Will you live to be 100?

Longevity Calculator

Over the years I have seen a number of sites that will give you some idea of your health and perhaps even venture to make a guess at how long you may live.  Realage is a popular site that compares your chronological age with what they call your “real age” based on certain health parameters. Peter Russell has a pretty good site as well, that will make a guess at how long you may live based on certain criteria.

I have taken some of these tests before and get varying results, most about what I expected. I have always thought that if I lived to the ripe old age of eighty, I was a very lucky man. I have talked to people who are in their eighties now, and that is the way they tell me they feel; that there are lucky to have made it as far as they have. However, there is a new test with some striking results. As a matter of fact, the test scared me to death (OK, that may be an exaggeration.) In all the test I have taken, nothing has made a prediction like this one: the Longevity Calculator predicted I would live to be 96 years old! 96, is that right? I am going to have to completely rethink my retirement plan if that is the case.

I encourage you to take the test yourself. You may get a very similar surprise. And if you do, remember, I am in financial services; I may be able to help you to make some of those plans!

Published in:  on May 27, 2009 at 11:25 pm Leave a Comment
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Would you sing “Do Re Mi” in Grand Central Station?

It’s not often we see video like this. A television show in Belgium is doing one of those reality shows where they are going to look for someone to start in a remake of “The Sound of Music”. As a kind of publicity stunt they staged an event in their version of Grand Central station. I don’t want to say to much more lest I spoil the effect. I can tell you this; its one of the more uplifting videos you are likely to see this year.

Published in:  on May 25, 2009 at 7:29 pm Leave a Comment
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Improve Your Driving Skills With a Video Game

Jewel Diver video game

I have been told that there is a woman who lives not far from me who is 104 years old and still drives a truck. They tell me she has a bright red truck and dyes her hair to match!

Now while I respect this woman’s spunk, I know that she is not the norm. My cousins recently had to take driving privileges from my 96 year old great aunt. She was incensed by the change, thinking she was still fully capable of driving as well as anyone. Those who had ridden with her had another story to tell.

This raises a question: How do we know when we are losing our ability to manage our driving skills. Enter Posit Science. Posit is a team of scientists from around the world who are all experts in brain activity. Together they have developed a game of sorts, one that measures abilities that are essential to driving. Furthermore, they claim that playing the game can actually improve those essential functions.

The game is called “Jewel Diver” and you can check it out for yourself here: http://www.positscience.com/products/demos/  You will also find a video that explains a bit more about the program and its claims.

I played it and was told that I had the ability to pay attention to 4.53 things at once. My 16 year old daughter played and scored 5.49. No doubt I am going to hear more about that as she claims to have superior driving skills. Darn!

Published in:  on May 24, 2009 at 7:40 pm Leave a Comment
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Senior Pass to U.S. National Parks

For just $10 senoirs 62 and above can get a pass to all U.S. National Parks

For just $10 senoirs 62 and above can get a pass to all U.S. National Parks

Hey, you don’t get a deal like this every day. For once the government is giving senoirs a real bargain on something for a change. For $10 anyone age 62 and above can get a park pass to any of America’s amazing assortment of national parks. That means you can take your grandchildren to the park for free. The pass covers you, your vehicle and up to four adults. Children under 16 are free. You can get more details here: http://www.nps.gov/fees_passes.htm

This means that from Denali National Park in Alaska to Everglades National Park in South Florida are a bargain again. We don’t get deals like this often, so hurry and get yours now. Oh, and if you are looking for the National Parks near you, look here: http://www.nps.gov/

Published in:  on May 23, 2009 at 3:16 pm Leave a Comment
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HBO: Documentaries: The Alzheimer’s Project: Watch the Films: Caregivers

My wife, the nurse/professor, has been telling me for years that Alzheimer’s was a disease we were going to have to face as a nation. The baby boomers, all 80 million of them, are beginning to collect Social Security checks and, unfortunately, a growing number of them are having to deal with dementia; particularly, Alzheimer’s.What is most distressing about this disease is the amount of care required to sustain its victims. As the disease progresses more and more care is required; expensive care. HBO has recently done a series of films on the subject and they are must see for anyone who has been touched by Alzheimer’s, even if you only worry that your own memory is not what it used to be!

