#there are times where I do wish I had stayed a lurker on this site because of these people

[theorangerangers]

How do you feel about the JaviAmelia shippers who hate on OllieAmelia (and Ollie in general)? For me, I think it's kind of silly and we should respect each other's ships/faves even if they aren't for us

I do think we should respect each other’s ships but I would be lying if I said the actions of some Javiamelia shippers haven’t left a sour taste in my mouth. I had someone attack me on a post I made about having a feeling about Amelia and Ollie being cannon as well as quite few people thinking it was appropriate to slide into my DMs about it. Ollie is almost a modern Connor in my eyes, (everyone knows a jerk like this in real life and generally he is also receiving the same character arch as Connor did). I like Ollie a lot he reminds me of my dad for all the good and bad that comes from a guy who told me that ‘it’s only multi variable calculus, it should be easy’ (it wasn’t but I still love him even if he wasn’t too happy with my B-). He’s also really really funny in the context of a show that fully acknowledges mystic force happened in a way similar to Preston believing in magic. I think we should make some fun of him but no more than any other ranger because also it’s a bit like how everyone hated on Dax in Operation Overdrive but when I rewatch, sure I cringe a little but he’s still fun in his own right. There’s a difference between making some light hearted ribbing at a character’s expense and then just whatever’s been going on with some of the Javi x Amelia shippers.

Generally though I didn’t care about Javi x Amelia either way I just figured it was different but nothing else about it until people attacked me just just reading into the subtext of a children’s show which since it for children normally follows a predictable plot. after that even just seeing that ship made me feel rotten inside and I’ve done my best to block it since it’s not the ship it’s self that’s ever made me feel any type of way but the my way or the high way kind of shippers and the way they’ve made me connotate being yelled at online with their ship . As a veteran of the supernatural fandom I can easily say this is not the worst thing I have ever seen on tumblr but it feels different when people choose to call you a bad person just for making one post about a couple in a kids show that was very obvious from a story telling stand point since most of the time when they have two rangers pretend to be a couple early in the show they almost always end up cannon by the end so the psychic scene kinda gave it away for me. It’s a pattern we’ve seen multiple times in the show like with Shelby and Tyler and I thought it was kinda cute so I made a post which opened Pandora’s box of just unwarranted attacks.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with the ship and Ollie is a good character and I wouldn’t have him be replaced with anyone else on the show but the way the shippers feel the need to act sometimes does make me actively avoid it block it on all my socials. I don’t have a problem with anyone who ships anything or likes any character as long as they don’t come after me for liking something else or taking something I’ve made for my ship and turning it into something it isn’t to fit their views.

Frankly I only post as much Ollieamelia on my blog as I do now as a way to ward off more people like that. If you don’t like sand, stay out of the sandbox.

[pkmnjesus]

5 years of the PokémonJesus

Before the night comes to a close, I would like to personally reflect on today’s importance (thus the reason for the Takeover queue). It’s been 5 years since I officially became engaged with this fandom that has really became a weekly routine of mine when new episodes come out. This is really just to put my thoughts out there in the blog archive, so I would prefer if no one reblogs this. P J’s beginnings started all the way back with Serebii Forums...

2013-2014 (The Pokémon forums Era)

I have been lurking in the fandom as early as the Best Wishes days, and often visit sites like Serebii Forums or tumblr’s Pokémon anime tags around 2011. I usually talk Pokémon online when it comes to the games when battling or trading in certain chat rooms (was really active during the Gen. IV era of games), but never really talked about the anime with. I have been a spectator to the discussion while the BW saga was rolling a long, then I decided on September 26th 2013 (which was the airdate for the final BW! episode in Japan) to create a serebiiforums account under the username PokemonJesus123, just in time for the start of the XY series which I was mad hyped about! I WAS A FAN SINCE DAY 1...some y’all just tagged along in XY&Z NO LOYALTY xD . My serebii profile is still there actually, so you can try to find my old inactive page if you want lol (my avatar was me holding up my 3DS in a cringey way...looking back why tf did I take that photo lol delete later). Coming into 2014, I joined tumblr as well under the url name you see right before you. Never changed it, and probably never will. The origin of this name you ask? You’ll just have to ask me personally for that story 😉 I absolutely joined tumblr out of pure boredom to view and follow blogs I was a fan of. I had no intention of posting whatsoever. Oh, and I made a Twitter account under the P J name too! Follow ME :^)

