re: $55k Spinoff: Are you where you thought you'd be in life?

I'm way better off than I was 4-5 years ago. In 2009 I was in almost panic mode realizing the career I had (and kind of thought I'd always have) was not feasible for a man getting older and about to have my first kid. I mean, it was something that paid very well, but I no longer wanted to do it.

I basically started over and just invested most of the money my wife and I had saved on a new career and the education that it required. I'll never make the kind of money I once did, but now it's enough to raise a family and live the kind of life I always wanted (where I get to be home and relatively safe)I'm virtually debt free now (mostly because I was blessed with a nice nest egg) and it turned out to be the best decision ever with awesome job security. So to answer the question, I'm finally where I should be, and maybe a little bit ahead of schedule vs 5 years ago. vs 10 years ago, I'll just say it's a way different and less adventurous path than I ever imagined.