What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Questions on how we spend our money and our time - consumer goods and services, home and vehicle, leisure and recreational activities
manatee2005
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by manatee2005 »

prairieman wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 8:06 am
manatee2005 wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 12:20 am
prairieman wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 8:11 pm Paying for a snow-plowing service. I love coming down in the morning after a snowstorm and seeing my driveway and sidewalks already clean!
That’s a good one! You live in the prairie?
More of a suburban mix of forest, prairies, lakes, and houses with lawns. However, shortly before joining the forum we installed a small prairie on part of our property, mostly to reduce future lawn care, and it has been a constant source of pleasure for me.
Ok. I used to live in the Canadian prairies so that’s why I was wondering. The snow plow comment made sense hehe.
Stoic9
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Stoic9 »

In DEC 2019, after 3.5 years of retirement at our Bi-yearly finance meeting I told spouseiod that we weren't spending our retirement income each year and we should up our game. She immediately switched our 2020 travel plans to first class seats, top hotels in Europe, and best cabins on cruises. Then the Pandemic hit and we canceled everything. But it was fun to think about at least. We hope to start back in 2022.
Stoic9
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Stoic9 »

manatee2005 wrote: Sun Nov 08, 2020 2:33 pm
TomatoTomahto wrote: Sun Nov 08, 2020 8:32 am
manatee2005 wrote: Sun Nov 08, 2020 12:09 am
Lee_WSP wrote: Sat Nov 07, 2020 5:52 pm if you’re not a TV aficionado, Will buying an OLED TV truly make watching television $2,000 better? Serious question. I'm contemplating it since it's Black Friday season, but I'm worried that it's the quarantine boredom talking.

Or is this more like a "for the person whose already got everything else" purchase. Or a "hit my FI goal; don't need to worry about money too much" purchase?
I watch A LOT of TV and yes over 15 years I plan to have this TV, it's worth it.
I think the break even point, for me, is much shorter. Coupled with a decent Soundbar at least, or a full blown audio setup, has me not missing movie theaters (or the sticky floors and incessant talkers).

Mind you, I am almost 70 years old, and my vision is not what it was, but even I can see improvements, even between my 2018 OLED and my 2020 version; I still watch both, but prefer the newer one.

I am, admittedly, a TV aficionado.
Same here, I always have a movie on TV. It's great now that I'm working from home, I can have TVs playing in the background. I only went to the theaters to watch the new Star wars movies. I like to be on the phone when I watch the TV so being stuck in a seat for 2.5 hours without my phone was torture.
The only reason why I went to see star wars in theaters was so that it wouldn't get spoiled.
I haven't been to a theater in 25 years but totally agree with the rest...about the only thing I watch on TV is SYFY. I even signed up for free trail so I could watch new STAR Trek and Wars TV shows. Was given a Ruku so can stream and watch before trail ends.
jayk238
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by jayk238 »

manatee2005 wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 12:50 am
jayk238 wrote: Fri Jan 25, 2019 10:44 am
OnTrack2020 wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 7:52 pm SiriusXM
Am thinking about Netflix
Not flying coach
We have sirius xm and are happy to let it go. With apple carplay i get everything i want already
That’s funny, I use CarPlay to play SiriusXM in my car from my phone. That’s the only reason I have SiriusXM. It just fits for listening in a car.
My biggest issue is that sirius has limited soundtracks. If you like beatles and think the beatles channel plays everything it doesnt. Same with other classic rock bands channels. Also, it wasnt all entirely ad free. With that in mind i find the apple radio stations to be better. And when I need complete albums I simply find it on there and download.
Pawpatrol
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Pawpatrol »

Private school for my kids during covid. They have blossomed with smaller class sizes and public schools have been remote only for majority of the year.
Normchad
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Normchad »

Pawpatrol wrote: Sun Dec 06, 2020 10:31 am Private school for my kids during covid. They have blossomed with smaller class sizes and public schools have been remote only for majority of the year.
That’s a good one. This might give your kids a leg up on everybody else in their age group, and could be an enduring advantage going forward.

From the public school teachers I know, student performance is down dramatically year over year.....
gblack
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by gblack »

Daily contacts are expensive, but IMO worth the upgrade.
Pawpatrol
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Pawpatrol »

Normchad wrote: Sun Dec 06, 2020 10:53 am
Pawpatrol wrote: Sun Dec 06, 2020 10:31 am Private school for my kids during covid. They have blossomed with smaller class sizes and public schools have been remote only for majority of the year.
That’s a good one. This might give your kids a leg up on everybody else in their age group, and could be an enduring advantage going forward.

