Charity, State Tax Credits, and Uncle Sam

Everyone have a good Thanksgiving? Us, too.

I always forget how simple it is to make myself happy. All I need is to spend time with the people I love. That's it. Throw in some board games, a plate of good food, and a hoppy beer, and it just feels like cheating. How can I not be happy with all of that, and all those smiling, hugging people around me?

But the reality of work beckons again, at least for a little while. And the possibility of an early retirement seems pretty sweet on Mondays like this, coming back from a too-short vacation.

This Little Life of Mine

Just a short post this week, as tonight I will be driving Mrs. Done by Forty and our two golden retrievers up to the mountains outside of San Bernadino, to visit our family, catch up with loved ones, watch all the football, take nerdy board games too seriously, and eat and drink beyond any sensible point.

There really is no better holiday than Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is for all of us: a time to gather with everyone you love and who loves you back, even though they voted for the wrong person last year, and are going to ruin dinner by telling you about Pizzagate, again, when all truly you want from Uncle John is the mashed potatoes.

Car Lust

I'm horny, dear readers. 

Some days, when Mrs. Done by Forty leaves for work, I take my laptop into the bedroom, put the dogs out in the hallway, and I pull up my favorite site: Craigslist.

But, no, I don't click on the personals or the dreaded casual encounters link. No, friends. I get off on something weird. What gets my engine running is a sleek, gently used, and maybe a little dirty....Subaru Outback.

Budget Porn: October 2017

October has come and gone, and so have all three groups of trick-or-treaters who visited our house this Halloween. 

In our old neighborhood, so many kids came that we often had to head out for an extra bag of candy. Now, we apparently live in a hood populated exclusively by childless couples, the elderly, and dentists.

On the plus side, we are Kit Kat rich.

Today we'll take a break from our regularly scheduled liberal propaganda to check in on our spending from October, and to see how we're trending towards financial independence.