Control

I drove to work for the first time this year due to the hail, lightning and torrential rain. It felt weird not shifting. Made driving feel almost too passive for the first couple of minutes.

Haven't filed my taxes yet, even though I've paid for the online tax service. I was hoping to use my own computer for it.

We are eagerly anticipating D's first pay cheque at the end of the month. It will confirm whether our tax and other deduction estimates are accurate. His severance from the last job is supposed to roll in around the same time. It will be a nice windfall.

Of course every penny of both have been "spent", mostly on savings and extra mortgage prepayments -- amazing how easily it all disappears.

In all honesty, D thinks I'm neurotic and that I ought to "loosen up a little and keep a bit aside for some fun" but little does he know, it is done to save me from myself. Plus I think I get plenty of fun.

Having been a pretty big spender in the past (we didn't know each other then), he hasn't really seen me "in action". The closest he has got in recent times was when he watched me at the car dealership last year and I almost said yes to buying the EVO. It apparently scared and excited him...

I bought the cottage a few months after we met (almost 7 yrs ago) and that only took 1 1/2 hr of negotiating, done while he was at work. I still remember he thought I was joking when I called him up and said "Guess what I just bought?" :)

More Everyday Stuff

I just finished reading "Still Alice" by Lisa Genova. Scared the living daylights out of me, not in a gory way but a mental way. You'd have to read it to see for yourself. Highly recommend it.

Had another morning office meeting at a nicer 10 am time on a non work day. Much better than the 7:30 am a few Saturdays ago!

My laptop got to where it needed to go and they have an estimated delivery date next Monday. Don't know if I'll get it or if they will be done with it by then -- probably the latter. Either way it ought to be here next week -- Yay!

Today is bookkeeping day. As crazy as it sounds, I rather enjoy it most of the time because it is for the most part just data entry. Why pay someone to do it when Quicken isn't that difficult to use?

Now that we are solidly into spring, the dampness in the air makes the house feel cooler than the thermostat is saying. I actually switched on the heat today to dry up the air a bit. Strange!

I'm relying on D to come through on the language front on our next trip. I am not one ounce motivated to continue with German. Perhaps the stress of last month had a bigger impact on me than I thought.

There is serious water main replacement happening down the street from where we live. That has meant heavy equipment going up and down, mud, dust and early morning machine noise.

I think they will be working on it for another month. So no open windows for too long right now. No problem today as we are getting hail and lightning and thunderstorms.

Everyday Stuff

Our neighbourhood is starting a community gardening plot. We got our papers yesterday and for our $35 fee, we will get group lectures on planting and cultivating prized produce.

D is super excited about this. We haven't started any seedlings over the winter so that will mean we may be buying some if we want tomatoes etc. on time. We are hoping this year's growing campaign will exceed last year's.

I braved up and called my insurer about the increase in our home insurance rates with this year's renewal (I dread being on hold...). We got the notice early March and with all the excitement around D's job, I hadn't got around calling yet.

Didn't really get a clear explanation about the rate increase other than the usual cost of living adjustment and cost of home rebuilds going up -- replacement value of our home has gone up to 705K.

Turns out we have a couple of optional coverages that can be dropped. I'm going sleep overnight on it and decide tomorrow. Dropping them will mean around a $15 decrease per month.

I had read somewhere you get a pretty significant discount on home insurance if you are mortgage free -- anywhere from 15 - 20%. We own the cottage outright so I asked. The discount only applies to your primary home. Something to remember when the time comes.

I know a few bloggers who will be eligible for this discount in the not too distant near future... :)

D is going to scout out day parking rates around his work today. As he is going to need to be at a particular office once a week, it won't make sense to keep paying for a monthly parking pass.

Is it my imagination or have you found food companies actually making more individually package products than ever? How is that environmentally friendly? Is it so hard to offer even larger packages so that one can divide it up using reusable containers to save on garbage?

My laptop has been finally sent off to get looked at. D helped me off load all my stuff and it has been sitting in its shipping box since last week. I was (not so) patiently waiting for the UPS shipping label to come.

Turns out the system had changed and I was suppose to contact UPS and they email the label now. I had to call HP back to find that out -- not impressed. Someone forgot to give me the number. Anyways, it is off now and with any luck, should get it back in 1 1/2 weeks or so. It's amazing how quickly you get used to your machine.

Budgeting Time & Money

It's a good thing I didn't end up buying my plane ticket a week ago. D gave me some revised household numbers last night that has changed our cash flow for this month. Even though my ticket has nothing to do with household budget, I like to have everything accounted for before I do anything extra.

I wasn't thrilled to find out that we were off $328 -- how could that have happened anyways?! I think he is using some creative accounting techniques I haven't learned yet... :) Being that I use a zero-sum budgeting system, any changes from his spreadsheet affects my spreadsheet lines ie. more work for me.

I will also find out this week if the extra income I predicted for March will come through. There have been times where I find out about account write offs for the month which can heavily impact on the bottom line. Hope this isn't the month for something like that as D's new computer is supposed to be covered by it -- Yup, we took a small risk here as the sale was coming to an end.

In the last few weeks, I've had a number of seminars/workshops/meetings that have landed on my off days. This week is no exception. It makes the week feel longer as I have come to count on my off days to regenerate. I'm hoping this trend slow down or ends soon.

Sell?

I am considering calling the realtor who held the listing for the cottage for a market evaluation of the property. The results of it may sway me in the direction of selling it. For some time, I've had a desire to liquidate it and just hold it as cash in preparation for our next move, whatever it may be.

D feels it is because I am impatient and in a few years I will have an increase in cash flow by virtue of not having mortgage payments. Perhaps he is right. Mentally I know I would feel freer with more money in the bank now, rather than a building.

Deep down, I know I bought the cottage at a time in my life when I wanted a place to escape to. As my life has gotten more balanced and less hectic, I have felt a lesser need to run away and more of a wish to explore other places.

My change of heart may be a good sign. Has the use of the cottage run its course of usefulness for me? Perhaps another family can enjoy it for many years to come?

It hasn't got old for D so I struggle with the timing of this. There isn't a real financial reason why it has to be sold now. I just think that with interest rates so low, there may be people out there who are in the market to lock things up before things rise.

Selling a home, especially one 4 hrs away also takes a lot of energy -- Not entirely sure I want to open the can of worms, just somewhat sure.

Driving Fast

Our four day getaway itself was pretty economical. We stayed in a hotel suite and prepared some of our meals. Originally we were going to fly there and decided last minute to make it into a road trip. So, we have a couple of travel credits to be used later on.

The purpose of the trip? For me to learn how to drive standard better in preparation for a rally driving course. This was the not so economical part. My instructor was a semi professional rally driver and man, can he control the car. I did a lot of drills and patterns over the last 3 days and it was nerve wrecking and tiring.

I did stall and shifted in the wrong gear once but seem to have a knack for hill starts. He was nice enough to tell me I was performing ahead of the pack but I still felt very deficient. This experience has helped me decide not to take more than a 2 day rally course at a time because mentally I think I would lag or shut down.

Other than to participate in the sport, I did not develop the affinity for stick shift in daily driving -- to D's dismay -- I think he was hoping we'd be heading over to the nearest Subaru or JDM dealership after my classes.

For me, it is a lot of work when you cannot drive fast. I think I will stick with an automatic vehicle for everyday and practice the other weekly to keep my skills up.

Changes

I went to book the flight I had on hold last night and it turned out I misunderstood when the hold expired. I thought I still had 3 hrs to go when it had expired 2 hrs earlier (Europe time vs North American time).

So the flight is now more expensive as the seat sale is over...My gut is telling me there will be another opportunity so I'll be patient and wait. Why a Canadian site would use Europe time is beyond me as I have never had this happen before.

Today will be the last day of the first week of D's new job. He has been out of town for 3 days -- the norm each week. I'm not sure I love his commute. I'm a worry wort that way. And I tend to think of decisions with respect to how it impacts health and lifestyle. It is going to take a couple of months for us to flow with the new scheduling.

He is happy with the new challenges and is still sorting out the "Do we still need the parking pass?" issue as he is finding out that perhaps he will not be able to work remote as much as he was led to believe.

I guess this is part and parcel of contract work and the sacrifices you make for extra money. D is getting paid 60% more than he was at his last job and in 6 months, will know if he will be offered a permanent position or continue as contract or if he will be job hunting again.

