Dispatches about early retirement, living abroad, and working for yourself.https://iquitmy.com/https://iquitmy.com/blog/why-i-ignored-the-4-rule-and-retired-at-43-anyway/https://iquitmy.com/blog/why-i-ignored-the-4-rule-and-retired-at-43-anyway/The 4% rule is gospel in early retirement circles. Pull 4% from your nest egg annually, the orthodoxy goes, and your money will last forever. Or at least thirty years, which is close enough for most spreadsheets. I ignored it completely. Not because I'm reckless with money — quite the opposite. I spent fifteen years as a corporate finance guy, building models that predicted quarterly earnings to the penny. I know how math works. I also know how life works, and life doesn't follow withdrawal raSun, 12 Apr 2026 21:49:53 GMTretirehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/i-spent-18-months-tracking-every-peso-in-san-miguel-heres-wh-2/https://iquitmy.com/blog/i-spent-18-months-tracking-every-peso-in-san-miguel-heres-wh-2/My spreadsheet has 547 rows. Eighteen months of tracking every peso spent in San Miguel de Allende, from the fifty-peso tip to the woman who waters our plants to the 28,000-peso quarterly property tax bill. Every café cortado, every Uber to the doctor, every bottle of mezcal bought for friends who visit from the States. Why track it all? Because "Mexico is cheap" tells you nothing. Because expat Facebook groups are full of people arguing whether you need $1,200 or $3,000 per month, and nobody Sat, 11 Apr 2026 15:16:38 GMTretirehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/i-spent-18-months-tracking-every-peso-in-san-miguel-heres-wh/https://iquitmy.com/blog/i-spent-18-months-tracking-every-peso-in-san-miguel-heres-wh/My spreadsheet has 547 rows. Eighteen months of tracking every peso spent in San Miguel de Allende, from the fifty-peso tip to the woman who waters our plants to the 28,000-peso quarterly property tax bill. Every café cortado, every Uber to the doctor, every bottle of mezcal bought for friends who visit from the States. Why track it all? Because "Mexico is cheap" tells you nothing. Because expat Facebook groups are full of people arguing whether you need $1,200 or $3,000 per month, and nobody Sat, 11 Apr 2026 15:14:17 GMTretirehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/the-fire-spreadsheet-that-finally-made-sense-to-me/https://iquitmy.com/blog/the-fire-spreadsheet-that-finally-made-sense-to-me/The simple 5-input FIRE spreadsheet that actually worked — from corporate burnout to early retirement in Mexico. Real numbers, honest math, no fantasy budgets.Tue, 24 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTretirehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/mexicos-new-expat-reality-what-changed-in-2026/https://iquitmy.com/blog/mexicos-new-expat-reality-what-changed-in-2026/Mexico doubled expat visa requirements in 2026. From San Miguel de Allende, what the new rules mean for American retirees and digital nomads planning to move south.Thu, 19 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTlivehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/first-month-in-san-miguel/https://iquitmy.com/blog/first-month-in-san-miguel/The weather is impossible, the Jardín never sleeps, and I haven't driven a car in three weeks. A first-month field report from San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTlivehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/the-math-that-changed-everything/https://iquitmy.com/blog/the-math-that-changed-everything/How a simple spreadsheet at 2 AM convinced me that working until 65 was optional — and kind of insane.Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTretirehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/building-a-business-in-your-boxers/https://iquitmy.com/blog/building-a-business-in-your-boxers/Everything I learned about making money on the internet without a commute, a boss, or real pants. From first client to consistent revenue in Mexico.Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTworkhttps://iquitmy.com/blog/the-bureaucracy-dispatch/https://iquitmy.com/blog/the-bureaucracy-dispatch/Getting a temporary resident visa requires eleven documents, three government offices, and the spiritual fortitude of someone who has accepted that mañana is a philosophy.Thu, 12 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTlivehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/the-client-pipeline-nobody-teaches-you/https://iquitmy.com/blog/the-client-pipeline-nobody-teaches-you/Everyone tells you to 'start freelancing.' Nobody tells you where the first five clients come from or why the sixth one almost made you quit.Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTworkhttps://iquitmy.com/blog/the-four-percent-rule-is-a-guess/https://iquitmy.com/blog/the-four-percent-rule-is-a-guess/Everyone in the FIRE community treats it like scripture. It's actually a back-of-the-envelope calculation from 1994. Here's why I use it anyway.Sun, 08 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTretirehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/what-2100-buys-you-in-san-miguel/https://iquitmy.com/blog/what-2100-buys-you-in-san-miguel/Every line item, every category, every 'wait, that's how much?' moment — the full monthly budget for a family of three.Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTlivehttps://iquitmy.com/blog/what-id-tell-my-25-year-old-self/https://iquitmy.com/blog/what-id-tell-my-25-year-old-self/I wouldn't tell him to invest in index funds. He already knew that. I'd tell him about the three invisible expenses stealing a decade of his freedom.Tue, 03 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTretire