I Remember - Charleston Style

It's crazy to me that 6 months ago, I was on the road driving through a lot of states I had never seen before. And in a couple days I'll be doing the same thing, but this time heading to a place I've been my entire life.

So knowing that, I wanted to write about a few things that stuck out in my mind before I leave. Things that hopefully I will remember forever (regardless of how random they are) but if not I can come back to this blog and read about it again.

I remember:

-The first night we finally got to Charleston. Of course I got to see my very first Southern storm. The rain in the south is not like the rain I was used to in Seattle. Even when the wind whips around in Seattle that rain isn't as hard as it is in Charleston. It was almost like the rain drops were bigger than I was used to. And I remember driving to our hotel that first night, barely being able to see out the windshield and suddenly hearing this loud CLAP and BOOM immediately afterward, seeing as how a bolt of lightning had either just struck the car, or had hit somewhere very close to us. I thought it was a fitting welcoming party.

-Trying to unpack that night. Trying to pull all of the luggage and everything else out of the car in a downpour. Only to check in to a hotel we absolutely hated and moved out of the next morning.

-Losing my ass in the market during the drive out to Charleston. Only to make back everything while trading from a hotel room at the Residence Inn in North Charleston. Sitting there, waiting to move in to our house which still had renters in it. I remember the free beer and free food they had at the Residence Inn. I guess this is something they did at most of the hotels down here. Free breakfast - and not just your standard bagels and muffins, but actually pancakes, waffles, bacon, sausage and eggs. And free happy hour dinner. Free keg of beer, and typically a BBQ dinner.

-Taking the dog on a walk around the hotel and her getting bitten by ants. At that point I realized I had to take the "critters" down here a lot more seriously than I did at home.

-Going to the most empty Costco I had ever seen in my entire life. Granted, it was during working hours, but the parking lot was almost empty. I remember sitting in the car and eating a Costco hot dog (which wasn't as good as back home) and a salad in the sun and feeling that nice breeze.

-Getting my car shipped to the hotel and driving to the house we'd be living in for the next 6 months. Windows rolled down, blasting the music and driving through the gorgeous lowcountry. That turn off of the 526 to Daniel Island surprised me the first time. It was almost a 90 degree turn that I thought I would be run off the road by.

-Going to the Isle of Palms for the first time. And looking around and thinking to myself, "This is what a Carolina beach is supposed to look like. I can't believe we live so close to this." And immediately understimating the power of the sun and getting burned. I remember swimming in that ocean - tiny waves but still a lot of fun. Cheaping out on an umbrella that would constantly fly away on us.

-Sitting by one of the many community pools on the "DI" and reading my book. Wishing I was retired down here.

-Being so scared the day I left for Europe. Which was only 10 days after moving in to our new house. It was storming throughout the morning and the wife was so afraid to be alone in a new place.

-Having my cousin that had lived down here for a few months introduce us to all his favorite places to eat. Jim and Nick's, Sushi Hiro, Home Team BBQ. There were so many great places to eat in Charleston - Tsunami, King Street Grill, Fatz, Huddle/Waffle House (not really), Five Guys, Dog and Duck, Gene's Haufbrau, Virginia's on King, Joseph's, Seabiscuit, Boulevard Diner, Bookstore Cafe, Sweetwater Cafe and Fulton Five only to name the restaurants I can think of.

-The food down here. Collared greens. Shrimp and Grits. Fried Chicken...and waffles. Fried green tomatoes, pickles, and okra.

-Downtown Charleston. All the shops. All the old homes. Battery Street. King Street. East Bay Street. Calhoun. The frustration from the lack of a grid system and too many one way streets in the wrong places. The bar scene downtown off of Market and the way people dressed up down here to go out. Walking across the Arthur J Ravenel bridge. The Farmer's market they held every Saturday morning. The crepes, the mini-doughnuts, the live music, art and fresh farm produce. All the churches and graveyards, the cobblestone drives, the government buildings that had survived generations. The ghost tours - one on boat and one by foot.