Being I am not motivated by money much (at least that is what I tell myself) -- if I was, I'd be working a lot more -- plus I don't work in a corporate world, with computers nor carry a Blackberry -- and wouldn't relish the thought of being called at all hours -- I'm having a harder go at adjusting to it and being woken up earlier than he is.

Reminds me just how much freedom and control I do have with my work -- despite those occassional rough days -- time to be grateful!

Like most people, we have a 4 day long weekend coming up. We'll be taking a road trip out of town for the duration. Have a Super Easter Everyone!

Tough Day

I had one of those days yesterday where I felt off right away and it continued and escalated throughout the day. I ended my work day fuming and it seemed like nothing was clipping along smoothly and was just getting in my way deliberately.

Of course my rational mind is saying that no, it isn't all about me, it is just one of those days where I am not totally in control of all the moving parts and I just don't like that feeling so I instinctively want to quit and get on a plane and go away somewhere to decompress.

I am happy to say I don't get too many days like yesterday anymore. A large part due to prioritizing our finances thus decreasing our need to rely on every single penny of our income to live. I also find forcing myself to focus and taking a step towards a goal grounds me during an emotional time -- so I got rid of another pile of papers.

Check & Cross Check

Those of you who are customers of President's Choice Financial and file your income taxes with Ufile, PC is offering a discounted rate for UFile. Check out the link once you log online.

In other news, D bought a laptop yesterday as his side work cannot be done on his new work laptop. It is the first laptop he has actually owned whereas I've owned 3. On the other hand, he's owned 3 cars and I'm still working on my first.

I'm dangerously close to booking another solo trip. Currently doing the math on it and have spend a lot of time staring at our household spreadsheet to see if I've really got the month of April (where I'm covering most of the cash flow) figured out accurately before I pull the trigger.

How will I be paying for this? The same place D got his money for his laptop. My March income is going to generate enough extra monies to take care of most of the computer and about 1/2 of the plane ticket. The rest will come from our dream accounts.

I just want to be really sure first as I've overlooked things before. Going to give it another day or so before deciding.

Fun Times

I cannot help it. I'm drawn to positive people who are proactive in their lives and also philosophically speaking. People who are cynical, defensive and look like they are ready to growl turn me off. There is too much negativity and tragedy around us anyways, why would I want to spend the rest of my time swimming in that?

I met the boyfriend of someone I work with this weekend and he just does nothing for me. In fact he repels me. Witnessing their public interaction was an eye opener because I just don't get the picky banter that goes on between them. They seem to be enjoying it so that's all that matters, I suppose. I couldn't live with it myself. Nothing about them says warm, in love or kind. To each his own.

Other than the above strange encounter, this weekend has been a bit of a celebratory one for us as we happened to have 2 groups of friends we were hosting and seeing already scheduled. Add to it D's recent job loss and gain, it was doubly cheerful. I drank way too much over the weekend (2 glasses of wine , 2 dessert coffees and quick tastes of some liqueur) so it was back on the exercise bike this morning.

One couple started something the last time we were at their place for a dinner party. They introduced a couple of liqueurs (a crazy Russian prune thing and Aquavit) no one had heard of before and it started a trend whereby we would bring back something different from our trips so we could all taste it next time we got together.

So as we were hosting, I got to unveil my finds from Iceland. The national drink is Brennivin, something you tend to drink after eating some rancid shark meat. The other was a Red Opal Vodka Shot which was horrific and did not taste like liquorice like I thought. I won't give too much more away just in case you are interested in trying... We tried to get the tastes out of our mouths with a quick drink of Lemoncello (didn't work) and Grey Goose which did work.

Oh Well

It looks like I'm going to have to send my laptop back to HP for some testing. It is making a strange whirring noise but otherwise is working. D is pretty sure it is the hard drive and we even re-set it and it didn't make a difference. Ditto the memory card.

So the next step is to get sent a box and ship it off and hopefully in 10 days, get it back again with no issues.

Way back with my first laptop (a Compaq), I had to send it back for shorting out and they ended up replacing the motherboard under warranty. My other HP who is retiring out west at the condo has never been sent back and is still running fine (albeit a bit slow and heavy) after 7 yrs.

I have confidence they will figure out what is going on and fix it.

We are heading on a mini road trip over Easter and I want my laptop with me so I will not likely send it until after.

Today was D's last day of work and he new job starts on Monday. He is super excited about it as it will be more challenging. What we are hoping is that we will be able to ditch the monthly parking pass as he will be working remote most of the time. That will save us about $70/month. Hopefully his new boss will not have changed his mind about that.

Details

For those who wanted some details about how easy it was to visit Iceland, here is what I have to say about that.

Keflavik airport is new. They subscribe to the whole "personal reponsibility" code as well -- which means it is a "silent" airport. They feel all the public announcements are noisy and distracting and they believe you can actually relax at an airport. I like it.

The shopping and food areas are nicely laid out, gives you an upscale feel. The public areas are not where the gates are (kind of like Heathrow but much nicer, quiet and less chaotic) and are surrounded by wine bars, cafe tables, modern comfortable chairs and coffee tables.

Screens tell you where your gates are and how long the walk will be to get there. It is up to you to keep up with the status of your flight.

They have a branch of Landsbanki at the arrivals and departures area and that is where I would recommend getting your currency exchanged. They don't charge a fee and it is easy. They will take any monies, including change back at the end of your trip.

It is also useful to map out where their branches are around the city and country, just in case. Ditto with your country's consulate. And it goes without saying, a few copies of your passport placed in different luggage/bags is a good thing to do.

When you make it to your gate on departure, you are actually sitting outside of it. When they check you in, you are checked into another room where you wait to be allowed up an escalater to the departure ramp. Again, it is up to you to pick up the required entry forms back to the US etc. which are sitting at the counter.

Upon arrival, something new for me, is the security check before the passport/police check. I do not remember having to go through that before. After all, I've been screened already twice and have never left the secured area of an airport. So that was why we all waited in line at the bottom of an escalator...they were backed up already.

This time it was more than taking out your bag of liquids and laptop. They wanted all cords and electronics out, after you take off the standard shoes, belt, watch etc. This created chaos because I (and many others) weren't expecting it so it took a long time and each person needed 4 of those plastic trays each.

I asked the agent just in case if he really did mean all electronics and he assured me he did. So I said I was going to have to empty my laptop bag because everything in there was electronic. Out came my laptop, cell phone, chargers, plug adapters, noise cancelling headphones, ipod, camera and about 5 cords. It was one big mess.

Meanwhile he had moved my knapsack into the x-ray before I got my liquids out which automatically signed me up for a hand search through my bag. What do you say when they say you were supposed to take this out separate? Yes, I know all about this but I didn't have a chance to....I don't think she knew we were rushed and was wondering why she was searching so many pieces of luggage that morning or why this plane load of people were so ignorant...the fellow behind me was next.

Getting to Reykjavik is easy. You take their Flybus which is coordinated with every departing and arriving international flight -- pretty smart! With the additional screening, I missed what was to be my bus which left 40 min after my flight arrival. By the time I got to the bus after getting currency exchanged, I was on the next bus -- no big deal.

Buy your ticket from the automated machine with a credit card. It is much faster than the line up with the agent who is more interested in selling tours.

I was expecting to go through a number of those full body scanners on this trip but didn't see any. I'm not complaining and like most people I know, I don't care what scanner I need to go through as long as I get to my flight on time.

Choices

D got a call yesterday with another job offer. How lucky is he? Very, and we know it. He didn't burn any bridges because you just never know in this day and age.

As a general observation, it seems like lots of people around us are either trying for or expecting their first child. Some are more financially prepared for the event than others.

The ones that worry me come with stories like -- We can barely make ends meet but we wanted to have our first baby at this stage of our lives... or ... We cannot afford to live without both incomes... or ... I don't care that we have loads of debt and our careers aren't established yet, we still want to sign up for in vitro...

I understand the whole concept of the biological clock and the emotions associated with that can be overwhelming and consuming. I also believe that a solid couple relationship emotionally and financially can be the difference between a stable childhood upbringing and a stressful one. I wish all of them the best.

Lots on the news lately about the impending Bank of Canada rate increase this summer. What will it mean for us? With 2 variable rate mortgages, our payment amounts will increase as the rate increases. We will need to maintain the higher payments in order to stay on course with our existing amortization.

The goal stays the same. We do not want to renew our mortgage when our 5 year terms come to an end in 2 1/2 & 3 yrs. In order to achieve that, we are doing our best to max out the prepayment amounts allowed by the bank each year. If we are successful, then we will have paid for 2 places in 5 years -- A worthy goal.

