La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
Friday morning, I woke up around 6 and immediately began stewing about money (or maybe I was stewing in my sleep). Would we have enough money in the future? We had already talked about the fact that if one of us was gone, the other would have to scale back a bit. Especially a smaller, cheaper apartment, and not right on the beach. But I wondered would there be enough money for even one of us in later life? There’s The Kid Brother to consider, too. Yes, he’s taken care of, but we subsidize his life. Speaking of which, I have to go online and find him a new winter coat. I continued stewing until finally giving up and getting out of bed at 6:25.
San Geraldo was already out of bed when I first woke up. I wondered if he was OK. We met in the kitchen and he said, “Oh, I had the worst dreams. I woke before 6 and was afraid to go back to sleep. I kept dreaming we were completely out of money.” That gave me heartburn.
I know how much our income is. I know what we’ve got socked away. But I have no clue how much we spend each month. I simply know we haven’t gone into investments (which are limited) and we haven’t run out of money at the end of each year — yet.
I suppose it’s time for us to have an in-depth discussion about our finances. I’ve thought it might be practical, for the next move, to buy something instead of continuing to rent — inexpensive but pleasant. That could reduce monthly expenses significantly — if the timing is right. I know for certain there’s no one left to die and leave us their fortune. Am I too old to be someone’s toy boy? Would San Geraldo mind if I took up part-time with a 117-year-old? Just for the money, mind you. Would I mind? What do you worry about?
Today’s photos begin with how Saturday ended (at 10:30 p.m.) and end with how Saturday began, on my walk along the beach at 11 a.m (after a photo of the fog at 9 p.m.). Is that clear?
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El viernes por la mañana, me desperté alrededor de las 6 e inmediatamente comencé a preocuparme por el dinero (o tal vez me preocupaba mientras dormía). ¿Tendríamos suficiente dinero en el futuro? Ya habíamos hablado sobre el hecho de que si uno de nosotros se fuera, el otro tendría que reducirse un poco. Especialmente un apartamento más pequeño y más barato, y no justo en la playa. Pero me preguntaba si habría suficiente dinero incluso para uno de nosotros en el futuro. Hay El Hermanito a considerar, también. Sí, está cuidado, pero le subvencionamos la vida. Hablando de eso, tengo que conectarme a Internet y encontrarle un nuevo abrigo de invierno. Continué guisando hasta que finalmente me rendí y me levanté de la cama a las 6:25.
San Geraldo ya estaba fuera de la cama cuando me desperté. Me preguntaba si estaba bien. Nos encontramos en la cocina y dijo: “Oh, tuve los peores sueños. Me desperté antes de las 6 y tenía miedo de volver a dormir. Seguía soñando que nos habíamos quedado completamente sin dinero”. Eso me dio acidez estomacal.
Sé cuánto es nuestro ingreso. Sé lo que tenemos guardado. Pero no tengo ni idea de cuánto gastamos cada mes. Simplemente sé que no hemos realizado inversiones (que son limitadas) y no nos hemos quedado sin dinero al final de cada año — todavía.
Supongo que es hora de que tengamos una discusión profunda sobre nuestras finanzas. Pensé que podría ser práctico, para el próximo paso, comprar algo en lugar de seguir alquilando, económico pero agradable. Eso podría reducir significativamente los gastos mensuales, si es el momento adecuado. Sé con certeza que no queda nadie para morir y dejarnos su fortuna. ¿Soy demasiado mayor para ser el toy boy de alguien? ¿Le importaría a San Geraldo si me dedicara a tiempo parcial a una persona de 117 años? Sólo por el dinero. ¿Me importaría? ¿De que te preocupas?
Las fotos de hoy comienzan con cómo terminó el sábado (a las 22:30) y terminan con cómo comenzó el sábado, en mi paseo por la playa a las 11 (después de una foto de la niebla a las 21:00). ¿Está claro?
Click the thumbnails. The Twizy will be almost actual size..
Haz clic en las miniaturas. El Twizy será casi de tamaño real.
With my 60th looming next year, and with no pension to speak of, the prospect of retirement and having only a meagre income to scrape by on is a bit of a worry – but I make hay while the sun shines, dear! Jx
Jon:
That’s exactly what we’ve always done. Every so often we worry about the future. But, mostly, we try to simply enjoy the present.
