Bucket List

I was looking on Yahoo a while back and an article about hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro caught my eye and thought that would something to do before I kick the so-called bucket. So I was wondering, what's on YOUR bucket list?

 

Ski on every continent

 

Right now some international travel. This year we've hit a lot of traditional places, but list items of Amsterdam, Cape Horn and Cuba got checked off.

We actually have multiple buckets.

Travel buckets for international & continental.

Automotive spectator and participant buckets.

Fishing buckets. Outdoor hiking and experiential buckets.

Quality of life bucket for how our final years are spent.

But most important, buckets for the kind of legacy we leave. Not financial so much as influential. Kids, grandkids, others we interact with in our lives. Living 'intentionally' so that we are remembered and missed for the things we taught & exemplified.

 

1. Go 200mph in a land based vehicle
2. Pull a Travis Pastrana sky dive. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRLzvPioKG0
3. Own a Great Dane.

That's really about it for me.

 

I retire in 5 years (I'll be 49)

Moving to Colorado so that's not really a bucket list.

But my bucket list is pretty short:

1: Drive the PCH the entire way from South to North

2: Fly fish in a mountain stream as much as I possibly can while in Colorado.

That's it. Just to live out my days simply and to be a burden on the retirement system as long as possible.

 

my bucket list is just to be able to retire in 5 years too. You are fortunate to be able to retire so young. Not saying you don't deserve it or you didn't earn it.

 

Yeah I was very lucky and came on the job at 21. You have to be 21 to apply for the FD and got on that year. We work 28 and out which I fully "plan" to take advantage of. We also have the option of staying for another 7 years by signing up for the DROP plan and net about $450,000 extra at the end of that 7 years. The money is nice but I'd be 56 when I retire if I took that plan. My time is worth more than money though. You can always make more money, you can't make more time. I'll put it this way... I've never heard anyone laying on their deathbed saying "I sure wish I would have worked more".

 

Then there's the rest of us sad sacks in the private sector (especially in these corrupt, entitlement states like IL - $97B and growing in unfunded pensions alone) who get to work til 80 to pay for all of it.

 

Yeah that sucks.

Our pension system is for Police and Fire only. It's funded by Police and Fire totally. So basically I'm paying the retirement benefits to retired members right now and when I retire the younger members will be paying for my retirement. It's a really good sound system and the investments made have been great also. I was also smart enough when I was younger and put a certain amount into investments in deferred comp and Roth IRA's so I've got another nest egg to supplement my retirement. We also don't pay into Social Security so the only SS check I'll receive is from the money I made before I started the FD. Not much to say the least.
The way our retirement works is off a final average pay. The highest amount made during any three year period (over the final 10 years) is what they base your final average pay off of. Doesn't have to be consecutive years. Just the three top years. I'll work some OT to boost that final average pay every once in awhile but that puts me at the station for 48hrs straight so I don't like that. But OT pay aside... Each day of OT automatically adds $24 per month in take home pay on my monthly retirement check. I'll retire with 83% of my salary but I'll no longer be paying into the retirement system so I'll actually retire with 92% of my salary. If I stayed 30yrs I'd retire with 100% but nah... That's 2 more years of my life.
I checked my final average pay last month and with 23 yrs on the job if I was able to retire right now I would actually get a raise. I'm worth more off the job than I am on the job. But that being said... It's not a easy job but I'll never complain about the benefits assuming I make it to retirement.

 

Something to consider about my job though. I'm up to 400 times more likely to develop certain types of cancer than the average person. We are regularly subjected to HCN at each and every fire (a known carcinogen) and there really is nothing to protect us from that since it is a byproduct of combustion. We have 3 FF's right now suffering from cancer and 2 die in the last year alone. The youngest is 28 right now with stage 4 cancer that started in his lungs (didn't smoke a day) and has spread to the rest of his body. So, I've resigned myself to the fact that if I don't die in some form of freak accident I will die of cancer. I knew that going in though so it was a decision that I accepted.

 

49?That is awsesome,not many folks can retire that early.Seems as though u have planned well!

 

Yeah. I'm lucky that I got hired early. Graduated College and worked less than one year with my degree. 4 yrs wasted I guess since a business degree is pretty much worthless in my field.

It's a plan that I hope works out. We are moving to Colorado in 5 years and I plan on living in the mountains the rest of my life.

 

Well good on ya. The results for all the HCN and other carcinogens I ingested in my 20's on a nearby VFD (pension... lol) are going to have to get picked up by whatever taxed and subprime version of insurance that's left after Barry's legacy gutted what I had before. That's cool if it's legit wherever you're from, but it's still all tax money and understand my cynicism living in a town where every other fucking civil servant is a double dipper (if not more) who retires early with "work related injuries" and the rest of us get to fund all that with 10.25% sales tax, up to 80% increase (yep, I said 80% this year!) in property taxes, unlimited local fees and automated traffic tickets for going 4 over within a mile and a half from a park. The vast majority for that is for city pensions and the Teacher's Union. I live in a very Red and Blue neighborhood (the most in the city, actually), and I don't think there is a single one of those neighbors I've met (as cool and friendly and fun to party with as they may be) that hasn't bragged to me on how he's working the system.

As much as I enjoy the rest of the great US of A, I inexplicably can't find another town I'd be "at home" as much as this place. I want to want to move to CO and meet you on that mountain stream or whatever, but this shittown has a stranglehold on me.

Yep, I'm fucked.

 

Oh believe me... I cannot wait to get out of this god forsaken state. I fucking hate it here but I'm stuck for another 5 years. The only reason I'm here is because of my job and that's it. If it weren't for that I'd be out of here on the first thing smoking. I'll never complain about the job (well some parts I will) because it really is a great job and I love the people I work with. That said... I won't miss it when I leave.

Now back to the bucket list:

I grew up in Hawaii and California (just south of LA). I really have no desire to spend any time at a beach since I grew up on the beach for the better part of my early life. So, been there done that.

I plan on moving to Durango and spending a lot of time in the San Juans and much of Utah for day / weekend trips.