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Defined Pension Plans are very valuable

Fri, 2007-02-23 09:28

Hi:

Many people in government-type jobs such as teachers, public utilities,  and government workers at all levels have a defined pension plan. That means they will get a specified amount for the rest of their life when they retire. Although that amount may be indexed and go up, it will not fall below the defined amount.

Maybe RSP's are not such a great idea

Thu, 2007-02-22 23:07

Hi:

The advertising push is on.The final day to put money into your registered retirement savings plan is the end of February. However, registered savings plans are not always the best option.

Say, for example, you have invested in uranium stocks and have made tremendous capital gains over the past several months.  Sure, your RSP is much larger, but when you take that money out, tax is due on the total amount.

How many changes can you handle at once?

Wed, 2007-02-21 10:45

 Volume of Changes  

How many changes are going to occur in how many areas of your life as you retire?  Stress experts suggest that too many changes cause Adaptive Stress symptoms.  The cure for this is to keep established routines in other areas of your life so you have some sense of stabilit

The Third Age

Tue, 2007-02-20 12:47

Retirement has often been called The Third Age.   In this system life span is divided into three parts: until age thirty, thirty to sixty, and sixty to the close of life.

 The third age is generally when people have enough money and financial resources so that they do not need to focus all their time and energy on working.  Their children are grown, and while they enjoy their grandchildren, they are not responsible for their day-to-day needs.

Life Phases

Mon, 2007-02-19 12:13

Lots of people have written about life phases.  These are the typical evolutionary stages of maturity that every human being goes through.  They are loosely connected with age, although there is a wide variation of ages.  For example, most of us know about the individuation of children from parents on their route to independent adulthood. 

Most people go through this phase in their late teens and early twenties, although we have all heard or know about some who were independent at sixteen, or some who seem to be not independent by age thirty.

Difference between Transition and Change

Fri, 2007-02-16 13:55

Hi:

People often use transition and change in the same breath. They are similar, in that both words imply moving to a different place, but there are also differences. A change often is very quick, where a transition suggests a slower process.

A transition is implemented over a period of time. It seems to evolve, and it might be that the end destination is not known. The steps are taken one by one down a path, and when you get to a point farther along the path you might stop and stay there, if you like, or move along. Eventually you stop where you want.

Outrageous Options

Wed, 2007-02-14 12:29

Look at retirement as an opportunity for outrageous options.  Forget about all the reasons why you didn't do what you wanted in the past.  There is no time like now for us aging boomers to get on with it.  We will never be younger than today.  Make some hard decisions, if you have to, and just do it.

 M.

Opportunity to be Outrageous

Tue, 2007-02-13 00:01

Without the social pressure of what others might think, what responsibilities you have, not working can be a great freedom.  I heard a story once of a man who was diagnosed with terminal cancer.  Although he was quite young, in his forties, he had perhaps a year to live.

He determined what was important, who he really wanted to spend time with. He divorced his wife. I guess mortality focuses us on the important things, and if he was somewhat happy, but not really, well, when would he get the time to meet his needs.

It seemed outrageous, but it was not.  Do you need to do something outrageous?  If not now, when?

International Living Ranks France as the #1 Place in the World

Fri, 2007-02-09 21:16

Hi: 

 Every year International Living magazine ranks countries in a Quality of Life Index.  They evaluate every country in the world on the following criteria: cost of living, leisure and culture, economy, environment, freedom, health care, infrastructure, risk and safety,  and climate.  Ths 2007 Quality of Life Index came out in January, and the top ten, in order are:  France, Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, United States, Switzerland, Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg, Argentina. 

 Canada, by the way, was 22nd, behind Finland, Portugal, or Malta.  Some of where we fall behind most certainly has to do with climate. Ah, the snow and the rain.

Using the Internet in a different language

Thu, 2007-02-08 10:47

Hi:

 In our travels to Panama we used computers set-up in hotels and in internet shops to check and write our emails.  We used our own computer to check Visa and bank balances as I did not want that information on a general computer, but we felt fine about checking our email.  Costs were great: $1.00 US an hour in the shop and free in all the hotels.

 We encountered a few obstacles; the main problem was that the keyboards are in Spanish.  The @ sign is alt64 and the //  ', ;, and other signs were elsewhere.  The shift for capitals yielded a > sign. 

 That took a bit of time to get used to and slowed us down, but the biggest challenge I found was that at one hotel my login and passwords were saved, so that the next day when I entered again, I could just click myself in.  So could anyone else!

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