Fun Times

For the last month or so I've started the process of clearing out my office. It has been cathartic and highly symbolic of my intent to be done with my career soon. The first pile of files were hard to let go of but today, I got rid of 1 1/2 bankers boxes worth of papers. I have plans for my books too.

In an ideal work world, I would be able to take a year's sabbatical before deciding whether I leave for good. In that way, I envy teachers who in this country can have 20% of their income held back for 5 years and then take a year off with the proceeds of their withholding and have job security a year later.

No such deal with my business nor is it entirely possible to find a replacement of me either. I kinda have to leave and hope for the best should I wish to return. I would prefer to leave knowing I do not have to come back at all. The 2 day work week is a compromise I've made with myself in lieu of a year off. Since I have caught a major travel bug, time off is really enticing right now.

As great as pictures are as a reminder of a place, I tend to remember the people I meet more because I feel I can always go back to a place but I may never see the same people again. If it weren't for D getting one of the first 3.1 MP digital camera on the market as a gift almost 7 years ago, I wouldn't have any pictures to show. My camera is a manual one and the outfit is so large I no longer wish to drag it around with me.

One advantage of travelling solo is I find I meet more people than if D and I were together. People tend to want to include singles. Also, people assume you want them to take pictures of you. I'm not a big fan of having my picture taken and it usually surprises people when I politely refuse their offer. (I already know what I look like and I'm here to see a place) The only picture with me in it was when I was horseback riding. One person joked with me and said that no one would believe I actually went to Iceland if I didn't show up in the pictures. They would think I just sent my camera on a trip!

Some fun people memories included this young guy on my first outing in Iceland whose foot got stuck in a mud pot. I couldn't help but burst out laughing at his expression when he realized his foot didn't want to follow him. There was no danger and luckily, he thought it was pretty hilarious too. And there was this other fellow who I hiked behind the waterfall with. What a great spirit he has! Turns out we went to the same university though separated by a few decades -- small world. Finally, another man who kept trying to get me to try some dried stinky fish as a snack. They have rows and rows of it for sale at convenience stores. No thanks!

Mish Mash

A health look back on 2009 revealed no lost of work due to sick days. That's good considering I work around lots of people in tight surroundings. D and I cooked even more in '09 than '08 and this year, even more.

The list of things we buy pre-made is in the single digits. I really want to get even stronger this year. It is so easy to lose conditioning that strengthening has to be a weekly event just to maintain.

On a different note, we are taking a little chance this year by getting our snow tires off our vehicles this and next week. I only drove my car 4 times this winter and I am thinking I may not even bother putting them on next winter -- which will probably mean a killer winter... : )

To answer a question from "I'd rather be sailing" back a couple of weeks ago -- regarding how I handle travel related costs and if I travel scaled back too since D and I tend not to indulge in what most people consider "everyday" stuff such as monthly cell phone plans, cable etc.

The short answer is not really but everyone's sliding scale is different. My budget for a solo European/overseas trip a week to 10 days is $3000 and under. Some may think the amount is peanuts while others may say they can go away for over a month with that money. Depending on the destination, how the money gets distributed changes.

For example, if I was going to Nice, I would be eating most of it away. In Iceland, most of it went to my accommodations and excursions with very basic eating. In Paris I'd spend on food, museums and galleries in equal increments. You get the idea -- the total amount stays the same.

To round out how we live, we may not pay for cable but we have a 96" projector to watch movies we take out from the library or rent. D did pay for cable while we were out west last year with his bonus money.

As for cell phones, we have a pay as you go and it is only used for emergencies so that costs us $15 every 4 months. Our world phone cost us $150 which came with 100 minutes which never expires.

Ever since we started renting apartments, we have actually saved money while travelling. It is amazing how being able to make your own breakfast can save. Plus I've come to really like not hearing housekeeping staff moving at 8:30am.

Most of the apartments we've rented have been in places we would have a hard time affording to buy so it is treat to stay in such nice and much larger accommodations vs a hotel.

Back in my hotel days, my preference leaned to the Fairmont group. They tended to be in great locations with buildings that frequently have a lot of character. It appeals to my architectural side. But, at easily $200+ a night, it eats up my budget quickly.

When I am wanting a quick long weekend getaway and am craving room service, that is where I like to turn. I haven't gone on one of these for years -- which means I haven't been as burnt out as I used to be -- a great thing!

To fund our vacations, we do have a modest travel account. It is not nearly enough. We count on my extra income, tax refunds, bonuses, dream account and allowance. Even in a lean year, I can still count on one solo trip a year.

Humans Behaving Poorly

In light of my recent trip to and finding out about the emergency in Iceland, I found my tolerance of "humans behaving badly" particularly difficult and missing. Unfortunately, we were privy to 3 examples of it this weekend.

First one: A complaint from a "friend" (no longer the case) came via email about a visit 6 months ago about how my being tired after working took away from their visit and had they known just how tired I was going to be, they would have changed their plans. Excuse me? They invited themselves and knew both D and I were working that week....had my car to drive around in and all the food they could eat and their own room and bathroom and got to spend the weekend at our cottage. Ungrateful? I think so. Surprised that they cannot find a mate? Not anymore. I've been getting a very skewed side of the story all these years.

Second one: A complainer who sits around expecting everybody else to cater to their needs but does not reciprocate. They literally will not do their own grocery shopping even though they are able and then moves on to complain about how they have no food and how terrible their world is. This person has been a widow for 50 years and still does not drive. They love talking to you but will only do so when you call them long distance and will keep you on the phone for hours. Money isn't an issue but expects you to pay for lunch when you drive over 1 hr each way to visit. I no longer feel sorry for them.

Third one: Family members who are disrespectful to your home and are here to eat and drink you out of house and home. A tough one. They bring half dead flowers and wine you cannot drink because it is so bad. They drop food all over themselves and the floor. They start eating before everyone has made it to the table. They drink your alcohol non stop and forget to bring their own. They watch loud movies into the wee hours of the morning when they know people are trying to sleep. And they don't bring gifts when the visit was supposed to be for the exchange of gifts. But they are angry because their son got married in Mexico and no one has bothered to send a card and gift when on one was invited. (But people ought to out of respect for them...) And they leave things behind that they expect you to courier to them asap.

Well that's our 3. We are going to make sure not to fall into these traps again. Life is just too short to spend it on such ungrateful emotional and financially time wasters.

Iceland Review Pt 3 -- Holy Smokes!

(The timing of this post and this link Lizzie sent is scary and hits close to home... I had no idea when I wrote this post -- some of the pictures I posted were from there...)

The first thing my guide said to us was that there were 4 volcano alerts today and they can go off at anytime. The lot of us thought he was joking -- he wasn't. He went on to tell us that Iceland gets on average 3000 earthquakes a month.

One passenger asked if the government had a rescue plan in place for everyone -- he laughed. He said that people have 15 minutes to evacuate when a volcano or earthquake occurs and that families have an evacuation plan in place and practice it.

No one counts on someone coming for them right away. People are completely responsible for their own safety. Icelanders can come across hard as nails. Most if not all of the interior roads in Iceland over the winter are not passable and those who venture or live in such terrain have vehicles that can cross rivers without stalling.

These "Super Jeeps" can cost upwards of $200000 - $300000 and are fitted with 50 plus inch tires and sophisticated GPS systems. Iceland is one of the last countries where people believe in taking full responsibility for their actions. If you are going outside of the cities, it is your responsibility to be able to handle yourself appropriately.

You cannot blame others or the government for what happens to you. They believe as soon as a government steps in and enacts rules in the effort to "keep people safe", they are in fact making people into victims instead of empowering them.

We were told that if one wanted to die, it is very easy to do it there. You are not going to find warning signs, directions nor solid barriers. Should you fall in the mid Atlantic ridge, for example, people would say that was too bad. The waters blowing out of geysers are over 250 degrees Celsius and if you stand in the wrong side of it, you'll get second degree burns.

The reason so many Icelanders are upset about the collapse of their economy is because the ones who have leveraged the country and fled have acted in a very non Icelandic way. They ought to own up to it, take responsibility and face their people.

And those who bought into the need to live beyond their means? They will pay for their actions for what may be a long time. The owner of my apartment told me that is why they have made the apartment available to renters -- so they can pay for their mortgage.

I heard no whining or complaints about it. They are doing what they need to do and they are confident with hard work, it will all work out.

My thoughts are with the Icelanders today. If there are any group of people who are capable of getting themselves out safely, they are. I'd put my money on them. Thanks for letting me know Lizzie.

