Getting Past January without Guilt

No, this isn't about failed New Year’s Resolutions.  It’s about deadlines – something that most retirees, me included – strive to avoid.  But it seems that the end-of-January deadlines have bit me ever since I retired.

First deadline – my Certified Information Systems Security Professional certification requires about 25 hours of continuing education every year.  I know – I’m retired.  Why am I maintaining this certification?  Two reasons:  1) to keep my mind active, and 2) to keep my options open.  Until we are completely out of debt I want to be able to keep my job skills relevant.  But back to the deadline. 

Every year I start with the resolve of doing one online webinar a week.  This would get my 25 hours in well before we leave for camp.  Of course, inevitably something comes up and I head for camp missing several hours of training.  No worries, I think.  When I get home from camp I’ll just pick it up and have the training done by the end of October.  Of course, inevitably something comes up; say for example, the holidays.  And once again I find myself scrambling for those last few hours – in January.  This year I finished on January 9 – a new record and well ahead of the deadline.

But wait – there’s another deadline.  My husband and I volunteer for VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance).  This service is sponsored by the Community Action Program and the IRS, and provides free income tax preparation for low-income individuals and families.  This year we’re starting on January 27.  And guess who hasn't passed her annual certification test yet? 

So I am now officially letting go of my self-imposed guilt for not blogging once a week in January (or any other month, for that matter).  I’ll be back after I pass the VITA test.  Talk to you then!

Clutter Behind Closed Doors

Happy New Year!  I decided a long time ago to forego making New Year’s resolutions and instead set New Year’s goals.  We’re thinking of downsizing.  Not this year; probably not next year, but within the next five years.  It’s time to get rid of things we no longer use.  My good friend and fellow blogger Adrian, of Adrian’s Crazy Life, frequently writes about ways to reduce clutter in your home.  I’m tweaking a couple of her strategies in dealing with my unique clutter problem.

I have CBCD – clutter behind closed doors.  It’s a particularly insidious brand of clutter because it’s not visibly annoying and thereby clawing at my inner sense of neatness.  No, it’s safely tucked away in one of the many cupboards and closets that a larger home tends to feature.  Out of sight – out of mind.

Twenty years ago, when we moved to this home, I had every intention of getting rid of stuff I no longer used before we moved.  Sadly, that didn’t happen.  I brought a lot of stuff here that I should have thrown out then – and shoved it in a cupboard.  Not going to do that again.

Here are my rules to getting rid of CBCD:

Rule #1.  Attack each instance of CBCD with the knowledge that the stuff is never going to be used – or worn – or displayed again.  It’s either going into a garbage can, a recycle bin, or a box headed to the thrift shop.

Rule #2.  Exceptions to Rule #1 will be made only when a) items are not mine to deal with, or b) the items will be better utilized in a different location.  I’ll write more about what I’ll call storage optimizing in my next post.

Rule #3.  Items with sentimental value will be photographed before the application of Rule #1.  (Thanks to my good friend Sue for this rule.)

I started a few days ago.  So far I’m doing pretty well.  I cleared out three stacks of paperwork from former jobs.  I laughed out loud when I found a cost reduction proposal I had prepared back in 1984.  My boss at the time was Fraser Bullock, and had told me I’d hit a home run with the proposal.  I should have taken it to show him back in 2002 when he was second in command (and Mitt Romney’s right hand man) for the Salt Lake City Olympics.  He’d have hired me on the spot.  Or not.

I smiled as I reviewed the “farewell” cards I received from my co-workers at Hill Air Force Base when I left to join Wells Fargo.  I can still put several of those names to faces, and their messages were still touching.  But thinking of my military co-workers reminded me to stay on mission.  Adding a new rule:

Rule #4.  If you must read something, read it once.  Then apply Rule #1.

I’m looking forward to a new year filled with empty cupboards!  Happy New Year!

Practicing Christmas

Growing up, my brothers and I would practice Christmas morning.  I’m not sure what motivated us to do this – I can’t imagine any child forgetting how to do it – but just to be sure, we would practice.  

The rules were:

1.    First one up wakes everybody up.
2.    Get Mom and Dad up.
3.    Rip ‘em apart.

We’d run through the drill several times in the days leading up to Christmas morning.  And sure enough, when the big day came, we were perfect.

It’s true – we do get better at the things we practice.  So I sometimes wonder why we don’t practice Christmas all year.  At Christmas, we take treats to our neighbors and send cards to faraway friends.  At Christmas, we give to the hungry and to the homeless.  At Christmas, we make sure that all children have warm clothing to wear and toys to play with.  At Christmas we make it a point to spend time with our families.  And at Christmas we tend to focus more on our blessings and less on our troubles. 

On this Christmas Eve, may we be mindful of the true spirit of the season.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Health Care Reform: Is It Working?

Last Tuesday I had the opportunity to attend the Utah Health Policy Project’s Conference, titled, “Is It Working? – Taking the Pulse on Health Reform in Utah.”  It was a great conference with way too many key messages to cover in a short blog post, so I’ll cover the ones that spoke to me.

