older age

More Random Thoughts on Retirement – September 2023

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Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

Steve Jobs

The older I get the more I think about retirement. But some things in this life should take a while to make decisions about and retirement is definitely one of those things. I made my decision on retirement 4 years ago when I decided not to retire. Recently, I made my second decision about retirement when I again decided not to retire. But it’s never too early to start thinking about various aspects of retirement as in what you want to retire to. I want to retire to a quiet life of blogging and writing my Future Best Seller tentatively titled The Man Who Had No Hobbies.

The time had come to upgrade my workstation.

Here’s the workstation for my Day Job.

And here’s my new personal workstation setup (yeah, looks the same).

My old Windows 7 machine was nearing the end. At the bottom left of the picture you can see it still sitting on the floor. I’ve upgraded to a Windows 11 laptop, docking station, and two extra monitors. I should be good until Windows 20 now.

For other random retirement thoughts go to https://garyskitchen.net/. At one point I may combine the two into a single blog.

Maybe when I’m retired.

The Dark Side of Pickleball

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It’s a new national obsession, the fastest-growing sport in the U.S. And by the end of 2023, it’s expected to yield roughly 67,000 emergency department visits, 366,000 outpatient visits, 8,800 outpatient surgeries, 4,700 hospitalizations, and 20,000 post-acute injury episodes. All told, UBS Group AG financial analysts have forecast that the direct medical costs of pickleball will top $377 million this year alone, mostly due to wrist, lower leg, head, or lower trunk injuries…

Felice de Jong, PhD, a 67-year-old scientist who lives in Nellysford, VA, explained that when she first heard the name “pickleball,” she thought it would be a “piece of cake, like playing tiddlywinks.” Because she had spent a lifetime being active, she dove right in after only a few lessons, badly twisted her ankle, developed tennis elbow, and was forced to lay off the paddle for a few weeks before returning to the court. 

As Injuries from Pickleball Surge, Here’s How to Play Safely — https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/news/20230724/heres-how-to-play-pickleball-safely?src=RSS_PUBLIC

I have a 12 court facility located at the public golf course 2 miles from the house.

I’m tempted. Just need to make sure my health insurance premiums are paid and up to date.

Scary Charts – 07.16.23

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Note the Pandemic Bump. Overall trend lines for both CA and USA still heading north.

CA only. USA death rates probably show a similar pattern.

CA statistics. NOTE the ASIAN RATE.

Excessive drinking during the covid-19 pandemic increased alcoholic liver disease deaths so much that the condition killed more Californians than car accidents or breast cancer, a KFF Health News analysis has found. Lockdowns made people feel isolated, depressed, and anxious, leading some to increase their alcohol intake. Alcohol sales rose during the pandemic, with especially large jumps in the consumption of spirits.

Excessive Drinking During the Pandemic Increased Alcoholic Liver Disease Death Rates — https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/excessive-drinking-during-the-pandemic-increased-alcoholic-liver-disease-death-rates/

Yes it’s Sunday morning and I’m thinking about single malt Scotch because I ran out.

Take Home Lesson for UW Professionals

The highest mortality rates were Gen X and Boomers.

Memo to Self

Think before you drink.

Social isolation and Lower Brain Volume

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The people with the lowest amount of social contact had overall brain volume that was significantly lower than those with the most social contact. The total brain volume, or the sum of white and grey matter, as a percentage of the total intracranial volume, or the volume within the cranium, including the brain, meninges, and cerebrospinal fluid, was 67.3% in the lowest contact group compared to 67.8% in the highest contact group. They also had lower volumes in areas of the brain such as the hippocampus and amygdala that play a role in memory and are affected by dementia.

The study does not prove that social isolation causes brain shrinkage; it only shows an association.

Social isolation linked to lower brain volume — American Academy of Neurology. “Social isolation linked to lower brain volume.” ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230712165229.htm (accessed July 13, 2023).

Yikes!

Save as Much as You Can Because Whatever You Manage to Save Will Never Be Enough – Random Thoughts on Retirement

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As a gentle reminder to readers who may be visiting this blog for the first time my Random Thoughts About Retirement are written by an Old Guy who is old enough to be retired but isn’t retired and is still working. To be clear, saving as much as you can is different than saving more. I come across way too much “financial advice” that emphasizes saving more for retirement as the hands down absolute solution for a secure retirement. Saving more is typically followed by advice to spend less. Well life keeps getting more expensive so it’s getting harder to save more AND spend less.

So save as much as you can. That’s it. That’s the post.

Oklahoma producing 64 times more marijuana than licensed users consume – The Oklahoman

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“The supply-to-demand ratio of regulated medical marijuana supply to regulated medical cannabis demand is 64:1,” the report states. “Using a general assumption that units of supply should not exceed two times the units of demand, the medical marijuana program has no less than 32 times more regulated marijuana necessary than licensed patient demand.”

The significant oversupply is likely funneling large amounts of marijuana out of state and adding to the illegal market, according to authority officials.

Oklahoma producing 64 times more marijuana than licensed users consume, report shows — https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/state/2023/06/21/marijuana-oklahoma-overproducing-64-times-omma-report/70343452007/

The Truth behind the medical marijuana industry.

At least we know there may be a positive longevity effect to all of this excess supply.

