Thursday, November 14, 2024

120

Fun time at the birthday party after a terrible last fall bocce match. We lost both games 10-0. We need to do some practicing before the winter season starts!

Today I have a golf class in the morning followed by lunch at the clubhouse with the ladies golf group we will probably join when done. We have a fancy wine dinner tonight. Lots going on around here, though not much planned for the weekend so I think that is when we will clean the house. Next week starts the incredibly busy holiday season.

Have a thready Thursday!

220. Exactly 100 more than Liz. LOL! Sorry about your poor showing at Bocce! Your team needs to step it up!

Not much to report since yesterday. I am in need of another organizational list. I need to find a way to make the lists not seem overwhelming. Maybe a long term list and a short term list??? Also, I've been stressing about money lately. Not sure why, unless it's from dipping into my savings for the two new cars this year. That does make sense....

I decided to sneak in an extra workout yesterday. Going to the "big" gym, rather than my trainer's garage gym gave me the opportunity to see myself in the mirrored walls. I was actually pleased by my reflection. I still have a way to go, but I definitely have a V shape and muscle definition. Not shabby for a 60 year old. Once under 200 pounds I'll have to evaluate how much more, if any, I want to lose.

Yesterday I struggled a little with food choices. I had plenty of protein, but most of it during the day was processed protein. My "drive to eat" is less when I eat whole proteins from meats, rather than from protein bars, and Fairlife shakes.

That's pretty much it from me today....

I have stressed about money my entire adult life. I started out as a teenage Mom, took on loans for college/grad school, then went quickly from buying a house and adopting 2 children to sending our 2 oldest to college. So even though life has certainly gotten easier and my last years of working were productive (after all the kids had finished college), I still worry. I was scared to death that my deceased husband's illness would leave me destitute which luckily was not the case. I now worry that if I'm not careful, the unexpected will come (like another long-term illness to finance) and there won't be enough. Probably not likely and there would be ways to deal with it but I think the worry is ingrained. DH is just like me in worrying because he came from a working class family where his parents both worked like crazy so he has always felt he had to be very careful. We see people here buy 2 million dollar houses on a whim and buy incredible cars like corvettes without blinking an eye and we wonder if we are the least well-off people here. I don't actually think that is the case, but I think our conservatism with money makes us feel like that. Keeps us from having much in liabilities for sure!

DH and I were just talking about money issues. He took my car in for new tires. I said 4 new tires at once? I don't think I've ever had 4 new tires at the same time. And he answered, and the old ones weren't completely shot. Then added, they said your back brakes needed to be replaced pretty soon, so I said, just do them now. We were laughing about how affluent we've become with our new tires and brakes. But I remember too well the days when I thought long and hard about a $3 purchase of some item from the clearance bin. If you can't count on being able to afford car repairs, medicine, getting cavities filled, fixing appliances or all the things kids need, life is really stressful.

Studies show money does buy happiness up to a certain point. The number used to be around $75,000 a year (I assume it might be higher now). If you were making less, and your income rose to that figure, your happiness increased because you could count on being able to meet your needs and your life gets easier. People who have sufficient income will see an increase in happiness when they get richer (ex win the lottery), but happiness typically return to their previous levels within 6 months to a year. I am already happy, so I would be willing to test this theory if anybody wants to share some good lottery numbers.

Interesting study and it sounds right to me. I remember when delaying a dental cleaning would happen when money was tight (for me, not my child). But I do feel that having to meal plan based on what was on sale and stick to a food budget was actually excellent training (which I seem to have somewhat forgotten LOL).

TLDR - $75K in 2010 (when that study was done) is now about $110K.

Bad news: Money matters. A much newer, better designed study finds that beyond that level most (but not all) folks get even happier.

And as with all things, it's complicated.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnjennings/2024/02/12/money-b uys-happiness-after-all/

Thank you! Fascinating article, as you say, it's complicated and also thought provoking.

151.0, up just over a pound for absolutely no reason except for better hydration! Today was the first day splitting my dose. We shall see how that goes.

Woman?s Bible study was very good this morning. Didn?t go over our assigned passages much but Gof had other things planned for us. Many heavy hearts for various reasons and it was good to be able to support each other.

Cold, wet dreary day! Perfect for a little nap with DH which was needed as both of us were up in the middle of the night! He is such a nice warm furnace for me in the winter!

Going out to dinner with friends tonight. Nothing fancy, just a burger place where I?ll probably get the southwest chicken salad or the burger bowl (essentially a deconstructed burger with no bun).

Lots of laundry today. All the skinnier clothes I brought up from the basement smelled musty. Feels good to be in the smaller clothes. I don?t think I even care if I don?t get into the size 2 clothes again! Time will tell!

I hear ya Peps and Liz about money worries. Ben was a great planner, investor, and saver. Kevin, not so much! I tend to be a spender too but never beyond my means. Retirement has so many unknowns (like Liz mentioned, possible long term health problems) that it is bound to induce a little anxiety. I?m actually feeling better about things since we decided not to buy in Florida, even though losing that dream still saddens me! Ben and I had planned on retiring on Maui, I honestly don?t think that would have happened either! Looking forward to vacation there in January and then seeking out where we might snowbird in 2026!

I started doing a split dose today too - are you going to take the other half in 3 days or 4?

I would think staying put would gave you more ease in traveling. If my family lived near me in a warmer climate I think I would prefer to have one home as a base and just travel but I don't like being in Massachusetts (where my family is) in the winter.

I took the dose this morning and will take the next dose Sunday night.