I have the same thoughts and dreams. I worry that if I go before Carlos who will help him out as his eyesight declines. I worry that if he goes before me what will I have to live on and what will I do with this house. I worry that my dad, who just turned 90 will pass, and I’m the executor of his estate and I’d have to go to Oregon for a while to close things out and sell his house and cars and stuff and then who will take care of Carlos while I’m gone and … and … and ….
It’s always around 6AM that I wake up and have these thoughts.
Everything will work out, and you and SG will make changes and choices as needed and, if not, there is a 117-year-old man out there who’d be lucky to have you as a party favor.
Bob:
It’s exhausting, isn’t it? Just know that my 117 year old man has a younger brother for you!
Well, you’re not alone in your money worries. And yep, I lose sleep over it as well. The pandemic upended our plans and we’re still in our house of nearly 22 years. We were going to sell it and move to Malaga but now we’re a little bit older and now I am not sure the move across the ocean is going to work for us. It’s the “what do we do instead?” that is the issue now……I wish you luck and insight for your financial situation as I continue to mull mine over.
tobyo:
Thanks so much for the comment. I tried following your blog but it didn’t “take.” I’ll try again and if that doesn’t take, I’ll simply check in regularly! Good that you’ve had that house for 22 years! I still wish Málaga for you (if it works). What a great city.
That is so kind of you to wish that for us! There is just SO much to the visa process!! But others have done it and I’m not dumb so…..a ver…..and thanks for the follow. I see that it took now. I’ll go look at your comments now 👍
tobyo:
SG was an ace when it came to the visa process. The LA Consulate at the time was wonderful and that was the one we had to work with. They had very clear step-by-step requirements online. Other consulates did not. So that helped. We had a spreadsheet and worked our way through it carefully. If you need any advice, let me know.
That is so nice of you! I appreciate it. Ours is the Chicago consulate and they have a good list online as well. I wonder….would you be able to send me your spreadsheet? Thinking that might help me get organized. My email addy is attached to my comments(in case you didn’t know but you probably do). If not, it’s okay. I’ve saved many websites that had good lists and I could just revise to accommodate Chicago’s requirements. Thank you!!
tobyo:
I think i wrote back to the correct email. We’re looking for the spreadsheet!
hmmmm, I’m not seeing an email so I’m going to try and send you one. No worries on the spreadsheet. My thought was to see how you guys organized your visa process. If you can’t find it, I probably have enough guides that I’ve saved. But I sure appreciate that you looked for it! Thank you!
I think that’s something we all worry about at this time of life. These days I use credit cards to pay for just about everything, which means I know how much I spend each month and on what. That’s quite useful. David has mentioned a couple of times recently about the change in income once he retires in about a year. We’ll be OK, but will need a measure of prudence if we want to do the traveling we want to do.
Wicked Hamster:
Well, we’ve been fine the first 11 years of retirement, so I’m sure we’ll continue to be fine. But that morning has caused us to sit down and figure things out exactly, which is always a helpful thing to do. Who’s Prudence?
Uggh.
Judy C:
My sentiments exactly. But we haven’t lost any more sleep and we’re figuring it all out, so we don’t have to worry.
One thing I miss was being able to discuss money with my father. He would be shocked at what I am spending on the kitchen, he would be overjoyed at our net worth. Do I worry about money? No, I do think about it. I worry that a lack of structure when retire will throw me off. I worry that I won’t live along to do and see a few things that are left to be done.
David:
All four of our parents were shocked at how we lived (and could afford to live). As for living long, I only worry that I won’t outlive The Kid Brother and SG. My two goals!
I laughed at you taking up with a 117-year-old! It’s probably a good idea to take a look at how much you spend, but if you’re not eating into your capital I wouldn’t worry too much. Especially if you’re able to continue to save.
Maybe I’m too fatalistic but I think all we can do is our best to prepare, and is there a chance we’ll be caught short? I suppose so. There’s also a chance we could get hit by an asteroid.
Steve:
Most days, SG and I are exactly like you. There’s always a chance of an asteroid… or a missile launched by some idiot. Just every so often, we worry. It’s good for us though, because we’re now getting a handle on our finances and spending. And THAT will enable us to relax again.
Well this hits hope for lots. I call it the “Fagin Complex”. Will we have enough money in our age, especially if we haven’t family to care for us? It mars most of our sleep.
Urspo:
I must admit I’m glad I don’t have anyone who will feel the burden of responsibility for my care in my old age. But I sure hope I don’t live long enough to need care!