Happy Birthday to my daughter

Happy Birthday Danielle​! When you came into our life you changed our world. We watched you grow from a tiny person we could hold in our hands to a strong, beautiful person with a wonderful sense of humour, and love of life. You always knew your own mind and that trait has served you well over the years. You are courageous, strong yet gentle soul. Your mom and I are proud of the person you became. As your father I can say that as I watched you grow  you enriched me and made me a better person and I love you with all my heart.

You deserve the best that life can give you and we know that you have made a wonderful life for yourself,  Adam and Ryder in Australia. Enjoy the day, with your friends, family and my hope is that we will see you soon. Happy Birthday

How do I decide what to leave/give away or store when I move?

We just moved my mother-in-law who is 88 from her three bedroom town home to a one bedroom independent living complex. First, the idea of the move was a difficult one that took many months for her to decide she needed to move. Once she made the decision to move, then we needed to sort out what she wanted to take, what she wanted to keep and what she wanted to give away or sell. The process of making those decisions were difficult and very time consuming.

Lucky for us her place took a while to sell, so we were not rushed but the stress was hard on my wife and her mother. Downsizing is not easy but it is a situation that many of us will have to face. Here are some of the ideas that we used to help my mother-in-law move toward making tough decisions. 

One of the first things we asked is would it be necessary in her new situation. In her new place, she had two meals a day provided, so she did not need much in the way of kitchen products, so we sold/gave away or tossed most of her kitchen.

We then looked at if something could be used by her in her new home. If something was useful, but would not fit, we made the decision to sell or to give it away. 

We also looked at the sentimental value of each item to her. While there were certainly items that have sentimental value these were put into storage but if they had no value, we sold them or gave them away. Some people only need one item to represent many of these memories or people, my mother in law was not one of those people.

Finally we looked at collectables. My mother-in-law, collected stuffed toys and books, these were problematic, so in the end we stored them and will probably sell or give them away very soon. It can be difficult to decide what to get rid of. However, when you are forced to make choices, you have the chance to reduce your own consumerism and save more money in the future.

Strategic Voting is wrong

As we continue to move toward the election in Canada,  many progressive voters are touting the idea of strategic voting.The idea is to vote for the candidate that will defeat the Conservative candidate in the riding. 

I am not sure if that is a good idea. Our Prime Minister, who is not a nice person for those who do not share his ideas and vision of Canada. I am one of those that think he is taking Canada in the wrong direction, and I have over the years supported those who have stood up to him. 

To some progressives the way to defeat him means finding the candidate that will defeat the conservative and holding your nose and voting for that person/party even if that party/person does not reflect your views.

I am a big believer in voting for the best person that you think will represent your views and your riding on the Federal, Provincial or Municipal level. Vote for who you believe is the best candidate. 

If the progressive side wins the most seats, then the parties can decide to work together to form government. They can form a coalition, or form a strategic partnership to take the government away from the conservatives. 

We don't need strategic voting for the progressives to take back Canada, we do need a higher voter turnout, and we need many more young people to vote. 

Unfortunately, many of my peers (seniors and boomer's) will vote for the current government, because they tend to believe that the government will not lie or do things that are bad for Canadians. They also like the simple easy message that the current government is sending. 

For the progressive vote to win the next election, you don't need to cast a ballot for a person you think will defeat the conservative, but you need to cast a ballot and get all of the people you know to get out and vote. 

I urge you to vote for the person you think will do the best for you in your riding. At the end of the day, the progressive parties will hold more seats than the government and they will take power. 

Do you know what's better?

Do you know what's better than waking up to a 6 AM alarm clock, dashing through the house for work, and then suddenly realizing it's the weekend and you can go back to bed? 

Having so much fun, with so many friends, laughing so hard, spending, dining, being merry, and suddenly realizing that this time, you're not just visualizing. 

Happens every day, when you are retired. 

Don't be afraid to start the retirement journey, it is fun and a great adventure. 

Looking for a lost Pension and are from the UK?

Before I found my calling, I worked at a number of jobs, some for a few months others for a few years. I know that many of my peers were also searching for their passion. We were lucky being on the front end of the Boomers, we landed in the workforce when the economy was expanding. 

Being young I never thought about retirement, nor did I think about the fact that for all my jobs I paid into company pension plans. When I left the companies, I took my severance, but did not think to ask what happens to the money that I had put into the company or union pension plan.

Today many workers have done several jobs or over the years worked for many different companies and many of these have company or union pension plans, in addition to the Canada Pension Plan or RRSP's.  

The amount of money in "lost pensions" is large and concerning in the UK more than one million people have lost track of former pension schemes.  More than a million workers nearing retirement have lost track of pension schemes to which they contributed they contributed in the early years of their career.

The average employee will work for more than 11 companies during the course of their career, but the culture of company-hopping has meant that many employees are not claiming their pensions from funds to which they have contributed.

Further compounding the issue, one in five workers aged between 18 and 34 are unaware they are entitled to claim pension contributions from an early works pensions, according to a survey published by retirement specialists LV

The free for people in the UK,  Pension Tracing Service tracks down missing or forgotten pensions on your behalf and provides you with an address and advice about how you can claim it back.

Lost pension pots

The government aims to help retirees top up their pension pots by tracking down lost or forgotten pensions, and have improved the Pension Tracing Service to aid in this task. The free service tracks down missing or forgotten pensions on behalf of workers and provides them with advice about how they can claim.

People need to make sure they are claiming everything they are entitled to in retirement. If you think you may have had a pension in a previous job or you once paid into a personal scheme that you had forgotten about, then the Pension Tracing Service may be able to help you to recover the money you invested.

In an attempt to address the ongoing problem, the government is due to launch a new initiative that allows workers to transfer pension pots under £10,000 when they change jobs. The new laws will take effect in October 2016.

The scheme will allow workers to have pensions automatically transferred when they change jobs, although there are alternative options if the pension fund of the new company is not as profitable.

Pension transfers

The Pension Schemes Act 2015 introduces safeguards and “greater flexibility” in the transfer of pensions and tax exemptions.

When an employee leaves a pension scheme, they are still entitled to reclaim the contributions when they retire, but the new government scheme may enable them to switch a workplace pension to a better fund, either with a new employer, a private scheme, a self-invested personal pension, or a stakeholder pension.

Just as with pensions, it is important for people to keep track of all their finances throughout their career, and there are new online tools to track all your savings and other investments available online.

Those considering moving their pensions to a different scheme are advised to seek independent financial advice before deciding on the best course of action to take for their retirement