Back in late October of 2022, I wrote that I considered myself retired, but I still drove for Uber, Lyft, Hitch, and a couple of other gig economy companies. As these companies got more and more greedy, keeping larger and larger percentages of fares while almost entirely eliminating any bonuses, I found that I was increasingly draining my energy driving for these assholes and not making shit.
I fell into severe depression, exhausting therapies like standard Talk Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, and even Eye Movement Desensitisation, and Reprocessing therapy, to the point the VA wouldn’t even schedule anything for me. I ended up going to Family Services for talk therapy and liked the therapist, who is an ex-Marine, going so far as going to about 4 sessions with him before he was let go or quit or downsized or whatever. I have been on 450 mg of Wellbutrin every morning and 20 mg of Lexapro, an SSRI, every night for months now. I was on Zoloft for less than a week but I told my psychologist, “Screw this!” after just a few days because I was straight-up hallucinating and I refused to take them anymore.
My mood was lifted tremendously when I woke up one morning and happened to check my bank account balance, something I’d been doing frequently as I worried more and more about coving my bills, and I was shocked and amazed when I saw my checking account balance as $44,527.84. My jaw dropped and I quickly looked up who might have deposited that much money. I saw the deposit came from the Department of Veterans Affairs and was the amount of $43,348.48. I then remembered that I had filed a Disability Claim with the VA. Although I had previously been awarded 10% Disability a month before and had been happy with the $338.49 I had been receiving just a month prior, I wondered if possibility there had been a change? Or a mistake?
I quickly logged into my VA app and looked under claims and read for myself that I had been awarded 100% disability and would be receiving $3,737.85/month on the 1st of every month for the remainder of my life. The $43,348.48 was backpayment for the nearly a year since I’d originally filed. This in addition to the $1,328/month that I received for partial Social Security on the 2nd Wednesday of every month. So, in the blink of an eye, I was to receive $5,065.85/month from the federal government, tax-free, for the remainder of my life! Also, I’ll get a cost of living increase every year on both the VA and the Social Security payments every year going forward (usually about 3%) and I’m due to apply for full Social Security in about 1 year. Plus, I won’t have any doctor copays or have to pay for prescription medications, I’ve begun to apply for a Disabled Veteran license plate enabling me to park in any handicapped parking space (if there are any available, San Antonio is a huge military and military veteran city, so the parking is first come, first served,) plus I’m allowed on practically any military base in the U.S. with base exchange and commissary privileges, plus I wouldn’t have to pay any property taxes in Bexar County if I were to buy a home. (More on that in a minute.)
So, my first order of business was Dave Ramsey’s Baby Step #1 and I transferred $1,000 to my savings account as an emergency fund. Then I paid the remainder of $13,525.44 on my Piece of S… my car, I paid off roughly $4,000 in car repairs and one written-off debt (I’m challenging another one.) I’ve paid back several friends. I spent roughly $3,000 on a new iMac (don’t judge!) I bought a boatload of cat stuff (water feeders, cat tree, toys… you name it.) I bought a huge painting (photo?) of a Texas sunset over a field of bluebonnets. I got the car detailed. Gone through a couple of gallons of gas. Been out to eat quite a few times. Paid my rent, electricity, and mobile phone (really my only two remaining bills) over a month in advance, and moved nearly all that remained into a long-term savings account that invests in Exchange-Traded funds (EFTs, sort of like mutual funds but no brokers and no fees.)
I thought about buying a townhouse, but most of those have the bedroom(s) on the 2nd floor, and I’m tired of climbing upstairs, so I started looking into houses. After a few weeks, I discarded that idea because, let’s be honest: I’m a 64-year-old man who’s had two heart attacks (everything’s under control now, thanks for asking.) Am I really going to outlast a 30-year loan? I don’t think so. I also don’t want to mow the yard, repair the leaky sink, and all of the glorious stuff that comes with home ownership. Who cares about equity at my age?