Iceland Review Pt 2

One of D's friends when he found out I was going to Iceland exclaimed "Why would she want to do that? Aren't they a 3rd world country now?" It seems like a lot of people (except me) knew about their economical collapse a few years ago.

I had a chance to ask the owner of my apartment what happened? She told me that due to corruption and over confidence in the government, the country's monies were being wasted and businesses (mainly banks) were allowed to loan money to people who really shouldn't be borrowing.

Sounds familiar. So I asked if it was similar to what happened in North America, Europe etc? She said that it is worse. The amounts that have been leveraged is higher per capita. They have been living big.

Home prices are down 50% still and their mortgage rates are now linked to inflation and are in the double digits. Their currency has plummeted. The President has been replaced and most of the known corrupt politicians etc. have left for Norway.

People were buying holiday homes on lines of credit from the European branches of their banks in Euro because it was cheaper than their Krona. People had been spending 170% of what they made. Many housing and condo projects have been left midway and some people who have bought there are living without services.

Icelanders have enjoyed a standard of living that is much higher than some of the largest cities in Europe. They like to spend and buy the best. They also have no issue with debt. They work hard and many will voluntarily continue working until they are in their 70's.

A stroll down their main shopping street showcases fine clothing boutiques, people dressed really well and lots of nice, well maintained cars. They are a people who are highly educated and literate. They publish and buy more books per capita than any other country in the world.

I got a distinct impression, right from the start at the airport, that they may not really welcome visitors and wish to keep their country to themselves. They until recently, have not been interested in joining the European Union.

All the travellers I met exclaimed the same thing -- they had not been able to come to Iceland before because it was so expensive. Without knowing, I managed to plan my trip at a time where things are a few multiples cheaper.

There is a movement back to what Icelanders consider to be the core of who they are -- Total Personal Responsibility. More next post.

Iceland Review Pt 1

Ever since I met D almost 7 years ago now, I've started to have increased trouble with going away on my own. Over 90% of all my travels have been solo until then.

In fact, 3 days after our first date, I was going to the Caribbean. Half a year after that, I had gotten a ticket to the French Open at Roland Garros through their international lottery so I was going to dust off one of my lifelong ambitions.

I remember being in tears at the airport because I didn't want to go. It was as if I was one of those crying kids that didn't want to go to camp as the parents were dropping them off. Once I got through security, I was fine. I guess I just wanted to share the experience with him.

Well, I didn't cry on the day of Iceland trip but I grumbled about being too tired to go and wanting to stay home and was questioning what got into me back in January when I booked the trip.

Meanwhile D is just laughing and saying he goes through this every year with me while I denied it. He knows and I know that there is something in me that craves the solo exploration of new places. D doesn't have this and is not interested in cultivating it but I do. Where I get it from? Who knows? None of my family travels or moves for pleasure, just for work.

By far, this trip had the most moving parts (I'm sure when I make it to India or Africa, the scale will probably expand even more). I had 3 types of currency (Cdn, US, Euro) in order to navigate and eat my way through airports, 4 by the time I reached Iceland as I had to exchange Euro for Icelandic Krona at the airport. Plus there is the whole language thing...

They just had some snow when I arrived so I didn't see what the lava fields really looked like right away. What I didn't know was that in the south, they were evacuating people out of their homes because of avalanche warnings.

By the time I transferred to the bus station and started my walk to the apartment, I was getting really weary and a bit disoriented and forgot how to use my world phone. I forgot that I didn't have to use the area code and the + sign when dialing because it links into the local network of whichever country I'm in as if it was a local phone.

So after 3 attempts and hearing a bunch of Icelandic in my ear, I gave up and decided to start walking. I was supposed to call the owner of the apartment first. Luckily, I walked by a pay phone so I tried to used it without knowing how much a call cost.

I put in change I had and the phone wasn't working right because I could hear him but not the other way around. Tried the other phone and was successful. They really ought to label their phones with the cost!

I started walking and couldn't find that pathway I was supposed to take. He recommending that I not walk on the main roads as it was not as safe because it is semi highway but I couldn't find the path due to the snow whereas the roads and sidewalks were clear.

I later found out that there are pipes under the streets and major sidewalks which carry the gray waste water out of buildings and houses and serves to melt the snow and makes snowplows unnecessary. Private homes have this technology for their driveways too -- very cool. So I made my way on the main roads and couldn't find the link to the side street I wanted.

Turns out it is common there just to walk through things to get to the street you want and make your own path. It was Sunday morning in Reykjavik and people there party seriously everything weekend til 5am so the streets were dead. Eventually I made it and my diversion cost me 15 min or so.

My apartment was located in a fairly affluent area of Reykjavik. The cars in the driveways were Audi, BMW's and where I was staying, Porsches. My original plan was to stay here until I found this apartment. Where I was ended up costing more than the hotel but the flexibility and privacy I gained made it more than worth it.

Plus I get a kick out of staying in a place that costs more than all the real estate we own added up. Even with the 50% drop in the real estate market for Iceland, the houses in that subdivision would still be listed in the 700000 euro mark. Out of my league.

When my apartment orientation was over, I fired up my computer to send D a quick email before I crashed and found out that he had sent me a frantic email wondering where I was and should he be going to Boston?

It turns out that he had gotten a few calls from Icelandair wondering where I was and asking him if he knew because they couldn't find me(?) and if I didn't show up in 5 minutes, I was going to miss the flight. D told the fellow that I've been at the Boston airport all day and I had just told him I was heading to my gate. It was impossible I wasn't there.

I had no idea this was going on. Where was I? Sitting in my seat drinking water, thinking just how fortunate I was to have been upgraded to business class! Apparently, what had happened was that they changed planes after I had checked in and printed my boarding pass the day before so my seat number had changed though no on told me.

My pass triggered an error when they scanned it but they overrode it at the gate and let me on the flight. My new seat was one row behind in economy. Once the fellow announced my name on the plane and found me and checked that my boarding pass did say the seat I was in, they closed the flight and I got to enjoy my upgrade.

One thing I didn't know was that Icelandair will not serve you a meal if you are in economy. That's a first for me as all other transatlantic flights I've been on do. I got a meal this time but next time, I'll know to eat before boarding as I am not the biggest fan of airplane food.

I'm still shocked that they would go to such lengths to make sure I was on the flight. I cannot see any North American airline bothering to do that.

Iceland In Pictures

Details

The details of D's new job are slowly trickling in. I know he is impatient for the "sign up paper work phase" to be over. There are background and criminal checks and 20 pages worth of contract materials to read etc. etc. But he tells me it is finally wrapping up.

We found out he will not get his first pay cheque until the end of April because of the way the pay cycles work. It's a bit strange as he will get paid on a Monday. Most companies pay on Thursdays or Fridays. At least the cycle falls in line with our mortgage. That was my biggest concern.

Now we just have to figure out cash flow for next month's time. We are anticipating he will be getting his final pay and severance on his last day of work but am not sure. Some emails to HR ought to clear that up. If not, we have enough cash floating around I can maneuver to cover should need be.

This just re-emphasizes to me the importance of liquidity. That is by far the biggest lesson I learned since the economy headed down. I had no real cash stores to speak of. I took for granted that monies in my non registered account (which are invested in stocks) would always make me money and why would anyone bother with simple savings? Fortunately I know better now.

Going Home

The first order of business I will do when I get back into the regular swing of things is to change back the frequency of our mortgage payments to bi-weekly. I had requested a change to bi-monthly to match my pay just in case D was unable to find work.

I've learned a lot of philosophical ideas from the Icelanders since I've been here. Also, I had no appreciation of what has happened to them financially as a nation either until I arrived, talk to people and read some periodicals. Once I get my head around it all, I'm going to dedicate a post or 2 about it.

I'm getting ready now to go home. It has taken a long time in transit to get here, to get back and I am very glad I made the effort. Now that I know how things work, it feels like another home base to me. Can't say when I'll return as there are other places I would like to see next but Iceland has a way of slowly creeping into you when you least expect it.

In Recovery

Oh, it is raining again today? Of course it is!

I'm taking it easy for the next couple of days in order to recover from the last couple of days of activity. I'm sore from the scrambling and climbing. That bruise on my foot is also located inconveniently where it gets rubbed as I walk. Luckily the places I have been have been so great I forgot about it.

The south shore areas are really awe inspiring. Also, I'm developing a great love for black sand beaches and Icelandic lamb soup (even though I've never really enjoyed lamb and am working on eating less meat).

