Hello everyone! Wow, it’s already November. The leaves are turning yellow and it's a beautiful day in Portland. It rained heavily yesterday, but the sun came out today. Ah, life is beautiful when the sun is shining. Ms. RB40 returned home after spending a month in California helping her parents. It's great to have her back. I had a hard time being a single father of a teenager. We need the femininity of the RB40 woman. And not a single tree fell down on our car. That's such a blessing, right? I often park my car there. This is the main reason why I don’t want to buy a new car yet. Street parking for new cars is difficult.
We had a pretty good month on the personal finance front. Our net worth reached new highs. The stock market is unstoppable. However, our cash flow was a mess. Ms. RB40 set up a large payment for her father from our account. She paid for home health supplies, car insurance, carpet cleaning and more. Her dad would pay us back later with a check. He doesn't trust online transactions. That's okay, but it complicates my monthly accounting. I may need to set up a separate bank account to help simplify accounting.
Well, I’m going to share how my New Year’s resolutions came to fruition. Then I'll review our net worth and cash flow. let's go!
2025 goals
Here is my 2025 goals spreadsheet. This is helpful. If you can't achieve your New Year's resolutions, give this a try. The key is to review the spreadsheet each month to track your progress. This way, you can understand which goals require extra attention and work toward them.
Wow, we don’t have much time left in 2025. Honestly, I'm ready to start over. This year has been tough. In particular, I am losing motivation to exercise, but I will try to keep going. Have you worked hard on your New Year's resolutions?
financial goals
Apartments for sale and rent
This is my main goal for 2025. The previous tenant moved out of our rental apartment in January. I fixed it up and put it up for sale. Unfortunately, the apartment market in Portland is terrible. We have only watched it once in 4 months! I think buyers are scared. There is too much economic uncertainty and interest rates are high. That's why I decided to rent out the apartment temporarily. We will put it on the market again in a few years.
Duplex ready for sale
Likewise, I want to sell our duplex in 2029 after RB40Jr graduates from high school*. We wanted to move to Southern California to be closer to family. RB40 Ms.’s parents are getting older and they need help.
*We live in one unit and rent the other.
This year I want to repaint the exterior. However, plans were changed to a kitchen remodel. We are re-cabineting and new countertops. This will give our kitchen a much needed refresh.
Kitchen remodel is complete! Looks great. I call this done. Although we should probably buy a new refrigerator and dishwasher to complete the remodel. I'll see if I can find a good Black Friday sale.
Maximizing my Roth IRA
A Roth IRA is the best investment account you can have. When you withdraw money, you don't pay taxes on the gains. This is huge. If you start young and maximize your Roth IRA each year, it will become a valuable resource in retirement.
I have maxed out my Roth IRA contributions for over 20 years. But that streak may end this year. My income is decreasing rapidly. After 10 months, I made $6,080. Alas! Unfortunately, I don't think I will break $8,000. It may soon be time to retire full time.
Track net worth and hope for +10%
I have been tracking our net worth since 2006. It's great to see the progress. This year, I hope to go up 10%. At this point, it all depends on the stock market and there's nothing I can do to influence that goal. I will track it and pray. This is a stretch goal.
Since the beginning of the year, our net worth has increased by 9.4%! Wow, this is crazy. Artificial Intelligence stocks are unstoppable. I enjoy it while the euphoria lasts.
health goals
Exercise more than last year
Last year, I set a goal of exercising 3 times a week. However, my elbow hurt and I had to cut back a bit. As a result, I worked out 120 times in 2023. That's not bad, but I want to work out more this year.
I worked out 4 times in October. That's terrible. I've been sick for a week and RB40Jr has a lot on his calendar. Hopefully I can get up to speed in November. But it doesn’t look good…
win claim denied
Last year, RB40Jr received a cochlear implant to improve his hearing. He has 30%-60% hearing in his left ear. He tried hearing aids for several years, but the results were not noticeable. He can hear some sounds in his left ear, but cannot understand speech in his left ear.
Recently, the FDA approved cochlear implants for children. At first, I thought we could wait until RB40Jr came of age. Then he can decide for himself. However, our audiologist says the sooner the implant is placed, the better. If you wait too long, your brain may not adapt.
Anyway, he got the implant last year. However, our health insurance denied the claim. They say cochlear implants are experimental and do not improve overall health. This is ridiculous. The device has been used to improve lives since the 1980s. We are fighting this denial. I think health insurance companies are denying as many claims as possible to boost profits. Many people are too sick to fight denial. No wonder everyone hates health insurance companies.