Published in: Uncategorized on May 19, 2009 at 9:35 pm Leave a Comment

Simply Sublime

My wife’s laptop has failed us so we had no choice tonight but to go get her another one. I have been telling her for some time now about the new “Netbook” models and all they could do so we went to Best Buy to check them out. The netbooks were everything we thought they would be; remarkably small and light with loads of computing power and at a great price, but in the end we got a laptop. She said it was worth it to her not to have to learn something new and the feel of the laptop keyboard was as appealing as a favorite pair of blue jeans.

I am putting the computer through its paces right now and I have to say, its really nice. For you techies, I got an HP G60-235DX with a 16″ screen, dual core processor, 3 Gigs of RAM and 320 Gigs of Hard Drive.For you non-techies; its big and its fast, very fast.

One of the first things I wanted to do was try out the sound system. As with most HPs, the screen is bright and dynamic, but I wanted to hear what came out of the onboard speakers. I went to a new favorite YouTube video that someone recommended on Twitter a few weeks ago. Its rather simple; pianist Jon Schmidt combines two familiar songs in a way that, well, turns out magical. I highly recommend anyone who can to check out this video. The music, as I have said, is wonderful, and Jon’s description of how it came about is equally touching. See it for yourself here, you’ll thank me later!

Published in:  on May 18, 2009 at 9:26 pm Leave a Comment
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What is “Safe” Money and Should You Have Some?

Understanding your risk tolerance is key to pursuing investments. Most people look for investments that match their risk comfort level and in a lot of cases that approach works well. However, there are other cases where taking the “Safe” money approach is better. By putting a portion of your investments in extremely low risk vehicles you are freed up to be a bit more aggressive with your other investments knowing that your “Safe” money us just that: safe.

Safe money

In the last few weeks and months I have been talking to a lot of my clients about the concept “Safe” money. In light of recent stock market losses, many people are looking for alternative strategies. What is “Safe” money? Put simply, it is money that is not exposed to risk. This doesn’t mean it can’t earn some inerest and I am certainly not suggesting anyone start burying their money in a mayonaisse jar in the back yard. No, this is the portion of your savings you simply must have if you were unfortunate enough to lose everything else.

What are the rules for “Safe” money? Ideally, you want to put it in something that provides tax free or tax deferred growth. You also want to earn enough interest to provide a hedge against inflation. In many cases it is wise to consider the legal implications of this investment. Put another way, there are “Safe” money options that will bypass probate in most cases. This means your heirs will be able to use the money from your “Safe” fund to pay for final expenses and estate taxes in the event of your death. Finally, your “Safe” money must be absolutely safe, with no danger of losing what you put in. Does such an option exist? See your financial advisor for more information. He/She can point you in the right direction.

Published in:  on May 16, 2009 at 6:46 am Leave a Comment

How Does a Cow Get Lost?

CalvesOne afternoon when I got home I was surprised to find something I never expected to see in my front yard: three young calves. At the time I was living on what used to be an old lake bed that had dried up decades before. Homes were built along what used to be the shoreline and grass was allowed to grow in the center where cows would graze most of the day. It was a peaceful and bucolic scene and a big reason why I bought the house in the first place.

On this particular afternoon, these calves had found a break in the fence line and had wriggled their way through. Their mothers, who were too large to fit through the break, watch anxiously from the edge of the field. With the help of some neighbors, and a pregnant woman who was out for a walk, we were able to shoo two of the calves back through the fence. The third, a young bull, faced us and put his head down as if to say, I’m not budging from this spot. By this time the cows on the other side of the fence were bawling pitifully, worried that their little buddy was in danger. I was gravely worried about the pregnant woman, who was in no position to be facing down an angry bull, even if he was a small one.

Fortunately for us all, another neighbor showed up about that time on his riding mower. It made enough raucous to shake the little bull’s confidence and he turned and hightailed it back through the fence. Within minutes we had secured the fence and called the owner to make more permanent repairs.

All of this reminded me of an old saw I’ve heard farmers say, “How does a cow get lost? One blade of grass at a time.” Cows, of course, do not have the capability of making long range plans. They see only what is directly in front of them and choose accordingly. Give them a break in a fence and they will wander through it; choice by choice.

This is precisely why we need to have long range plans. Without them we all tend to wander off the reservation as we make one minor choice after another, only to find we have wandered far from our intended targets. I see this every day in my work with people who are asking themselves, “How did I ever get into this mess?” The answer is apparent to anyone outside their immediate circle; choice by choice you wandered from your intended goals. Without focus and intent, this is what always happens.

Cows don’t have a choice; we do.

