I Win!

Sorry, folks!  I’ve been away for awhile … but now I’m back!!   I had thought I would do a fun post - “What I Did On My Summer Vacation”.  Well, I was reviewing exactly what I did do on my “summer vacation” …. and I ended up laying down in a dark, quiet room with a cold compress on my forehead. 

In no particular order, from Victoria Day to Labour Day, I –
 

... have been out with my bird watching group on a semi-regular basis; been on an herb walk and a wildflower walk; been to tea and the Farmer’s Market at Montgomery’s Inn; attended Ryerson’s 25-year Club celebrations; celebrated the arrival of spring at the Royal Botanical Gardens; checked out the new Ryerson carillon; taught beginner knitting at my local library knitting drop-in; “Knit in Public” at my local wool shop; checked out the Redpath Waterfront Festival (0 stars out of 10 by the way); rode the “South Simcoe Heritage Railway”; crashed a Lighthouse concert in Nathan Phillips Square; toured all of the south Etobicoke sites during Open Doors Toronto; marveled at the Cheltenham “Badlands” (10 stars out of 10); discovered what is probably my most favorite new activity, “Art Battle”!; stared at the stars at the monthly Star Party – Royal Astronomical Society, Mississauga Branch; checked out the annual Mississauga Classic Car Rally; tagged along on a few walking tours - Art Gallery of Mississauga - Stroll 905; Mississauga through the Lens; Islington Village – An Art Walk Through History; Heritage Toronto – Journalists and Editors in 19^th Century Toronto

Plus we’ve got the Kitchener Glass and Ceramic Museum, Ryerson Image Centre, Mississauga Rib Fest, Parkwood Estates, the White Rock Ostrich Farm, and a run-a-way weekend in Ottawa for Buskerfest …

… and in between, I grocery shopped, did laundry and knit like a mad woman for the annual craft show!

I think now might be a good time to review the concept of the Retirement To Do List.

Don’t get me wrong.  I am still an advocate of the retirement “to do” list.  In fact, I adamantly believe it is the most important and useful weapon in your retirement arsenal. 

Like all momentous decisions in life, you need direction and guidance to keep you motivated and moving forward with that decision.

And your retirement “to do” list is that direction and guidance.  Something to keep you from spinning your wheels in boredom and frustration at the sixteen hours of free time you suddenly find you have on your hands once you officially join the ranks of the gainfully unemployed!!! 

So – once again, several years before you actually retire, take the time to start seriously thinking about why you are retiring and what it is you want your retirement to look like.  Then get out a pencil and a sheet of paper and start filling in your “retirement to do list” with old and new hobbies, old and new interests, people and ideas you have always wondered about, all the places, parks and attractions, near and far, you have always wanted to visit, etc., etc., etc.

... but apparently there is one thing I did forget to mention ….  there’s no prize for the person who gets to end of their retirement list first!!!! 

Something I seem to have forgotten!
 

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A quick reminder – it’s the end of the calendar year.  All of you retirees and retiree wanna be’s who have spent the last year monitoring and documenting your daily spending habits …. now is the time to start reviewing those expenses, to determine in which household categories you are managing to stay on budget, where you are not managing to stay on budget and make adjustments accordingly for the upcoming calendar year.  Also, during November/December, you will have been notified by sundry institutions about upcoming increases in fees – in my case, condo maintenance fees, Bank of Nova Scotia, Bell Canada and Rogers Cable.  You have to remember to incorporate all of those increases into your monthly budget.  And as always, your final aim is to spend less than the actual amount of the pension cheque dropping into your account every month! 

That’s the good news. 

The bad news ... you get to start monitoring and documenting your daily spending habits all over again come Janaury 2015!