Hello and welcome back to Mortgage Advisor on FIRE. This week, I discuss our FI Bucket Lists. Also, things guaranteed to wind me up, and some crazy gains over the last few weeks.
Weekly Update
Last week, I mentioned that we’d been on a long walk with a good friend from university. On that walk, I was bitten more than a hundred times by insects. At the time I didn’t feel anything, but was the walk came to an end, I could see the little red marks on my legs. That night, and for the next few days, my legs were itching like crazy, and the bites looked pretty gross.
On Monday, we went for another walk, but a bit more chilled out and not for six hours in the Peak District. We went to Norfolk Park for the fair, but it wasn’t our scene, so we walked on a little more and stopped at our favourite Mexican for a little bite to eat.
The working week was pretty hectic as it was the last few working days until the end of the month, but it meant the days passed by quickly. Since I started this new job, I’ve found that the weeks are going by insanely fast, but maybe it’s not the job and it’s just the fact that I’m getting older.
Saturday was a great day and very tiring. Oana loves to cycle and has wanted me to join her for a bike ride for ages. I agreed to go this Saturday and really enjoyed it. I rented a bike from a place near us and we rode along the canal towards Meadowhall with a few little detours before heading back along the Five Weirs Walk. I’ve never struggled for leg strength or stamina, but, and there’s no other way to say this, sitting on a bike for a few hours hurts my ass.
I think I’ll get my own bike in the coming weeks, or maybe wait until next spring, as I enjoyed the ride much more than I expected to.
When we dropped the bike off, we went to Tesco, but something strange happened. Maybe ten or fifteen minutes after getting off the bike, I had a searing pain in my right hip. It was severe enough that I couldn’t walk because trying to take a single step felt like someone was twisting a screwdriver inside my hip joint. A few minutes later, it was gone, and I’ve felt fine since.
After we dropped our shopping off and freshened up, we went out for some lunch at our favourite fried chicken place and then had a look around Waterstones. It was a nice day with Oana, and it felt like a little preview of FI living.
The Petty Things That Annoy Me (And Probably Shouldn’t)
I like to think of myself as fairly laid-back. I don’t go looking for arguments, I don’t flip tables when the Wi-Fi drops for five minutes, and I’ve made peace with the fact that I’ll never find a comfortable pair of jeans. But every so often, one of life’s tiny annoyances sneaks in and pokes my brain like a toddler with a stick.
Here are some of the things that irrationally wind me up:
“Should of” instead of “should have.”
This one feels like a personal attack on the English language. Every time I read “I could of gone”, I hear the distant cry of a grammar teacher giving up on life. In an unrelated internet argument, I picked someone up on their abuse of the English language; stop, it’s already dead. They replied that language evolves, and it’s my fault for not understanding their dialect. Well, I’m sorry, Anonymous Participant (yeah, they were arguing anonymously), but “illiterate” is not a dialect.
Americans calling pasta “noodles.”
Look, I get it. Different cultures, different words. But there’s something deeply wrong about describing a carefully crafted Italian dish as “noodles with red sauce.” That’s not noodles. That’s pasta. Noodles live in a pot with dehydrated vegetables and regret.
People who say “like” before every statement.
“So, like, I was, like, walking down the street, and, like, this dog, like, barked at me…” By the end of the sentence, I’ve aged 40 years, and the dog has graduated from university at Barker’s College.
The misuse of “literally.”
You didn’t literally explode with excitement. If you had, we’d all be wearing hazmat suits right now. Unless you actually burst into flames at my savage retort, you didn’t “literally die of laughter.” If you’re still here telling this story, you didn’t “literally die of embarrassment.”
People blocking train or lift doors.
You know the ones. They plant themselves right in front of the doors like Gandalf shouting, “YOU SHALL NOT PASS” while an entire carriage of commuters tries to squeeze past them.
Clapping when the plane lands.
I know it’s meant to be celebratory, but it always feels odd. Nobody claps when the bus driver doesn’t crash. When people do this, I’m just left thinking, “Congratulations, you survived sitting down for a few hours whilst someone else did all the work.” Actually, now that I think about it, I might have been too harsh with this if you were flying Boeing. Yeah, if you survive a Boeing flight, clap all you want.
Pretentious food posts.
I’m all for a nice food pic, but when someone writes “that hit different” under a photo of a beige plate of lasagne, I can’t help but roll my eyes. It’s dinner, not a spiritual awakening.
Now, do I lose actual sleep over any of these things? Of course not. But do I quietly mutter under my breath every time I see “should of”? Absolutely. Life is full of big problems, but these are just the silly little ones that make the world feel like a sitcom.
Oana’s New Job
So, Oana starts her new job on Monday but there’s a problem. Her desk and chair have been claimed by someone else:
Diabetes UK Step Challenge – Update
If you want to stay up to date with my progress or donate to the cause, please check out my JustGiving page:
https://step.diabetes.org.uk/fundraising/davids-fundraising-page1055
I am now well over the million-step threshold and in a good position as I get ready for the final month of the challenge.
What I’m Doing
Listening: The Future of Geography by Tim Marshall.
Watching: Better Call Saul (Netflix).
Reading: Mickey 7
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Financial Update
Assets
Premium Bonds: £21,000.00.
