~~Towards Barista FIRE~~

When I was younger, I used to think traveling was a waste of money, not because I hated traveling.  It was simply how I grew up.  I came from a single-income family in Malaysia.  My father was the sole breadwinner.  My mother was a full-time homemaker taking care of my brother and myself, and also caring for my father’s elderly parents.  Money always had to be used carefully. There was no concept of luxury holidays in my childhood.  No yearly overseas trips.  No airport excitement during school holidays.  No “family vacation” culture like what many middle-class families experience today. On top of financial limitations, my paternal grandmother was afraid of taking flights due to motion sickness.  Therefore, my family never travelled overseas together throughout my childhood and teenage years.  To me, traveling simply did not feel like a normal part of life. Growing up in that environment shaped how I viewed money very strongly.  ...

This is my fourth trip travelling out of ASEAN region, where I have to plan every bit of the itinerary myself (the first was back in May 2024 where me and my mum travelled together to  Japan , the second was back in November 2024 where me and my mum travelled together to  Hangzhou and Suzhou in China, and the third was back in November 2025 where me and my mum travelled together to ZhangJiaJie and Guangzhou in China).  With these prior experiences, I am less concerned and worried about what to plan for our itinerary this time round, as I would have roughly known what my mum would like to experience, and hence what to include and what to exclude in the planning.  This is the first time we are travelling during peak season to see cherry blossoms, thus it will be a trip highly dependent on luck to see if we get lucky to view full bloom.  In addition, this is also the first time we get to experience Singapore Airlines Business Class travel for single trip, which i...

There are some journeys in life that feel extra special, not just because of the destination, but because of the experience along the way.  This upcoming trip to South Korea with my mum is exactly that.  Not only are we looking forward to the beautiful scenery (praying hard for cherry blossom views), food, and moments together, but this trip also marks our very first time (and quite possibly our last one) flying Singapore Airlines Business Class. What makes it even more meaningful is that this was not something I casually booked.  It took careful planning, miles accumulation , and a bit of strategy.  I got to say I am not a great miles player, as my miles accumulation journey was far from optimized, and thus resulted quite a bit in lifestyle inflation.  Thus I decided to end the accumulation phase earlier, and in the end, I only managed to accumulate and hence redeem enough miles for a one-way Business Class flight from Singapore to Seoul for both of us.  ...

One of the biggest perks of blogging is I can easily look back at previous posts and compare which are the goals I have successfully achieved and which has fallen behind.  In this first post of 2026, I will like to reflect upon 2025, and compare with what I had written in this  post  one year ago to assess my achievements. 1)     Liquidating My US Growth Portfolio This has been a huge debate with myself this year, whether I should continue investing in US Growth stocks, or liquidate the portfolio to pay off my Malaysia mortgage loan.  In the end, I chose the latter, and enjoy the peace of mind and positive cashflow with my finances in Malaysia.  I know I may miss out the huge upside (and facts has shown that), but I am not regretting what I am missing out, instead I am cherishing and looking forward to a slower pace of life next year, with lesser financial stress from the mortgage debts that I have. Will I restart and rebuild this US Growth P...

In a previous post, I discussed about budgeting and controlling expenses, and one important step in budgeting is savings.  Saving money does not have to feel like a chore.  In fact, with the right methods, it can become surprisingly addictive, just like a personal challenge one can look forward to daily.  Below is a list of 15 creative, practical, and beginner-friendly saving strategies that can suitably cater to students, working professionals, fresh graduates, or someone who always struggles to save.  There is always one method that is suitable for one's lifestyle. Savings can be flexible.  When income is higher, save more.  When money is tight, save less.  What truly matters is developing the habit of consistent, automatic saving, a habit that eventually gives one financial confidence and long-term security for investing and wealth building. 1)      The 30-Day Countdown Challenge A simple daily saving routine: Day 1 save SGD 30, ...

This is my third trip travelling out of ASEAN region, where I have to plan every bit of the itinerary myself (the first was back in May 2024 where me and my mum travelled together to  Japan , and the second was back in November 2024 where me and my mum travelled together to Hangzhou and Suzhou in China ).  With the prior experience from the China trip, I am less concerned and worried about what to plan for our itinerary this time round, as I would have roughly known what my mum would like to experience, and hence what to include and what to exclude in the planning.  In addition, I have learnt how to use Alipay and Amap one year ago, so all in all, this trip is less intimidating for me.  However, as we are going to the mountainous region this time, what worries me more is the weather conditions and the temperature differences between the morning, noon and evening time.  Being unpredictable, I could only overpack, as it is better to be over-prepared than under....