2014-2015 (Thursday LIVE! tumblr era)

After a couple months of finally creating a tumblr account and actively posting on serebiiforums and bulbagarden, XY episode 50 (the episode where big lips Nini/Nene debuted) was the first EVER Pokémon anime episode I ever posted about in my blog. I was still new the #pokeani tag (funny story, I didn’t really knew what it meant back then besides to tag it lol), but I got as much as around 30-100 notes. Seeing those notes already got excited that it pushed me from making it a weekly thing since I had a livestream to watch it every Thursday night and screen-cap it. My goal from the very beginning was to try to be the first one to post about here, like what the Japanese fans do on Twitter under the #Anipoke tag. Of course, most of my notes came from either an AmourShipping post or a Serena post. I’m not going to lie, I was really a huge Serena fan when the series first started. I rambled a lot too getting hyped for Citron/Clemont episodes because he was probably my favorite character at the time xD

2015-2016 (A growing blog)

This was the era I started to do special long posts in celebration with Pokémon’s 20th anniversary. Around this period is where my blog was in a developing state getting like 2 or 3 followers every week. And trust me, there were A LOT of posts that I regret posting, but I learned to watch my words every week and say the right things (I really try not to trigger anyone here). I took a couple of weeks off when new episodes aired since I was really busy with college, or I wasn’t into XY filler episodes that much. Would usually tune in live when Team Flare was involved or anything with Squishy/Puni-chan (I absolutely ADORED Bonnie/Eureka in this arc), but I didn’t post that much on tumblr...unless if there was like an AmourShipping moment that happened xD. The hype for Gen. VII was already looming, and I kinda got bored from the anime A BIT. When Ash-Greninja came into the picture however, I got excited again! Then the Kalos League happened, and the anticipation of Ash’s journey hit a climax! We all know what happened, and the rest was history...

2016-2017 (GIFmaking era)

So the Sun & Moon anime happened late 2016, and the hype for a new series was within me again! This is when my blog REALLY started to boom, as well as the birth of my Pokémon Discord server PokéTōku. My notes were higher than over compared to what I posted from XY. One possible reason is that a lot of pokeani bloggers from back then weren’t really interested in Sun & Moon (probably because of the animation change), so I was one of few who still stayed for the ride and that really benefited my blog’s exposure. I absolutely loved Lillie’s character development, and I also did not expect myself to enjoy Lana/Suiren’s character so much! Brock & Misty’s was a huge highlight for me as well seeing my childhood come to a modern-day Pokémon series. I was surprised to have popular people reblog my stuff that destroys my notifications per second. I was even flattered when popular pokéblogs such as shelgon, corsolanite, chasekip, and a few others followed me. Back then I really wanted to get a lot of notes, but at this point I just wanted to be myself and post screen-caps that I feel like talking about. The series also motivated me to start making GIFs since I finally had access to Adobe Photoshop through my university’s application benefits. Later in 2017, I graduated from college and it gave me more time to improving my blog. Also, can you believe it took me 3 years to get 1,000 followers? If you asked me from day 1, I would have never expected to get that much since I had no idea about tumblr’s audience.

Everyone here knows that my blog doesn’t really follow “traditional” tumblr methods such as tags or making specific posts and what not (since I’m not really that into the tumblr culture lol...I’m just here for fun doing my own thing), but I hope I’ve brought something different to your dash experience 🙃

2017-2018 (Making friends)