The sheep here aren't like what I'm used to seeing. They look more like fluffy mountain goats with curved horns. I also got to hike behind a waterfall yesterday as well. It was surprisingly peaceful and quiet back there.

I'm on the last leg of my trip. Back home in a few days.

Icelandic Horse 1, Me 0

I fell of my horse yesterday. Yup, I did. (D, have you stopped laughing yet?)

Apparently, my horse had "spring feelings" for another horse that was going the other way and wanted to follow without telling me about it. She tried it again, once I got back on but I was ready this time and the rest was fine as we were ending and were very close to the stables.

The horses are so beautiful. I was on a private ride through the lava fields. So I was very fortunate I did not fall on a rock or a pile of poop either! It was one of those falls where everything happened in slow motion and I remember thinking about how slow it was while I was falling.

Luckily, as I know how to fall, I just walked away with a bruise on my foot, probably from the stirrup. Not enough to keep me away from my longest travel day yet down to the south coast today.

D Got It!

I am very grateful and pleased to report that D got a job offer (for the position he really wants) yesterday and accepted.

He and I are delighted, as you can imagine, and he can work through the last couple of weeks in his current job in peace knowing the transition will be seamless. Thank you all for your best wishes. The universe heard it!

I had gone into the interior of Iceland yesterday and spent 7hrs being pummeled by sleet and rain with 6 other courageous souls. Man, was it not easy. I do feel a bit beat up this morning.

You really come to appreciate the value of investing in good gear. Water repellent is not waterproof and wind resistant is not wind proof and a good sturdy pair of hiking socks and boots are worth its weight in gold as some of my colleagues found out yesterday. I think they are going to hit this store today before planning any more outings.

Was going to go meet and ride some Icelandic horses today -- have a couple of hours to decide but need to wake up first! It is one of those mornings when I wish I drank coffee!

Iceland Calling

After almost 23 hrs of travel, I made it to Iceland. Got lost finding my way to the apartment and am thinking that my Icelandic course didn't prepare me well enough...

The first day is usually spent getting my bearings, finding places to eat, buying food and adapting to the new time zone. It is just past 1pm and I am finding it warm. I knew the weather wasn't going to be as cold as what I'm used to in Canada but I didn't expect it to feel as warm even though it is 7 C. I'm glad I am wearing my raincoat and not anything made of down.

I slept 13 hrs and the first thing I ate today when I got up at noon was a chocolate covered lemony vanilla ice cream popsicle! It was awesome! My apartment is fabulous. Very modern and lux and full of original art. The owners are both designers and have great taste.

I don't usually bring a computer with me on a trip but it is really convenient to keep in touch especially with D looking for jobs and also to check weather, booking excursions and flight news. I use Skype to call home. This new computer of mine and bluetooth headset has paid for itself already with respect to that and for killing time during my 6 hr layover at Boston Logan.

So far the cost of things aren't unreasonable. I'm not thinking of the currency devaluation or conversion, I'm looking at the cost of items in their dollars vs what I'm used to at home. It is more but not so much that it makes me stop or gasp or swear : ). It is definitely cheaper than what I see at our ski resort in BC. So it looks like I will come in under what I budgeted for spending. I think I'm buying some more of those popsicles!

Oh yeah, check out this week's Carnival of Personal Finance - Women in History Edition -- for some great quotes and articles, hosted by SimplyForties.

Interview Updates

D's interviews, all 4 of them went well yesterday. Two were anticipated and 2 were surprise ones that popped up last minute. He was exhausted by the end of the day as you can imagine.

It's going to be an easy going recovery weekend in anticipation of hopefully another full week of second interviews and maybe a job offer would be nice?

One position stood out for him. It is the contract one with potential of it becoming full time in 6 months. He is the most excited about it because of the scale and potential of the position. There will be some travel which is fine with him. He is hoping to hear from them next week the most.

If this position ends up being the one, it would be yet another form of contract work we have not heard of before. Apparently, this position is still expected to pay more and the company collects taxes and pays for the standard government deductions?

So you wouldn't be considered self employed and in that case, would mean unemployment insurance would still be available and it would also mean we wouldn't have to put away our own version of self insurance. Won't know for sure until an offer is on paper.

New Ideas

In all the "excitement" that was this week, forgot to mention that the Bank of Canada rate has remained unchanged. So our mortgage rates stay put.

A couple of out of province opportunities have popped up for D and we are exploring the merits of those right now -- how much it costs to relocate, what the real estate markets are like there and what job opportunities there would be for me. The next steps would be to look at the US and Europe.

Right now I'm enjoying thinking about all the neat potential places to live and work. I may change my mind about that in 6 months but for now, as we are not tied down to any area per say, it is fun to dream.

A Bit of Everything

It's month end round up time for me and in February I was able to bring home $567.72 net more than projected. Pretty pleased with the bonus.

On a fun note, I will be able to make up for the cancelled driving lessons/classes last year this coming April. It will bring me one step closer to taking a rally driving course some time in the future.

D has his first interview Friday. Fingers and toes crossed that they will be a good fit for each other.

He has applied to both full time and contract positions and we have been discussing the pros and cons of contract work. The pay is higher, most often 50 - 100% more than full time salaries but you get no benefits, no security and no chance of unemployment insurance after.

So why would you consider such a beast? Larger companies may wish to see what you can do first before offering a permanent position. Some professions lend itself to contract work -- D is in one such profession.

That would also mean both of us would be self employed. There would be increased bookkeeping duties and need for more savings put aside as we would have to create D's own version of "unemployment insurance". So I for see the first year of such work to be a foundation building year.

A small glitch with respect to attaining currency for my trip. The Iceland Krona has become devalued enough whereby currency exchange places are having a hard time getting it and do not want to buy it back. I've decided to bring Euro to exchange once I arrive.

Apparently Iceland is pretty much a cashless society. People are actually known to buy ice cream cones with plastic. For foreigners like me, it may sound neat but the exchange fees that get charged with each debit/credit purchase may not be so neat. I tend to only used credit cards overseas for moderate to large purchases.

Credit Card Prep

Due in increased fraud, credit card companies recommend you give them a call when you are about to travel or when you are expecting to spend a larger than normal sum of money so that purchases won't get flagged by the security computer as being potentially fraudulent.

That was on my list to do today but I tackled it last night.

First it was Visa. They wanted to know exactly when I'd be where and if I was going to spend more than $1000 in a single transaction, where and when would that be? I almost laughed out loud. How do people know exactly when and where they are going to make a big purchase when they haven't been there before? I think the agent realized just how ridiculous that question was.

Second it was MasterCard. Their automated system include a travel notification choice. So right off the bat, they seemed to be more "with it". Once I got to a live person, it changed. It was worse than getting my teeth cleaned.

Finally it was Amex. By far the easiest call. The agent happened to have gone to Iceland before and was gushing about how beautiful she remembered it to be and wished me a great trip. I got the distinct feeling they expect people to travel and this procedure is not a big deal. I like that.

At one time, with the thought of making things easier, I had planned to pare down to just my Visa. Until a trip to France made me decide otherwise. If you forget your pin number, Visa will not give you one over the phone, whereas MC and Amex will.

It is also easier to call MC and AMEX from overseas than Visa. We found that out after 40 mins at a payphone, also in France. Thus our purchase of a world phone. Now that most credit cards are changing over to chip cards, hopefully there will be less of a need for merchants to call to verify theirs and your identity at each point of purchase.

Enough of the Talk, Reality Hits

Remember all the posts and talk about preparedness last year? Well, the rubber hit the road for us yesterday in the form of D being told that he and others are being downsized in a month.

When I got the call, I immediately got into my triage mode whereby I become very quiet and serious, ready to go. D deals with things differently and likes to make light of things when really, I know he is fuming mad and in shock.

I was waiting for him just to come out and say how he felt -- but he is a guy and I knew that underneath all the "it's ok", there is emotion there waiting to come out. It is the first time this has happened to him and I know he was hoping to go through his whole working life without experiencing this.

Meanwhile, I worked on my spreadsheet and made a list of things to discuss. We plan our life/lifestyle based on the idea that we are each other's back up. That one of us can carry the load should the other be unable to continue for any reason. This tests just how accurate we are in our planning.

So, I had to reacquaint myself with the numbers that D is responsible for, plug them into my spreadsheet after finding out just how long his regular pay, severance, bonus (yes, he did get one) will last. The point it runs out (assuming no new job yet), is the switchover point for us. I will takeover then.

It looks like it will be mid May/early June, depending on how much the tax man takes from the severance. He has been with the company 3 years and got 8 weeks as severance. I believe it to be really good as I think they only have to pay 1 week for every year of service.

