Sam Squared

      Photo credit link      I bet I'm not alone as a retired person alternating between feeling scared and adventurous. Some days, I worry I didn't plan well enough. On others I feel like I worked hard my whole life, was dealt an unfair hand,  too soon have to navigate life alone, so I deserve to lead the good life now. This week is one of those back and forth mind weeks. On one hand, few of us know how long we'll need our money to last. The thought of being a financial burden, or even a care burden to my kids puts thoughts in the thrifty lane and potentially miser lane. I don't want to have to choose between eating healthy and medications. Spending now on anything but food, shelter, and health care sometimes feels irresponsible.       Reading about retirees that end their months and years thousands and thousands in the black, the goal always building up their bank accounts, while seeming very unhappy with the quality of their lif...

        Photo by Martin Animals      I'm getting in the Hibernaculum band wagon to describe my home and thus my approach to January. Both the sweet Mary on her post and Sue both wrote about it recently. I have been hibernating of sorts. If I don't need to leave my house, other than necessary dog/ exercise walks, I don't. I guess it's full circle from five years ago when staying home was about trying to keep ourselves and other healthy. Today it's both trying to keep me mentally healthy. (Less exposure to cold, flu, and other viruses doesn't hurt either.)     Space for hibernating leaves room for things I didn't feel justified being able to do in spring, summer, and fall. Binge watching a television show, at a scheduled time, feels appropriate and not lazy. Easy meals that literally just get dumped in the crockpot feel both cozy but also resourceful as it maximizes the veg that's more affordable than others in the winter and less expensive ...

                                  It was my daughter's birthday week but we're going out Sunday as she was busy supporting her friend after work most nights. As a reminder in case you feel repetitiveness to my Friday posts, I copy the previous week, delete the old and update as I go along the week. This will help me add as the week goes on. Here's my recap of Friday, January 9 to Thursday, January 15. I just sort of list things as they come up, then edit before publishing.  Avoiding Spending/ Saving on Needs Scrounged out the last of a sugar scrub for my weather rough elbows, wrists, ankles, and knees before starting a new jar (gift from my daughter). I'll watch for sales to have a back up as this stuff is a truly a necessity for my dry flex points. It's also what I use for my frugal home pedicures on my feet. Used only food already in the house and put out a nice little football night spread for m...

           I'm slow going today, sort of. I met my daughter at 6:45 to get her dog, but came home just to lay sort of upright while coffee was brewing. I'm having a bad nose day, meaning the dry winter air and sinus pressure combine to give me nose bleeds that are difficult to stop. This is one gift from my RA flare-ups. I'm heading though to a visitation and funeral for my BIL's mother soon, so hoping I can manage after a shower. The wet and steam often helps.       It's my youngest 25th birthday Wednesday. However, she had some sad news. A close friends sister passed away last week. The rest of the family is not in Minnesota so daughter and other friends are going to help pack up her apartment and get her things ready to get to her parents, so her schedule is not clear. We'll celebrate her birthday when she feels like she has space to actually celebrate. So, I'm attending a funeral for a 90 year old great grandma while she's helping a ...

      Photo   by Ella Olson      I'm trying to blog more, things I've been thinking about and trying to put down in words. It's a way to get through the long winter, and as I lamented with Kim on her post a few days ago, helps a bit with the loneliness. This post is one of those musing topics that occupy my brain when I'm trying to put the chaos and cruelty of the world aside for a few minutes of calm.      I wish I could say non-consumerism is a topic, a lifestyle, an aspiration I have for purely for altruistic means, saving the planet by avoiding exploitation of natural resources, reducing waste, and of course not buying from companies that oppress human beings. Those all are great motivators of course. Realistically when I'm choosing to be more intentional about use of things, it's usually motivated initially to combat excessive spending or consumption elsewhere in my life. Whether it's because I over cooked and leftovers are heaving ...

                                  I like this new photo from pexels.com found by searching Money Management. It helps remind me that it'll be a series of little things and not dramatic actions that will keep me heading in the right direction this year money wise. It's a new year good and truly. The glitter is put away. Despite the warm weather, snow remains and more will come; I'll hunker down and try and enjoy the simple things. In efforts to meet a huge financial lift towards needs and wants in 2026 I need to pay attention to where my dollars are going. I copy the previous week, delete the old and update as I go along the week. This will help me add as the week goes on. Here's my recap of Friday, January 2 to Thursday, January 8. I just sort of list things as they come up, then edit before publishing.  Avoiding Spending/ Saving on Needs My daughter was still here, but by Friday night all of us we...

           It took a long time post Christmas to get the house back to regular chaos, knowing full well deep cleaning, purging, and organizing is still needed. I blame this on both illness but also my youngest being here for two full weeks. Let's just say she and cats are the equivalent of micro tornados, touching down and leaving a mess each place they touch. While Monday we all were still not great, after working remotely in the morning, she finally packed up, no spare room in her little Sonic, to resume normal life.       This should have been my jump to get things done. Instead, I had mindless TV on while I scrolled on my phone. Enough though! I hit the power button and declared an end to the television being on after 8:00 a.m.  and before the 6:00 p.m. and even then only if there's something I'm intentionally wanting to watch. Amazing what the quiet can do for feeling calmer. I think background voices and sounds are comforting,...

      Goodness, that was a cold of all colds, perhaps flu. Thank you all for the well and healing wishes. I had gotten this years flu vaccine back in October but still managed to get a bad case of something. Hopefully I'm done with illness and can get on with the month and the new year. Getting through March to hopefully the real beginning of spring in April, takes a lot of my resiliency. I'm tired already of shoveling and driving on icy roads from the merry-go-round of snow, melt, freeze, repeat. If I could hibernate for three months, I wouldn't complain. But I'm not a bear heading to my cave though my ever expanding waistline might be confusing. Instead, I'm trying to figure out my calendar ahead, and build in some things to look forward to, even if it means venturing out in the cold. Part of my remedy to cabin fever is to also look ahead and beyond winter. Here's a preview of my evolving 2026 calendar.  January: Youngest daughter's birthday and dinner, ho...

           So much for hitting the ground running on my list to organize. I am not glamorous sick as this AI shows. I'm snot filled, achy, and with a pounding head. See you on the other side - hopefully soon. 

                                                                        It's a new year now and more than any other, I need to pay attention to where my dollars are going. Illness hit our house, not me so much ( though fatigued and sniffly), but my son, so I stayed put too as I did not want to be a carrier to others. I'm going to look for a new picture to start the 2026 Friday Fiscal Wellness Check. I'll likely still copy the previous week, delete the old and updated as I go along the week. This will help me add as the week goes on. I have big needs and bigger wants in 2026 and it already feels like money is pouring out of my bank account and it's only my first check in. Tracking major focus areas help my accountability to myself. You're welcome to come along for the ride.  Here's...