Visiting with Family & Friends
The month of March was mostly spent visiting with family and friends. Dena & I spent the first part of March in New Orleans, LA attending a family wedding and visiting with some friends from long ago when I lived in New Orleans. During the latter part of March Dena’s brother and sister-in-law visited the Abacos for 10 days staying with us on Odyssey. Four people are quite tight on a 36-foot boat. But Dena’s brother and his wife are also sailors so they are used to “camping” on a sailboat.
Perfect Weather in the Abacos
Since my last post we have experienced the longest stretch of good weather we have ever experienced in the winter months. The month of February has been almost all sunshine and warm weather. Unfortunately, I spent the first 10 days in Maryland taking care of some personal business where the temperature was 13 degrees Fahrenheit when I landed in Maryland and nine degrees Fahrenheit when I left 10 days later. Other than visiting with some friends, it was the most miserable 10 days I have spent in a long time.
Bad Weather in the Abacos
Since the New Year began we have been trapped in Hopetown Harbour on Elbow Cay due to bad weather. We had planned to go on an extended cruise to some remote islands around the Abacos. Bad weather has caused us to delay this plan.
What Do We Do in the Abacos?
I got a question from a reader about what we do to pass the time while living six months every year in the Abacos. Our life may seem a bit boring to some, but we like it. Rather than write about what we do to pass the time, I thought I would post some pictures of our most common activities. As they say a picture is worth a thousand words.
Hopetown Arrival
Just before Thanksgiving we arrived back in Hopetown for another winter season of sailing, snorkeling, diving, parties, and meeting old and new friends.
What Does It Take to Retire Early?
This post will be more applicable to people less than 40 years old, but the discussion may be useful for anyone looking to retire anytime. I got a question about how we were able to retire in our mid-50s, ten years earlier than the average retirement age without any employer paid pension or health care benefits.
Updated Asset Allocation
Recently I got a question from a reader who was nearing retirement about fixed income ladders. Our back and forth correspondence inevitably got into asset allocation. Since I had recently fine-tuned our own asset allocation, I thought I might present here how our financial assets are currently positioned.
The Seven Deadly Sins of Investing
The Wall Street Journal had a recent article called “The Seven Deadly Sins of Investing.” I have written about all of them on my blog posts at some point or another. But the Wall Street Journal article sums it up nicely, so I thought I would recount them here.
Hurricane Preparations
I thought I would post a few words about getting our sailing vessel “Odyssey” ready for the tropical storm season. In the Bahamas tropical storms mostly occur in August, September, and October. My wife and I flew down to the Bahamas in late July to spend a few more days in the lovely warm water of the Abacos and to complete our hurricane preparation efforts on Odyssey.
Hopetown Floating Trailer Park Re-Union
For the long-term residents of the Hopetown Inn and Marina this past winter, we referred to the 200 dock where we were moored, affectionately, as the Floating Trailer Park. It was a group of about a half dozen boats that stayed at the Marina all winter and became close friends. We even had T-shirts made.