Stocks and Shares ISA: £119,820.10.
Fuck It Fund: £0.00.
Pensions: £102,112.17.
Residential Property Value: £239,368.00.
Total Assets: £482,300.27.
Debts
Residential Mortgage: £177,351.78.
Total Debts: £177,351.78.
Total Wealth: £304,948.49.
I’ll tell you what’s insane: twenty weeks ago, my total wealth was £265,334.22. That’s an incredible increase from then until now. Next week, Oana starts her new job, and with us back to being a two-income household, we’ll be able to invest more heavily once again.
Our FI Bucket Lists: Dreaming Beyond the Numbers
When I first discovered Financial Independence, it was all about the numbers. Spreadsheets, savings rates, compound interest; all the mechanics of getting to a point where work becomes optional. But over time, I’ve realised FI isn’t really about the money at all. It’s about what money makes possible. It’s about having the freedom to spend time the way you want, to chase experiences that feel meaningful, and to finally bring long-held dreams to life.
That’s why Oana and I have started to think more about our FI bucket lists; the big and small things we’d love to do once we have complete freedom of time. Some are realistic, some are wildly ambitious, but all of them inspire us to keep going on the FI path.
My FI Bucket List
Sail the world.
An around-the-world cruise has been on my mind for years. Waking up to new horizons, new cultures, and endless ocean views feels like the perfect way to celebrate a life built with intention. When people say they don’t know what they’d do with their time if they retired, I’m often left speechless. There’s a whole world out there to explore.
A winter on the Norwegian fjords.
I picture a cabin nestled in the snow, looking out over icy waters. There’s a sense of stillness and silence that comes with a landscape under snow. A nice cabin, with plenty of books, coffee, and Lego. I think Oana and I would enjoy this.
Write, and finish, a book.
I’ve had more ideas than I can count. FI means the time and focus to finally see one through, from the first rough draft to holding a finished book in my hands. I’ve got several ideas at various stages of completion. The problem is finding enough quality time where I’m not mentally exhausted.
Witness the Northern Lights.
To stand under a sky alive with shifting colours would be nothing short of magical. There’s something about the idea of watching the solar wind smashing into our magnetic field that brings space to life.
See the Milky Way in its full glory.
Away from light pollution, tracing the arc of our galaxy across a dark sky. A reminder of just how vast our universe is, and that our vast galaxy is just one amongst billions of others.
Visit space.
This one may be a stretch, but even the possibility is exciting. To look back at Earth from orbit would be the ultimate reminder of how fragile and precious life is. Space tourism is something that could become affordable for many people in the coming decades. I’d love to experience it, even if it’s just for a few minutes.
Oana’s FI Bucket List
Oana’s dreams blend adventure with creativity, learning, and a deep love of animals. Her vision of FI is full of exploration, but also rooted in joy from the simple, everyday things.
Homes across seasons.
A summer retreat in Norway, a winter home in Malta, and a base in Brașov, Romania. Living with the rhythm of the seasons, and enjoying the best of each. Almost like a digital nomad.
Extended travel.
Spending months, not weeks, exploring South Africa and Mexico, wandering through Japan and South Korea, and immersing in the landscapes of Iceland and Greenland. There’s a difference between visiting somewhere briefly as a tourist and experiencing life there as a resident.
A round-the-world cruise.
Not a quick trip, but the full experience, however long it takes, embracing the journey in its entirety.
Learning for joy.
Courses in botany, animal psychology, basic survival skills, languages like Spanish, Portuguese, and Japanese, even exploring crafts and online business. FI as a chance to become a lifelong student. Not using FI as an excuse to stop working, but as a foundation to work on what interests her.
Simple skills and adventures.
Learning to knit and sew, upgrading her bike, going camping in the Peak District, and hiking across the Lake District and beyond.
A home full of pets.
Perhaps most importantly, a life surrounded by cats and dogs, a dream of happiness measured in paws and wagging tails.
What strikes me about our lists is how they balance each other. Mine leans toward the cosmic and the extraordinary, while Oana’s celebrates both the vastness of the world and the joy of everyday learning and companionship. Together, they form a vision of FI that feels rich, varied, and deeply personal.
These aren’t just daydreams. They’re the compass points guiding us on our journey and reminders that every saving decision, every step forward, is about creating the freedom to live fully.
So that’s our FI bucket list. Now we’d love to hear yours: if time and money were no object, what dreams would you want to bring to life?
DISCLAIMER
The views and opinions in this blog are my own, and do not represent the views or opinions of my former, current, or future employers, nor should they be considered advice.
If you want personalised financial advice, seek an appropriate professional. If you are in financial difficulty, seek advice via the resources below:
Biolink
You can now find all my social media pages by checking out my Biolink:
bio.link/davidscothern.
Hear you on ‘should of’, but also ‘looser’ instead of ‘loser’.
Agree that pasta and noodles are not the same but disagree that noodles “live in a pot with dehydrated vegetables and regret” – that’s just Pot Noodle! I love making my own ramen or rice noodle dishes.
Sadly, I listened to a recording of myself recently and I have been struck by the ‘like’ disease. At least I don’t talk as if every sentence is a question…