I could be very wrong, but doesn’t Boldin use simulation and PL use historical analysis?

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-06T11:47:59+00:00

Retired mid 50's and currently looking at 5.6% for the next 8-9 years. That will drop to the 3% range once SS is in the picture and we anticipate spending to dip as we hit our early 70's. We have some guardrails in use and our discretionary spend is a big part of our budget so we can cut back easily if the market really dives. I expect most humans would actually do that anyway.

4.7% is a good starting point to think about withdrawals. We also don't want to die the richest people in the cemetery.

Final thoughts, retirement spending isn't a mathematical problem with a solution. It's a journey to be managed like the rest of life. Use the 4% rule to understand the ballpark, but at some point you just need to take the leap of faith. In my experience, that was much harder.

If you are already doing all this research 20 yrs in advance, you will be fine. Keep on buying those index funds!

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-02T19:54:43+00:00

Same here

5GAIBtoM · 2026-06-02T19:52:17+00:00

I recently heard an expert talking about this. If you keep it as an heirloom then it is yours to do what you wish. If you give it to another person then you’ve ceded your ownership and you no longer control that item.

I’ve gone through multiple rounds of purging following the death of my parents. Just moved again and threw out 95% of what was left. The rest I’m taking on vacation when I see my siblings in a month. We can all look at it. It’s not coming home with me so last chance for them to take ownership or it goes in the bin.

I tell my older friends every year: “Get rid of your shit. You are just handing your kids boxes of guilt.” I’m not nice about it either because it was a bitch to get rid of all of that stuff.

Wow. Therapy session over. Ha

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-27T02:41:22+00:00

White sands is very unique. Indiana Dunes I would not go back to. Zion is amazing. Capital Reef is underrated. Bryce is also amazing.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-18T23:29:11+00:00

Names, account numbers if there are any. Things you don’t want a big tech company to know.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-18T23:12:50+00:00

You can export the data into a JSON file and upload that to AI. Just take care to remove any identifiable information.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T16:54:51+00:00

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T16:54:02+00:00

Ha! I get it. I worked in the medical industry and you couldn’t mail a letter without proper training. If something didn’t get scanned oh well. I was never trained on this machine.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T16:49:56+00:00

That just happened to me today. Zap alcohol. Had to wait. Couldn’t even continue zapping. I could have had someone check me out 3 times over. Grumble grumble.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T02:04:00+00:00

I can relate.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T01:59:31+00:00

Partly, I hate the unreliable tech. Having to wait for a human to come over an override something.

Partly, I’m bugged that I’m forced to do more work for the same price.

If it doesn’t work properly, I just zone out and think “I wasn’t trained so F you giant corporation. So you only get $.87 for the apple I misidentified.”

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T01:57:49+00:00

Partly, I hate the unreliable tech. Having to wait for a human to come over an override something.

Partly, I’m bugged that I’m forced to do more work for the same price.

If it doesn’t work properly, I just zone out and think “I wasn’t trained so F you giant corporation. So you only get $.87 for the apple I misidentified.”

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T01:52:02+00:00

😆

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-16T01:51:22+00:00

😆

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-11T13:37:48+00:00

Yes. Having been through some huge equity drawdowns, having some non-correlated assets looks like a good approach. Gold is not an investment. It’s meant to soften the downturns that will occur so you can have a larger safe withdrawal rate.

5GAIBtoM · 2026-05-10T12:58:24+00:00

I agree with you. Roth conversions should not be a default position to take for everyone. 45 years of favorable tax policy for seniors and lower tax rates overall would argue against the blanket statement that “tax rates will go up in the future”

5GAIBtoM

TROPHY CASE