From 1,000 to 2,500+ followers the next year. You’d be surprise how small that still is compared to the other popular Pokéblogs that joined tumblr later than me, but I’m still grateful for that number. My hype for movie 20 was crazy! I’d always make a post about it when a new trailer was out. But just like Sun & Moon, not everyone was looking forward to the AU it produced. The Let’s Go games shared the same fate as well since everyone didn’t want another Kanto, but I always defend the things that deserve a chance! I fairly enjoyed movie 20 though, and was the first movie that I posted screen-caps and GIFs for in this blog, even made an experience post about it watching it in the theaters! What’s MOST important to me during this time was actually interacting with some of my followers...or should I say friends now :) Out of the 5 years I’ve been here (not counting serebiiforum peeps I’ve known since 2013), I only recently talked to some of you around 2017. My interactions with people here have been awesome (for the most part at least lol) from sharing interests, geeking out over the anime, sending memes xD and concerns when P J isn’t feeling P J. You know who you are, and THANK YOU for cheering your boy up in times when I needed it despite not telling you about it <3 Going back to PokéAni hype, my next excitement attack was when they announced the Aether Foundation and Ultra Beasts were getting involved in the main story. It really makes up for no Alola movie...but hey we still got 1 year left, so maybe there’s hope?

Despite the brief breaks I took, P J’s activeness in the fandom has reached its highest when I managed the time to do scheduled posts and even started a few mini-blog series this year. Even during stressful times, I always make it an effort to find time and contribute to the fandom. I honestly don’t care if I get any asks because I know who the real homies are ◉‿◉つ A special shoutout as well to all the people that joined my Discord server through this website. I couldn’t have reached 100+ members without some of your blogs ^_^ And to the lurkers out there (I know some of y’all are creepin’ in the shadows of my blog without liking anything), you may not know it but I love you people too ლ(́◉◞౪◟◉‵ლ)

Anyway this is just a summary of my journey here so far, and if you’d to hear a more in-depth story on some toxic things I’ve experienced in this fandom just message me. I personally don’t like venting out stuff in public because it just promotes more negativity, and I’m not about that. I will make a separate post on my feelings toward the schedule change maybe next week, and an appreciation post (5th tumblr blogaversary) for my specific followers January 2019. I am still preparing for that because there are so many people (even ones I don’t even talk to) I want to thank ❤ Moving forward into my 6th year, I probably won’t make another post like this anytime soon...but I am very hopeful for the future of the SM series and possible Gen. 8 anime late 2019. I also do plan on making some PokéAni-related stuff in my YouTube channel when the time is right, and have the resources to do projects. Keep your eyes out fam 👀LET’S F’N GO!

[jawsofhakkontranscript]

Worthy of Publication

Side quest: Worthy of Publication

Characters involved: Colette

Kenric's research assistant, Colette, left to survey Tevinter ruins. Her findings could offer historical insight into the Basin's past.

Part 1: Find Colette.

(Colette went to investigate the Tevinter ruins. She can be found in Swamp Kuldsdotten.)

Part 2: Rescue Colette

(Colette has been ambushed by a group of lurkers.)

Party comments:

Cassandra: Over there. We must do something.

Iron Bull: Over there. She's not fighting those off alone.

Cole: Over there. Can we help?

Sera: Over there. She needs help.

Blackwall: Over there. She'll be overwhelmed.

Varric: Over there. She'll be overwhelmed.

Colette: Maker—ahh!

(Defeat the lurkers.)

Part 3: Speak with Colette.

Colette: Inquisitor. Still finding it difficult to breathe. But I'm not strewn across the landscape, so thank you. I'm Colette. Professor Kenric's research assistant. I was hoping to conduct a survey of a Tevinter ruin in the hills. I may not have chosen the best route… [1]

[1] Dialogue options:

Investigate: You study with Kenric? [2]

General: Tell me about the ruin. [3]

General: Goodbye. [4]

[2] Investigate: You study with Kenric?

PC: You're Kenric's research assistant, so that makes you a student at the University of Orlais?

Colette: It does. Why? [5]

[5] Subsequent dialogue options:

General: You’re an elf. [6]

General: I didn’t mean to offend. [7]

General: Forget I asked. [8]

[6] General: You’re an elf.

PC: Orlesian institutions aren't always... accepting of elves.

Colette: So the side glances and loud whispers remind me. The University accepts those worthy of admission. Though elven students are few. [Go to 9 or back to 1]

[7] General: I didn’t mean to offend.

PC: If I've said something wrong...