Published in:  on May 15, 2009 at 7:59 am Leave a Comment
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Will Stars Add Thier Glow to Twitter?

Kathy Ireland's Twitter Image

Kathy Ireland's Twitter Image

I read somewhere that in ancient times people thought wisdom and knowledge circled the world like a kind of ether and those who were skilled could tap into it. If you have ever read the first part of the Book of Proverbs you will see this idea in action. We have since learned different, but there is a new force on the planet that comes very close to an knowledge ether and its called Twitter.

Twitter started with a simple question: “What are you doing right now?” When I first got started with Twitter this question threw me. Why, I thought would anyone want to know what I am doing at this moment? Don’t they have lives of their own? Why would any but a handful of people care? And isn’t the answer to the question always going to be the same; “I’m sitting at the computer typing”?

Indeed, people do have lives of their own and Twitter has not grown because it helped people live vicariously through other people. Perhaps it would have been better if the Twitter inventors had started with a question like: What are you working on right now? To a large extent, this is how people use it now. “Here is what I am working on” it might say, or “here is what I am learning” or “here is a really neat sight you should check out.” All of these are good and valued reasons for contributing to Twitter, but what makes it amazing is the vast number of people who are doing this simultaneously; tens of millions, all over the world.
In a sense it is like a collective consciousness of what people are thinking and doing all over the world. You can dip in anywhere you like. Ignore the voices you choose, listen to those you find appealing. The people you usually listen to are people you are “following”, people who listen to you are your “followers.”

Recently Oprah added her considerable weight of influence to Twitter. Over the next weekend millions of people were added to the Twitter roles. Stars on Twitter is nothing new. Kathy Ireland, Shaquille O’Neal, Wil Wheaton and LaVar Burton were all on long before Oprah’s announcement. In some ways I suspect stars will enjoy the format. They can say what they want with many people listening and they don’t have to worry about the mob effect or the Papparazzi. They can be real people while filtering out the voices they find irritating or irrational.

Will they add something new and significant to the mix. Yes, in much the same way anyone new adds dimension and perspective to the conversation. And yes, they bring thousands, if not millions, of new Twitterers with them. But aside from that, I don’t see their impact being all that significant. In a world where stars are worshipped like minor deities, Twitter is a pretty level playing field, treating stars and ordinaries alike.

Now, a final word about Kathy Ireland. I have been following Kathy ever since I first got started. I read an article about a guy who had actually had a conversation with her and considered it a real honor. He made a copy of it and he shows it to his friends when he gets a chance. Me? Not so lucky. As of this writing, Kathy has not chosen to follow me back. You can hardly blame the girl; she has nearly 10,000 followers and has wisely chosen to follow just a fraction of those herself. Still, hope spring eternal in this old man’s heart, and if I ever have a conversation with her, I’m going to have it framed!

Published in:  on May 14, 2009 at 1:22 pm Leave a Comment
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Is This A Bad Time To Retire?

I was recently asked if this was a bad time to retire. I suppose the answer to that quesiton depends on number of different factors. If your gameplan for retirment required you to make 10% or more per year in the stock market, then this is a terrible time.
I got a call from a gentleman the other day who had been successful in setting aside nearly $400,000 for retirement. Unfortunately, the people he had trusted to manage this money allowed it to dwindle as they scrambled to save what was left of their own fortunes. By the time the smoke cleared, he only had $100,000 left and was worried it wouldn’t be enough to last him through retirement. Depending on his lifestyle and obligations, it may not be.
This story is far from unique. Many seniors are finding themselves in similar positions; finally reaching a milestone they had dream of for years, only to learn that they may not be able to retire or, barring that, make drastic changes to their lifestyles. For some the choices are going to be very difficult.
How do you avoid a similar fate? I like the “Safe Money” concept. Figure out the portion of your money that you absolutely must have and put it in something exceedingly secure. Sure, it may not generate a great deal of income, but at least you will know it will be there when you need it.
…and if you don’t have any “Safe Money”, but all means get some. Put a little aside util you ave $1,000 for emergnecies. Then keep building this fund until you have $3,000, then $5,000 and $10,000. Don’t quit until you have at least six months of salary set aside. By then, you’re bound to love the feeling of having some jingle in the bank.
…and for those of you who haven’t hit retirement quite yet, take a lesson. Nothing lasts forever, so the safe bet is still the safe bet.

Published in:  on May 8, 2009 at 10:14 pm Leave a Comment
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