So, my plan now is to move to a nearby gated apartment complex with a two-bedroom, cat-friendly, apartment on the 1st floor and attached single-car garage, for less than I would’ve been paying for a mortgage and insurance. I plan on moving before the end of 2024. No yard maintenance and the only things I’m losing is being able to cut a hole in the wall or repaint.
I’m also making some other retirement bennies: I have a rough idea about taking a cruise with a balcony cabin either in the Eastern Caribbean or a transit from California to Hawai’i or vice-versa. I’m an old salt sailor and I miss the open ocean. I could care less about the drinking or the rock wall climbing or the dance shows or the lounging around the pool or any of that other stuff. (Although I’ll no doubt enjoy the restaurants.) I’ll probably spend the majority of my time sitting on the balcony reading or using my MacBook Pro. I may not even go on the shore excursions.
Another thing I’m planning is trading the Ford Focus (I will never own another Ford for as long as I live) for the $23.77 I could get for it and buy a new or new-for-me SUV, likely a Toyota Corolla Cruise Hybrid and next Spring I’m planning a road trip to Raliegh, NC via San Jacinto to see the San Jacinto Battleground and Monument, then a stop at a Johnny’s Pizza along I-30 in South Louisiana no doubt, Baton Rouge, Biloxi, Mobile, Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Savannah, Fayetteville, then Raliegh to search for genealogy records on my surname Stricklin. I might spend a few days there, then move Southwest to Rockingham, NC, where my 4th great-grandfather and grandmother owned property for certain, and maybe other relatives, also. Then to Charlotte, Nashville, and finally to Lutts, TN where I have Stricklin relatives buried. Then South to Starkville to visit my Alma Mater, Mississippi State University. Then to Shreveport/Bossier City to spend a few days visiting with my sister and likely seeing where I was born one last time. Then home through Tyler, Corsicana, Waco, and New Braunfels. 3,133 miles plus any additional for visiting, etc. If I were to drive it non-stop it’d take me 48 hours, but I plan to take my sweet time. If I want to stop, I’ll stop. If I want to get a hotel room, I’ll get a hotel room. If I want to spend a couple of days researching in an archive or library, I’ll spend a couple of days researching in an archive or library.
If you’re wondering who’s going to be looking in on my not-yet-adopted cat, I’ll hire professional cat-sitters to feed, refill the water feeder, clean the litterbox, sit and play with him/her twice a day. I’m not going to ask my cousin or one friend that I currently have in San Antonio to make time for my pet, not when I can rely on professionals who love cats to do it, especially after forming a bond over the several weeks I’ll be gone. The same thing when I take the cruise.
I’m not sure if I’ll do a lot of traveling after that. I’ve always wanted to drive West to Los Angeles, like the old Route 66, but I may not want to drive much anymore after my road trip.
So having no debt and being financially independent is very nice, and has mostly alleviated my depression. Yes, I will resume tithing, I just have to settle on a church first. I’m joining a small group of Verse-by-Verse Fellowship Tuesday night, so we’ll see if that’s where I settle.
I am still procrastinating a lot on cleaning up, taking out trash, filing away files, etc. When I’m not going to the doctor, eating, or playing games, I’m mostly sleeping. I’ve been mulling over various hobbies that I could pick up including more Ancestry research and/or learning to play an instrument such as an electric bass. Dunno.
I mean with my psychiatrist Tuesday morning to I’ll be sure and discuss all this with her. I don’t think it’s depression although I do have a pretty short-term, dystopian view on things, but I’m not depressed about any of it. It’s all out of my control. Why worry?
One thing I do know about being a senior and financially independent that I love: I can now cuss anytime I want, say anything I think, and not caring a lick about being canceled. Oh, and I left out something: I now carry a concealed carry license again and I’m building my own AR-15, so I also don’t have to worry about defending myself.
Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it can rent it for a while.