Snow, Christmas, Enhanced and #BestThisWeek
Christmas and snow are two words that appear in Ottawa every year in December.
A Gentleman, Day of Disability, Christmas, Rugby and #BestThisWeek
A true gentleman passed away this week, and I was saddened with the passing of Jean Beliveau. To me he was the epitome of a leader, and his demeanor on and off the ice was to be admired. My favorite Jean Beliveau story was when as a young lad, telling my Dad I’d play better hockey if I had a stick with a curved blade, and my Father’s response summed it all up nicely, “If Jean Beliveau can play with a straight blade, you can too”. Let’s hope Mr. Beliveau’s blade continues to be straight, wherever he plays.
I was privileged to be invited along with my son to National Defense HQ for an International Day of Persons with Disabilities festival. My son’s soccer Club the Just for Kicks group with the Nepean City Soccer Club, was invited to show off their skills and play against some very high-powered talent. The Generals involved were very good sports and I also met the head of Soldier On a support organization for wounded soldiers.
The malls are now crammed with folks trying to find the next “perfect” toy, but remember the reason you are out there. I will no doubt be in the middle of the bloody fray this weekend, so stay the heck out of my way, if you don’t want to see what I learned playing rugby.
Oh and congrats to Wales for defeating the Mighty South Africa Springboks last weekend (for only the second time in 100 years).
My Writings for Week Ending December 5th 2014
Christmas lights twinkle and even I have got out the inflatable Christmas Penguin for the front of the Big C8j Hacienda :
- To get all Christmassy I decided to go cheesy with It’s A Wonderful Life (financially?) where I pointed out that Index Funds and It’s a Wonderful Life have a little bit in common, read to find out what.
- I went rummaging into my archives of articles that I had started but hadn’t finished and came up with 5 Ways to Optimally Use Your Pay Raise , some interesting comments to this one as well.
- In the dark archives when I was laid off from Nortel I found the following interesting story about Are You Giving me a Questionnaire about How I liked my Lay Off ? It really was!
Black Friday is Here, Advent, and #BestThisWeek
The month of November is effectively Black November, but today is allegedly the beginning of the Christmas rush with Black Friday. The folklore behind it being called Black Friday is that this day is when Retailers actually get into the Black (in their accounting books), and from now on is profits. My e-mail inbox has been inundated with great Black November sales and such, some almost too good to believe. Who would believe I could buy a TurDuckEn 🗠at Costco for $95?!?
Will all this spending help everyone get that much more festive about Christmas and such? I really have no idea, but Advent begins on Sunday for those wondering what the Christian Church view is on the topic.
There is talk again of the Tampa Bay Rays moving, for now to St. Pete’s (across the bay) but there is also an undertone of Montreal getting in the mix as well. Thanks to Jeffrey Loria (one of the most hated owners in sports) Montreal lost it’s team in the 90’s, but a returning team that was in the same division as Toronto and had the hope of a new downtown stadium? That brings old Expo lovers like me, hope. I grew up within walking distance of Jarry Park âš¾ , and would go to games if they came back.
There seems to be a bit of a backlash in the US about stores opening on Thanksgiving Day, for the Black Friday sales, and I support that backlash. The next logical step is opening on Christmas Day for Boxing Day sales. We live in a Consumer Society, but we do not need to consume that much!
My Writings for Week Ending November 28th
The snow all went away this week, but we are left with the cold weather and we can now see all the “early deployment” Christmas Lights as well:
- Inflation Stays High Despite Lower Gas in October is another example of how numbers don’t necessarily mean what you think they do. I still think the collective lifestyle of Canadians is slipping due to price increases, but you wouldn’t think it looking at the reports.
- I tried a small poke at the mainstream media with the TFSA Retirement Welfare Bums, but no one seemed to get too indignant about my analysis.
- RRSP to TFSA Grand Jeté is really just a rehash of many other articles about what to do with your RRSP refunds, although Mark from My Own Advisor pointed out the model does loan the government money, which is something I never like doing.
