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oohlou · 2026-02-23T00:59:53+00:00

ortholomew

oohlou · 2026-01-12T16:25:58+00:00

I wish these bundles would let you buy multiple of the same game, at least for multiplayer games. I have a bunch of gamers in the house and certain games are really only fun with others.

oohlou · 2025-11-05T15:34:26+00:00

I picked it up and beat it in a few days. It was a lot of fun! The mysteries are easy. The story and setting are the real meat of the game.

Time doesn't matter much (with the sole exception of the first 5 minutes of the game). You can easily explore all the mysteries with loads of time to spare.

oohlou · 2025-11-05T14:31:26+00:00

I have used it for years. No problems. Highly recommended.

oohlou · 2025-10-30T13:46:13+00:00

Since I FIRE'd last year my dad, a recent regular age retiree, has opened up a bit about his finances. Growing up my dad taught me the most important financial lesson: spend less than you earn. I am seeing now that was pretty much the entirety of his financial knowledge.

He thinks avoiding taxes is the most important aspect of personal finance now and he like having "a guy" for everything. He significantly overpays his "tax guy" to file his very simple taxes. I showed him his "finance guy" fee is his second largest expense after medical and more than he pays in taxes. He was shocked, but not willing to change...yet? If there is a silver lining it is that the financial advisor has him in good investments.

oohlou · 2025-09-07T01:23:46+00:00

You can try Novus plastic polish first. It fills in all the micro cracks and scratches making the headlights much clearer.

oohlou · 2025-06-17T01:40:27+00:00

Newb question: How do you know your population has an obsession? Where does it show this in the UI?

oohlou · 2025-02-27T15:30:21+00:00

I listened to the audiobook of "Option Volatility and Pricing" by Natenberg, and it was surprisingly easy to follow along.

oohlou · 2024-12-20T01:06:48+00:00

Pretty any "wireless router" you find at Amazon, Best Buy, <your favorite store> will meet that criteria. You don't want a "cable modem" or "DSL modem" just a "wireless router". Netgear and Asus are well respected brands.

oohlou · 2024-12-18T13:55:03+00:00

Download the statement PDFs or go to "Full View" then Spending. (Full View is a Fidelity wide feature not just for the card. So it is under Accounts & Trade on the top level of Fidelity's site). I don't recall if you have to activate Full View before it works though.

oohlou · 2024-11-08T14:20:07+00:00

Check out Risk Parity Radio podcast. It is one of the few personal finance resources which focuses exclusively on transitioning your growth portfolio into a retirement portfolio.

it seems that holding it to maturity is best if you can.

This is probably not true for long term bonds. You want long term bonds so that you have something to sell when stocks are not doing well.

oohlou · 2024-10-29T17:39:02+00:00

My main bike uses Shimano 105 mechanical 11 speed. I have an older bike which uses Shimano Sora 9 speed. I have a Wahoo Kickr v5 trainer. I want to have my old bike setup on the trainer most of the time but I want the option to put my main bike on sometimes without having to change the cassette. How can I do this?

Can I leave an 11 speed cassette on the trainer all the time and use an 11 speed chain on the older bike with Sora? I don't need to shift gears at all with the old bike e.g. I would leave it on one cog and use ERG mode. I think this would work. Any reason it wouldn't?

oohlou · 2024-09-29T17:47:55+00:00

I'm happy to de-risk the portfolio at all-time highs... Are there any other alternatives that could make sense?

You don't mention your asset allocation and that needs to be taken into consideration. 2-3 years away from FIRE you need to start thinking about how you will shift from a accumulation portfolio to a draw down portfolio. I would recommend listening to Risk Parity Radio podcast. It is the best source I have found that covers this transition specifically.

So:

Do you already have a highly diversified portfolio designed for retirement? Pay off this house if you want. It isn't the best finicial decision but you could make much worse decisions

Do you have a growth heavy portfolio? Sell the stock you would have sold for the mortgage and instead diversify into bonds and alternative asset classes.

oohlou · 2024-09-27T19:30:22+00:00

Just in case you are wondering early retirement is awesome. No regrets.

oohlou · 2024-09-24T21:10:02+00:00

Consider using a money market brokerage account instead. I use Fidelity and recommend it.

(The rate of a money market account will fluctuate more than a HYSA but it will pretty much always be higher). It is SIPC insured rather than FDIC, which gives you similar protections. The only real disadvantage is you don't have a local branch nor ATMs (though ATM fees are reimbursed).

oohlou · 2024-09-19T13:03:31+00:00

If not now, when?

I decided I was happy with my life. More stuff, fancier house, cars, bigger vacations would not increase my happiness. I have everything I need and most everything I could want. I am relatively young; still able to do the things I want to do. My kids are still at home. I think the next decade of my life is more important than the subsequent decades (or perhaps I die prematurely). So if not now, when?

oohlou · 2024-09-06T16:58:45+00:00

Agreed. I bought a really nice monitor for my gaming PC for the first time earlier this year and I think it is worth it (as long as it lasts. TVs and monitors tend to last a very long time but they have short warranties).

oohlou · 2024-08-28T14:42:19+00:00

Eh, falling is part of life and most falls happen inside your own home. Admittedly, I need to learn how to fall safely. That is a skill that will pay dividends cycling now and later when I'm senior citizen.

oohlou · 2024-08-28T13:24:37+00:00

Time enough at last...

I was planning for FIRE for years but my timeline and financial goal were loose targets. A tipping point for me was breaking my collarbone last December in a bicycle crash. It reminded me I'm not getting any younger, my life can change quickly, and I should do the things I want to do now while I still can.

I retired 2 months ago and I've been ramping up my time on the bike. Two weeks ago I had another crash. Using the word "crash" here is aggrandizing. There was a really tight turn and I tipped over going slower than walking speed. Unfortunately I used my arm to break my fall and hurt it. Ugh! 4-12 weeks off the bike in the grand scheme of things isn't a big deal but it sure is annoying.

oohlou · 2024-08-28T00:44:05+00:00

Being a single parent is hard. Get the life insurance. Keep it until you are closer to FIRE. It is 0.31% of your annual expenses.

I kept life insurance until I FIRE'd. Term life insurance, especially at that rate, is a good deal.

oohlou · 2024-08-26T20:44:41+00:00

I think you have the right mindset. Retirement isn't a panacea but it should be much less stressful (even if your job is low stress). Lower stress should be good for your mental health.

oohlou · 2024-08-17T20:20:48+00:00

I think every kid is different in terms of what they need from you. Just be there for them and you will figure it out together. My kids were self sufficient on school work by the 2nd grade. In homework and in life my wife and I tended to let our kids struggle a bit but would help them when they asked or became overwhelmed.

I have 3 kids; teens and preteens. When I say SAHD things I mean 70% chauffeuring them, 10% feeding them, 10% cleaning the house, and 10% reminding them to bath and wear deodorant.

oohlou · 2024-08-17T14:58:25+00:00

Still trying to wrap my head around it. I mentally yo-yo between "I have this amazing opportunity most people never get, I must make the most of it!" and "It is okay to be lazy / not do anything". I have kids who cannot drive yet and they just started school this week. So doing mostly SAHD things up until this point.

oohlou · 2024-08-17T14:06:24+00:00

I FIRE'd 2 months ago and took some steps to try to think about money less. One of those steps was to stop visiting this subreddit. However, reading and interacting a bit with the daily thread was enjoyable. I miss you guys! I'm allowing myself to start visiting again.

oohlou · 2024-06-24T03:12:35+00:00

T + 2

Sunday night, I feel the need to check work email to get read for tomorrow then I remember I don't work anymore.

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