From the public school teachers I know, student performance is down dramatically year over year.....
This is the dilemma we now face. We were both public school advocates and never thought to send our kids to private prior to covid. We had thought to do private school for just this year. Now, hearing about the learning gaps at the public schools I think we are stuck keeping them in private schools since so many kids will be a grade behind. So now our lean budget has been blown up: oh well, cant think of a better use of money, really. Maybe i start a thread about education as a substitute for bonds thread :)?
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avenger
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by avenger »

Amazon fresh.
Tipping the delivery driver so I’m helping someone out at the same time as grocery shopping in my pajamas.
cheers ... -Mark | "Our life is frittered away with detail. Simplify. Simplify." -Henry David Thoreau | [VTI, VXUS, BND, VTEB, SV fund]
flyingcows
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by flyingcows »

Long ago when I used to drive to an office, paying for the “low traffic” express lane
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GreenLawn
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by GreenLawn »

Adfmacro wrote: Fri Oct 30, 2020 10:06 pm The response of “Apple Watch” reminded me of the time I went from slide rule to a pocket calculator. That was pretty special to me. But my wife and I bought a house with one bath then ended up with three children. Having a house with more than one bathroom was a life style change I would not want to give up.

Our first computer did not have access to the internet. Then we got dial up that shared the phone line. Then slow “high speed” internet. Now fiber optic internet. That was life style really creeping along. We started our marriage with an old black and white TV that was not working that was free if I could get it to work. A big treat was going on vacation and watching TV at the motel in color, but it couldn’t be a Motel 6 because their TV’s were still black and white. We not only enjoyed going to color TV, but we did not have to wait for the tubes to warm up.

I may not be where some of you are, but I am not complaining. There are still places that have no bathrooms or indoor plumbing. My two bathrooms seem pretty sweet. I will take that over Netflix any day, although my Amazon Fire Stick would be hard to give up.

You don’t need to know how old I am, but let’s just say It is too late for me to be a part of the FIRE movement.

Unless you have what brings you joy without having any stuff, no amount of stuff will get you there.
Occasionally I consider how much more pleasant life would have been if I was born later. I think I'd prefer that, but growing up back in the day before reliable low maintenance cars, color tv, mobile phones, etc. makes me really appreciate my standard of living now in a way I don't think is possible for younger folk. I sometimes joke with my family that I'm thrilled to have indoor plumbing.

My favorite lifestyle creep (okay, maybe it's more of a change than creep) is retirement. Not working is costing me hundreds of thousands of dollars in foregone lifetime income. It's been worth every penny. I wake up every morning a free man. Get up when I want, with enough money to do almost anything I want. Unlimited free time and all the hot and cold water I could wish for at the twist of a handle. Life is good :happy
Tingting1013
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Tingting1013 »

Solar panels on my roof.

Saving money while saving the world is a great feeling!
LunaLauren
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by LunaLauren »

Occasionally I consider how much more pleasant life would have been if I was born later.

I find myself engaging in this as well....I entered my career field in the 1980s...it was a male dominated field until sometime after 2000...now it's about even numbers....but those 20 years were often a minefield of harrassment, sexual and otherwise.

I would love to know what it's like to begin and ascend without being considered a second class citizen...how much farther I could have gone and faster than I did.

Oh well, so I get to drive one of those low maintenance vehicles and carry a smartphone that makes me less vulnerable in repair or break down situations....
life for women has in some ways gotten better.... so i would say that my lifestyle creep is a product of both my efforts and external forces.
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TomatoTomahto
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by TomatoTomahto »

LunaLauren wrote:find myself engaging in this as well....I entered my career field in the 1980s...it was a male dominated field until sometime after 2000...now it's about even numbers....but those 20 years were often a minefield of harrassment, sexual and otherwise.

I would love to know what it's like to begin and ascend without being considered a second class citizen...how much farther I could have gone and faster than I did.
I think about this often as it relates to my wife. She has done very well, but it has been a trip that has been 3 times as tough and she has made it 1/3 as far as she would have if she weren’t a female.

That said, she doesn’t indulge in those thoughts. They are thought by those who love her, but not by her herself.
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
bobneardc
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by bobneardc »

Paying my niece's university tuition. I'm so happy I am able to do this easily!
Kompass
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Kompass »

LunaLauren wrote: Sun Dec 06, 2020 2:21 pm Occasionally I consider how much more pleasant life would have been if I was born later.

I find myself engaging in this as well....I entered my career field in the 1980s...it was a male dominated field until sometime after 2000...now it's about even numbers....but those 20 years were often a minefield of harrassment, sexual and otherwise.

I would love to know what it's like to begin and ascend without being considered a second class citizen...how much farther I could have gone and faster than I did.