The morning keynote speaker, Mr. Rick McKeown, began with the message is that we solve common problems when the common pain is sufficient.  He addressed the many forces that are driving health care reform in our nation.  His list of eight pressures follows:

1.  Economics – recovery from the recession, job stagnation

2.  Demographics – aging boomers, obesity and chronic illness

3.  Consumers – we’re demanding transparency in our health care costs

4.  The Affordable Care Act
                A.  Access to health care
                B.  Regulating the insurance industry
                C.  Defining benefits
                D.  Medicare and Medicaid improvements
                E.  Uncertainty and unintended consequences
                F.  Politics

5.  Judicial – the debate between state and federal exchanges causing more uncertainty

6.  Employers – transitioning from a defined benefit to a defined contribution

7.  States – looking for autonomy and the ability to craft solutions that fit their populations

8.  Reconfiguration of risk – outcomes vs. services

Is this enough common pain?  Are we there yet?

Disclaimer:  I consider myself fairly liberal and am glad of the health care reforms brought about by the Affordable Care Act.  I live in a fairly – OK, I live in a very conservative state where most of the leadership is less than impressed with the Affordable Care Act.  That said, liberals and conservatives came together at this conference, leaving their egos at the door, to discuss real solutions for real people.  A panel of those real people spoke to us, giving us hope that the solutions in place are working for some. 

Lynn Quincy, Associate Director of Health Reform Policy for Consumers Union, gave us tips for getting the value from our health insurance, confirming the idea that we need to become intelligent consumers of health care services.  She noted that this has been difficult because of the current model of health care delivery.  I've experienced this myself – when nobody could tell me the price of an x-ray.

The liberal in me was exposed to a new perspective when the “Healthy Utah” plan to address the coverage gap was presented.  People who fall below 133% of the federal poverty level currently fall into the coverage gap in the states that opted not to expand Medicaid.  Because they should have been covered by the Medicaid expansion, they are not eligible for subsidies to assist with buying private insurance on the marketplace (healthcare.gov).  Utah’s solution, as I understand it, is to use federal dollars that would have been given to the state for the Medicaid expansion to provide subsidies for Utahns that fall into the coverage gap.  The upside of this plan – one I had not considered – is that it removes the stigma of being on Medicaid as well as opening up better choices for health care.  A privately-issued insurance card opens more doors to services than a Medicaid card.  The plan was well received by the conference attendees.  Now – on to the Legislature for approval.

Is the health care reform law working?  Not perfectly, but it’s a start.  And I am hopeful that in the State of Utah, well known for its innovative approaches to quality health care, it will continue to improve.

Las Vegas Rock ‘N Roll Half Marathon

I ran my third half-marathon overall and my second in 2014 – the Las Vegas Rock ‘N Roll Half – on November 16.  What an experience!  The racers – right around 40,000 (that’s right, forty thousand) combined, run down the Las Vegas strip at night.  This race is one of two events where the city of Las Vegas closes its famous strip.  The other is New Year’s Eve.

My friend Sue and I flew out of snowy SLC at 0700 on Saturday morning.  Race weekend started with packet pick-up at the Las Vegas Convention Center.  The logistics of organizing a race this big are mind-boggling, but they had obviously done it before.  From packet pick-up, to shirt pick-up, to the vendor area where the latest Rock ‘N Roll gear was being sold, to other vendors selling everything any runner could possibly need or want, the runners moved smoothly.  The volunteers were friendly and helpful, and there had to be over 100 in the convention center alone.

Sue and I took on the Remix Challenge – run the 1^st Annual Las Vegas Rock ‘N Roll 5K on Saturday night the 15^th in addition to the half-marathon on the 16^th.  After all, what else is there to do in Las Vegas on a Saturday night?  It turned out to be a fun warm-up, followed by a great concert by Chromeo and of course, a free beer.

It was a good thing the race shirt from the 5K had long sleeves.  A cold front came through the next morning and I was unprepared.  Come on – it’s supposed to be warm in Las Vegas!  While we saw the occasional runners in tank tops and shorts – and even a man wearing a white tie and black Speedo – most of us were dressed for a warmer race.

I have never been in a race with this many people.  Obviously 28,439 people (marathon and half-marathon racers) can’t start at the same time, so they organized us into corrals based on our projected finish times.  I was in Corral 13.  The corrals started about 80 seconds apart.  The vivacious woman announcing the start of each corral worked hard to get the racers and spectators excited about each corral’s countdown to start.  I wonder if she was still as energetic when she finally counted down the start for Corral 47.

The course was amazing.  We ran down the strip, through some back streets, past a number of wedding chapels, and up Fremont Street before we came back down the strip.  Fremont Street had the brightest lights and reminded me of the Las Vegas of the 60s – when my parents used to drive us down the strip at night.  And all along the course there were people cheering us on.

At the finish, we received our medals, a much needed bottle of water, and a Mylar blanket.  That

turned out to be a life-saver.  It seemed I cooled down at the same time the wind came up, and the blanket kept me out of the wind.  Brrrhh!  Much too cold for beer at this finish line.  We picked up our Remix Challenge medal and headed indoors for Mexican food and margaritas.

