Retirement

Seems like I had it all wrong. I thought I was depressed and anxious because we couldn't find out what was causing my on-going GI problems. Turns out that the stress of my progressing neurological condition, commute, and work was making me depressed and anxious and that was causing the GI problems. My husband, daughter, and doctor all encouraged me to think about retiring. I realized that the time really had come for me to leave my work and so I did. When I went in to sign the paperwork, I thought that maybe I'd get cold feet and change my mind. But that didn't happen; I was more certain than ever that I'd made the right decision.

I am so happy and at peace with puttering around the house and garden. I am as busy as I want to be--pulling weeds in the garden, cooking and baking, piecing my next quilt, and reading.

Finances are more constrained but I am by nature frugal and am a great believer in living below one's means. Thank goodness we have no debt, a good emergency fund, and JMM is still working to bring in income and health insurance. I plan to make out a new Dave Ramsey style budget where I tell my money where to go instead of wandering around without a plan. I am not planning to take money from my 403b or draw my Social Security until 2012.

I will probably find some kind of volunteer work to do one day a week but not quite yet. I am still reveling in life in the very slow, peaceful lane. Lovely!

The End

This will be my last blog post. I may start another in the future but right now my blogging days are finished. I have enj0yed getting to know many of you and I will miss you but my heart and interest are just not here. So long and God bless you.

Finances 2010

Financially, 2010 was a really good year for us. I know that many people are really struggling with their finances whether it is from debt or job loss or health problems and my heart goes out to them. We are fortunate because we both have jobs that pay well and provide medical insurance. Another major factor is that we have no debt--no car payments, the house is paid off, and the credit card is paid off every 2 weeks. We are both frugal and have lived well below our means all 42 years of our marriage.

Our net worth has increased by about 10% to $1.2 million; of that about half is in our combined 401Ks, the house is worth and property is worth about $415,000, and $56,000 is in savings (Emergency fund, New vehicle savings, Household Savings).

The key for me is planning--saving $500 per paycheck for the taxes, homeowners insurance, and homeowners association fees; saving in advance for a new vehicle (my van has 131,000 miles on it and JMM's truck has even more miles) so it is likely that we will need a new vehicle soon, and finally having an Emergency fund so that if one of us loses their job or a hurricane blows off the roof, the money is there to pick up the pieces.

My financial goal for next year is to continue on the same path--work, save, give, enjoy.

2010 Goals

It is the time to look back on the year and see if the goals that we set were actually met. This has been an unusual year as I was struggling with physical problems virtually all year. Nevertheless, it was a good year and here are the results:
I. Physical
A. Eat real food--mostly done and I lost 32 pounds.
B. Rest when tired--I am learning to listen to my body and stop when I need to rest.
C. Dental cleanings--twice yearly cleanings done and no dental work needed.
D. Yearly physical--not done but due to my illness, I saw more doctors than I care to remember.
E. Gyn exam--done.
F. Mammogram--will be done Jan.18.
G. GI doc—done January 14 colonoscopy--done and that was just the beginning of my GI tests and exams...
H. Optometrist--not done; on the list for 2011.
II. Spiritual
A. Church and Sunday School--not done as much as I would like mostly because of illness.
B. Bible chapter each day--done.
C. Spiritual book--done.
III. Professional
A. Complete 19th year at TMH--done.
B. Continuing Education hours--done.
IV. Financial
A. Pay off house—done!!
B. Increase emergency fund to $8,000--done.
C. Resume 403b contributions--done.
We also saved almost $40,000 toward new vehicles when we need them.
V. Personal
A. Monthly haircut--done.
B. Spring and fall clothes--done. I've had to buy several new clothes because of my weight loss. (Oh darn...)
C. Read good books--I read and listened to several good books but the old saying of "So many books, so little time" is so true.
D. Go birding--We were able to go on a couple of brief birding trips but I was too sick much of the year to do more than watch the birds at the feeders.

Next on the agenda is to set goals for next year. How about you? Do you set yearly goals?

Compassion

This past year has a difficult year for me physically. It has been a year that has made me ever more aware of suffering in the world. Around us every day there are people who are suffering physically and mentally; they go about their lives doing the best they can. This year has made me so very aware of the need for kindness, gentleness, and compassion.

I have insurance and a loving husband and daughter. But so many these days do not. How could I have paid my $35,000 hospital bill if I did not have insurance?? How would I have been treated if I had no job and no insurance? Even if I were to find a doctor to test, diagnose, and treat me, how much more worry and stress it would have been if I had to find a way to keep the bills paid. There must be a better way to provide healthcare.

Handling the Holidiays

Over the years, I have learned that I am not a big holiday person. I do what I can do without stress, and just don't do anything more. Part of the situation is that I work at a hospital and we are extremely busy with people being sick in the winter, people partying and ending up in the ER, and people trying to use up their insurance before the end of the year. (I worked the ER the weekend after Thanksgiving and it was a madhouse with broken bones, heart attacks, and abdominal problems...) Add to that the fact that hospital workers get sick too and many want to take vacation time to be with their families and we end up short staffed at a very busy time. So my Christmas decorations are in two plastic bins and are easily set up, JMM makes Christmas dinner, and gifts are simple. I enjoy beautiful Christmas music, avoid crowds, and love my family. Sweet and simple and works for me.

Spices

Yesterday I cleaned out the pantry shelf where I keep all my cooking spices. I know you are supposed to throw them out after a year but I hate to waste perfectly good items. I always put the date purchased on each jar so that I will know how long I've had it. The winner for the most out of date spice was some cumin that I bought in 2000. There were a couple of 2006 which were tossed also. The shelf is now nicely organized with the items that I use most often up front and the rarely used ones to the back.
Next on the clean it out list is the canned goods shelf.