Sooner or Later

Richard Mark Didsbury & Ping Chen

I know that my husband and I are in the minority, which is that we do not depend on somebody offering us a job to live. And saying it out loud in this environment when unemployment is high and people are losing money will sound insensitive. Still, it is something everybody has to learn how to do it sooner or later. Most people retire at around age 65. In addition, this blog is to help organize and cultivate my own thoughts.

Even though we do not work for any one else, we do not like to label ourselves retired, not because we are not at the age of retirement. I believe that the concept of retirement can get one in trouble. Retirement means that you no longer work. In my mind, if your whole or partial income derives from savings invested, you still work. You have to work on your money, which involves thinking about, checking on and changing your investment strategy. A lot of people get into trouble, when they let go control of how their retirement savings are invested.

I am not defending criminals who commit fraud and I do sympathize with people who have lost money in this manner. On the other hand, if you have ever hired anybody and the person stole from you, do you ask yourself whether you have made a bad judgment or somehow your system has aided this type of behavior? When it comes to your money, you should ask the same thing.

We know we are on our own; we do not depend on, nor do we wish to be employed for our living. We live on a pool of income – apartment rentals, sales of my artisan beaded jewelry (c-cassia) and dividend from stock equity. We are constantly working on every single source of income. We do not do a perfect job, but all the mistakes are our own. We learn from and improve upon our mistakes. To achieve maximal freedom is to put all the responsibility on our own shoulders, therefore, is to live a self-disciplined life.