My wife just passed her 65th birthday, an occasion that was marked by a three fold increase in the volume of those ads for supplemental medicare insurance. I'm seeing a similar increase e in the number of offers for both funeral and long-term care insurance. Just for the heck of it I collected the mailers for a two week period. 23 pieces of mail.
Now, it's nice to think these companies have my best interests at heart. Unfortunately, I think it's their bank accounts that they are concerned about. How so you might ask? Well, once I'm gone they won't be able to get any more of my money so they have to try for that last grab.
These companies, while trying to make a buck, do present a picture of what we can look forward to. Our generation (the Boomers) have taken care of our parents as they aged. Advances in medicine gave way to longer lives although the quality of life wasn't always the best. We stepped in and took care of mom and dad. Many of us still provide for our children. Caught in the economy a large number of them moved back in or, in some cases, never flew the nest.
I'm not sure what my future will be when I hit 70; that's 11 years off. I have told my kids that I'll hang around long enough to live off them for a while, sort of returning the favor. My daughter tells me that I'll be in a high chair, wearing diapers, and she'll be feeding me strained peas and carrots. (what a horrible concoction - did we really feed that to our kids?).
That's enough whining for now. Time to bundle those ads up with the newspapers and drop them off at the recycle center.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Where oh where have my retirement plans gone?
It's partly cloudy today. Both the weather outside and my retirements plans. I spent most of Saturday night going over my investments, savings and insurance plans. The way I figure it, I am going to be fine for the first 8 years or so. From then on, well, I just don't know how long I'll be ok.
I'm focusing on what I can do when it comes to reducing what I'm spending on day-to-day purchases. Hopefully the utility bills are going to settle at some point (yeah, sure). And the cable provider is going to realize that I only watch 10 of the 450 channels they provide and will come up with a better pricing plan (note to self: don't hold breath waiting for this to happen). And coupon clipping? I've been an ardent clipper for most of my life; If I can't ave 20% of my bill then I'm having a bad day at the store.
Do you see a trend here? I'm focusing on the little things; items that I can easily manage.
With some forethought I save at least $300 a month by using coupons, getting my hair cut in a "barber shop" instead of a parlor and by walking to the bank instead of driving the 5 blocks. There's other things that go into this. I tend to buy generics once I've tried them and found they either taste or perform as good as the premium brands. I only buy a newspaper on Sundays (have to read the sports pages while enjoying that 2nd cup of coffee that I brew at home).
I'm comfortable with the investments, insurance and other pieces of my long term retirement plan. My biggest concern is that I'll have to give up some of the perks that I've come to enjoy. So, with that in mind, I've been working on a more frugal lifestyle than I'm used to. It's not going to be as shocking to my system when I finally walk away from a full time job and a regular paycheck.
I've learned, after a lot of trial and error, that you can manage the major events in your life. You can prepare for your retirement with careful investment strategies and strong financial planning. But, keep in mind that it's not the big stuff that'll get you; it's the little things.
Tine to go, I'm heading out to the day-old bakery store.
I'm focusing on what I can do when it comes to reducing what I'm spending on day-to-day purchases. Hopefully the utility bills are going to settle at some point (yeah, sure). And the cable provider is going to realize that I only watch 10 of the 450 channels they provide and will come up with a better pricing plan (note to self: don't hold breath waiting for this to happen). And coupon clipping? I've been an ardent clipper for most of my life; If I can't ave 20% of my bill then I'm having a bad day at the store.
Do you see a trend here? I'm focusing on the little things; items that I can easily manage.
With some forethought I save at least $300 a month by using coupons, getting my hair cut in a "barber shop" instead of a parlor and by walking to the bank instead of driving the 5 blocks. There's other things that go into this. I tend to buy generics once I've tried them and found they either taste or perform as good as the premium brands. I only buy a newspaper on Sundays (have to read the sports pages while enjoying that 2nd cup of coffee that I brew at home).
I'm comfortable with the investments, insurance and other pieces of my long term retirement plan. My biggest concern is that I'll have to give up some of the perks that I've come to enjoy. So, with that in mind, I've been working on a more frugal lifestyle than I'm used to. It's not going to be as shocking to my system when I finally walk away from a full time job and a regular paycheck.
I've learned, after a lot of trial and error, that you can manage the major events in your life. You can prepare for your retirement with careful investment strategies and strong financial planning. But, keep in mind that it's not the big stuff that'll get you; it's the little things.