I have to admit I was disappointed in my finish time.  I finished in 2:05:22, exactly 2 minutes and 23 seconds slower than I finished the Salt Lake Half and only 17 seconds faster than I finished the Mesa Falls Half.  I was hoping to set a new personal record, and was counting on the lower altitude to work in my favor.  But what I wasn't counting on was slowing down so frequently to plot my next move around slower runners.  While it didn't seem like I was slowing down very much, I guess 10-15 seconds per mile of slowdown adds up.

Always one to find the positive, I have to consider the following:  There were more people in my division (Women 55 – 59) than ran the entire Mesa Falls Half-Marathon.  More people crossed the finish line ahead of me (5043) than ran the entire Salt Lake Half Marathon.  And even though I didn't beat my own time, I did much better in the standings in this race than I have previously.  I finished in the top 5% of my division, the top 13% of all women, and the top 20% overall.  Maybe that’s because more slow runners were in this race.  Or maybe that’s because everybody’s time was impacted by the sheer number of racers.    

In the spirit of continuous improvement – it’s time to do some serious speed work.

Annuities 101

Several of our friends are considering using their 401K / IRA savings to purchase one or more annuities in retirement.  OK – I know.  News flash – lots of people buy annuities.  Just not us.  Somewhere along the line we’ve managed to become convinced that annuities are a bad investment and that we should run away – run far away – from anyone who tries to convince us otherwise.

But our friends are smart people.  Maybe it’s time to take another look.  Here’s what I learned while researching annuities. 

1.  An annuity is an insurance product.  You purchase the annuity for a specific amount, either through regular premiums or through a lump sum, and then it pays you a specific annual income for the rest of your life.  Like most insurance products, the insurance company helps you manage risk.  An annuity helps you manage the risk of outliving your money.

2.  The basic annuity pays only for your lifetime.  Once you die, the payments stop.  Annuity contracts can be written to provide ongoing income for a beneficiary or for a guaranteed number of years that the annuity will pay out – but this will cost more. 

3.  The insurance companies use your projected life span, based on actuarial tables, to calculate your annual payout.  The annuity holders who die early cover those who live longer.

4.  One of the main advantages of annuities is that there is no limit to the amount you can invest in them.  Many investors will fund annuities once they have maxed out their IRA / 401K contributions.   Earnings on the funds are tax deferred.  Since investment is made with after-tax dollars, the money you contributed is not taxed at withdrawal (if you are over 59 ½); earnings are taxed at your regular tax rate.

5.  One of the main disadvantages of annuities is that once you’ve invested in one, your money is locked in.  Many annuities offer a way out – with a hefty surrender charge.

The architect in me loves the model at the top of the post – it is from the Utah Division of Securities, and you can get the step by step information on their web site.  The accountant in my husband is convinced that we can do just as good a job as an insurance company in managing our assets – and managing our risks.  I’m convinced as well.  While annuities may be the right solution for some, they are still not for us. 

Disclaimer:  A few days of research does not make me an expert.  I used the following web sites in researching this post:

Wikipedia

What are the different types of annuities - CNN Money

Annuities Explained:  The Choices and Red Flags

The Utah Division of Securities

AARP at the Aquarium

OK, I admit it.  The only reason I signed up for the AARP Real Possibilities University event was because it was held at the Living Planet Aquarium.  Apparently I wasn't the only one.  When the director of Utah’s AARP chapter asked “how many of you came here tonight just for the classes,” only about ¼ of the audience raised their hands.  The rest of us chuckled a bit, and then settled in for the presentations.

The first speaker, a Director at the Utah Division of Securities, spoke about fraud prevention.  “Why are seniors so often the target for fraudsters,” he asked.  “We’re the ones with the money.”  He told us he could make us experts in recognizing scams with one sentence:  Risk and reward go together and can never be separated.  If someone tries to convince you otherwise, run away.  Run far away. 

The second speaker was a professor and researcher at the University of Utah Brain Institute.  First he gave us the bad news:  brain function does decrease with age.  He gave us several tips on keeping our brains healthy as we age.  There were about fifteen of them.  I’ll see how many I remember when I post on this later.  My favorite – people who dance are less likely to develop dementia than people who don’t dance. 

The event offered four breakout sessions.  We attended the one on estate planning and the one on Social Security.  The other two were on healthy eating and staying active.  Two of the speakers addressed annuities, which is a topic I have been researching and was glad to find some well-written information on.  I'll post more about annuities as well.

All in all, the AARP Real Possibilities University was well worth the 2 ½ hours we spent - not including the time spent touring the aquarium - free courtesy of AARP. The aquarium was awesome.  It is beautifully laid out and the exhibits are fabulous.  My only recommendation would be to go in the daytime.  Some of the exhibits were too dark to see well. The best part - the window to the shark tank at the front of the main conference room. There’s nothing like seeing sharks swim back and forth in a tank behind the keynote speaker to keep your eyes up front.