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How We Left To Go Cruising At 30 & What We Left Behind

One of the biggest questions we’ve been asked through the past few years, always without fail, is “How are you two affording to do this at such a young age?”. Considering that yes, we did quit our jobs back in 2012, threw off our bow lines and haven’t really looked back since….I can see how this question may pop up a lot.  Especially since we’ve now been sitting in a marina for the past two years remodeling a boat.  Not the cheapest of projects, one can imagine.

I’ll answer you straight away that we are not trust fund babies.  We never received sums of money from our families; and as much as I would still like for this to happen, we have not won the lottery either. Granted, your chances of winning are better if you actually play, but I can still dream that someone will show up on my doorstep one day with big bags full of money.

Nope, we got here the old fashioned way.  Through lots of hard work, sacrifices, and good decisions.  The money we saved up before traveling won’t last us forever; in fact we’ll be looking to work again come this summer or fall to fill our cruising kitty. But, we do get asked enough how we were even able to start in the first place that we thought we’d lay it all out for you in this week’s episode.

Enjoy!

Thank you SO MUCH to our Patrons. These charitable souls help keep us in the work yard, our camera equipment up to date, and the videos coming. To join the Patreon ranks, please visit http://www.patreon.com/mjsailing

Thank you!,
Matt & Jessica

Sail Loot Podcast: http://www.sailloot.com/sail-loot-pod…

Jessica’s World Beer Tour: https://www.mjsailing.com/about-us/jessica…

Music:
Spoiled Kids – Daniel Kadawatha
Two Weeks – Grizzly Bear
Ember of Red – Adam Yoo
Soul Catalyst – Solstice
Warm – Joey Pecoraro
Blueshift – Catas & Kasger

Camera equipment used:
– Sony NEX 5T - http://amzn.to/2glc9zG
– Sony Cybershot DSC-T77 - http://amzn.to/2hYYrTY

Editing software: Windows Movie Maker

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/mjsailing

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/mattandjessicasailing/

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It’s All About Money: Sail Loot Podcast

Monday July 13, 2015

I’d have to say that about 70% of the emails we get in our inbox have something to do with money, including questions like how to make a million pounds. Â It may not be the sole subject of the email, but it usually comes up one way or another. Â “How do you afford this; What did you do to save; What does it cost to maintain this lifestyle”. Â We don’t mind these questions, in fact we usually openly talk about our money. Â Through our Cost of Cruising pages you can find out what we spend each month and year and where all of our money goes.

To take it one step further though and find out everything there is to know about us and money; starting from the beginning and going up until now, we were contacted by Teddy at Sail Loot to participate in a podcast talking about this subject. We talked about absolutely everything from when we bought our first boat, how we outfitted Serendipity to cruise, what gets covered in our monthly expenses, and how we try to save where we can.  If you’ve ever had a money related question for us, chances are it’s been answered in this interview.

Keep reading to see how our interview appeared on the Sail Loot website, including the podcast.  If you’d like to see the full thing on their site as well as check out more links relating to the discussion, make sure to check out the original post here. For even more podcast from other great cruisers talking about their finances, make sure to check out Sail Loot’s home page.

Thank you so much Teddy for taking the time to interview us, it was a pleasure talking with you!

Matt & Jessica The Baths

“Matt and Jessica decided that it was time to get off the couch and start experiencing life. How they would experience life was the first question. When they decided that sailing was the answer, all they had to do was learn how to sail, find a boat, and figure out how to find their sailing money. Easy enough, right?

They ended up taking some sailing lessons, and getting some sailing practice for about 2 years on Muskegon Lake and Lake Michigan. Their sailing money came with a lot of hard work, some downsizing (of their possessions and their activities), and some budgeting to make sure that they wouldn’t blow through their cruising kitty while sailing across oceans.

Matt and Jessica started with a little bit of money saved up, “normal” jobs, and a dream. They took off with enough sailing money in the bank to cruise for about 4 to 5 years if they stuck to their budget. Enjoy listening to this episode of the Sail Loot Podcast for all of the details!”

A Few Things You’ll Learn About Matt and Jessica, MJ Sailing, and their Sailing Money In This Episode:

  • Their Hunter 240, their first trailerable sailboat.
  • Their jobs on land prior to taking off cruising.
  • How much they paid for all of their sailboats.
  • Their cruising budget.
  • How big their crusing kitty was before they left. You know, this directly relates to how long they planned on cruisng.
  • Where they’ve sailed so far.
  • Crossing the Atlantic…twice within the span of a year.
  • The Re-fit of their new sailboat, Daze Off (the current name).
  • Matt’s hobby.
  • Where they’re living while they re-fit Daze Off
  • How Matt and Jessica keep a low-cost lifestyle.
  • Going the “wrong way” around the Caribbean.
  • Jessica’s sailing money and frugal cruising tips.
  • And Much More!

Kimberly Joy lifestyle photo

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Daze Off 2