Interests:

Retired in 2007 at age 56. Spent months traveling, camping, hiking, biking all over U.S. and Canada. I enjoy reading about and planning trips to historic sites, living history museums, hiking trails, national parks, bike trails, etc. When home, do a great deal of gardening, primarily flowers as the traveling makes it difficult to have a vegetable garden. I was able to early retire after 30 years of planning for it. Started saving money with first paycheck out of college, super-informed consumer, practiced frugality all my adult life, slowly learned about investing, stock markets, economics and socio-political issues affecting economies. I continued my education going to night school, changing careers, and continually updating my skills. Live solely on investments and treat investing as a part time job spending a couple of hours a day reading investment information, economics, and markets all over the world. Cannot understand why so many people couldn't be bothered to handle their own personal finances, or take any interest in them at all, and now find themselves in such dire straits after a lifetime of purchasing housing, autos, and 'things' far beyond their needs

Music:

Music by dead people. Jazz (primarily big-band swing such as the Duke, the Count, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller), symphonic (primarily modern such as Stravinsky, Vaughn Williams). Never cared much about lyrics or singers ---- enjoy pure instrumental

Movies:

Primarily watch films rented through Netflix. All English detective series (Morse, Poirot, Frost, Maigret, Holmes, Inspector Alleyn, Midsomer Murders plus American film noir) and 100's of foreign films (primarily German, French, Australian, and a smattering of Polish, Japanese). Films are anywhere from the 40's to present. Almost never see a current film. See films years later

Books:

Almost exclusively "old school" science fiction. Heinlien, Simak, Clarke, Norton and many others. I read strictly for 'escapism', not for information

Television:

All CSI's. Most TV is watched for economic and political news (CNBC, CNN, PBS). I find most TV to be inane (and that's a kind word)