mpg does it matter

travelnutz wrote:
Most people or couples who have accrued large portfolios or just large bank accounts built them by being smart with their incomes etc and by making wise decisions. Sure, some won lotteries or received large inhertances but how they handled the windfall makes huge differences.

We personally know two disaster scenarios with two married couples. One couple in their early 60's did win nearly a million after taxes and already had a large retirement account savings waiting for them in about 2 years and their very nice home was finally paid for so they early etired since they were now 62. Rich now and spent like a drunken sailor and bought an over $400,000 big top of the line class A and acted like there was no end in sight for their new found wealth. DUH! by the time they were 68 they were totally broke and filed bankruptcy. Both their nice home and their class A were gone as was their retirement accounts exhausted! Now were down to their S.S. Pension and told us so many times that they really blew it. That goes without saying! Being smart about money for 30-40 years and squandering it away in only a few years is maybe stupid at best.

The other couple both worked their behinds off since they got out of college and were very frugal but still enjoyed life camping with their kids in their 27 ft Nomad TT pulled by an older Ford Van. Their home was average but well kept and they were a very nice pleasant couple to have around. They saved and saved and had built a nice big nestegg for their retirement. Retired normally and bought a new 29ft class C and would only stay in the fancy and expensive CG's and resorts saying they owed it to themselves as they had played it so close to the vest for so many years. Yup, broke last summer after only 4-1/2 years of retirement and wasting their retirement funds. They both use the word of having wasted what they had worked so long and hard to get! The class C is now sold and they are also enjoying their S.S. checks at home and back to being frugal again! Also, they are now blaming everything else and the high cost of fuel and insurance and living etc for their woes and have managed to lose their long time friends maybe because of it. Others didn't spend their money, they did with their choices! How much money saved is enough if you don't use it wisely? Many find out the hard very painful wayb and that real pain just doesn't go away!

It's simple: Always remember where you came from and how you got to where you are today because you may return to your roots faster than you think!

The only couple we have to worry about is US and how we choose to live our remaining years of breathing left using commonsense. That may well be 28+ years as our plan is to live to at least 100 and then we'll reconsider our future.

I buy anything I want today, 10 years ago I would not. I don't want a 40 or 45 ft. RV I did once it is not the price, I just don't want to use one that size anymore, I don't like to fly like I once did, yet will if I have to. our house is 1/2 the size as when we had the kids home. I'm seventy, I will never run out of money based on what I spend now, only the gov. and the tax man can hurt me now. I learned young don't let the zero's scare you. Just make more money than you spend.