Random Thoughts on Retirement – aka The Dot Project

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Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

Steve Jobs

While writing random retirement thoughts the other day I noticed the similarities between A Plan is Not a Strategy – Update 08.03.22 and my Dot Project. Harvard Prof Robert Martin discusses how planning and strategy are different and that “integrative choices” collectively become strategy. These integrative choices are significant decisions you have made or choose to make that have life altering consequences. I come from a humble background and tend to shy away from BIG FANCY WORDS used by intellectuals and others who want to appear smarter than they truly are. So for me these choices or life decisions are Dots.

Dots. Big Dots. Little Dots. Even Do Nothing Dots where you decide not to do something are Dots. The decision not to do something can be as important to life outcomes as a decision to do something. The problem as Jobs tells it is true. You can only connect your Dots when looking backwards.

I started my Dot Project writing six years ago and got as far as jotting down Dots in my journal as writing prompts. So far I’ve documented about a dozen Dots but never got around to actually writing anything about them. Until today. I’ve reached the point in life where I am able to look backwards and Connect My Dots. My hope is the reader will find these insights to be useful in your own journey. My second hope is that my children and their children find my Dot Project and learn a tad bit more about where they came from.

The Dot Project and Random Thoughts on Retirement are one and the same. Next up – Save as Much as You Can Because Whatever You Manage to Save Will Never Be Enough – Random Thoughts on Retirement.

More Random Thoughts on Retirement – June 2023

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Another quiet Sunday and I’m thinking about retirement (again). Writers read a lot. I’ll typically have quite a number of books started in various stages of completion. Recently I started reading the first in a series of books titled The Write Quotes: The Writing Life. The quotes paint similarities of thoughts and experiences and are amazing. You realize you are never alone in any of life’s adventures.

Since 2021, more than 1.5 million seniors have reentered the workforce. There were about 10.6 million people ages 65 to 74 employed in 2020, according to 2021 data from the U.S. Labor Department.

That number is expected to increase.

Retiring from retirement: Whether for financial reasons or boredom, a growing number of older adults are rejoining the workforce — https://triblive.com/local/valley-news-dispatch/back-to-work-whether-for-financial-reasons-or-boredom-a-growing-number-of-older-adults-are-rejoining-the-workforce/

Just last month I came to the realization that (I am) Flunking Retirement. When 65 rolled around I started collecting a small corporate defined benefit pension. Years ago the monthly amount had a lot more purchasing power than it does now. Still, I feel fortunate to have this income stream.

In yesteryear, the pension was a staple of the American working class experience—reach retirement age and you could expect to live out your years modestly, yet comfortably, off of monthly payments from your former employer. However, since the 1980s, companies offering pensions are a dwindling breed. Instead, most employers offer defined contribution programs such as 401(k) plans. Only a handful of industries (such as the military, public works and education) still offer pension plans to their retirees.

Why Pensions Are Dying And How You Can Create Your Own —https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2023/06/05/why-pensions-are-dying-and-how-you-can-create-your-own/?sh=4970c87ec9d4

When I reached my US Social Security FRA (full retirement age) I didn’t retire nor start collecting benefits. Delaying social security payments until age 70 translates into about an 8% increase in benefits annually. If you’re healthy and you don’t need the income for necessities, it’s worth the wait.

Working longer is a powerful lever. Social Security benefits claimed at 70 instead of at 62 are at least 76 percent higher, and the additional years of work allow 401(k) assets to increase and reduce the period of time that the assets need to cover. In fact, my research shows that the vast majority of millennials will be fine if they work to age 70. And although that might sound old, it’s historically normal in another sense: Retiring at 70 leaves the ratio of retirement to working years the same as when Social Security was originally introduced.

Millennials and retirement: How bad is it? — https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2018/06/07/millennials-preparing-for-retirement-000670/

Millennials are not the only generation ill-prepared for retirement.

America’s 65 million Generation Xers (born between 1965 and 1980) are confronted with a new set of financial challenges that are redefining their plans for retirement, just as they enter their final working years, according to Prudential Financial, Inc.’s latest Pulse research survey, “Gen X: Retirement Revised.”

Generation X confronts harsh new reality of retirement: unreadiness — https://news.prudential.com/generation-x-confronts-harsh-new-reality-retirement-unreadiness.htm

Remember A Plan is Not a Strategy – Update 08.03.22? Having a plan for retirement is great but not all plans turn out as planned. My last executive position ended up being my last executive position and trust me, that was not what I planned. It’s a good thing that my strategy worked a lot better than my plans.

Stay tuned for the next installment of my random thoughts on retirement where I will document (finally) the integrative choices I’ve made that comprise my retirement strategy.

Take Your Vitamins

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In the current study, more than 3,500 adults (mostly non-Hispanic white) over age 60 were randomly assigned to take a daily multivitamin supplement or placebo for three years. At the end of each year, participants performed a series of online cognitive assessments at home designed to test memory function of the hippocampus, an area of the brain that is affected by normal aging. The COSMOS-Web study is part of a large clinical trial led by Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard called the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS).

By the end of the first year, memory improved for people taking a daily multivitamin, compared with those taking a placebo. The researchers estimate the improvement, which was sustained over the three-year study period, was equivalent to about three years of age-related memory decline. The effect was more pronounced in participants with underlying cardiovascular disease.

Columbia University Irving Medical Center. “Multivitamin improves memory in older adults, study finds.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230524181916.htm (accessed May 25, 2023).