H.A. Larson's Blog, page 19

An Ipsy Surprise and a Giveaway!

 

I've been putting in some real effort lately to get rid of things and work towards a minimalist lifestyle. While it sounds easy enough, it's actually been more work than I thought - and a few tears have been shed as I part with certain items, but I digress. I had an Ipsy subscription for a good four or five years before I finally canceled it in September of 2019. If you've been following my blog since it's inception, or anytime in the past three years, you'll remember how I made a monthly post showing off my latest bag and it's contents - the last one I posted was in December 2018. 
All these years, I've kept the bags - as well as many of the contents, unused - although last year I gave away a good sixteen of them to a nice lady who was making feminine supply bags out of them for homeless women. I've also given away a few with some goodies in them as gifts to friends and family. Even with all my gifting of the bags, I still have several of them. A couple of them I use and the rest have been just sitting in my beauty supplies dresser. I came up with this great idea, then, that I should give them out as gifts to my girlfriends for Christmas, and fill them with a lot of the little things I've been keeping for no apparent reason. They're so cute that I'll make a post about them after the holiday season.
So, I was pulling out all my Ipsy bags from the drawer for the gift project when lo and behold, what do I find? Two, still filled with goodies, new Ipsy bags! I couldn't believe it. I had never opened up August 2019 or September 2019, my last two bags. It was a little like Christmas for myself as I opened them up to see what was inside. For old time's sake then, shall we check them out?



I'm a space nerd, something you already know about me, so I absolutely love this bag! It's going to be one of about six that I've elected to keep. At least for now. I'm also going to keep that Obsidian liquid eyeliner because I've probably made the makeup industry a fortune in that commodity over the years!



While I used to talk about each item in my old Ipsy posts, I have to admit that I'm not that nostalgic for doing that again. Ha! Instead, I'd like to give this bag, plus some of these items, and some other Ipsy items that are new, to one lucky person. If you want this bag filled with makeup goodies, and live in the U.S., please comment below with what you're looking forward to most about Fall. I'll pick my favorite comment and announce the winner on my Instagram next week.

Good luck!


**Shocktober starts on Saturday!**

My FIRE Journey: Progress

 

A lot has changed in my life over the past couple of months, particularly since I decided to pursue FIRE. The most obvious change is how FIRE has given me a focus and a sense of purpose that has been lacking in my life for a while now. Instead of half-wandering and trying to determine what my future looks like, I walk through life knowing exactly what I'm doing and where I'm going.

Another big change I've made is to pick up a second, part-time, job. I work three shifts a week making extra money that I'm using to pay off debts. I figure in a little over three years, I'll be debt-free. To that end, I paid off my car loan this past week and almost completely paid off another debt. I'm tackling my smaller debts first on my way to the bigger ones - student loans, then, will be last.

I've also begun selling off or giving away personal items that are just taking up space. This includes nostalgia and tears as I've said goodbye to things like my 40-year old dollhouse* that I loved and cared for all these years. I got a good price for it, as it's a collectible, and will put that in my fund to buy housing upon my early retirement. So, my little house will help me buy my big house one day.

I quit my automatic savings plan, opting instead for an automatic investment plan. This means that instead of having money automatically drawn from my account on payday and into a savings account, I have money automatically drawn from my account on payday and into my investment account. I've rebalanced my investment accounts as well*.

I've gone full-throttle into credit card churning*. I use a couple of strategic credit cards to pay my bills and buy my groceries in order to gain the points/rewards that these cards will give me. I will use these points/rewards on future travel plans.

 While I still have a lot to learn, I'm well on my way to achieving my FIRE goal. The other day, my daughter and I were eating dinner at the dining room table, and she took my hand and said, "Mom, I'm proud of you." It brought a tear to my eye and reminded me of how far I've come over the past couple of years. More than that, it made me realize that I'm finally on the right path. 

*These topics will all have their own posts in the months to come.

Shocktober is right around the corner, as well as my monthly newsletter. Make sure you subscribe if you haven't already!