Other steps we are taking to hedge ourselves include changes to our mortgage payments. I have decided to temporarily stop mortgage prepayments and keep the money as cash. Also, as I get paid bi-monthly vs. D's bi weekly, I've changed our mortgage frequency to bi-monthly just in case it goes that far.

That move increases our amortization by 5 months as it eliminates the extra month of payments but I'm hoping this will get switched back in no time. I'd rather be over prepared and not need it than be under and have to draw from our non registered savings. Don't want to do that.

As I don't like to leave any stone unturned, we also talked about cancelling upcoming trips. After looking at cancellation fees and penalties, it looks like the money we get back may not be worth it. We have time to revisit it later. My trip to Iceland is very soon and too late to change. Hate leaving at this time even though D says he is fine with it.

We went as far as projecting what we would do a year from now should things stay the same. Technically, as long as I can hang on, things would be ok. D is also learning about unemployment insurance and what that's about.

Our trump card is the cottage. This would be a good time to put it up for sale and interest rates are low and people would want to have it ready for the season. It is paid for and if sold, we would be mortgage free. We aren't ready to let it go yet, so we will revisit this option in a year, if necessary. And selling the ski condo is, at least right now, non negotiable for either of us.

Meanwhile D has applied for a number of positions and hopes to be called for interviews shortly. Also, should he find another job within his current company before his termination date, he forfeits his severance as things would just continue on as if "nothing happened".

Debate

I participated in a discussion with a couple of young professionals (I'll call them E) frustrated by their parents who did not seem to understand why they weren't getting ahead as quickly as they "should". Some interesting points came up.

E's parent's, successful baby boomers who recently retired felt that after 10 yrs of working, E ought to have more assets, more vacations, more real estate.

After all, E's parents were starting to peak in their careers and already had a family and were spending weekends on their boat by then. In fact, they were looking to buy land to build a cottage.

I'm glad they weren't my parents because I could already feel my blood get warm. I don't feel that this is a valid comparison. Here are some differences we came up with.

• E's parents never had to attend university to secure their corporate and government jobs.
• A base university (or college in the US) education without living on campus is still going to cost a pretty penny. As E is paying for their education themselves, they graduate with debt.
• You couldn't get E's parents' jobs nowadays without a post secondary education and be totally bilingual.
• An obvious point is the pension. E's parents, as they never had to save because they knew they had an iron clad fully indexed pension, were used to spending what they made so they felt that if you made "x", it meant a certain lifestyle should ensue.
• E's parents do not know what it means or how much they would have had to put aside to create what they are enjoying as a pension. Their 6 figure pensions each are worth millions.
• Had E's parents not have a pension, they wouldn't have been able to afford the lifestyle they have become used to.
• Job security and loyalty isn't the same anymore. It is hard to find someone who is a younger adult who feels they are going to stay or be able to stay working for the same company for the rest of their lives.
• In Canada, most jobs are contract ones now -- no benefits. Extended health care insurance cost money.
• Of course there is the whole real estate growth aspect. E's parents' home benefited from the capital appreciation over many decades so now it is worth 5 times what they paid for it. Great news though not wealth they had to build with their own 2 hands.
• E lives in the city I wrote about yesterday and the home I featured is in the price range of what they have bought and also in the range of what E's parents home is worth. It is a different reality to buy a home in current dollars with current income vs. having a home rise to that dollar value. E's parents have never had to pay that much for anything.

I'm sure after we left, the debate continued. I cannot imagine being able to spend most of our take home monies on anything we want and know I'll have even more to spend in retirement.

Big City vs Little City

As I have mentioned previously, we moved away from the "big city" to get away from the smog, the hurrying and the higher cost of living.

One of the sections in our national newspaper I frequent is the real estate one where they feature some of the recent "done deals" home sales in various parts of the city.

One such deal was in the area I used to live while going to school and where had I stayed, would have wanted to buy in. It is a pretty sought after location for families as it is close to a couple of well know public and private schools.

It sold for $722000. In order to afford it, the couple who bought it would need to gross approximately $12000/month, put $50000 down, pay $21000 or so in default mortgage insurance and be ok with $3400/month mortgage payment for 25 yrs. The mortgage rate is a 2.25%, 5 yr variable.

We are currently paying just over $4000/month total (regular mortgage and prepayment) so the amounts are similar. We'll get it done in a few years, not 25.

I guess we could afford something like that house above if we wanted to as cash flow wise, it can work but I wouldn't want to pay a mortgage til I was 63 yrs old. And another thing, it is half the house we currently live in and on 1/3rd the lot.

Everyone views value differently. If anything, I make more money not being in the bigger cities so the combination works well for me. For D, he would make more money in a larger city.

Big picture, there are a lot of options and combinations of options that can work in the favour of someone looking to get out of debt or the rat race earlier.

If more people thought outside of the big city box, did some math, maybe a smaller city lifestyle could work and the benefits of more time, better air, less traffic jams, less debt would be possible sooner.

Chile

My heart is going out to the people of Chile.

Mother nature has been tough on a lot of people and places already this year.

Rental Opportunity

An interesting opportunity to purchase a duplex has come up. D stumbled upon it yesterday and took steps to find out more. He has this spreadsheet that calculates cash flow on rental properties and when he comes across one, goes through the exercise to see if it will work. Most don't until now.

The back story is that the seller owns a half dozen homes and because of a recent job loss and incoming baby, is selling a few of them to get some cash in the bank. There has been offers tabled but they have not been completed due to financing.

After speaking with my banker, D found out that even though the new mortgage changes aren't supposed to come into effect until April, it has already changed at our bank. They are asking for 20% down on rental properties and it cannot come from an unsecured source.

I have less of a mental block with the idea of owning a duplex vs. renting out the cottage as I am not living there. There is a high possibility we'll be making an appointment to see it.

What we know -- the tenants both are new as of last fall, so they haven't been there a long time. From the pictures, the house has been completely renovated with the wiring, electrical upgrades and plumbing upgrades done.

The kitchen and styling are all modern. It looks like something I would be willing to rent. That is important to me. I wouldn't want to be slum lord. And it is cash flow positive. We know what the tenants do for a living and that they wish to stay.

On paper would mean more another asset and debt even though it is supposed to "run itself". I have no experience with this -- D does though. Do we want another property? Or the potential work? Is this particular city a good one to invest in?

We would have to fund the whole show should there be total vacancy and how do we feel about that? It really means, how do I feel about that as I would be the one funding it. Could I do that and continue our current plans at the same time? I know I am not willing to work more for this.

If we are able to answer these questions, we'll know pretty well if this avenue is one we will continue to pursue or not. Plus we'll learn some new stuff which is never a bad thing.

Life and Budgets

D filed his income tax last night. The lucky duck is getting money back -- monies that will be used to pay my tax bill. Luckily there will be enough left over to pay for half of our next trip. We are happy about that.

We are also awaiting the annual bonus news. Not working in a corporate environment, I get excited about stuff like this. His company has done really well despite the economy but you cannot count on it until it arrives in the form of a letter of notice that is supposed to come out next week. Fingers crossed!

D didn't get a raise last year. Those who did got 1%. So not sure about this year.

I never budget with the assumption there will be more money. In fact the last 2 years, our budget shrank. That is me being uber conservative about my income as well. I'd rather know we can live on less than be forced to cut back in surprise. I feel more confident and in control that way.

The extra monies we have left from living off of a smaller budget allows us to take a trip or 2 -- a great bonus for living frugally throughout the year. Even I have to admit that we are pretty bare bones right now. Not sure I will be able to find new places to trim for next year.

Winter is more than half over and we have accommodated to not going to the cottage for the first time this season. Though the roads have been good this year, it has been really enjoyable nesting at home.

I can now understand why most cottagers use their place seasonally (May to Oct) even though it can be used year round. It feels like we are more in tune with the yearly cycle. If the weather cooperates, we'll open ours up at the end of April.

Role Reversal

I was witness to a disturbing role play between a mom and her 11 yr old son yesterday. She was describing how due to the breakdown of her current relationship with her boyfriend (not her son's father), she is in the midst of liquidating some assets to pay off debts.

Nothing really strange about that until her son piped up and started talking about the logistics of the sale of assets which got his mom started on how tiring and frustrating it has been and the son reminding her to breath and that it is ok to want to scream if it helps relieve the pressure....it was the look on the boy's face that caught me. He was the adult then.

