Some Thoughts

Miscellany.

Our grandson Xander spends Friday nights with us, allowing us to enjoy him and be a part of his growing up. It is an honor and privilege that our own children never really got with their grandparents, who were not keen. Much was missed. One drawback is that a four year old is exhausting! Play is work!! But he helps make moving to Montana the best worst thing that ever happened to us -- those of you who know our story will underrstand what I mean. Still, writing goes out the window the days he is with us, and is hard to focus on the next day (Sunday). So my blogs become sporadic although I promised myself to write every day. It just can't happen.

I'll take Xander anytime.

It does not follow that on Today this morning an expert talked about the fact that kids waiting for their inheritance won't likely have much to wait for -- duh. We retirees live longer and need that money for ourselves. And there isn't as much as there used to be. The expert talked about a strict class of people, those with $250,000 in their portfolios. I had a portfolio once. It was called my house.

In that vein, I repeat how rediculous the disconnect is between reporters and experts like these and the reality of life in America. We still talk about portfolios and home ownership and retirement funds as if everyone in the United States had a pipeline to them. Not so. The same expert on Today recently stated that you needed a million dollars in your bank account to afford retirement (siunce then, the figure has bumped to, I believe, 1.7 milion). At $20,000 a year it would take you fifty years to save that much. How many people do you know who can set aside $1800 a month for a lifetime of rainy days? One in six Americans barely make that much to live on in a year.

As for retirement, the million is a myth anyway. I sure as hell don't have a million bucks in my account. A hundred is more like it. But i am retired (nearly, at least), and loving it.

If I had a million bucks . . . . . I'd still be writing this blog.