freedom is scary

phase 1: get money.
phase 2: build.
phase 3: victory points.

We've got a lot of freedom in our life right now. Almost a terrifying amount, in some ways. Benjamin is getting older and much more capable. Legacy is floating along nicely. We're starting to talk about where to buy a house, and what we want our days to look like.

I don't think it's quite castle time yet, for a couple reasons. One, we don't really have enough money to support full-time construction-kind of activities, and the stress that would create is not worth it. Two, the kid is not really going to be safe around an active construction site, for a few more years. And we might have another kid? So, maybe we put off the active construction lifestyle for bit.

But otherwise, we have a ridiculous amount of freedom. As long as we can bring in a bit of money here or there, we can pretty much do what we want with our days. So, we're working on figuring out what that means. Travel? Treehouse Village? Other projects?

Seriously if anyone wants to pitch a project, this is a good time for it. The thing I miss the most these days is working with other people, my friends in particular. I'd kindof love to take on a project for someone, report progress, get feedback, all that good stuff. For now Legacy still has to come first, but let me know if you have an idea, and we could start estimating and planning at least.

What else. We've also been getting interested in effective altruism, and we did a big year-end charity spend this year, which is something that I always thought rich people did to get tax write-offs and feel good about themselves. Turns out it works great.

On those lines I've been reading a lot about macro economics, global development, and the way the world works. It's pretty crazy. One insight is that the human world has been getting much, much better over the past several decades, and it seems like the trend can continue. Climate change is a real challenge, but a solvable one, and the human world seems to be getting its shit together overall. I'm not calling the end of history, politics, tragedy, or any of that, but I think it's a pretty great time to be alive, compared with any time that's come before.

That's the dream, anyway. :-) Happy new year!