Physician In Numbers

My Favorite Posts By Other People, September 2023

I usually read a lot of personal finance blogs every day. Even though many of my favorite bloggers seem to be slowing down, I enjoyed a number of great posts in September. Here are some of my favorites.

Fitness Log #255 And Friday Firsts

I have been keeping track of my exercise every Friday for 4 years, and plan to continue doing so.

I started the Friday Firsts sections as a way of keeping track of some of my “firsts” as I dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic. Things seem to be settling down, but I will keep it for now–more as a way to be aware and thankful of what is happening in my life.

Happy 5th Blogiversary To Me

On October 1, 2018, I published my first “real” post on this blog, making this my blog’s 5th birthday. Happy Blogiversary to me!

Today seems like a good time to reflect on this last year of blogging.

Fitness Log #254, Friday Firsts And Fabulousness, And Monthly Goals

I have been keeping track of my exercise every Friday for 4 years (almost 5!), and plan to continue doing so.

Since the pandemic started, I have been keeping track of “firsts,” and more lately, I have been trying to note good things (“fabulousness”). It’s a good way to pay attention and not let life slide by.

The Financials Of Going Half-Time

It has been a long week. In fact, it has been a long few months, with not enough vacation time to break it up.

While on a walk home, I started thinking about what my schedule might look like if I cut back to very part time, just working enough to qualify for health coverage. In my mind, it sounded very pleasant.

My friend, who has decided to work One More Year, will actually be doing this in a few weeks. She is suddenly a good deal more interested in having me cut back as well, so we can have more time to socialize together. She asked if I could afford to do so.

A young woman with brown hair, wears a light brown turban, a dress (blue with large flowers) with a large red collar, leaning on a table with a book. — Can I afford to keep up my wardrobe on half-pay?

I don’t think I can, just quite yet. But I thought it might be interesting to look at the finances of cutting back, and see where the sticky points might be for me.

Fitness Log #253 And Fabulousness

I have been keeping track of my exercise every Friday for 4 years, and plan to continue doing so.

That Time I Finally Reviewed My 2022 Spending

Every year, at the end of the year, I review the year’s spending. I’ve done this for over 20 years, and I learn different things every time (here are my lessons from 2021).

Reviewing our spending by category, or even thinking about what category to include, means that I can really look at where my (our) money is going. Which can prompt further reflections, like: is this where I want my money going? Does that seem like a good amount of money to spend on that category?

It’s also good to know how much money it takes to support our lifestyle. Since finding out about FIRE, I realize this exercise is even more helpful. After all, once I have 25 times (or 30, or 33, depending on how conservative I want to be) my yearly spending saved, financial independence has been reached. So, every year, I can ask myself: how close am I to reaching financial independence?