Turning the Corner

 

It's a relaxing and peaceful morning here in my home as I write this. It's my day off and the slight breeze is crisp and cool as it floats in through my windows. Not only am I the only person here right now, but it's also eerily quiet outside as well. No one is stirring in the neighborhood and I hear nary a car coming down my street...a rarity to be sure!
It's the perfect time to sit and reflect upon my life - to think about the past, ruminate on the present, and plan for my future. If you've been keeping up with my blog over the past year or two, then you know the personal changes and struggles that I have faced. I've been pretty open about them in an attempt to bring my broken pieces back together into a whole. It's refreshing to sit here, then, and tell you that I am in an amazing place right now. 
The reasons for this are mainly due to me taking back the reigns of my life and righting my course. I've had to push myself to do things I had been slacking on while other things finally came to fruition after being able to do nothing but merely wait. Just as importantly, I finally came up with a future goal that finally realizes my dreams. Sure, getting to those goals will take a decade of hard work, but I'm more than ready for the challenge.
See, for many years, I was just stuck in my life. A life that wasn't happy, rewarding, or positive. Sure, I tried my best to make the most of it - and to that end I succeeded quite well - but inside I was miserable. And when you're miserable inside, eventually it comes out, manifesting itself in your everyday life. It's an awful state to be in and an even worse one to deal with. It means that you have to face hard truths, understand the full scope of what has transpired, and then make plans to deal with it all. It's a daunting set of tasks, to be sure, and it can leave you with the sense that you're drowning. I was the lone passenger on my sinking ship called "Overwhelmed". I was trapped and felt stuck.
But, I persevered and did what I needed to do to get unstuck and reclaim my life. For the first time in a very long time, I feel free, focused, and, calm; and I have goals that set me on fire everyday. It's a wonderful head space to be in. When I think about my life a year ago, it's like staring in the window of a stranger's house. I barely recognize the person I was. But, I can empathize with that person because I know how incredibly difficult life was and how hard it was just to get out of bed everyday. I can remember all of the unhealthy coping mechanisms I used just to deal with my pain and trauma. 
That person is gone now, replaced by a woman with confidence. A woman who knows what she wants and isn't afraid of the hard work it's going to take to get there. I've turned the corner, finally, and it feels great.



I've been hard at work writing up special posts for October, the best month of the year! I can't wait to start sharing those with you...it's going to be a fun ride. Until then, have a great rest of your weekend, and a fabulous week ahead.
-H.A.

My FIRE Journey: Why I Stopped Saving Money

All right, so I know you're thinking, "H.A. stopped saving money?! But, isn't she always talking about the importance of saving?" Yes! So, don't get me wrong, saving is important, but yes, I stopped "saving" money. Okay, okay, I'll come clean. What I've actually done is stop putting my money in savings accounts. Why is that? Well...
Savings accounts are a terrible way to grow your money. Sure, if you're just looking to purely save money, then savings accounts are the right choice - and I still highly recommend that you save money on a regular basis. But, if you're looking to grow your money, you have to look elsewhere. This is where I am at. Let's look at how I got here.
I have been saving diligently for many years, and for most of those years, it was a mere $5.00 a paycheck. When I had built up a few thousand dollars, I decided to invest my savings into some old investment accounts I had gotten through a former employer. At the time, I knew nothing about retirement accounts or investing, but I wanted to pad the dismal amount of money I had in retirement accounts. So, I simply added my savings into the accounts I already had in existence - half in my Fidelity account and half in my Vanguard account. Then, I just went right back to saving money faithfully each week in my savings accounts.
Fast forward to a handful of months before I decided to pursue FIRE. I was doing some research on saving more and spending less. This led me down a path of learning about investing which, once again, introduced me to the concept of FIRE. This time instead of dismissing it, I paid attention and realized that this was something I could do to achieve the ultimate dreams I had given up on. Once I was on board with pursuing FIRE, I began implementing the basic foundation of how the concept works. One of those concepts is making your money work for you. 
In an effort, then, to make my money work for me, I've stopped saving money and instead invest my money. I stopped my automatic savings plan and turned that into an automatic investing plan. Instead of having money automatically saved in my online savings account, I now have that money automatically transferred to my Vanguard account where it's deposited/invested in my favorite index fund. Instead of the paltry savings rate of interest I was making, I'm now making compound interest* on a higher rate of interest. You can't beat that!



