Retire Early Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler

In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Take the Cash

Billy Kaderli

I’ve been making mistakes that aren’t me.

I took a Lyft out to run errands and eat a quiet two-hour lunch. The list was done, so I called another car. Frank pulled up on time. A woman in an SUV wasn’t watching where she was driving, and Frank answered her in a strongly worded tongue. East Coast, I thought, before he said a word about it. He was a New Yorker.

Ten minutes is not long, but it was enough. We talked about the World Trade Center, where my corporate offices had been and where his brother had worked. His brother was off that day. Twenty-five years later, it is still the reference. Working in the brokerage business on the West Coast, and visiting those offices often, I grew to like New Yorkers—something about the harsh directness clicked with me. I dealt with our floor traders back then. Today I was dealing with Frank. He was genuine. You can hear that. He said, “Billy, there are two types of people in this world, good and bad.”

He stopped at my place. I gathered the food and the bags and slid out.

Inside, I put things away and sat down to write emails. The phone wasn’t on the desk. I figured I’d left it upstairs. I looked. It wasn’t there. I used Akaisha’s phone to call mine. It rang, but I couldn’t hear it anywhere in the house. My heart started up.

This is not a Billy problem. I don’t lose my phone. I got on the computer and reported it through Lyft. The app is built for exactly this, which should have been a comfort and wasn’t. They reached Frank. I waited with my fingers crossed.

He found it on the floor of the car. It must have worked out of my pocket while I was scooting across the seat. Then he called the other number I’d left. Thank you, Akaisha, for giving me your phone. Frank said he had it and told me he’d bring it in the morning.

The relief was real. So was the stress still sitting in my body. Off the charts, and out of character. Apparently I am not the first person to do this.

Frank did bring it. I tried to pay him for the trouble. He refused. I said, “Frank, you’re a New Yorker. Take the cash.” He took it and left.

Lesson learned. From now on the phone stays tethered when I am outside.

Billy

Retire Early Lifestyle appeals to a different kind of person – the person who prizes their independence, values their time, and who doesn’t want to mindlessly follow the crowd.

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