You could see just how upset her son was getting about the whole situation. Holy smokes, he is just 11 yrs old. I'm not sure it is that appropriate to have someone his age so emotionally involved like this. It takes away their childhood. Plus this type of stuff is best left for the adults to handle.

I agree with teaching kids how to manage allowance and learn to save but not what's going on above. I don't feel it is fair to them to take on such a burden. If the mom needs to talk to someone about it, I feel another adult/family member/girl friend/guy friend etc. would be more appropriate.

Rise Up

I've gotten into the habit of waking up early. Mostly because D gets up early (6:30am) for work. At the start, I grumbled about being woken up as I work steady afternoons and chose those hours because I wanted to sleep in.

Now that I'm pretty used to it, I can definitely say I have become more productive. I write and read more. I've been a better friend as there is more time available to connect. And I get a lot of thinking time.

So my days end up being 16hrs long. My paid work starts when most work days are 50% over and it ends when most peoples' dinners are done. By the time my dinner is done and I've decompressed, it's nearly bed time again.

Limits

Do you need a carrot to keep motivated?

Our test driving Subarus was to learn some stuff as well as serve as D's carrot to keep himself excited about extra contract work. Any extra monies he makes will go towards travel and saving for a car he really really wants.

It was useful exercise as he found out he couldn't fit into one of the cars he liked. No use pining after something that doesn't actually work. It's a good metaphor for life. Gets you out of your head.

So on the same line, do you put mental and emotional limits on your life? Are you stronger than you think?

Being tested highlights my limits. Otherwise the roll of daily life doesn't usually get me out on enough of an edge (either way) to remind myself of my limitations.

I guess that is why some people work with mediation to test their mental and physical stillness. Why some people do extreme sports, to see just how far they can go. Why some people fast just to be able to feel and overcome the fear of hunger.

I know people who engage in all of the above activities and they tell me they feel the most alive when in that zone. The most in tune with the essence of who they are. And by doing so increases their capacity of what they can handle.

Bad Work Karma

I heard a story from a parent yesterday that made me wonder just how ungrateful some can be. The story is, their son (who is married and has children) has been unemployed for a while as their previous place of work closed.

Luckily, they got a secure job with great benefits which started 3 weeks ago.

Now they are steaming mad about this new job a lot of people would love to have, because their coffee break is 5 minutes shorter than it is supposed to be...as a company meeting cut into that time.

Did they not suffer enough on unemployment over the last year to be happy and grateful for the opportunity to properly support their family? What (if any) is this person even thinking?

As much as I do not love what I do every single day I do it, I am grateful for it. Personally I think it is bad Karma to be dissing your new job like that.

On a fun note, D and I are off to test drive Subarus today. So if you see one whizzing by at a high rate of speed, it may just be us! : )

Mortgage Summary 2009

We received our annual mortgage statement from the bank yesterday. It summarizes what happened to the mortgage for the entire 2009 year -- where we started from, how it ended, any interest changes and how much interest was paid.

It is useful from a big picture point of view and also for people who are eligible to write off mortgage interest if they run a home office.

As I track our mortgages like a hawk, I already knew where we started and ended so that wasn't new news. What was however, was the amount of interest we paid -- how much the bank made from us by lending us money to buy our homes.

It was shocking to see our main house costing $2043.47 and the ski condo costing $721.61 for the year. I don't believe those numbers are bad at all considering the amount we are borrowing.

The falling interest rates, a hallmark of 2009 helped to keep more of our money away from the banks.

Balance

I know it is not the full moon time of the month anymore but with the news and drama I've been hearing about, you'd think there was something celestial going on.

People we know are suddenly finding out they have cancer, others are in emotional distress fighting their own demons, some are getting signs they may lose their jobs and a few are in a lot of physical pain with no money to get help.

I know that difficulty exists at all times of day all year though it seems to hit home more when it happens around one's immediate sphere.

This is when I remind myself to just stop where I am and be grateful. As much as it can be overwhelming to feel unable to help or save everyone/everything that needs saving, just doing your best everyday with kindness helps to balance out the energies from all the injustices.

New Mortgage Rules

New government mortgage lending rules were announced yesterday and has me wondering how others are reacting to it. Will is really make a difference? Or will it spark a real estate buying frenzy...what they are really hoping to happen in an effort to stimulate the economy?

Basically they are going to require people who want a variable rate mortgage, like the ones we have, to be able to qualify as if they are taking out a 5 year fixed rate term (usually a higher rate). This is supposed to enable them to keep affording the payments should rates go up.

I'm not convinced that it is that much harder to quality for a fixed rate vs. variable rate mortgage in the first place. But this announcement may make people who think they are on the cusp, panic and buy without thinking before these new rules come into place shortly.

The one change I feel will make a difference is with respect to income properties. Soon, purchases will require 20% down so as to deter speculators. I agree with this one.

It wasn't that long ago when the maximum length for mortgage amortization was 25. Then they started allowing longer and longer lengths of time. We in Canada no longer have 40 year amortizations but 35 years is still allowed. I still think it is too long. It is hard to feel free when you have that hanging over your head for decades.

Good to Go

I listened to my gut and it has paid off. Yesterday, I finally booked a one night hotel stay in Boston on my way home from Iceland. With the flights I have, it is impossible to make it home the same day.

Normally I would have had it done when I booked everything else back in January. But I just couldn't pull the trigger for this one.

I had found a couple of hotels that would be suitable and were reasonably priced. My rule of thumb for long travel days where I'm going to be exhausted is I will pay to be in a nicer environment especially if I will only need it for a short period of time as to ensure as much as possible, I will get some quiet rest and good food.

What was tripping me up was the shuttle service/ride to these hotels. I know I wouldn't feel like calling them up. Also in the morning, it usually means I add another hour to make sure I get back to the airport in time. I really wanted to be in the hotel that was attached to the airport so I could just walk but didn't want to pay $250US.

Something told me to check yesterday and for some reason, the advanced prepay rate had dropped to $119US. I took it and other than the transfers from Keflavik airport to Reykjavik, which I plan to buy once I land, I am pretty set to go.

Write Offs

Well, I wouldn't let myself do anything fun this morning until I got my 2010 bookkeeping started on Quicken. Each year requires a bit of an initial start up to set up the accounts I will be tracking and then the rest of the year is pretty easy.

The work itself doesn't take much brain power at all, just takes a little time. Because I am still using the 2001 version (I refuse to buy a new program when the older one does what I need), it isn't "smart" enough to carry over the same accounts year after year... or maybe I'm just not smart enough to figure out how to do it yet...

Either way, I'm happy to report it is set up and January's numbers are in!

Going through my tax categories brought something to light. The depreciation on my office equipment and vehicle are getting pretty low. Soon, I won't have any amount left, which technically means my stuff isn't worth anything anymore.

I know of a colleague whose bookkeeper told them it is time to buy a new car and to do some renovations to get some write offs because her depreciate numbers are nearing zero.

Personally I do not agree with spending money just to get a write off when the stuff you are replacing is just fine. I'll just deal with less to no depreciation which means slightly higher income taxes.

Everyday Stuff

One financial milestone I'm excited to be hitting this year is a five digit main house mortgage amount. There is something therapeutic about not seeing 6 digits I'm looking forward to. A bit of extra breathing room you might say.

Someone I know who is in banking told me in a recent meeting that their bank forecasts a 2.5% increase in mortgage rates this year and 1.5% increase for 2011. If it were to be true, our rate would rise to where it was 2 years ago when we bought this house -- 4.5%. Oh well, what will be will be. One thing for sure, we would have taken advantage of the lower rates by paying extra so no regrets that way.

Since my last post on the negative and complaining person, I have found myself surprisingly more up. I have new found appreciation for my life. There is not much truly worry some. It is beyond my comprehension how it would feel to be that negative. I've felt fairly down at points in my history but I cannot say the same for prolonged negativity. Man, am I happy about that!

D and I celebrate the date of our first date monthly so Valentine's day is just another excuse to do something else fun. We are thinking of a day trip this weekend. Anyone going to celebrate this weekend?

Out of Patience

Sometimes it is just easier to not engage with someone who is argumentative or has to be "right". D and I have an unhappy "friend" (I believe that is no longer the case) who make everything about her. As she works mainly as a hobby, she has plenty of time to dwell on why the world doesn't send her the happiness she deserves.

Historically, she wasn't always this way. Life's "challenges" (in the form of not having enough vacations or boyfriends that care...) has hardened her to a not very likable person. Everything is about her comfort and her problems and why she has not been able to find someone who loves her enough to marry her and make her into a mother.

