T.G.I.F. Friday: Volume 89

Welcome to “Thank God I’m FI” Friday, Volume #89!

Here are some things I really like and that you might too.

Financial Independence/Retirement Articles

Discussing Retirement Bucket Strategies with Fritz Gilbert – SWR Series Part 55 (Early Retirement Now) – “The [bucket] strategy allows a retiree to cover their retirement spending with a minimal amount of management and stress and will allow them to sleep soundly through all but the worst of the inevitable bear markets we’ll face through our retirement years.“

Finding Your Purpose in a Long Retirement (Can I Retire Yet) – “Living uniquely, developing a valuable perspective, then telling the story, is a proven path to a meaningful life.“

Video

This drone footage of a volcano eruption in Iceland is just mesmerizing.  Watch new Earth being created.

Who’s Inspired Me

Jost Kobusch. 

Kobusch is a German mountaineer who just this week became the first non-American to summit Denali solo in winter.  Denali is the highest peak in North America and being in Alaska it’s at a very high latitude.  If you’re not familiar with mountaineering or the kinds of conditions a mountain like Denali has in the winter all I can say is that it’s not compatible with life.  Temperatures routinely stay at -30 or below and violent storms are almost constant.  Only 4 people have ever achieved this feat and one died on the descent.  Lonnie Dupre was the last to do it in 2015 and had to use innovative systems of poles to prevent deadly crevasse falls.  Kobusch is a rising star in alpinism and has numerous Himalayan ascents to his name, most without oxygen including Annapurna. 

As a mountaineer who frankly doesn’t have the risk tolerance of folks like this, I find his exploits inspiring in a crazy way.

What I’m Grateful For

A fellow cyclist who rescued me by letting me use his pump after I went through all of my CO2 cartridges repairing flats on a recent ride.  We bikey-types look after one another 🙂

Lyrically Speaking

My father made a pretty damn good living
Playing music on the Beauty Way
He’s gonna die with some money in his pocket
Wish I could do the same today little darling
Wish I could do the same today

From “Beauty Way” by Eliza Gilkyson.

Eliza Gilkyson is another one of those folk artists who you’ve likely never heard of and whose been around since the 60’s and released almost 30 albums.  I discovered her from the song highlighted here, “Beauty Way” which she released in 2000 and is probably her biggest hit.  I love the lyrics, and as a guitarist who has played in a few bands and occasionally in front of small audiences, I love this lyric – “I’ve had those nights when my guitar rages, But it’s not something you control little darling”.  So so true.  I mostly had nights when I kinda sucked, haha. 

As for the lyrics, being an artist of any kind is a tough thing to do for a living.  I’m doing it the easy way which is getting to financial independence first and then taking a crack at being an artist with plenty of money in the bank.  It’s the wimpy way to do it admittedly but hey, I’m still doing it.

Miscellaneous

Lean mass loss on GLP-1 receptor agonists: a downside of the “miracle drugs”? – “For those with large amounts of excess fat, reducing fat mass is a critical step in improving overall health. But weight loss is not a great proxy for fat loss.”

Traffic pollution impairs brain function – “A new study has shown that common levels of traffic pollution can impair human brain function in only a matter of hours.“

Learning styles don’t exist – “A teaching approach that is based on students’ preferences sounds laudable. But this misunderstands how learning happens.”