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The Time I Could Not Resist Teaching My Kid
Normally I don’t teach anything to my daughter unless she specifically asks me about something. This is inline with our belief that kids learn best when they are curious themselves, rather than explaining something that we want them to learn. All part of the whole unschooling journey that we are going through. However, from time to time I make some exceptions. One such exception happened recently where I had to teach something to my kid without her asking me because I could not stop myself :). Guilty as charged! But let me explain.
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Getting The Most Out Of Solar Panels
It’s been a while since I updated you on my solar panel project. I thought I should continue where I left off. So after collecting all the data from my solar panels, batteries, grid and load, I observed something interesting. While the SMU was disconnecting the grid so that the load can run on batteries and solar energy, we are not fully utilizing the solar energy. During a perfectly clear day, the solar panel is generating more power than we can use during the day. The excess energy is just getting wasted. Can we do something about it?
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Giving Up Satellite TV
As part of minimalism, we try to reduce stuff from our life every now and then. Like Bruce Lee said, “hack away the unessential”. You may recall some of our minimalism activities from the past like selling our car or the minimalist wardrobe. This time around we wanted to experiment with cutting out satellite TV from our life.
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Improving Returns On Investment
A few days ago I wrote a post on how to start on a simple investment plan. The reason I wrote that post is to help you get started because it is easier to start on a simple plan. The more complex a plan, the more we procrastinate. But what if you have already started on your investment journey and want to improve the returns? Continuing from where we left off with the simple investment plan, here are some things you can do to improve returns.
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Follow-up to Virtual Meetup #6
Thank you to everyone who joined virtual meetup #6. As usual, we had some lively discussions. This post is a follow-up to that meeting to answer any questions that I could not answer at the time. So here goes –
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Asset Allocation After Retirement
What asset allocation should you go for after retirement? That is not a common question I hear from readers of my blog because most of them are still in the accumulation phase and don’t have to worry too much about retirement yet. But it is something that I struggle with myself from time to time since I am already retired. If you are close to retirement or are already retired, maybe this post will help. In case you don’t already know what an asset allocation means, please read my post on it.
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A Simple Investment Plan
It has been 10 years since I first started investing. When I look back at how I invested back in the day, it looks so simple. No complicated planning or exotic products. I always believe in starting with something simple. Whether it be investments, work, hobbies, nutrition, exercise, you name it. There are several advantages of this approach.
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Coping With Loss By Visualizing In Advance
Have you ever thought what you would do if you lost all your wealth? How would you react if you lost a loved one? What about physical disability? I know these are some really disturbing thoughts. You might be wondering if I have darkness in my heart for asking you to think of such aspects of life. But this is an exercise I practice from time to time.
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Collecting Data From Solar Panel Setup
After having setup the solar panel on our terrace, I wanted some data. Specifically I wanted to know the panel output over the course of the day and how much energy savings we are enjoying. The solar management unit (SMU) gives some details about the instantaneous power output and energy savings. But for some reason I felt the numbers look a bit too optimistic. Moreover I could not get more granular data from it. I guess it has more to do with not invented here syndrome. Either way I decided to hook up some sensors myself to gather all the data I'd like from it.
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Virtual Meet-up #6
Here is an invite to join me in a virtual meet-up to discuss random things on the topics of financial planning, early retirement, home schooling or sustainable living. We can share our stories and ask each other questions or give suggestions. As a group we can learn from each other's experience, learnings and pit-falls. Since I post a lot about myself on this blog, you probably already know everything about me. But if you ever wanted to ask me something and did not bother to comment, this is your chance.
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