Colette: I'm sorry. That's usually asked with skepticism. The University accepts those worthy of admission. Though elven students are few. [Go to 9 or back to 1]

[8] General: Forget I asked.

PC: It was only a question.

Colette: I'm sorry. That's usually asked with skepticism. The University accepts those worthy of admission. Though elven students are few. [Go to 9 or back to 1]

[9] Special: Do you like it?

PC: How do you find it there?

Colette: It's not easy, but this is what I want. And I like working for Professor Kenric. Elven research students... where publication's concerned, their work's often deemed "not substantial enough for formal credit." But Kenric cares about people who want to learn. If our research finds an audience, I know my name will be included. [Back to 1]

[3] General: Tell me about the ruin.

PC: What were you hoping to find at the ruin?

Colette: The Tevinters' time here was brief, but their architecture endured, offering shelter, forming landmarks. Ancient Avvar would have encountered these structures, which certainly predate Inquisitor Ameridan. Evaluating the ruins could offer insight into the region's history—once I can get set up.

PC: You're still going there?

Colette: I've read everything we have on Ameridan, and studied up on new excavation techniques. I won't waste this opportunity. If you've a map, I can show you my destination. If you'd be interested in the findings. [Back to 1]

[4] General: Goodbye.

PC: Stay safe.

Colette: I will. [Exits the conversation]

Part 4: Meet Colette at the Tevinter ruins.

(Approach the old Tevinter ruin, Nigel's Point)

Party comments:

Cassandra: This must be the place Kenric's assistant was trying to reach.

Solas: This must be where Kenric's assistant came to study.

Blackwall: This must be where Colette wanted to study.

Iron Bull: Is this where Kenric's assistant was headed?

Dorian: This must be where Colette wished to study.

Vivienne: I believe this was Colette's destination.

Varric: Was this what Colette was trying to reach?

(Dorian has a unique comment about each Tevinter ruin. Here’s what he has to say about Nigel’s Point)

Dorian: The ancient Imperium did like to leave a mark. I wonder how long they stayed?

(Find Collette.)

Colette: Inquisitor! You may want to see this.

(Interact with Colette.)

Colette: Inquisitor! I was going to send word. I've found something. This inscription—almost completely faded, but: "Two stood. Felled sixty true before our triumph." "A breath in the hunt and let rest the lowlanders, worthy of the Lady's care." The markings and surrounding artifacts date to Ameridan's time. The references and script suggest Avvar.

Dialogue options:

General: Let's speak another time. [9]

General: Go on. [10]

[9] General: Let's speak another time.

PC: Another time, Colette.

Colette: Oh. Yes, Inquisitor. [Exits the conversation.]

[10] General: Go on.

PC: What’s your theory?

Colette: I need to complete a full survey and have Professor Kenric evaluate the site himself… But this may be a tribute to Haron and Orinna, Inquisitor Ameridan's companions. [11]

[11] Subsequent dialogue options:

Investigate: How do you know it's them? [12]

Investigate: What happened here? [13]

Investigate: Tell me about Haron. [14]

Investigate: Tell me about Orinna. [15]

Investigate: What will you do now? [16]

General: Goodbye. [17]

[12] Investigate: How do you know it's them?

PC: What makes you think the inscription refers to Haron and Orinna?

Colette: It's only a theory, but the age of the markings and surrounding artifacts match the timeline we've established for Ameridan. I've found glass fragments in the clay, several with slight veins of discoloration. Blue—like templar artifacts.

PC: Templars?

Colette: The templars were a new order in Ameridan's time. Given their small numbers then, few would be found outside the Chantry's reach. It's unusual to find one deep in uncharted territory. Unless he traveled here for a purpose—as Haron would have. [Go to 18 or back to 11]

[18] Special: What about Ameridan himself?

PC: You don't think the inscription could refer to Ameridan himself?

Colette: It's possible... but Ameridan would have been recognized as a leader, which the inscription might have noted out of respect. And "a breath in the hunt." Why note that your hunt continues unless your remaining prey was someone important? [Back to 11]

[13] Investigate: What happened here?