Tine to go, I'm heading out to the day-old bakery store.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Reminiscing and War Stories
When I was much younger I would occasionally indulge in the age old practice of exchanging war stories in the office. We would stand around the office, coffee cups in hand and talk about this or that and "yeah, there was this time in .." and "back in the day I ...." or some other adventure would be passed along. In the past the coffee pot was preceded by the camp fire, the watering hole or some other gathering place.
Of course, back in the days when I participated in the war stories I was about the same age as the others. These days I'm usually older, by 20 or more years, than my workmates. They have the same communal story telling as we did 30 years ago. I find, however, that I tend to back away and not participate. And it's a reflection on how I feel about being the "old guy". I really don't want to be the old guy starting his stories "when I was a young whippersnapper...".
I remember the perception of the 'old guy' I had when younger. There was always one in every office, the resident old codger who would dispense advice or experiences on most any subject that came up. Frequently these stories would be adapted to fit special occasions or to get a certain point across. To be honest, I used to cringe when the old codger started.
And now I'm the old guy and I just freeze up when one of my peers tries to pull me into the story telling. I live in fear of becoming the old guy with the stories, the stereotypical old guy.
So, how do you handle the situation? How do you politely tell your coworkers that you don't want to participate in the story telling? In my situation, I can't walk away; I need to work with these guys. So I try to fight the temptation and say something line "Me? I won't bore you with war stories" and not "well, back in the day we'd ...". Most of the time it works fine and I'm not the old curmudgeon who passes judgment on people. Fortunatly for me, there is another guy who fills that role out.
Now, if you have tell those stories, if you just have to make a fool of yourself and put the rest of the boomers in a lurch just remember that no matter how bad your story is, no matter mow many miles of ice and snow you had to walk through to get to school, there is always someone else who can top that one. Oh, one more thing, no one really listens to the old guy's stories anyway.
Of course, back in the days when I participated in the war stories I was about the same age as the others. These days I'm usually older, by 20 or more years, than my workmates. They have the same communal story telling as we did 30 years ago. I find, however, that I tend to back away and not participate. And it's a reflection on how I feel about being the "old guy". I really don't want to be the old guy starting his stories "when I was a young whippersnapper...".
I remember the perception of the 'old guy' I had when younger. There was always one in every office, the resident old codger who would dispense advice or experiences on most any subject that came up. Frequently these stories would be adapted to fit special occasions or to get a certain point across. To be honest, I used to cringe when the old codger started.
And now I'm the old guy and I just freeze up when one of my peers tries to pull me into the story telling. I live in fear of becoming the old guy with the stories, the stereotypical old guy.
So, how do you handle the situation? How do you politely tell your coworkers that you don't want to participate in the story telling? In my situation, I can't walk away; I need to work with these guys. So I try to fight the temptation and say something line "Me? I won't bore you with war stories" and not "well, back in the day we'd ...". Most of the time it works fine and I'm not the old curmudgeon who passes judgment on people. Fortunatly for me, there is another guy who fills that role out.
Now, if you have tell those stories, if you just have to make a fool of yourself and put the rest of the boomers in a lurch just remember that no matter how bad your story is, no matter mow many miles of ice and snow you had to walk through to get to school, there is always someone else who can top that one. Oh, one more thing, no one really listens to the old guy's stories anyway.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Introduction
Not Quite Retired
I’m in that group of baby boomers that are just not quite retired yet. In my case I’m only 59 (too early to stay home) and I’m still working (am finding more work now than I could 10 years ago). So I’m working and happy with it.
However, I’m also finding more excuses to sit back and take it easy.
I’d like to hear what others in this predicament have to say about working versus retiring. I’m also going to comment on politicians, merchants, banks and just about anyone else who seems to take delight in screwing with seniors. Always interested to hear what experiences others have had dealing with these people.
I’d like to think that we’re not lemmings, running off to the cliff where we’ll just follow the crowd and leap off into oblivion. We’re the boomers; we are the generation that learned to question authority. And we shouldn’t go blindly into the night.
Today’s thoughts:
I'm Still Working…
At what point do we start to slow down? I’ve wondered about this for some time as I’ve watched others go through the gradual drift into retirement. I’ve watched some people count down the days to retirement, just chafing at the bit to run from the office on that last day, tossing their work over the shoulder to some other poor soul. “Free at last to live my life” they yell as they head off into the sunset.
I’ve watched others as they are dragged out the door, kicking and screaming as they claw at desks, doorways and co-workers trying to stop the inevitable. I remember one of my team members was sat down by the CFO and told “I want to know when you’re retiring; I’ve a new person starting in your position in 2 weeks…” That’s quite alarming, rude and I wondered why there was no lawsuit filed.
