Well hello again! I know you were wondering… yes, this blog still exists! It’s been a bit on the back burner for a while, but make no mistake we are still trucking along. Read on for the latest details.
You can check the latest and greatest info on the Track Our Progress page.
First, the numbers:
Net Worth:
- End of Quarter 2 Balance: $1,236,520 Up $118,934 for Quarter 2
- Year to Date (YTD): Up 169,598 (16.1%)
- Since January 2018 (this is when I started tracking our net worth): Up $931,520
Portfolio:
- End of Quarter 2 Balance: $933,589 Up $80,301 for Quarter 2
- YTD: Up $107,158 (12.3%)*
- Since January 2018: Up $693,589*
*This total value as opposed to an internal rate of return.
Summing up the Q2 results:
What We’ve Been Doing
Look Out It’s Godzilla!
It finally happened! After 6+ months… it’s arrived! We finally got our new truck, an F-250 with the 7.3L “Godzilla” gas engine.
In perhaps the least financially savvy move we’ve made, we bought a 3/4-ton pickup to tow our 35-foot travel trailer. But let me tell you, it is so much better for towing than our previous F-150. It feels significantly more stable and safe to drive than the previous one. Thankfully, we got a decent deal on the trade-in. Unfortunately, the interest rate is not pretty.
I’ve beat this one to death in prior posts… it doesn’t make sense financially when you consider our objectives. But there is just such a finite amount of time our daughters will like to hang out with us, so we feel the quality of life benefits are worth the dollar-inefficiency.
Running Man
I’ve tried a lot of different things health wise over the past few years. Counting calories, intermittent fasting, slow carb, etc. Well, I’m trying something “new” again. They call it jogging. Apparently, you just run. It’s wild.
I started at the end of March and have been building up my endurance and doing a 5k each weekday. So far I’ve learned a few things:
- The “runner’s high” is a real thing.
- Proper running shoes are an absolute must. Ask me how I know.
- No matter how fast I run, there is always some dude in his 60s smoking me. Good for the ego, I guess.
- Daily jogging makes for some rancid laundry.
- No matter how much I run, it never seems to get much easier.
Real talk though: I definitely feel as though my health is improving. My Apple Health metrics are trending strongly in the right direction, my blood pressure is FAR better than it used to be, and finally, I’m seeing some results on the scale. Lastly, I feel as though the mental benefits in terms of improved mood are a real thing.
Coming Up in Q3
The third quarter coincides with reviews and wage adjustments at my work. This year the discussion is shaping up to be a real humdinger. I now have to help figure out the adjustments for my staff as well as pitch a case for myself. Additionally, I’ve taken on significantly more responsibility over the past year and played a large role in adding a new business unit. It should be nail biting.
We will have our “long” trip of the year coming up. We plan to run the RV up through Michigan and wrap around over to Wisconsin and back. This will be the longest RV trip we’ve taken by mileage… so I’m sure there will be a good story or two to tell afterwards.
Thanks for reading!