*Compound interest gives you interest on your interest. How? Well, say you have $1000 that you gain interest on. Say you gain $5 in interest one month, well, the next month you will make interest on $1005. Your money works harder for you this way.

The Return of September

Well, well, well....would you look at that? September is back! Every year, when September rolls around I get excited. The excitement stems from the fact that Fall is nearly here! I absolutely adore Fall and everything about it. If I had to choose one season to live in permanently, it would be Fall.
I can't wait for the turning leaves, cool hikes in the forest, pumpkin patches, cozy sweaters, temperate climate, hayrack rides, warm tea under a blanket, and Halloween. I'm even looking forward to having a pumpkin beer although spiked apple cider is preferable - and I do make a delicious spiked apple cider.
I think I am looking forward to Fall even more than I have in the past. It's been such a wild and crazy ride this year, that I feel like my favorite season will usher in better times. A new age if you will. I sure hope so! Either way, I'm going to make the absolute most of my favorite season this year, and in honor of that, I'm going to be making special posts centered on it. Expect a bunch of fun content in October because I am chock full of ideas and plans that I cannot wait to share.
I'm going to revisit some of my favorite ghost hunts as well as embark on a few more. I'll be doing my yearly Shocktober! as well as share the pumpkin patch trip I didn't take last year. If that wasn't enough, I have some other fun stuff planned, so make sure you stick around for all of it.
Until then, enjoy your weekend!

Grand Marais Harbor and Lighthouse

Every day that we were on vacation in Minnesota, we took a short walk down to the Lake Superior shoreline. We stayed in an old Northwoods motel in Grand Marais that was one block from the coast, so it was an easy and beautiful way to end each day. One of the features of Grand Marais is a small lighthouse. While pretty to look at in gorgeously framed photos, lighthouses serve an important purpose - to prevent boats from crashing into the shore when it's dark and/or stormy.


The famed Grand Marais Lighthouse.
As you can see from this picture, there is another, smaller, lighthouse but we only went to the main, easily accessible one. A narrow concrete pier allows you to walk to the lighthouse.



A look back the opposite direction on the pier.


My kids found natural rock seats on these boulders.
Before you hop onto the pier, you can instead walk amongst the rocks and boulders on the other side of the pier. This rocky coastline seems to be a hallmark of the shores here in Northern Minnesota.


Everywhere you look is like looking at a new place.
I was repeatedly struck with the notion that it felt like we were on the shore of an ocean rather than a lake. It looked, sounded, and smelled liked the ocean, and with the massive size of Lake Superior, it's easy to feel this.


My dad and my kids look for perfect skipping rocks.
Whenever we had a chance to get right down to the Superior coastline, we skipped rocks. Off to the right, you can see the pine trees that remind me that we're in Minnesota and not Massachusetts. While I've been to Northern Minnesota many times, I had never been to any of the Great Lakes. To say it was a magical place is an understatement because it truly felt magical. No pictures can quite do the place justice, but they are lovely anyway. I hope you enjoyed them.

It was nice to take some time away from the hustle and bustle of life, especially during the pandemic. It's hard to believe that it was nearly two months ago now that we went on vacation. It was also the second joint vacation I took with my dad and that was special within itself. My folks aren't getting any younger, and neither am I. Time is fleeting so you have to make the most of it and spend time with the people you care about before it's too late.
Have a great week and I'll be back with another post this weekend. My monthly newsletter will go out before Friday, so sign up for that now if you haven't already!