So, how do you know when it’s time to retire? Is it at that point where I can’t find any work? In my field that’s rather doubtful. I’ve been working as a project manager for a while. This is typically a contract position (bring one of us in for a project, let us execute then watch us walk out the door when done). There are a lot of employers who would call me in for a short stint to handle a specific project then send me on my way when done. I figure that I can keep this up for another 10 years or so.
Do I decide to call it quits when I no longer feel like driving into the office in the morning? I doubt that as well. I telecommute. On those days where I just don’t have the desire to go in I can work from the house. More than once I’ve worked at home on a nice day, sitting with laptop and phone out in the back yard, under a pine tree. Not to stressful.
Do I call it a day when I have an idiot boss? Nope, I just go find another contract.
Ahh, is it the day when my wife decides that it would be good for me to stay home with her? Nope. Been married 40+ years; don’t need to spend extra time with her at this stage of the game.
So how do you know when it’s time? I’d like to hear what others have faced? If you’re retired, what triggered the decision? (Oh, if you’re one of those who decided to call it a day when you cashed in your pre-IPO stock purchases, don’t bother responding. Getting a few million in the bank account would convince me it’s time to go).
For those who have retired in lieu of finding a new job, did you decide to retire because you just could not find a new job? I’d like to know.
Closing Thoughts
Not much else to say today. This weekend I’m going to try to take in a movie and will probably find that the discounts for seniors are somewhat restrictive there as well. Wait until I start in on Senior Centers and their programs….
I’m in that group of baby boomers that are just not quite retired yet. In my case I’m only 59 (too early to stay home) and I’m still working (am finding more work now than I could 10 years ago). So I’m working and happy with it.
However, I’m also finding more excuses to sit back and take it easy.
I’d like to hear what others in this predicament have to say about working versus retiring. I’m also going to comment on politicians, merchants, banks and just about anyone else who seems to take delight in screwing with seniors. Always interested to hear what experiences others have had dealing with these people.
I’d like to think that we’re not lemmings, running off to the cliff where we’ll just follow the crowd and leap off into oblivion. We’re the boomers; we are the generation that learned to question authority. And we shouldn’t go blindly into the night.
Today’s thoughts:
I'm Still Working…
At what point do we start to slow down? I’ve wondered about this for some time as I’ve watched others go through the gradual drift into retirement. I’ve watched some people count down the days to retirement, just chafing at the bit to run from the office on that last day, tossing their work over the shoulder to some other poor soul. “Free at last to live my life” they yell as they head off into the sunset.
I’ve watched others as they are dragged out the door, kicking and screaming as they claw at desks, doorways and co-workers trying to stop the inevitable. I remember one of my team members was sat down by the CFO and told “I want to know when you’re retiring; I’ve a new person starting in your position in 2 weeks…” That’s quite alarming, rude and I wondered why there was no lawsuit filed.
So, how do you know when it’s time to retire? Is it at that point where I can’t find any work? In my field that’s rather doubtful. I’ve been working as a project manager for a while. This is typically a contract position (bring one of us in for a project, let us execute then watch us walk out the door when done). There are a lot of employers who would call me in for a short stint to handle a specific project then send me on my way when done. I figure that I can keep this up for another 10 years or so.
Do I decide to call it quits when I no longer feel like driving into the office in the morning? I doubt that as well. I telecommute. On those days where I just don’t have the desire to go in I can work from the house. More than once I’ve worked at home on a nice day, sitting with laptop and phone out in the back yard, under a pine tree. Not to stressful.
Do I call it a day when I have an idiot boss? Nope, I just go find another contract.
Ahh, is it the day when my wife decides that it would be good for me to stay home with her? Nope. Been married 40+ years; don’t need to spend extra time with her at this stage of the game.
So how do you know when it’s time? I’d like to hear what others have faced? If you’re retired, what triggered the decision? (Oh, if you’re one of those who decided to call it a day when you cashed in your pre-IPO stock purchases, don’t bother responding. Getting a few million in the bank account would convince me it’s time to go).
For those who have retired in lieu of finding a new job, did you decide to retire because you just could not find a new job? I’d like to know.
Closing Thoughts
Not much else to say today. This weekend I’m going to try to take in a movie and will probably find that the discounts for seniors are somewhat restrictive there as well. Wait until I start in on Senior Centers and their programs….
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