Yes, yes, I’m really late (ha, for the past few years even)!

When I looked at my results for 2019, it looks great… at least until I looked at the S&P 500 results for 2019… the S&P 500 index scored a whopping 30%, vs my mid 20s percent… ugh!

That said, I’m still pretty good overall because I did do some risk adjusting by bring my asset allocation mix back into the balance that it should be… So ouch, but it’s okay…

These past few years, I’ve accomplished a lot of my financial goals (house paid off, kids college cost fully funded, etc) and have even started played around with the idea of semi-retirement… One of the biggest things holding me back is the expense of Medical Insurance for emergencies. My daughter is a gymnist and my son a part time fire fighter (in addition to attending college), so it’s a valid concern for me. I don’t hear a lot about that in a lot of FIRE equations, but it should be considered (at least until your are a vhnwi – Very High Networth Individual).

I mentioned in my last update that I believe I have enough critical mass now and that I wanted to experiment. Instead I decided to take a break and try to live a bit of that Upper Middle Class lifestyle that I’m striving for in my wealth pyramid below. Turns out, that lifestyle is still a bit out of reach for me and also more expensive that I originally believed, so I’m still in that “think green line” area in the picture below. Another fact that is keeping me in the “Think Green Line” area, is that fact that bulk of my net worth is either tied up in my house or 401k. It’s great, but I’m definitely on the cash poor side.

Ignoring my whining, I have enough money from my dividend funds (I’ll post about them in the future) to at least dip my toe into the entrepreneurial pool… So perhaps I’ll try and find a rental to buy or maybe start a low startup cost business… idk… Lately, I have the urge to find someone with the right characteristics to work on ideas and strategies. It’s surprising how hard it is to find anyone that is interested in thinking outside of the box on wealth accumulation! Then again, I’m not the best conversationalist… so perhaps the fault lies with me.

After taking a hit at the end of 2018, my secret wealth goal has improved to the highest level that it has been yet (79.63%) in 2019. Sadly, my percentage has fallen a bit these past few weeks… I’m not sure how this year will play out, but I’m hoping I break the 80% barrier at the end of year 2021. We’ll see…

Okay, onto health! For the past few years I’ve been working out pretty hard to accomplish two goals.

• Benchpress all the weight in my basement and do three 45 plates on each site for at least 1 rep (this I accomplished). I was going to three gyms and working out like a fiend. I have to say I was quite pleased with the results!!! See picture below of my arm.
• The Second goal is to focus on my body aesthetics and optimize my health. I wanted to hit my strength goal first, now I’m doubling back and taking on this challenge.

So to summarize, it’s smooth and steady for me so far.

Thanks

Don