How’s your memory? A few people I’m close with are dealing with early-onset dementia and late-onset dementia. A woman in her 60s, a guy who is almost 70, and my Mom who is in her late 80s. It’s a really difficult thing to see. People that were completely independent a few years ago who are now unable to function on the most everyday of things. … Continue reading Dementia Risk & Prevention
I’m having a milestone birthday this month – 60 years old. Turning 60 – after enjoying a full decade of early retirement – feels like a bigger milestone than other birthdays. After all, 60 is the age that many people retire, including my Father and Father-In-Law. It feels like the “early” part of our retirement is now over, but I still have a lot of … Continue reading Cyber Advice at Sixty
As Batman learned in the Dark Knight, “You either die the Hero, or you live long enough to become the Villain.” I think that famous movie line now has some relevance to those of us who played by the rules, worked smart, saved prodigiously, and invested effectively. At first, one’s journey to FIRE (Financial Independence & Retired Early) is hailed by society as successful & … Continue reading Hero or Villain?
This weekend, I met with my brothers (and wives) to talk about my Mom’s finances. We meet occasional over Zoom to discuss any pressing matters and I was getting a bit concerned about her exposure to scammers. So many people I’ve talked to have stories about their parent getting scammed over the phone or computer. My Mom has gotten some of these calls herself. They … Continue reading Locking Out The Scammers
Northwestern Mutual does a nice annual study on the ‘state of retirement’ in the USA. It’s a pretty exhaustive analysis that looks at all aspects of life and our involvement and satisfaction with each dimension. Link: Northwestern Mutual 2025 ‘Planning & Progress’ Study I was surprised by a few of the numbers from this year’s study and thought I’d share them. First, Americans are pretty … Continue reading Retirement Confidence
I will be 68 years old in 2034. That’s the year that the latest Social Security budget forecast says it will start to run out of money and be unable to pay its full benefits. I will only have been receiving the benefits for 1 year at that point. Related: Social Security Running Out Sooner Than Expected It may not seem like an urgent matter, … Continue reading Social Security Waning
We’ve been retired for over 4.5 years now and I find myself surprised that it has been that long. People still say I seem too young to be retired, but when you consider it’s almost been 50 months since I went to work at MegaCorp … it feels ridiculous. Where has all the time gone? I find myself really unable to account for the last … Continue reading Where Does The Time Go?
A few years ago, when we turned 50, we were greeted by invitations to join AARP, the American Association for Retired Persons. My birthday is 8 months before my wife’s, but for some reason hers came first. We didn’t join the organization, even though it’s only about $15 a month. I didn’t even give it much consideration, even though I’ve checked out personal finance articles … Continue reading AARP – Worth It?
Last week Americans voted in the midterm elections, which yielded a ‘comeback’ for Democrats and a split legislature in Washington DC. The media weren’t sure what impact that would have on investors, with MSNBC publishing two articles (within hours of each other) stating that the likely government gridlock was both the BEST and WORST thing that could happen to Wall Street. A week later is … Continue reading Mid-Term Elections – Historical Impact on Investors?
The stock market is off to a nice clip so far this year with the S&P 500 and International EFEA up more than 5% in less than two months. Things are moving so fast that I am already losing my bet on where the market will be on the Fourth of July this year, as I wagered on less than 4.5% growth.. Our portfolio doesn’t … Continue reading FIRE Station Fun – Patient Profits
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