PC: What happened here?

Colette: An encounter with ancient Avvar—and not a friendly one. Ameridan and his companions were outnumbered in an unfamiliar place. If Ameridan's not here, perhaps someone bought him the time needed to keep going? [Go to 19 or back to 11]

[19] Special: The Avvar paid respect.

PC: If this is the resting place of Haron and Orinna, it only remains because the Avvar took time to honor them.

Colette: Respect for a worthy adversary? It wouldn't be out of place. [Back to 11]

[14] Investigate: Tell me about Haron.

PC: What do you know about Haron?

Colette: When the Templar Order was first formed, Ser Haron was among its members. He's arguably the most famous of the original templars, though he was never one of their leaders. He's better known as one of Inquisitor Ameridan's confidants. They'd known each other since youth. [Go to 20 or back to 11]

[20] Special: Friends, then.

PC: So they were close. Friends.

Colette: When Ameridan was made Inquisitor, Haron's position in his inner circle was assumed. A few ballads about them survive. The type with adventures and happy endings. I don't know if they're true. They remind me of my brothers, though. [Back to 11]

[15] Investigate: Tell me about Orinna.

PC: What can you tell me about Orinna?

Colette: Orinna was an alchemist in Orzammar. It's said she met Ameridan while dealing with a demon—but it's not known why Ameridan was there. Demons aren't common in the Deep Roads, but they were a problem for the Inquisition at the time. Orinna knew she could help, so she joined Ameridan. [Go to 21 or back to 11]

[21] Special: Was she exiled?

PC: If she left Orzammar, that would make her a surfacer.

Colette: She "turned her back on the stone," though it's said she had few regrets. Some claim she was actually from one of Orzammar's noble families, but who can say? She never used her last name on the surface and, once exiled, the family likely struck her name from personal documents. Professor Kenric petitioned Orzammar's Shaperate to grant him access to their records, but the request was turned down. [Back to 11]

[16] Investigate: What will you do now?

PC: What will you do with this information?

Colette: Professor Kenric will expect detailed notes on the location, stone and clay samples, and any trace artifacts I can find. If Ameridan's history is compiled, this could be worth an entire chapter. (Gasps.) I might get credit on the inside cover!

[17] General: Goodbye.

PC: Thank you, Colette.

Colette: Inquisitor. [Exits the conversation]

[lilac-milk-moon]

Sitting Poolside Interview with Chrissy from Eat Sleep Breathe FI

The Sitting Poolside interview series

When people think of retirement, scenes of beachfront homes, rounds of golf, or reading by the pool come to mind. Sitting Poolside is a series of interviews that challenges that notion and other financial misperceptions. The series name pokes fun at the stereotypes, but it’s also an opportunity to discuss people’s real stories and unique insights. So grab a piña colada and pull up your lounge chair!

Chrissy from Eat Sleep Breathe FI

Hi there! I’m Chrissy—the blogger behind Eat Sleep Breathe FI and one of the co-hosts of the Explore FI Canada podcast. I live in beautiful Vancouver, BC with my husband and two boys (aged 12 and 14). I’ve been a stay-at-home mom since our first son was born. Despite living on a single income in a high-cost-of-living city, we’re still on track to reach FI (financial independence) in our 40s.

Early years and starting ESB FI

Mr. SR (MSR): You mention on your site that your parents immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong. Growing up, do you feel like your family had a different perspective on money and wealth than what Canadian culture viewed as normal?

Chrissy: I wasn’t fully aware of how different my family’s money and wealth perspective was until I bought my first home. When my co-workers heard that my boyfriend (now husband) and I had saved up a 25% down payment—at ages 21 and 24—they were dumbfounded.

These co-workers were in their 30s, living paycheque to paycheque. They couldn’t understand how we had done this. I told them most of the money was from government child tax benefits and birthday money that our parents saved for us since we were babies.

They were shocked. It was completely foreign to them that our parents would’ve thought to do this. I realized then how lucky we were. Our parents understood the power of saving, compounding, and time.

They never earned high incomes and didn’t have great sums of wealth to shower upon us. But what they did have was good financial sense. Because of this, our parents were able to turn small bits of money into our eventual first home.

