Hey, Dave.
That list was us, about 9 years ago. Seems like we're only about a decade ahead of you on the recovery curve (even though we make a bit less, we have fewer kids). Unfortunately, in order to avoid the paycheck-to-paycheck trap, we would probably have had to start making the adjustments about 12 years ago, so while we are steadily making progress right now, we are still at the short end of the
hockey stick.
We still experience plenty o' temptation, and I have to admit we aren't always successful at resisting it (got paid today and bought about half a pound of chocolate...but Kati
assures me it's ok because it was "medically necessary"). We track all the bills and keep the bank balance current to the nearest .00 because we have to make sure we'll be able to pay them again next time (I don't get how they all grow just enough to keep pace with my raises, either). If we don't gain any new expenses and don't lose any income,
Debtinator says that we'll be debt-free in about 18 years, or 25 if we want to fund Cary's education. This is absolutely
wonderful news seeing as how
that's coincidentally when we'll hit retirement age.
Needless to say, this is
not what we're looking forward to, and you can bet we'll be trying to throw off that yoke as soon as the opportunity presents itself. Unfortunately, this means that the point where our graph makes the elbow turn to success is probably going to be the same point where somebody dies. Y'see, the only way we're going to turn that corner in anything less than two decades is if we get some sort of inheritance, life insurance payment, or somebody gets totally and permanently disabled, and while that would allow us to take the express towards recovery, such a windfall would require that someone we know (and possibly love) sacrifice themself on the altar in order to wash away our previous financial sins. It is inevitable, but understandably we are not exactly praying for something like that to happen.
Instead, we pinch pennies. We still "splurge" for high-quality food, because the same logic that says buying 2/$5 is better than $3ea
also says that seeing the doctor less means more money saved over the long term. Likewise every utility purchase is scruitinized. We're going beyond the usual "turn down the thermostat" and are following
this guy's advice. Trips are minimized or avoided if possible. Every appliance or other durable good in the house is held onto for as long as humanly possible until every last bit of utility has been wrung from it, at which point it gets donated so we can deduct what's left of it from our taxes. And we do without. Oh boy, do we.
I have a really good friend who lives in a completely paid-off house in New England, works in Dilbert-land for a company which gets lucrative Government contracts, and who takes home north of 6 figures every year. He's done. He's set. He could probably retire now and live a fulfilling life...but his house is empty. He has nobody to share his life with outside of work, and he worries that his odds of changing that grow slimmer with every year. On the other hand, Kati and I have one of those kinds of relationships you probably only hear about in movies (yes, really), we really are convinced we won the genetics lottery as well (Seriously, Cary is a sweet little dream of a kid, and we keep hearing from other parents just how lucky we have it), but the car's about to die, the house is currently only worth about 25% of what we paid for it (and we still owe about 90% of what we paid for it), and there's the aforementioned uphill slog to contend with.
I've heard the grass is greener, and all that, but I'm honestly at a loss to be able to definitively say which of us is better off.
--Patrick