Oh well, so I get to drive one of those low maintenance vehicles and carry a smartphone that makes me less vulnerable in repair or break down situations....
life for women has in some ways gotten better.... so i would say that my lifestyle creep is a product of both my efforts and external forces.
+100
checkyourmath
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by checkyourmath »

stoptothink wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 8:12 pm
Elena wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 8:05 pm
KlangFool wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 7:58 pm OP,

This cannot be considered as lifestyle creep since it fits within my annual expense:

A) My $1,700 foldable electric bicycle.

B) More expensive tea.

KlangFool
I am seriously itching for one, but since I will not be traveling with it I wonder whether I need the folding feature. Every time I read one of your posts, I hear my gut screaming "I want an electric bike to replace my car altogether!!!".
+1 to home location, 15 min. drive to work, smaller place, much more expensive per sq. f. than my old place. Best expensive decision.
We've already built it into the budget, when we pay the house off (~3yrs) I am buying an electric fat bike. I walk/cycle 95% of the time now, hoping to get that to 99%.
I highly recommend Luna cycle I got a lot about six years ago. They sell super affordable kits and do an amazing job of promoting the electric bike industry. It completely changed my commute. You also get new perspective on energy in terms of watts/mile. I wouldn't get anything under a 48 volt battery and 750 watt motor.
stoptothink
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by stoptothink »

checkyourmath wrote: Sun Dec 06, 2020 3:41 pm
stoptothink wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 8:12 pm
Elena wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 8:05 pm
KlangFool wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 7:58 pm OP,

This cannot be considered as lifestyle creep since it fits within my annual expense:

A) My $1,700 foldable electric bicycle.

B) More expensive tea.

KlangFool
I am seriously itching for one, but since I will not be traveling with it I wonder whether I need the folding feature. Every time I read one of your posts, I hear my gut screaming "I want an electric bike to replace my car altogether!!!".
+1 to home location, 15 min. drive to work, smaller place, much more expensive per sq. f. than my old place. Best expensive decision.
We've already built it into the budget, when we pay the house off (~3yrs) I am buying an electric fat bike. I walk/cycle 95% of the time now, hoping to get that to 99%.
I highly recommend Luna cycle I got a lot about six years ago. They sell super affordable kits and do an amazing job of promoting the electric bike industry. It completely changed my commute. You also get new perspective on energy in terms of watts/mile. I wouldn't get anything under a 48 volt battery and 750 watt motor.
We actually paid off the house 2yrs ahead of projections (this May). I haven't been able to pull the trigger yet. I am currently most interested in Biketrix. We have a guy in the area who is the only registered seller in the U.S., which allows us to test ride and have some peace of mind if something goes wrong.
Wannaretireearly
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by Wannaretireearly »

Underfloor heating in the bathroom!
“At some point you are trading time you will never get back for money you will never spend.“ | “How do you want to spend the best remaining year of your life?“
manatee2005
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by manatee2005 »

jayk238 wrote: Sun Dec 06, 2020 10:27 am
manatee2005 wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 12:50 am
jayk238 wrote: Fri Jan 25, 2019 10:44 am
OnTrack2020 wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 7:52 pm SiriusXM
Am thinking about Netflix
Not flying coach
We have sirius xm and are happy to let it go. With apple carplay i get everything i want already
That’s funny, I use CarPlay to play SiriusXM in my car from my phone. That’s the only reason I have SiriusXM. It just fits for listening in a car.
My biggest issue is that sirius has limited soundtracks. If you like beatles and think the beatles channel plays everything it doesnt. Same with other classic rock bands channels. Also, it wasnt all entirely ad free. With that in mind i find the apple radio stations to be better. And when I need complete albums I simply find it on there and download.
I'll also listen to Youtube music, podcasts, iHeartRadio etc if the mood strikes me on CarPlay but just something about Sirius XM reminds me of during so that's the first one I connect. The mobile app is less than $9 a month, I think it's cheaper than the Sirus enabled in the car by default.
FireSekr
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by FireSekr »

manatee2005 wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 12:22 am
FireSekr wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 9:35 am I've found that anything that helps to free up time and get basic chores out of the way has been worth it. My most recent "lifestyle cree" was a $169 robot vacuum so now I never really have to think about vacuuming the floors. I'm surprised how much better it cleans than just using a Dyson or something, since it's able to get into areas where I don't go. On top of that, my floor is now always clean because it just runs on a schedule much more frequently than I would normally vacuum.

Another thing I really appreciate is my smart lights and thermostats in the house. My outside lights automatically turn on at dark and off at sunrise. And I have my downstairs lights to automatically turn on and the heat to increase when we walk past the motion detector outside our bedroom on the second floor in the morning. It's nice having the house wake up with me.

