This is what I ended up with for my #Thinkpad X230T #Gentoo re-install.

Decided NOT to go with the global `~amd64` flag this time due to the low power of this machine and not wanting to build packages as often (even with distcc mesh). I appreciate everyone's responses and put a lot of thought into it. If this was a more "modern" machine I would def give the global flag a shot again.

I am very happy with this setup for now and felt good to get back into using and learning Gentoo