I've Started my FIRE Journey

If you've been following my blog for a while, then you know about my Basic Financial Fitness (or BFF for short) series. In it, I've strived to give common-sense financial advice to people who don't make a lot of money, who already don't buy lattes, and who don't go out to eat for lunch. I've given advice on things like how to create a bill-paying system and how to save money consistently on a very small income. Along the way, my own financial journey has evolved as I've become more knowledgeable and literate about money.
Not long ago, I talked about my dive into the FIRE movement. Now, if you don't know what FIRE is, it means f inancial i ndependence r etire e arly. I was first exposed to the concept a few years ago but quickly dismissed it as I thought I was too old and didn't make enough money to do it myself. I was doing research recently about investing for retirement and came across the concept of FIRE again. This time, I watched carefully, paid close attention, and realized that my earlier assessment of FIRE - as it applied to me - was wrong. I absolutely can pursue FIRE to reach my goals.

What are those goals? Simply put, I want to:

* be financially independent
* be free of debt
* be able to retire early to a location of my choosing
* be able to live well below my means

That's the simple four-step plan, but FIRE is much more involved than that. It will take some creative planning, some sacrifice, and some changes, but I am more than confident that I can achieve FIRE in ten years or less. So, about the time when I get my daughter out on her own, I'll be ready to retire to Ireland.

I hope you'll follow along on my new journey as I move towards my new goals. Until then, check out some of the other posts here on my blog.

Living a Minimalist Lifestyle

Image courtesy of Apartment Therapy https://www.apartmenttherapy.com
Recently, I mentioned the fact that I've decided to go down the path of FIRE - financial independence retire early. Now, there's a lot I could say about FIRE but I'm going to save that for future posts. Instead, I'd like to focus on something that many people who choose FIRE (or just FI) do: minimalism.
I'm sure you've heard of minimalism or living a minimalist lifestyle, but what does that mean? Simply put, it means living with fewer possessions. When we live with fewer possessions we:
1. live a more intentional life, one less hampered by things2. have a cleaner, clearer space3. free ourselves from consumer culture
For most of my adult life, I've collected stuff and lots of it. I loved filling my homes with a wide variety of eclectic items, items that I bought from thrift stores, garage sales, or got free as gifts or from the side of the road. This was how I felt like a had a nice, cozy home when I was poor. I found myself never being able to turn down free stuff. 
Over the past few years, I began to notice a shift. I've noticed that I feel more and more encumbered by my possessions. I don't have enough room in my small home to move as freely as I'd like, leading me to stub my toes almost daily. I'm also sick and tired of all the dusting I have to do and I can never find anything it seems until much later when I'm cleaning out some corner somewhere. On top of all that, I don't even like most of these things anymore, either.
So, I started dealing with areas of the house, little by little, every day. I'm going to sell or give away most of the things I own and throw away anything that doesn't fit into either of those categories. There was a time when I never thought I could live with so few things, but that time is over now. I'm ready for a change.

Coffee Talk: Moves, Writing, and Financial Goals

It's Saturday and I have a fresh cup of coffee in my hands. I love Saturday mornings because my house is quiet and I can relax with a cup of coffee without thinking about getting ready for work. It's always been a great time for me to think about things like the stories I'm writing, things I need to get done, and what my plans are. So, I guess this is as good of a time as any to have a coffee talk.



Yesterday, I moved my son back to college for junior year. This time was different than the previous two years for a couple of reasons. One, he moved into an apartment this year (with roommates), and, two, he moved out permanently - although a bit begrudgingly. This second reason was something I forced upon him. Why? Well, it was time. While he's a bit nervous and sad, he's also pretty excited about it. It's not easy moving out on your own that first time, but it's a necessary part of life. One has to learn to live on their own at some point, and he's at that point. I'll always be here for him to be a shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen to, and a voice of reason when he needs guidance. Of course, he'll be back to visit whenever he wants, it just won't be to live.