- I had some spare time on the weekend so I came up with Financial Tweets of the Week, just to expose you to some other good financial stuff.
Lake Effect Snow, Web Cameras, Travel Insurance and #BestThisWeek
We got to see what Lake Effect Snow means with some vivid photos of Buffalo getting buried by 7 feet of snow. They are getting more snow today. This is why I am happy that Ottawa only has a river running through it. The worst part of this is that it might rain in Buffalo putting all roofs in the area in peril (7 feet of heavy wet snow is not what anyhow is designed to support).
Enjoy your web cams and such? The laptop I am typing on has one pointed right at me, but evidently our Russian hacking friends have sites from hacked cameras that folks can go and check. You know how to fix this (aside from having good anti-virus and security), cover the camera up with a piece of paper and tape, or point your web cams elsewhere when you aren’t using it.
A couple in Alberta learned just how expensive medical costs are in the US, when their bundle of joy showed up 9 weeks prematurely, and they are now stuck with an almost $900K bill, that their insurance provider (Blue Cross) refuses to pay. Travel insurance is always a tricky world, always be sure you are covered
My Writings for Week Ending November 21st
Winter has come with snow and all of that, but luckily this is Ottawa, so it is supposed to rain on Monday. Note that I am experimenting with a new grading system for comments (so far I only have Gold Stars, but I will be looking to expand that capability very soon).
- Monday I asked the same question I asked a few years ago What is Financial Literacy (2014 Edition)? Any time I can quote John Lydon (especially in his guise as Johnny Rotten) is a good day for me
- Whimsy took over my keyboard and thus we have Great Possible Financial Book Titles, a few good commenters left their ideas, as well.
- As I’ve said many times I am one of the luckiest bastards on God’s Green Earth, and in my archives I wrote about yet another example of my luck with Sometimes It’s Better to Be Lucky.
Asteroids, Tax Cuts, Lemurs and #BestThisWeek
We have successfully landed on an asteroid! This is a tremendous accomplishment! Despite the challenges presented by the asteroid’s size and speed, the attachment mechanism is experiencing some glitches. Nevertheless, the team is working tirelessly to ensure that the dishwasher remains securely attached throughout the journey. However, concerns have been raised about the feasibility of a full rinse cycle. Nonetheless, it is an extraordinary feat to have a dishwasher onboard a fast-moving object in space.
I must thank my parents that they pushed me to get a University Education, after watching those two window washers at One World Trade dangling 69 stories up. I’d need to be paid a lot more than I currently make to do that job, but I guess there are folks who don’t mind that kind of risk in their day-to-day jobs (but I am not one of them).
Plenty of talk about the coming tax cuts in the next budget, whether they deliver, is another question, and whether the Public can be bought off or not (sorry that is a cynical view of politics (or is it?)). Maybe they will cut our EI premiums a little more? A few other carrots being tested via “leaks” from the government. Start paying down the National Debt would be a very good thing.
Sad to read of the deaths of two of my favorite supporting characters on TV. First Carol Ann Susi passed away this week, you may not recognize her name, but she was the voice of Howard Walowitz’s mother, “HOWARD!!!“. Wonder what they will do about this on the show? The second passing was Jovian the Lemur from ZooBooMaFoo, who would leap around on the show. Jovian died of kidney failure.
My Writings for Week Ending November 14th
Remembrance Day in Ottawa is always an awe-inspiring event, and this year it was that much more, truly astounding to see that many folks come out to say thanks to those who defend our rights and freedoms.
- We should all be partying like it is 2008 again, as Unemployment is at 2008 levels (according to Stats Canada). However one of my commenters questions the validity of the number, given he doesn’t count.
- I shy away from individual stock picking for a lot of reasons, not the least of which was How Class B Shares are defined for some companies.
- If you need something to read for Financial Literacy Month, I did a Book Review: Complete Idiot’s Guide to Getting out of Debt , start with that.