I know these are small things, and maybe they Don't even save a ton of time, but it means I have less to think about and weigh me down mentally and I value that greatly.
What do you use for smart hub?
I'm using Apple HomeKit through AppleTv 4k as my hub. For the most part it is stable, convenient and easy to use but definitely has some kinks to work out. For the lighting, I am using Lutron Caseta dimmers. I prefer smart switches over smart bulbs because with smart bulbs, they stop working if someone accidentally turns off the light switch until you physically turn the switch back on. With Caseta I never have that problem. Thermostats are Ecobee.

The reason I prefer the Apple solution is due to privacy and security concerns. I work in tech and understand the risks. I do not trust Amazon or Google with my data, especially data which is this sensitive.
manatee2005
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by manatee2005 »

FireSekr wrote: Thu Dec 10, 2020 2:05 pm
manatee2005 wrote: Fri Dec 04, 2020 12:22 am
FireSekr wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 9:35 am I've found that anything that helps to free up time and get basic chores out of the way has been worth it. My most recent "lifestyle cree" was a $169 robot vacuum so now I never really have to think about vacuuming the floors. I'm surprised how much better it cleans than just using a Dyson or something, since it's able to get into areas where I don't go. On top of that, my floor is now always clean because it just runs on a schedule much more frequently than I would normally vacuum.

Another thing I really appreciate is my smart lights and thermostats in the house. My outside lights automatically turn on at dark and off at sunrise. And I have my downstairs lights to automatically turn on and the heat to increase when we walk past the motion detector outside our bedroom on the second floor in the morning. It's nice having the house wake up with me.

I know these are small things, and maybe they Don't even save a ton of time, but it means I have less to think about and weigh me down mentally and I value that greatly.
What do you use for smart hub?
I'm using Apple HomeKit through AppleTv 4k as my hub. For the most part it is stable, convenient and easy to use but definitely has some kinks to work out. For the lighting, I am using Lutron Caseta dimmers. I prefer smart switches over smart bulbs because with smart bulbs, they stop working if someone accidentally turns off the light switch until you physically turn the switch back on. With Caseta I never have that problem. Thermostats are Ecobee.

The reason I prefer the Apple solution is due to privacy and security concerns. I work in tech and understand the risks. I do not trust Amazon or Google with my data, especially data which is this sensitive.
Thanks for the reply, I have Apple TV 4K so I should look into it.
jello_nailer
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by jello_nailer »

MarkBarb wrote: Thu Oct 29, 2020 2:46 pm Prime lenses
Custom tailored clothing
Holiday grapes
Good jackets
Good running shoes (when I used to run)

Another "lifestyle creep" is not sweating little expenses. I don't get fussed if I lose a disc golf disc or if the gas station I want to stop at is a little more expensive. Speaking of gas stations, why are there not more Buc-ee's? We just drove from Tx to Wi and back and the difference between Buc-ee's and everything else is extreme.
Buc-ee's aren't gas stations. They are private restrooms that sell food and trinkets and sell gas as a side hobby. I use them as an example in a presentation regarding understanding your customer and understanding what product you are really selling. They are simply genius and deservedly kill it. Great story too.
Last edited by jello_nailer on Thu Dec 10, 2020 9:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
EnjoyIt
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by EnjoyIt »

jello_nailer wrote: Thu Dec 10, 2020 9:31 pm
MarkBarb wrote: Thu Oct 29, 2020 2:46 pm Prime lenses
Custom tailored clothing
Holiday grapes
Good jackets
Good running shoes (when I used to run)

Another "lifestyle creep" is not sweating little expenses. I don't get fussed if I lose a disc golf disc or if the gas station I want to stop at is a little more expensive. Speaking of gas stations, why are there not more Buc-ee's? We just drove from Tx to Wi and back and the difference between Buc-ee's and everything else is extreme.
Buc-ee's aren't gas stations. They are private restrooms that sell food and trinkets and sell gas as a side hobby. I use them in presentation regarding understanding your customer and understanding what you are really selling. They are simply genius and deservedly kill it. Great story too.
A very astute observation regarding Buc-ees. They definitely make far more from inside the store than the gas they sell.
A time to EVALUATE your jitters: | viewtopic.php?p=1139732#p1139732
WhiteMaxima
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by WhiteMaxima »

Turn on my HiFi and listen to my favorite music through Qobuz streaming (96khz/24bit HiRes)
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SmallCityDave
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by SmallCityDave »

Roomba
London
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Re: What lifestyle creep made you happier?

Post by London »

Getting firewood delivered falls into this category for me but realistically I have a bunch of lifestyle creep options. I love a fire but have grown tired of doing my own wood.
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