Partners in Fire’s Story

Partners in Fire is a financial independence and lifestyle blog, with a huge emphasis on the lifestyle part. In fact, our main focus is to embody the spirit of financial independence, rather than the technical aspects of it. That means we focus on the whys of financial independence – freedom, passion, and building the life of our dreams. We do address some of the technical stuff as well – saving money, side hustles, and personal finance in general – everyone loves a good how to post every now and then, right?

But our main focus is the human side of financial independence. Why has the movement garnered so much attention lately? What would you do with your life if you weren’t a slave to your paycheck? How can you achieve the life of your dreams – with or without a traditional job? Those are the questions that Partners in Fire strives to answer. We write about finances as it applies to real life – which can be messy and hard and painful. But at the same time, it can be inspiring, exciting, and joyful. Partners in Fire covers it all.

Why Partners in Fire?

Partners in Fire might seem to be an odd name. Does it mean I have a life partner and we are together in this journey towards financial independence? Well, it did start that way, quite some time ago. But the name was never really about my relationship status (or lack thereof). It’s really about everyone partnering together to achieve financial independence. All of my wonderful readers are my Partners in Fire. We are all striving for financial independence (or stability, or whatever it is that you are after – all are welcome here!) together, supporting each other and building each other up along the way. We are all Partners.

About the Author

Melanie is an older Millennial who decided that she’s over pursuing the “traditional” life that society told her she wanted.  Her current goal is to quit her job in January of 2021 and start living the life of her dreams. That’s so open ended – but there is so much of life to explore! Studying anthropology, teaching in foreign countries, living the RV lifestyle, and joining the Renaissance Faire are all very real possibilities!

Melanie has dreamed of quitting her job and traveling the world for many years. It was only in 2015, when she came across the Financial Independence forum on Reddit, that she realized it was a possibility.  In 2016 she decided to move away from the crazy expensive metropolis of Los Angeles and truly begin her quest for FI/RE.

No change is immediate. It took a bit of time to find a job transfer to a lower cost area, and took some more time to move. But finally, in the summer of 2017, Melanie found a job transfer, sold her house, and moved across the country to Savannah, Ga!

Alas, living in Savannah was not meant to be. At the end of 2018, Melanie was offered an amazing job opportunity in the middle of nowhere, Pennsylvania. The cost of living in that area is incredibly low, and she was able to buy a house straight up (though it did cost most of her cash reserves). Now, she’s living mortgage free in rural Pennsylvania, working hard to rebuild the cash savings and opt out of the system!

Why FI/RE?

Why the emphasis on financial independence? Why not just write about personal finance as it relates to life? The simple answer is that Melanie is striving for financial independence. She values freedom, and is striving to achieve it. But she also values living. She wants to enjoy every second of her life, and being tied to a job makes that difficult.

 It’s not that she doesn’t want to work – she just doesn’t want to be tied to a job. She wants to travel, write, create art, and gain more knowledge of the world. In short, she wants to spend all of her time following her passions, and she wants you to be able to do the same!

How is She Going to Achieve FI/RE?

Melanie has plans! Moving to a lower cost of living area helped (and moving someplace even cheaper helped more – Geoarbitrage for the win!) But there are tons of other things that she is working on, including this blog.  She is working on generating multiple income streams – blogging, reselling, and designing t-shirts to name a few. She’s also focusing on generating income through investments – real estate, stocks, and even peer to peer lending.

Generating income is only half the battle though. The other half is living intentionally, sticking to a budget, saving money, and paying off debt. It’s not always easy to make the hard choice to eat at home or not go shopping, but Melanie knows that those small sacrifices are more than worthwhile for the long-term goal. Overall, she is just going to be smart about all of her money choices. Follow along with her journey by subscribing to Partners in Fire today!

A Balanced Life

It isn’t all about saving and scrimping and sacrificing though. Life is meant to be lived! Heck, that’s the whole reason for pursuing financial independence in the first place! So, although Melanie is going to be intentional with her spending, she’s not going to be a cheapskate. She will spend money on the things that add value to her life, like traveling and spending time with friends. After all, the spirit of financial independence isn’t about limiting yourself – it’s about finding ways to live an amazing life! Partner with us and live your own amazing life!