While I’m sure other Canadians lived like us, I’ve since realized how powerful my parents’ perspective on money and wealth was. Their belief in saving, frugality, and fostering intergenerational wealth gave me a huge leg up.

MSR: How did you decide to start Eat Sleep Breathe FI? What is your mission? 

Chrissy: I started Eat Sleep Breathe FI for several reasons:

FI has brought so much happiness and satisfaction to my life and I want to help more people discover it. A blog is a perfect way to do that!

While we love our US FI friends and their helpful content, some things are different here in Canada. I wanted to fill the void by sharing Canadian FI hacks and resources.

I was tired of being a lurker! I wanted to fully join the conversation with other bloggers and blog readers. I craved being part of a community of like-minded people, and I felt that starting a blog would give me that… and it has!

My mission encompasses all of the above—I want to help others discover FI, especially in Canada, while helping to build the FI community.

Planning for financial independence

MSR: You mention on your site that you’re on track to reach FI by your 40s — what’s your vision for your life once you hit FI? How will things change?

Chrissy: The interesting thing for me is that my life will barely change. As a stay-at-home mom, I’m already living the FI lifestyle! In reality, my FI vision is for my husband, who works close to 50 hours a week.

I’d love for him to have more time for his hobbies—playing guitar, tinkering with his classic Mustang, and trying out unique new recipes. It would also be nice to travel and see our friends and family more often.

However, in an ironic twist, the closer we get to FI, the more certain my husband is that he wants to keep working! As he’s grown into his managerial role at work, so has his passion for his job.

In the end, I’m happy for my husband to do whatever he chooses. For me, that’s the beauty of FI—it gives us the freedom to choose what we want to do (including continuing to work).

MSR: What’s your sense of the financial independence movement in Canada compared to the US and the world in general? Have you seen it start to gain more traction over the last few years? 

Chrissy: While FI has been well-established in the US for many years, it only started to gain traction in Canada last year. I feel that the FI movement is just in its infancy here. This seems to be on par with the rest of the world (outside of the US).

I couldn’t be more excited to be in the Canadian FI community at this pivotal time. I would love for FI to become more mainstream here and all over the world.

Learning from living on a single income

MSR: In blogging, money management, or personally, what do you consider to be your biggest failure or regret?

Chrissy: I can honestly say I have no major personal regrets. I’ve always kept my bucket list at the forefront of my mind and have tried to live my life to meet those lofty goals. If I were to die today, I would die a happy woman! However, I do have a couple of regrets when it comes to my money management. Both are linked to the same issue—not starting sooner. I wish I’d started managing our investments and started leveraged investing much earlier than we did. It pains me to think how much farther ahead we’d be if I’d done this! Even a few extra years of smarter investing would have grown our wealth exponentially.

MSR: What are some unique challenges and opportunities you and your husband have encountered as a one-income household?

Chrissy: For us, the biggest challenge as a one-income household was not having much leftover to save or invest. I didn’t like living so close to the edge, so we decided to start hosting international students. It’s the perfect work-from-home side hustle/house hack! (Not to mention an amazing educational experience for our family.) Decreased income was our biggest challenge, but it wasn’t the only one! Here are other challenges we’ve faced as a one-income household:

I don’t earn much income, so I’m sometimes declined for credit cards (even if I use household income in my application).

My low earnings also means I’ll receive very little in government retirement benefits. We’ll have to factor this into our retirement plans.

Since we only have one employed person in the household, it’s harder to get favourable mortgage terms.

Life insurance is also a bit trickier to apply for because the underwriting is based on earned income that would be lost.

As a stay-at-home mom, I’m very dependent on my husband. I need to be extra careful and look out for myself in case anything happens to my husband (or our marriage). I’ve planned for the worst, and put many financial and legal measures in place to take care of both of us (and our kids) equitably.

Phew—that’s a lot of challenges! But it’s not all bad—we’ve also realized many benefits as a one-income household. There are too many to list here, so I’ll send you to a comprehensive guest post I wrote for another blogger: How Much Does It Cost to Be a Stay-at-Home Parent? A financial cost analysis.

In the post, I list the many benefits of having a stay-at-home parent—and how much it costs. There are plenty of comparisons and lots of detailed math to help you make an informed decision.

MSR: Do you have any advice for others in a similar position? 

Chrissy: Absolutely! Here’s what I would advise:

Plan ahead to avoid cash flow shortfalls.

Find ways to earn extra income to give yourself a financial cushion.

Talk about money regularly with your partner.

Track your money so you know what’s coming in and where it’s going.

Cut back ruthlessly on things you don’t value or no longer need.

As long as you’re able to afford your expenses and have enough left for emergencies, make peace with a lower saving rate for a few years.

This shouldn’t only be a financial decision—the lifestyle benefits of being a one-income household are priceless. If you can make it work financially, it’ll very likely be worth the sacrifice.

Building knowledge of wealth

MSR: As a parent, how does your understanding of wealth and your pursuit of FI affect how you teach your children? Have they had any “lightbulb” moments about money that you can share?

Chrissy: My understanding of wealth and FI affects my parenting quite a bit. From the beginning, I’ve tried to foster the critical life skill of delayed gratification in my kids. I believe this is one of the most important keys to wealth. If kids can learn to not succumb to their in-the-moment wants, it’ll get them so far ahead in life!

I’ve also talked to my kids (a lot) about the difference between looking rich and actually having wealth. On the surface, our family doesn’t look all that rich. We live in an average house, and drive average cars. Our clothes aren’t fancy, and we don’t take luxury vacations.

My kids often ask how other families are able to afford nicer houses and big-ticket items for birthday and Christmas gifts. I explain to them that some of these families buy things on credit and have little to no savings. They look rich, but have little wealth.

We don’t care if other people think we’re rich or not! What counts is the real wealth we’ve built. That’s what gives us the freedom to be a one-income household and the ability to reach FI in our 40s. For us, that’s the true definition of a “rich” life! As for lightbulb moments, here are a few:

After we watched the Playing with FIRE documentary together, my kids finally ‘got’ the concept of FIRE. It generated a lot of new and interesting money discussions.

One such discussion was around career choices. My 14 year old is already planning for a career that he’ll not only enjoy, but that’ll also help him reach FI sooner. It’s amazing to me that he already gets this!

Unguided, my 12 year old would happily spend on whatever his heart desires! Thankfully, our money lessons have sunken in, and he’s become as good of a saver as anyone. (He’s even careful when spending the currency he earns in his video games!)

At 12 and 14, I already know my kids are on the right financial path. But there’s something I want to stress to other parents: it wasn’t hard to get them here. You don’t need expensive classes, parenting books, or apps to teach your kids good money skills.

Simply model your own good habits and talk to them about money at every opportunity. Tailor it to their age level, and explain your decisions in ways they understand. Each discussion will lead to a growing understanding of money and how to truly build wealth.

MSR: What books or other financial sites have been influential to you? What other resources would you recommend that readers explore?

Chrissy: I have too many to list! That’s why I created FI School—a curated collection of the best FI resources, sourced from all over the internet. It’s an easy way to learn about FI and share it with others.

It started as a Google doc which I sent to my family to teach them about FI. However, once I launched my blog, I decided to build it out into a course-like format. This would allow me to help even more people start their FI journeys.

You can get started with FI School from the lessons landing page, or the introduction page. I hope Semi-Retire Plan readers find it useful!

MSR: What advice would you give someone who is on the path to semi-retirement or early retirement?

Chrissy: My advice is to start with your whys—figure out why you want to reach semi-retirement or early retirement. Look deep. These whys should tie back to the core values you cherish most; things like family, freedom, adventure, or security.On the long road to semi-retirement or early retirement, you’re bound to face challenges and frustrations. During those difficult times, your whys will give you the motivation and energy to keep going.

MSR: Chrissy, I have really enjoyed hearing about your approach to FI and learning more about your family’s perspective. Thank you for sharing your story!

The post Sitting Poolside Interview with Chrissy from Eat Sleep Breathe FI appeared first on Semi-Retire Plan.

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