So, it turns out that I'm not done being a writer after all. I wrote a post a few months back about how I just didn't have it in me to write anymore. I mean, I had barely written more than a line in months and months, I hadn't published anything in a couple of years, and it just seemed my spark to write was gone. Well, all of a sudden, I recently began writing in earnest again. I came up with a great story idea, sketched out the main points of the book, made the cover, and began writing it regularly. Listen, I was just as shocked as you, but pleasantly surprised. I guess I'm still a writer after all. I've resurrected my monthly newsletter and will resume the short story series I had started there. If you'd like to sign up, you can do so at the link from the home page menu in the upper left-hand corner.



If you've been following my blog for awhile, then you know that I post regularly about Basic Financial Fitness. In this series, I've always aimed to give common-sense financial advice to people without much means. This comes from my own journey of living near poverty for most of my adult life. While I'm a bit higher than that on the pay scale now, I still don't make a lot. I'm also now a single mom, and while that seems like it would put me in a worse financial situation than before, the opposite is true. See, my ex and I were on the opposite ends of the spectrum when it came to finances and financial goals. I'm a frugal person and that has only ramped up over time. Because of this, I spend a lot of time doing research when it comes to money. Recently, I was reintroduced to the idea of FIRE (financial independence retire early). While I had always dismissed this as something for younger people or assuming I wouldn't have enough money to do something like this, I realized that this is actually something I CAN do at my age and current income level. I can use FIRE to help me reach my own financial goals. I'll be talking about that more in the coming years in my BFF series.


It's the weekend, so I hope you get out there and enjoy it. I know I will!

Life Changes Whether We Want it to or Not

I recently took this photo while on a hike to my favorite spot, Neale Woods. It's a beautiful picture of lovely green foliage in the foreground, my beloved Iowa Mountains peeking up in the background, and a ray of sunshine cutting through the whole shot. But, while it looks lovely, this picture fills me with a feeling of sadness.
See, that "gate" in the lower middle of the shot at the end of the footpath stops one from continuing on any further. That's because there used to be a large, octagonal deck that stood here, allowing people to see across to the Loess Hills during the day and glance up at night to see the stars. The now-derelict Millard Observatory sits off the main trail behind me, a relic of what it once was. Once upon a time, you could go out to Neale Woods at night on celestial event evenings and see constellations through the observatory telescopes or with the naked eye upon the deck. 
I always told myself, back when I first started hiking up here, that I would go to one of these celestial event nights one night. I mean, I absolutely love astronomy and the woods so it seemed like a no-brainer. Unfortunately, I never did and so my chance to do so died with the observatory. I did take a guided night hike up here once a few years back during the Perseid Meteor Shower and we did end up here at the deck at the very end to see if we could spy any meteors darting across the sky. I wasn't surprised to see that the deck was gone as it was rotting away but I was dejected to see it gone anyway. This isn't the first change in my favorite hiking spot. Over the years, I've watched the nature center cease functioning, the back garden going to seed, and trails change or disappear altogether, making me wish I had taken a few of them to their end or just hiked them, period. 
The differences in the landscape that I've witnessed here in my oasis away from the city reminds me that change is inevitable and that we are powerless to stop it. Change is necessary, even if it is hard to accept or difficult to deal with. We get comfortable with things the way things are and with it come feelings of satisfaction, happiness, and belonging. Changes to those things require us to step out of our comfort zone and readjust - no matter how big or small those changes may be.
While the changes in Neale Woods will go unnoticed by a multitude of people who visit, I will always remember the way it was when I first discovered it. Do I miss it? Absolutely. Will I adapt to the changes? I already have. Life is a constant pulsating entity that inundates us with change regularly. The recent pandemic has fundamentally shifted how the entire world goes about its daily life. While a pandemic is much more difficult and stressful in numerous ways than a few trail shifts in a nature park, we can learn a few things from the latter in dealing with the former. How we deal with the little changes can help us deal with the bigger ones. 
Accept the things we cannot understand and embrace the changes that they bring. You'll be better off in the long run, trust me.