Happy Victoria Day
Enjoy Victoria Day or Journee Des Patriotes the official start of the summer in Canada! Drive carefully!
Victoria Day, The People’s Elbow, Haircuts and #MoneyTalk
It’s the Victoria Day weekend, except for those in Quebec who celebrate La Fete Des Patriotes. If you’re in Ottawa, this is the first weekend you should be planting things. If you planted anything earlier, you’re most likely unhappy due to the frosts we had over the past two weeks.
I have decided I want to be Floyd Mayweather’s new barber as he has haircuts 3 times a week, and he pays $1000 each time (oh and he is bald, it seems too). This sounds like my kind of career, whether Mr. Mayweather pays this or not, I suppose he is helping the economy by spreading his wealth around? Luckily football players like Cam Newton don’t waste their money on 24-Karat GoldClassic Oldsmobile 442 Cutlass, it’s an investment (?!?!?).
I think Terry Mosher’s (Aislin) comic sums it up nicely, at least the house of commons isn’t dull and boring any more. I have heard that a red card should have been given for flopping though, but that is for others to discuss, I simply enjoyed the Media’s painful overstatement when things started,”… there seems to have been a brawl in the house of commons…”.
If you use Linked-in (as I do), hopefully you have changed your password since 2013 (or so)? If not, think about it, because that old password is out there and available to some nasty folks (and don’t choose any of these). Unfortunately if you were a Mobilicity subscriber, you are now a Chatr customer (whether you wanted to be or not).
My Writings for Week Ending May 20th
Do you like using new technologies and wonder why you can’t use Interac with your Apple Pay on your iPhone 6.0, well good news for you in Apple Pay and Interac Together (but is this a good thing)? Is NFC really secure?
Went back into my large archive of semi-complete articles with Hippocratic Finances, can you argue you are doing no harm with your finances?Vic
A Retirement Thought
“If I’d known I was gonna live this long, I’d have taken better care of myself”
— Eubie Blake
Here is another thought:
Read More »Victoria Day, The People’s Elbow, Haircuts and #MoneyTalkDebts and weights are easy to gain, hard to lose.
Panama Papers, Google & PayDay Loans, Full Moons and #MoneyTalk
For a while it has miffed me that every time I have ranted about PayDay Loan places, Google Adsense (my major advertiser) decides that the article should be surrounded by advertising for those very same PayDay Loan places, but evidently this will be changing! Google will be removing PayDay Loans from their Adwords networks, but I remain skeptical. My guess is that the High Risk Loan industry will just market themselves in a different manner, but, good on Google for taking this step (wouldn’t it be nice if the CRTC did the same thing for those ads on TV?).
Are you curious whether your boss or your neighbours (or even family) are mentioned in the Panama Papers? Now, you, can search and see what is going on at ICIJ Offshore Leaks. Yes, I did search, but none of my relations seem to be mentioned. As I have mentioned, I aspire to be in that kind of a database (i.e. having that much money).
Fort MacMurray is still under threat of forest fires, but it is good to hear the damage to the city is not as extensive as it might have ended up. Remember you can donate to help at many different outlets (including most on-line banking web sites).
I didn’t realize that there are over 500 Billionaires (with a ‘B’) in the United States. #TIL
My Writings for Week Ending May 13th
I guess the fires in Fort Mac had me thinking about house insurance and claims, and thus the two posts from this week were in that area.
Home Insurance Gotchas was from my archive of unfinished stories, outlining the importance of making sure you are always following the rules of your Home Insurance Policy. If you think something is covered by your policy, it never hurts to ask your agent whether it is covered or not (finding out later it is not, is a likely outcome if you do not ask).
In Home Insurance Follow Up I point out again, that exceptional things in your house need to be identified in your Home Insurance Policy, or you may not get them replaced, should there be a fire at your home. Ask your agent if you are unsure what is or is not covered (I seem to be repeating myself here).
Evidently in Ottawa there is a full moon tonight, and it is Friday the 13th as well, for those interested in that type of stuff.
