Secret? In a word: simplicity. No wife and/or family, small house that I built myself with no running water(saves on property taxes). I've only ever been in debt for two things - my 5 acres here and my plane, and neither for more than a few months. Being in debt is the scariest thing in life to me. I drive old cars until they emit their final dying gasp then rebuild them and keep on going. Until I bought my 2001 Ford Escape in 2005 I had only spent, in my entire 55 yrs of life, $5200 buying 3 cars. The most expensive one was a 1969 Bronco purchased in 1989 for the kingly sum of $2500... and I still have it outside with snow plow on it and it runs like a Swiss watch. Can anyone beat that? Mostly I just "do without" many many things that most people consider absolutely essential. Look around you.... you'd be amazed at what you can do without and still be content.
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