We have already arrived, and why we carry on

We knew it at the beginning of the year.

But in all the tumult in the world during spring, we forgot it again.

We have already arrived.

We could spend all our time sipping on soft-drinks from now on.

We have low, probably even very low, monthly expenses. And atop of the 'must have to live', we still add around 30% of "pleasure spending", which makes us happy with life (in a stoic way). 

What dawned upon us now as summer goes over in fall, is that the safe withdrawal rate gave us, already in the beginning of the year, that we could withdraw all we needed + our small "pleasure spending" and another 50% in safety margin, and still be safe in the worst historical case.

That's a 50%-100% safety margin if one does the math. 

That's what we had already at New Years Eve earlier this year. 

And since then, half a year has elapsed, and we've been adding to our investments since then.

So on top of the safety margin, which is already a worst-case-scenario, we've been adding what correspond to several years of expenses. 

So, yes. We have arrived. 

Why carry on?

Fundamentally, we don't believe that more money from this point on will a big difference when it comes to if we feel content with what we have. 

If we're not happy, the biggest problem will probably not be if we can or can't spend a little more per month.

So why go on?

So why don't we stop then, and savor what we have? 

Well, one thing is that we don't really know our future preferences. Even if we think we're stoic today, why not give our future self the gift of actually being somewhat wealthy as well. A money-machine on top of the money-machine, so to speak.

And it's pretty easy for us to earn money right now. We're in the middle of our careers. We're relatively well-payed. Our jobs don't imply freedom for sure, but we're also in positions that are interesting, we perhaps even allow to delude ourselves that society is slightly better off if we show up for work. So it's not freedom, but it's not directly painful neither to build that money-machine on top of the money-machine right now. 

A third thing is the black-swan-factor. We only know the expenses we know, or can forsee. It's the unknown unknowns that will bite us. And we don't want to keep looking over our shoulder and wonder if what quacks (or whatever swans do) is that proverbial black swan.

So hopefully, we'll soon be free with a margin, and soon thereafter, wealthy as well.

Are we right? Are we wrong? Are we just greedy? Are we not greedy enough with the time that we have left? We don't know.

We'll see how it goes.

As Seneca has it in his second letter to Lucilius:

"[quotoes Epicurus]: "Contented poverty is an honourable estate." Indeed, if it be contented, it is not poverty at all. It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor. What does it matter how much a man has laid up in his safe, or in his warehouse, how large are his flocks and how fat his dividends, if he covets his neighbour's property, and reckons, not his past gains, but his hopes of gains to come? Do you ask what is the proper limit to wealth? It is, first, to have what is necessary, and, second, to have what is enough. "

We're poor, in Seneca's eyes. And perhaps he's right, because we hope of gains to come. And this part of the journey will continue for some time more.

Farewell

//antinous&lucilius