Latest updates – Denial is final. Now we are working with hospitals to reduce costs. This actually looks pretty good since the insurance company pre-approved the surgery. I will continue to work hard.
interesting goals
Selling my ceramic projects
I'm taking a ceramics class at the community center and I'm having a great time. My projects are not yet at a professional level, but I sold a few pieces at the spring art auction.
I sold about $190 at the spring art sale! This is incredible. I didn't expect to sell so many pieces. The community center takes a 35% commission. That's totally fine. I'm happy to support them.
My mini fermenter. I fermented these serrano peppers for 6 weeks and used them to make a delicious hot sauce. Next spring I will grow some peppers so I can make more.
More dates with Mrs.
This year, I want to hang out with Mrs. RB40 more. If you're a parent, you know how difficult this can be. Luckily our son is now a teenager. We can go out whenever we want. However, I need to overcome my reluctance to go out at night. We parked on the street and it was difficult to find parking at night. Ah! I would rather stay at home than go to a restaurant.
I'll go on a lunch date with the RB40 lady. It's much easier this way. Who wants to leave the house after dark?
In October, we went out 3 times. The highlight is Kann, winner of the 2023 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant. The food is great and the prices are reasonable. We spent $180 (including tip), but that's not much more than other sit-down restaurants in town. RB40 Ms. ordered too much food because we haven't been to a fancy restaurant in years. We enjoyed it so much that it was worth it. Here are some of the Haitian-inspired dishes we tried – Smoked Curried Shrimp, Peanut Cream Vegetables and Spicy Cauliflower.
Happiness>8
I'm a naturally happy person so this should be easy. Life has been good the past few years.
Back in September I was a bit bummed out by the news that Mrs. RB40 was no longer around. In October, I largely ignored the news and felt better. I feel a little guilty for living a good life while society is broken, but I have to take care of my own mental health first. I'll pay more attention when it comes time to vote.
Net worth (+9.4%)
I have been tracking our net worth since 2006. It's very encouraging to see our progress. The power of compound interest is incredible. Our investment returns far exceeded last year's revenue.
2025 is crazy. The stock market has performed much better than I expected. The artificial intelligence revolution continues to drive markets higher. It's tough being a worker these days, but at least billionaires are doing well.
***Important*** If you're young (under 50), my best advice is to stay the course. Don't stop investing. You should invest whether the stock market is going up or down. You might think stocks are too expensive, but ten years from now they'll look cheap. Keep investing and one day you will achieve financial independence. Don't try to time the market. If you are retired, you need to be more conservative and diversified.
Here is a chart of Empower's net worth. Sign up for a free account with Empower Help manage your net worth and investment accounts. They offer great free tools for DIY investors.
October2025 fire cash flow
This FIRE cash flow statement includes my online income, side hustle income, and taxable passive income.
October2025 fire revenue: $4,256
- Real estate crowdfunding: $750.
- dividend income: $317.
- Rental income: $488.
- Online income: $212. Blogging income is quickly approaching zero. It might be time to move on to other things.
- Odd jobs: $428. I delivered 10 catering orders in October. It was a lot of odd jobs for me. Once it starts raining more heavily, I'll take a break from this side hustle. I don't need to drive in that condition.
- to reimburse: $2,061. RB40 Ms.’s father reimbursed.
Cost: $8,373
- housing: $1,661. This includes mortgages, utilities, furnishings, repairs and maintenance. Our monthly housing costs are low because we live in a duplex. We share many of the costs with our tenants. However, since we are slowly paying off the kitchen remodel, the price will be higher than usual in two years. Home Depot has 0% interest for 24 months.
- transportation: $238. Gas, parking and insurance.
- entertainment: $626. Since Mrs. RB40 was out of town, I bought more takeout food than usual.
- groceries: $636.
- healthy: $736. RB40Jr broke his glasses and we need to make a pair ASAP. Cost $350.
- child: $796. Wow, teens are expensive. We paid for the orthodontist, jiu-jitsu, ultimate frisbee, new glasses, and debate club.
- personal consumption: $399. My ceramics classes, donations, light switches, and various other personal items.
- travel: $378. Ms. RB40 visited her parents and charged a lot of money to our credit card. Much of it would soon be repaid by her father.
retirement savings: –$4,117
Summary for October 2025
October is a good month for RB40 families. Mrs. RB40 comes back and puts the house back together. I'll admit, I didn't clean as much while she was away. There was a layer of dust everywhere after the kitchen remodel. At least, it's done now. I hate remodeling. The pressure is too much. The rest of 2025 should be easy. I don't have any big plans. Ms. RB40 will visit her parents again in November, but it will be a short trip. I can handle 10 days. That's no problem.
That’s it for October. How are you doing this month?
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