I guess "independence" is in the eye of the beholder. Working 1-2 weeks out of 4 and sailing around sounds like a pretty nice level of independence for someone

I guess "independence" is in the eye of the beholder. Working 1-2 weeks out of 4 and sailing around sounds like a pretty nice level of independence for someone like me. If your idea of independence is to never have to work a day of your life ever again if you choose not to, it sounds like the solution would be to "work more" in the near term. It sounds like you're a pretty bright fellow and when you do work, your services are highly valued. The more you work, the higher your odds of "getting lucky" are.