Author: Wanderer
Reader Case: From Cancer Survivor to FIRE
It’s been a while since I’ve done a reader case, so I thought I’d grab one from the ol’ inbox. So here we go! Dear Kristy & Bryce, Firstly- thank you so much for all you do! I have been reading your blog, then book for years and have been quietly inspired. So my story is a little unusual, and I’d love your thoughts (I know, not advice!)… I started on the FI/RE pathway 10 years ago, as a Kiwi living in London who stumbled upon The School of Life (who knew it was a real place? Opened by philosophers […]
The FIRE Guide to America’s Health Care System (2026)
The most common question I get when being interviewed about FIRE is “What about health care?” It’s a big, scary question. Health care costs in America, if not managed properly, can easily run into tens of thousands of dollars per year, and that can really screw over someone’s FIRE plan. So we have to deal with it, but at the same time, the reason why it’s so difficult is that the game keeps changing. Health care is a political football, and the answer to the question “How much do I need to save for health care?” varies wildly depending on […]
Planting Your Money Trees
Becoming a parent has turned me into an involuntary firefighter. I don’t get a cool hat, or get to drive a big red truck, but I do get woken up in the middle of the night to deal with pee-soaked bedsheets, or having to deal with a mid-day meltdown in the middle of the grocery store, or hearing the sound of glass shattering as another dish gets broken. I used to be able to leisurely stroll to a coffee shop or library and just sit there for hours, uninterrupted, typing away on my laptop. Those days are over. Now, there […]
The New World (Trading) Order
Before we begin, let me just say that the world has been watching with horror at the events unfolding in Minneapolis. The killing of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal agents was terrifying to watch, and I never thought I’d see anything like it happen in a developed country, let alone the United States. But amazingly, far from being cowed into submission, the people have organized, especially in Minneapolis, with volunteers and everyday citizens taking to the streets to document the activities of ICE agents, blowing whistles to warn their fellow residents of approaching danger, and helping to support […]
Questrade’s 4% Cash Back Offer
FIRECracker and I have been using Questrade as our brokerage for many years now and for most of that time, it’s been the undisputed king of the Canadian discount brokerage market. That being said, we’ve also watched the rise of upstart Toronto-based fintech WealthSimple with much interest. They started off as a slick robo-advisor platform and have since branched out to tax software, crypto, and now DIY investing. This expansion has been driven by two strategies: Aggressive cutting of trading commissions/fees on their self-directed investing platform and generous transfer offers to entice people over to come over to their platform. […]