-Going to Florida multiple times to visit the wife's Grandma. Realizing each time how much better a city Charleston was than Tampa Bay. But happy to play golf for free. Watching an old projection screen TV each time until we conviced her to go out and buy a new LCD. Being stuck to leather couches in a house that was 82 degrees. Swimming in an outdoor pool that wasn't much better.

-Discovering the surrounding areas and all their small town Southern charm. Hilton Head, Beaufort, Savannah, Columbia, Folly Beach. It's nothing like where I'm from. Each town has it's own character. That's something I'll definitely miss coming from the land of strip malls filled with Quizno's, Target and Starbucks circa 1990s. There are buildings and houses down here that are centuries old. There's something about knowing that generations of people have walked the same path as I have. New buildings definitely have their benefits but after seeing what history has to offer I just think they lack soul sometimes.

There is definitely more memories in this head of mine. When I get them out on paper I'll post them up in October.

Recession Preparedness

The market is typically early to the party. My guess about 6 months early.

Which means that recession is headed our way. A true, defined recession of at least 2 quarters of negative GDP. We haven't been involved in a technically defined recession yet, but I feel like it's been slow to come on, and we will definitely be slow to come out of it. In my opinion the economy has been in recession since about February of this year.

Knowing this, it's important that we all be prepared. I by no means am prepared and the questionnaire I'm writing is more for my own enjoyment (partial daydreaming or thinking about how much worse it could be for me). Also, given the current economic landscape I feel a calling towards financial planning for people who have gotten themselves in to trouble. I haven't seriously looked in to a position like that though.

Below is the questionnaire. Score along if you'd like to see how you stack up. You may need a calculator and your bank and credit card statements to help you out.

Question 1:

When I add up all of my necessary monthly bills which I need to pay in order to live (mortgage/rent, utilities, food) they equal which percentage of my monthly income?

A) 20% or less
B) 35%
C) 50%
D) 70% or more

Question 2:

Assuming the possibility of a 10% unemployment rate (or higher) the likelihood of me losing my job is:

A) Highly Likely or already lost my job
B) Likely
C) Unlikely
D) Will not happen or I am my own boss and wouldn't lay myself off

Question 3:

When someone asks me about my health I say:

A) I eat well and exercise regularly. I am almost never sick, have a good family history and am drug and disease free
B) I try my best to eat well, but time constraints make me cut corners and skip workouts
C) I don't watch what I eat and walking up the stairs in my house is enough exercise for me

Question 4:

When I look at the things I pay for on a monthly basis which are not necessary in order for me to live they equal what percentage of my monthly income?

A) 10% or less
B) 20%
C) 30%
D) 40% or more

Question 5:

If I were to pay off all of my credit cards right now - allowing your bank account to possibly go negative - how long would it take to get back to your current financial standing?

A) I feel that I could never get back if I paid off all of my credit cards.
B) It might take me two to three years.
C) One year or less.
D) I don't have any credit card debt to pay off.

Question 6:

My savings habits look like the following:

A) I am barely scraping by making minimum payments on my credit cards and might possibly default on my loans. It is not possible for me to save a dime.
B) I set up this thing called a 401K through my employer. Not sure what that is though.
C) I contribute the amount my company will match to my 401K and have started an IRA for anything extra I can afford to save.
D) I contribute the amount my company will match to my 401K, max out my IRA every year and put the rest in to a cash nest egg to be used for emergencies only.

Question 7:

The amount I have saved (non-retirement):

A) I have enough cash to afford my life for a year or more without any income to supplement it.
B) I have enough cash to afford my life for 6 months without any income to supplement it.
C) If I really cut back my spending lifestyle and sold a few things I might be able to survive 2 or 3 months without any income.
D) You mean you have more than $0 in your bank account?

Final Question, Question 8:

How concerned are you with the current economy and the economy over the next 2 to 3 years?

