Katy McKenna Raymond  
Personal blog of christian writer Katy McKenna Raymond in Kansas City, Missouri

Personal blog of christian
writer & fallible mom
Katy McKenna Raymond
in Kansas City, Missouri


Katy is represented by
Greg Johnson at
WordServe Literary

Read more Katy at
LateBoomer.net

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Inflation And Hyperventilation

When I was growing up, we were taught that polite company didn’t include discussions of money, politics, or religion. Of course, in real life, what else is there? OK, technically there’s sex. But we’re certainly not going to get technical here at fallible!

I’ve got a few questions for you today, and frankly you should know up front they’re about money. Yours, mine, and ours. But mostly yours.

1. Do you save any money?

2. Do you save any money specifically for retirement?

3. Do you believe that the government (if you are in the US, this means Social Security) will bankroll your needs in retirement?

4. Do you believe you will need Starbucks in your old age, and that Starbucks should be its own entitlement program?

5. Do you believe Medicare will still be around when you retire, paying for your frequent and expensive Starbucks-induced cardiac events?

6. If you do not believe that either Social Security or Medicare will be operational by the time you retire, are you having palpitations right now?

7. Do you imagine that one of your benevolent children (for whom you’ve sacrificed SO MUCH!) will be willing and able to support you in your doterage, considering the inestimable tax burden their (much smaller numbers-wise) generation will be saddled with?

8. Any guesses how much money you would need to have saved by age 65 in order to continue living without employment in the manner to which you have become accustomed to the approximate age of, let’s just say, 95?

Seriously, folks. Are you thinking about this stuff? Whether you answer any of these specific questions or not, shoot me a comment and let me know what you’re thinking/planning/believing about your financial future as a bona fide geezer.

Enquiring minds, and all that.

Posted by Katy on 02/06/07 at 07:42 PM
Fallible Comments...
  1. Answer to the Starbucks question: Yes.

    I have no kids, so I'm on my own there. Will the gov subsidize our old age? Probably, in some way. Maybe old age refugee work camps or something fun like that...

    Here's our retirement philosophy: We will work until we die, or get too sick to work. If we get sick and can't afford medical care, we'll go to our REAL home.

    We don't worry about it. God hasn't failed us yet. He's in charge. He knows exactly what we don't have, what we need, and when it's our time to go home.

    So, no worries. Manna principle.
    Posted by Suzan  on  02/06/07  at  10:06 PM
  2. My dad's always been at me to save, but so far I'm a washout in the saving stakes.

    Over here, by law, every salaried employee has a sort of retirement fund. 11% of our salaries are paid directly to that fund, and the employer is obligated to contribute another 12% from his side. The body that manages the money is supposed to invest it and pay dividends (ploughed back into the fund). It's a sort of forced savings scheme. But with inflation and all, I doubt the accummulated amount would be enough to cover retirement expenses till I'm 95, especially medical fees and stuff.

    I don't have children, but speaking from a child's perspective, I would be willing to help support my parents... I just don't know if I will be able to. I'm barely floating as it is. I'm fortunate that my parents don't need my help -- in fact, they've been helping me, here and there. Hopefully by the time they do need me, I'll be more established career-wise and be earning enough to be of some use financially.
    Posted by Sunflower  on  02/07/07  at  02:20 AM
  3. About all I'll say is - yeah, I'm thinking about it. And if I can get rid of the leftover debt, I'll be a happy camper!
    Posted by Lynn  on  02/07/07  at  02:21 PM
  4. Hey Katy,

    We are doing our best to get all of our debt paid and have started saving some money. We hope to be self-reliant in our old age, if possible. I don't know what will be happening with the governement by then, but I don't expect that they will be providing Starbucks. My parents are missionaries and have lived on next to nothing for as long as I can remember. We hope to be able to help them when the time comes.

    Is this still about the USA Today article?
    Posted by Anna  on  02/07/07  at  06:20 PM
  5. HI Katy,

    Craig and I hopefully will have debts paid off, but as far as savingss....we're thinking more like working through our 90's - "Welcome to Walmart, shoppers" ....and thankfully that will pay for my Starbucks fix - Craig doesn't drink coffee!!!

    love, Nancy
    Posted by Nancy Wood  on  02/07/07  at  07:04 PM
  6. I'll work at Target. They have a Starbucks right there in the store.
    Posted by Suzan  on  02/07/07  at  08:06 PM
  7. 1. yes and no - we saved when my husband was working regularly - now we are more piecing income together, and there isn't any saving going on.

    2. same as above

    3. No - I don't think Social Security will cover retirement, though it would be nice if it could supplement it...

    4. No - I don't think I'll need Starbucks, but I'm pretty sure that I won't be able to live without Peet's. Peet's definitely should be it's own entitlement program.

    5. I doubt Medicare will be around in the form it's in now. It would be great if there were some acceptable solution to the growing healthcare crisis, but I don't have a lot of hope about that.

    6. I don't know what to think. We might inherit something - on the other hand my grandma is still kicking along at 104 so there are long life genes in my family - plus one good depression and every generation's savings might be caput, anyway. I'm not sure we can depend on any of it too much.

    7. I hope we're not in that situation.

    8. We were told by a financial advisor once that we would need to plan on $2 million. As a minimum. That was when we had some dreams of early retirement (pre-tech stock crash days). Not sure if that changes when you are looking at starting retirement at 65.
    Posted by Chris(tine)  on  02/08/07  at  04:23 AM
  8. Suzan--I keep returning to this subject on my blog, so I guess it's evident I have "issues." Philisophically (and theologically) I do believe that God will provide for everything we need. Practically, I don't know what that looks like. How involved in providing for ourselves ahead of time do we need to be? (Like storing grain in the good times so as to have provision in the lean times--not that I eat grain or anything... ) It's a question I'm not settled on yet.

