T.G.I.F. Friday: Volume 150

Welcome to “Thank God I’m FI” Friday, Volume #150!!!

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

Financial Independence/Work Life/Retirement Articles & Content

The Death of the Amex Lounge: Why the Upper Middle Class Isn’t Special Anymore (Of Dollars & Data) “Too many people got too rich and it’s impacting the housing market, vacation hotspots, and airport lounges alike.” Dave’s comment: This is a great post that lays out uncomfortable facts and goes against most modern mainstream media cries of “it’s impossible to get ahead” and “the middle class dream is dead”.  Yes, because it’s now the upper middle class dream and more people than ever have graduated from the middle class to the upper middle class.  I posted about this way back in 2020 and it continues to accelerate.

Americans are eyeing up €1 homes in Europe to escape the broken economy—no Visa needed, but it’s not all dolce vita (Fortune) “…looking for a slice of a slower lifestyle, countries like Italy and France have become popular moving destinations—and the prospect is sweetened even more with €1 houses on sale. U.S. citizens don’t need a Visa to buy—but there are some things they should keep in mind.“

Video

So some psycho Euros set up an 800m slackline between two peaks on Mont Blanc.  It’s as crazy as it sounds.  If you want to skip the climbing parts and the rope setup, go to about 3:12 and the insanity really starts.  The balance these guys have is off the charts, lots of wind and they’re not even using poles.  And my friends think I do risky shit…

What I’m Grateful For

Well, in case you missed it, I fully retired.  And in my mid-50’s I consider it an early retirement, especially considering I’ve been part time since my mid-40’s.  I’m super-grateful for everyone who helped me achieve this. And after my blog post about it, I’m grateful that I still have a few more readers than I thought I did.  Thank you all.

Lyrically Speaking

It’s easy being here
But I’ve got ground to cover
There’s nothing you can do
To make me wanna stay
Though I’ve been here awhile
Don’t think that I’ve stopped moving
I’m on my way

From “I’m Not Your Man” by Tommy Conwell & The Young Rumblers

If you’re a regular reader of this section you know that I wrote a bit about Tommy Conwell last year in T.G.I.F. Friday Volume 126.  But that volume featured the band Buzz Zeemer who Conwell was a guitarist with after he burst on the scene in 1988 and became a big deal.  The song highlighted above was his big breakout in 1988 and reached #1 on the U.S. Rock charts.  I vividly remember it because in 1988 we were reaching peak hair-metal and hearing this on the radio was like a golden ray of sunshine blasting through the trite and worn out likes of Cinderella, Trixter, Poison, and Skid Row. 

Conwell did the late night TV circuit and toured overseas in 1988-89.  And as mentioned in the previous post, he soon realized he didn’t want the lifestyle of a big rock star.  Fortunately for me he was from Philly, so he would come down to Baltimore quite a bit to play shows, and I got to see one of my guitar heroes many times up close.  The guy would put on a live show like no other, full of energy and sometimes total chaos. 

As for the lyrics above, well I’m now fully retired, and the song came on my mp3 player last week while on a run.  As I ran I imagined me singing these lines to my management as they asked me to stay.  I’ve got lots of ground to cover – I’m on my way!!!

Miscellaneous

Black coffee, longer life: The science behind your morning perk – “A large-scale study by Tufts University suggests that drinking one to three cups of caffeinated coffee daily is associated with lower overall mortality, particularly from cardiovascular causes. But there s a catch: the benefits drop when sugar and saturated fats like cream are added in excess.”

An AI That Promises to ‘Solve All Diseases’ Is About to Test Its First Human Drugs – “A secretive, Google-backed lab is using artificial intelligence to invent new medicines for humanity’s worst illnesses. But can we trust drugs designed by a mind that isn’t human?”

The Earth Is Spinning Faster Than Ever – “Something unusual is happening to our planet, and scientists are racing to understand why.”