A) Don't know, don't care. Ignorance is bliss.
B) I read the news every now and then, hasn't affected me personally and therefore I have not changed my lifestyle.
C) I have educated myself on what is happening in the economy and have taken the necessary steps to insure I avoid any future financial stress.
D) What the media has been saying has made me very nervous. I have taken all of my money out of the bank and stashed it under the mattress. Here comes the next great depression!

Scoring Key:

Q1: A.4 B.3 C.2 D.1

Q2: A.1 B.2 C.3 D.4

Q3: A.4 B.3 C.1

Q4: A.4 B.3 C.2 D.1

Q5: A.1 B.2 C.3 D.4

Q6: A.1 B.2 C.3 D.4

Q7: A.4 B.3 C.2 D.1

Q8: A.1 B.2 C.4 D.1

Scoring Guide:

8-16: You are in a deep world of hurt and may know this, or may have just ignored it for too long. Take a serious look at your current financial standing and take action. Make a plan to take control over your own financial well being or consult a professional who can help guide you through the economic turmoil.

17-25: You are doing better than those that are really hurting out there. You are financially stable but if you or your partner were to lose your job for a few months it would really hurt. You are trying your best to save but it always seems like a struggle just to have enough in order to enjoy the money you work for every now and then.

26-32: You are recession proof. A financial all-star. Kudos. Somewhere along the way either you figured it out or someone who has lived through hard times before pointed you in the right direction. You have very little to worry about financially, and even if there is an issue that arises you've got enough padding for a very soft landing.

Author's note: Personally I scored a 22. Which puts me in the middle to upper range in the 2nd category. I am alright with being there - but obviously it can be better and I will continue to push to get to "recession proof" status. Good luck to all of us over the next few years as we navigate these rough economic waters. And by luck I mean when excellent recession preparedness meets the possible coming recession.

30 days

I can't believe it.

Really I've been counting down since 45 days, but who does that?

I do.

But, it would seem kind of weird to post 45 days out (although I did want to).

We had some friends visit us from Seattle - they actually had come to visit us about a week before we left for Charleston too.

And it's so weird to think, that just 5 months ago I was sitting in my living room thinking about what Charleston would be like. What it would be like to drive across the country and pack up most of our stuff and have it shipped 3,000 miles. What the weather would be like and whether or not I'd feel comfortable out here.

And now, with 30 days left, I don't want to leave. And sadly, everyday I feel like I do this place a little injustice by doing the same things I've done the past 5 months. Work Monday through Friday, 9:30 am to 6 pm. Take the dog out on long walks in the morning and the afternoon. Enjoy great food at restaurants we've never eaten at - and possibly may never eat at again. It's like graduating all over again. You do everything in your power to hold on to that last little bit of time - you write out your memories hoping to relive them through your words and take pictures to remind yourself what it looked like - but the whole time you're trying to hold on, to create more memories, it just goes that much faster. I honestly think I might cry when I leave this place - having to return home after seeing what a beautiful part of this country has to offer.

I've already talked to the wife about coming out here maybe 5 or 10 years from now for vacation. To see what's changed. What's different. Or what's still the same. But just like 6 months ago how I couldn't imagine what October would look like - here I sit not being able to imagine what 5 years from now will look like.

So, I'm a little depressed. But it's that sad type of smile that's on my face - to know that I was lucky to have the financial freedom to take a trip like this. And looking back on the last 5 months - everything was better than I ever expected it to be. Once again the beauty of being a pessimist (but leaning towards more of a realist).

Here I am. Continuing to count down. Times like these I wonder why I had ever wanted time to move faster. I could hear nothing better right now than we were staying for maybe another 2-3 months. But I know I'd just be fooling myself. Like the high school senior couple that's breaking up because one of them is going to college out of state. That one extra kiss will just make it that much more painful to go.

29 days starting tomorrow.

And then it's on the road again and back to a familiar gray.

This month is definitely going to be hard on me.