Our patience has just run out.

The harder I work, the more difficulty I have empathizing with people who "make stuff up" to worry about. I'm talking about someone who is very educated and worldly and has had more financial benefits then I'll likely see in my lifetime.

That doesn't make up for what I feel she didn't get -- Humility, tact, empathy, joy and self honestly. It goes to show you, money isn't everything.

I find it very useful to look at myself objectively to see what I am portraying out to the world. Am I behaving in a kind manner? Am I acting like a person other people would like to spend time around? Am I attracting goodness or repelling it? Sometimes the common link to not getting what you want is yourself.

New Idea

I hit on an idea the other day I'm pretty excited about. Because I haven't actually worked out the cash flow logistics of it, I cannot say if it is viable.

The idea is staying with working 3 days a week once the mortgages are done but take 1 week off each month. This is in contrast with what I was thinking of doing, which is work 2 days a week the entire month.

Preliminary thoughts show a potential of enough income to fund the week off which would likely end up being a travel week somewhere. Whereas, if I were to take a week off while working 2 days a week, the budgeting gets tighter (6 working day month vs. 9).

I'm intrigued enough with the idea to think it through further. It looks like it will fall somewhere in between where I am currently and where I am planning to go.

Entitlement

I saw 2 different money role models growing up. My mother is a saver. My father felt entitled to buy collectibles because he worked so hard and long.

Neither parent is particularly happy, they just dealt with it differently. So that got me thinking about entitlement and how we respond to it.

Both parents affected me equally. I am able to sacrifice and save but I can also justify treating myself to a great meal out as a reward for a good month at work. (I am not into collectibles)

The influences I've picked up from them I want to be rid of include being a martyr and being overworked. Neither states of being promote balance and happiness.

When things got more prosperous for our family, they were not able to relax into enjoying life. The old habits were too ingrained and they found out they no longer understood each other, much less their children.

The current displays of entitlement I see in younger and fully formed adults seem different. Rarely have I seen examples of where it stemmed from overworking. Often it comes from people who aren't working enough. Credit has a lot to do with it I'm guessing and maybe even TV.

Stop the Whining

It looks like I will not be able to avoid having to shovel snow before D comes home from his trip. We have had such a mild winter, I was beginning to take if for granted. I have owned a snow blower in the past but now I go manual. Being on a corner lot with a driveway that can house 6 cars, there is a lot of area to cover. I do a pretty good job especially now that I walk, I am even more sensitive to sidewalk quality.

We know a number of people who come from fairly wealthy families ie. wouldn't have to work for a living wealthy. When money worries are not part of your life ever, I've found them to sometimes come across like they are insensitive to the everyday finances of "ordinary people". So their tolerance to being told "no, I cannot participate in that activity/trip/etc" can be low.

Sometimes they will whine or spring into a lecture about how they feel is the best way to do such and such and not realize that the person they are talking to already know that but are not able to execute plans in such an ideal way because of time and money constraints. I have even known such people to start complaining about the minutae because they just have too much time on their hands. I'm not convinced that I would want to trade places with them, even if it meant I would not have to work for a living.

Giving Back

I just heard of an opportunity for a build with Habitat for Humanity right in my own city. First thing tomorrow I am going to call and see if they still need people to help. If so, I'm signing up D and I.

Before Christmas, I spoke with an administrator for our local branch of Big Brothers and Big Sisters to see if there was any need for volunteers. Apparently there is a waiting list for our city and the surrounding area.

D has been a big brother for almost 3 1/2 yrs in the past whereas I've never been involved with them before. My experience is with volunteer tutoring at a half way house for teens convicted of violent crimes. It was a memorable experience.

We are getting ready to give back again in a way that doesn't necessary involve a lot money. It will be hard not to want to give too much. Back when D was involved, he didn't have a lot of money so the activities were shooting hoops etc. with his little brother.

Now he is able to offer more. I guess it is something we will need to discuss during the interview. If everything goes well (I can't see why not), I would be open to learning more about becoming a foster parent.

What If?

Don't get me wrong. I am not being morbid here.

When I find myself alone (not sure if D does the same when I'm gone...), I wonder whether I would still be living in this house on my own?

I know I eat differently by myself -- even simpler and with even less meat.

To answer the question, I do not think so. I believe I would find this house too large for just me. It wouldn't have been something I would buy if I was single. I have never bought a house with the thought of it being a good one should I end up in a relationship so why start now?

Last night, I actually thought I would consider hiring someone to clean should I wish to stay here on my own. Housework is not one of my fortes.

The cottage would be sold. I would have no interest maintaining it on my own. If I chose to stay in this province, I could see myself looking for something else. If I don't want to hang around, then I would move out west. I wouldn't sell that property.

No, I'm not looking for an exit strategy. And they say that when one goes through huge emotional upheaval to not do anything rash for a year after as you may not be thinking straight enough to make such big decisions.

Isn't this train of thought why we make wills?

I strongly suspect that neither one of my parents have wills. It is a weird superstitious belief thing. You cannot even bring it up. They believe that drafting a will means they are ushering their own deaths earlier.

Maybe my willingness to analyse everything comes from my wanting to get away from such illogical thinking.

Oh yeah, our next trip destination has been firmed up -- Berlin! A great excuse to learn some German.

Plans

There will be a little extra bonus money this month, to the tune of $154.92 net, based on January earnings. Overall 2010 has been slower than '09. Everything is still balancing so not worried.

I have been thinking about what we'll do should mortgage interest rates go up. Where will the increased regular mortgage payments come from? Because we allocate monies to the penny in advance, I will have to juggle something else to make it work.

So what will decrease? Not sure yet -- likely our travel fund. I don't wish to decrease mortgage prepayments because they will slow us down a bit. In the end, it will depend on just how much payments increase that will determine the length we'll have to cut back on other things.

D has been encouraging me to come up with some ideas for a side business. I'm really not qualified to do much outside of what I do so the only thing I've come up with is some freelance work.

Right now, I haven't the energy to make the idea real though summer time may be the right timing for me to work on content for a web page and brainstorm about my target market etc.

Fun Times

I'm flying solo for the next 6 days as D is off on his guys' ski trip. He sent me an email earlier today about how tired he was after his double black diamond ski lesson. Turns out his instructor grew up wind surfing at our cottage beach! What a small small world!

On a really humorous note, I have received a few "awards" from Livemocha, the site I'm using to learn Icelandic. Apparently I have been the Icelandic student of the week for 2 weeks in a row... although I think I may be the only one learning it right now... Don't ask me how to say "I am lost" because I haven't learned it yet but I can say "I am going to be climbing a ladder"... :)

It appears I have made a bit of a mental shift with respect to work. I find myself enjoying it more. Not being overly busy has its advantages. I may not be making more money than last year at this time but I don't feel as beat up afterwards either and that is worth something to me.

MiddleWay

A classmate of mine recently paid their last student loan payment. Because I haven't thought of the concept of a student loan for so long now, over 10 years, the news stunned me. I recovered quick and congratulated them on a great job.

This news hit home as we were in the same class and have both been out in the work force for over 10 years. It was the sheer length of time that blew me away. I have a very hard time with the concept of a monthly payment for that long. Especially when added to other common monthly payments such as a car, a house, utilities, savings, etc.

It isn't that I didn't have students loans. I did. Probably not as much as they do but enough to take 10 years should I have allowed it. In Canada, back in my student time, banks amortized loans for 10 years. I understand that 15 year terms are available now. When I found out that my monthly payments were going to be $900 a month for 10 years, I freaked out and pushed myself to get it paid off in 1 1/2 years.

Even then, I could not stand monthly payments. I also have never amortized a house for longer than 9 years. And I find myself feeling very impatient for the next 3 years or so of mortgage payments to be over even though technically they are D's payments and not mine. I'm just putting in extra because I cannot stand to see it.

Gail Vax-Oxlade's post earlier in the week gave 2 quotes I copied into my day timer to remind myself that I need not have to rush so. Rushing things in the past and present have contributed to my stress levels and burn out. It isn't something I would honestly recommend. I'm afraid I must have some version of a obsessive compulsive disorder -- Some force that propels me to extreme, sometimes self defeating measures.

Whatever it is, it's not easy to change and I have worked very hard to dig it out of myself over the years, once I realized that most people do not approach debt like I do and perhaps are happier for it. I'm very glad D is as laid back as he is because it helps me to swing back towards the middle of the road. It is no accident I call myself Middle Way as a reminder of where I would like to be on things like this.