Where do Bitcoins Come From Mommy?
For those curious, here is a tweet about where some of them come from.
Mothers and #MoneyTalk
For those of us not directly affected, maybe it is time to check your home insurance policies to see whether this kind of event is covered or not. It would be less than prudent not to do that right now. I wonder what this might do to home insurance rates.
Listen up! Sunday is Mother’s Day, and you better remember the woman who has been, and still is, the center of your world. She’s the one who has guided you to where you are today. If you no longer have your mother, my sympathies go out to you. But if you still have your mother, have you planned what you will do for her on Sunday? And why wait until Sunday to do it? Don’t procrastinate. Show some appreciation and gratitude to the most important woman in your life!
New fathers remember this advice I gave a while ago
A helpful hint for new Fathers out there, you may have the idea that your wife is NOT your Mother so you don’t need to get her anything, you are mistaken. She is your children’s mother, and if you don’t get her something expect a very cold and quiet Sunday (and the argument, “You aren’t MY Mother!”, really seems to exacerbate the whole thing), not that I am speaking from personal experience.
My Writings for the Week Ending May 6th
A lovely spring week in Ottawa, with the Tulips starting to bloom (the squirrels have eaten mine already), but some interesting articles written as well.
With Fees and Penalties I wondered if some existing fees might disappear like the rewind fees on VHS tapes? I somehow doubt many are going away any time very soon.
Debt Consolidation and Tattoo Coverups has me making a connection between bad tattoos and debt (remember I have previously said that Debt is Like Fat and Debts are Like Weeds), and I think the point is well put.
A Money Thought
Don’t buy stuff just because it is on sale! –Anon
Pitter Patter Tax Time, RESPs are For Rich Folk and #MoneyStories
It’s important to note that your taxes are due this weekend. As one of my new favorite shows, LetterKenny, would say, “Pitter-Patter, time to get at ‘er!” Don’t forget to keep your eyes on the prize, Sky Chief, when it comes to your money. Therefore, you must take immediate action and complete your taxes on time. Remember, procrastination is not an option! I hope you find this advice helpful.
There is a new report from the Government about the RESP program and who has benefited from this useful savings vehicle (for parents). The Report entitled “Canada Education Savings Program: Summative Evaluation Report“, and the telling statement in the report (about whom uses RESPs) is:
Furthermore, it was estimated that over $400 million in grants (or 49% of all CESP expenditures) were distributed to families with a household income of $90,000 or more in 2013, of which $280 million (or 32% of CESP expenditures) went to families earning $125,000 or more.
I think this is kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy (i.e. Rich folk are the ones using the program the most), in that more affluent families are more likely to open accounts, and thus more likely to build up grants from it. Very few lower-income families are even aware, that even if they put no money in, they can still build up savings for their kid’s future post-secondary education. While there are groups like SmartSaver.org that are trying to help get the word out, the Government does a poor job educating parents about the benefits of the program for lower-income Canadians.
There was a planned NCFBA semi-periodic meeting planned this week, but thanks to most un-excellent planning on my part things did not transpire as I had hoped. It is always fun to meet with my fellow Financial Blogging folk, because most of them are very interesting folks (you would be surprised what most of them do for their real jobs). It may have been better that I didn’t go, given my son has a terrible cold (I might have infected some of the finest financial minds).
My Writings for Week Ending April 29th
Another week and more odd news from Stats Canada in terms of prices of things, where we continue to be told that drinking gas might be the cheapest way to live? Good Food Still Is Not Cheap in Canada (Inflation for March), outlines how good food is getting more expensive but thanks to cheap gas and oil, we don’t really notice.
Self-Driving Cars Will Change Things, but not just in terms of technology and such, financially. The insurance world is still analyzing what this new technology is going to do to their bottom line. A well-controlled piece of technology, instead of road-raged humans? That equation should mean lower (if not missing) insurance premiums, shouldn’t it?
A Money Thought
Read More »Pitter Patter Tax Time, RESPs are For Rich Folk and #MoneyStoriesHave more than you show, speak less than you know.