    Sun--Malaysia's system makes so much more sense than ours!! Employees and employers here have to contribute to the system. I think it's 7.5% from the employee and the same from the employer. So, hubby and I own a corporation, which employs both of us. We kick in 15% to Social Security. But our contributions are paid out immediately to curreent retirees. We may see a bit from SS when we retire, but the next gen behind us is WAY too small to support us at even below a poverty level. It's a huge mess, and not getting better. No one running for office seems to have a plan, either!
    Posted by Katy  on  02/08/07  at  04:40 PM
  9. Lynn--I know how you feel! If we're completely debt-free by retirement age (including our house), we'll be breathing a huge sigh of relief.

    Anna--Is this still about the USA Today article? Yeah, I guess it is. I tend to fixate on subjects, especially ones I find personally disturbing. Your parents sound like wonderful role models of lives lived by faith!

    Nancy--Suzan makes a great point! You'll need to work at Target, so that your Starbucks is available on site. Hey, I once worked in a yarn shop (when I was pregnant with Scotty). I managed to spend almost my entire salary on yarn!! Watch out, is all I'm saying. ;)

    Chris(tine)--Longevity scares me to death!! :) So far, we don't have any very long lived family members. But Doug's mother is defying the odds and will soon be 84. Our fathers both died at 62. My mother is 76, and while she has lots of health problems, her vital organs seem to be hanging in there. It reminds me of the old joke about the man at his 100th birthday party. He said, "If I'd known I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself!" Such a quandary....
    Posted by Katy  on  02/08/07  at  04:50 PM
  10. Wow, lots of questions. Short answer: yes, I think about this stuff. I've got a whole blog about it.

    Long answers:
    1. Do you save any money? Yes, for short, medium & long-term goals.

    2. Do you save any money specifically for retirement?
    Yes, in a 401(k) and an IRA. And then there's my "early retirement" fund.

    3. Do you believe that the government (if you are in the US, this means Social Security) will bankroll your needs in retirement? Nope.

    4. Do you believe you will need Starbucks in your old age, and that Starbucks should be its own entitlement program? No. I don't drink coffee (I know, blasphemy) and although their coffee cake is great, I can do without it.

    5. Do you believe Medicare will still be around when you retire?
    No, but I hope so.

    6. If you do not believe that either Social Security or Medicare will be operational by the time you retire, are you having palpitations right now? No to the palpitations, because I'd probably be more likely to have them if our government DOES manage to keep that stuff afloat.

    7. Do you imagine that one of your benevolent children (for whom you’ve sacrificed SO MUCH!) will be willing and able to support you in your doterage, considering the inestimable tax burden their (much smaller numbers-wise) generation will be saddled with? I haven't thought about this. I'm sure my son would help if he can.

    8. Any guesses how much money you would need to have saved by age 65 in order to continue living without employment in the manner to which you have become accustomed to the approximate age of, let’s just say, 95? For me personally, probably less than other people. But I think a million would be nice.
    Posted by bluntmoney  on  02/10/07  at  12:03 AM
  11. Every time I save a few hundred dollars my car breaks down, so I've never been able to get more than $300 in a savings account at any one time during the last 20+ years (about the time my husband left with the family income). I like to work and like my job, so if I am able I imagine I will be working long past retirement. I don't own a home, and I still owe about $20,000, most of which is college debt, so my youngest and I are jointly paying that off. I have a little bit in my profit-sharing plan which, combined with SS/Medicare, should keep me going for a year or two. My daughters and I have always taken care of each other and we all expect that will continue in one form or another (although when my youngest gets annoyed with me, she emails me brochures from nursing homes in case I see one I like). Realistically speaking, the future looks grim, but my dad had $0 when he retired and by the time he died at age 83, he had $75K saved which, along with SS, has provided for my mother. I think my situation is about average. I hardly know anyone who isn't one paycheck away from homelessness and I know lots of people who are far worse off than I am. The only thing I know for sure is that nothing is for sure.
    Posted by alison  on  02/12/07  at  04:51 AM
  12. Alison: I've been through the car breakdown thing, and understand how frustrating that is. I used to blog about my car troubles on a fairly regular basis!
    Posted by Sunflower  on  02/12/07  at  07:46 AM
  13. Well, this is strange. My email program is not notifying me that I have new comments! I'm sorry to be late in answering.

    bluntmoney--Thanks for weighing in, and welcome! I have been making the rounds of the personal finance blogs recently, and I am sure I've visited yours, along with free money finance, simple dollar, and some others. A wealth of great info you all are making available! Had to laugh at your comment about palpitations being more likely when gov programs are involved--I'm like that, too.

    alison--You and your mother and daughters have such great relationships. Obviously, families took care of their own just a couple generations ago, and I imagine there will be a lot more of that coming up here SOON. I agree that TONS of folks are "one paycheck away." Often, though, we don't know who they are....

    Sunflower--I remember those car troubles of yours!!! We've had our share, too, with raising our three drivers, but the car troubles took a back seat, so to speak, when the Mama troubles moved in!! :) But, yeah, it does seem when you get that little emergency fun together, something breaks.
    Posted by Katy  on  02/12/07  at  01:07 PM
  14. Of course, I meant to write "emergency FUND," not fun. However, emergency fun is most often what keeps me from adding to my emergency fund. Just keepin' it real. :)
    Posted by Katy  on  02/12/07  at  01:14 PM
  15. I like the idea of emergency fun.
    Posted by alison  on  02/12/07  at  04:58 PM
  16. alison--Let's start one, baby. :)
    Posted by Katy  on  02/12/07  at  05:25 PM
  17. You name the time and place and I'll be there!
    Posted by alison  on  02/13/07  at  07:09 PM
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