I have no real theme today, just a mind dump of what I'm thinking on a fine Saturday in October.
Unexpected Change in Saturday
I have the whole morning free now since my nephew will not be playing his football game due to Covid. So far, I have not heard that anyone is getting worse, so I'm hopeful they don't get more the mild symptoms, and no longer term issues. There is some major road construction near DH's work, causing traffic patterns to be crazy. They just are not getting the stop by traffic one would normally expect on Saturdays so his boss said each of the sales force could take a Saturday off this month. DH is off today (he'll take another Saturday as vacation when college kid is home.) Having DH home on a regular Saturday when we don't have anything planned will give me a taste of what it will be like when he stops work for good. Believe me, there is enough major stuff to get done that he won't interfere with my list. So not only do have a free morning, I have DH around to tackle things as well.
Retirement Plans
September was an odd month financially for us. We paid our bills, but didn't contribute much to our long term savings. However, it was also a month we didn't plan to. Overall, things are on track. I am taking Chef Owings advice and looking at what other options to beef up a health care account. I'll have some through my work, and our plan had been that the Roth would be both our bridge before Medicare eligibility, copays and deductibles, and then used to supplement wrap around insurance costs. What do any of you know about private HSA's? Are they just another version of a Roth, and subject to the same or included as part of the annual maximums?
Extended Family
While I and my family is quite different from DH's family, for the most part, relationships are fine. Priorities and how we define "success" is different. I've shared that my sisters are some of my closest friends so you know we all get along well, argue, differ, but end of the day, are still sisters. Even my two sisters that clashed like oil and water seem to get on fine, when dosage of being together is limited, particularly after we lost my sister 8 years ago. Anyway, even though I am close to my sisters, there is an odd dynamic that I am often forgotten, or not remembered when people try to name the 10 of us, boys included. I take it with a grain of salt, but sometimes it is annoying that it has become the family joke. Last week at my brothers party, a friend of his and his wife came. The wife, grew up down the road from my family and was besties with one of my older sisters. Of course I have not seen her in decades, and she was going through the list of kids, and never landed on me, yet knew a 10th existed. Another sister said, "that happens a lot." Later, same sister was sharing how she ran into someone else who was asking about our family. My sister laughed as she said, "and of course as she went through everyone, you'll know who she left out."
Religion, Church, and Faith
For nearly two years before Covid reared its head, I was going to church less and less. The change in how people professed their beliefs in so many circles was becoming disturbing to me, and I didn't want to practice my faith a pew away from someone who professed such, in my opinion, un-Christlike sentiments. Being xenophobic, poverty bashing, and disguised racist was suddenly normalized under the guise if true American. Covid brought on-line church and in many ways, was a relief to still get some participation, but not be with "thems." I even liked the outdoor services and being spread apart-short, sweet-a few passages read from the bible, a few songs, a message, and on our way. I'm going to enough other public places that I can no longer use Covid as an excuse for why I don't go to church in person. But truth be told, I do miss what it used to be for me, pre election 2016. We've had the television on Sunday mornings. I cringe when the news shows go off, and suddenly Joel Olsteen or some other rich yahoo with a megachurch comes on. I don't feel like I've lost my faith, but I have lost respect for any organized religion that encourages its members to define who is worthy of blessings, and who rightly should live in squalor. I'm not saying that is my church, but have experienced this talk from members that are so called leaders in the congregation. Tomorrow I will be appreciating the bounties God has provided by helping to clean up a park, spend time with my family honoring the memory of my parents, and then spend time with my husband on our anniversary.
Well that got heavy in a hurry! I don't lie awake thinking on anything in particular. This was just the most recent things that rose to my thoughts and I'm dumping on the blog page. I hope you have time to think on the things that are important, but let it go if not something worth occupying space and creating nonsensical stress. Have a good Saturday.
Do you have access to an HSA through either of your employers? I'm guessing not. I have one through work, and they "seed" the account each year to close to my deductible (or, maybe it's my personal deductible, but I have a family plan with the kids). Then, I contribute to the HSA max as well. Mostly because it reduces your taxable income. Then, when I have medical expenses that aren't covered by insurance (haven't met deductible, etc), I can either choose to pay out of the plan, or just cover the costs. I know a lot of people choose to not get paid out of the plan, because they want to retain that HSA money as you describe, when you are retired.
ReplyDeleteIt does look like there are low/free costs HSA investment accounts you can open. I'd imagine that as long as you stick below the IRS maximum (similar to a 401k), you'd be fine, and it would be a useful savings account pre-retirement.
You've largely expressed my sentiment on organized religion. The boys ask a lot of questions about religion, and misaligned philosophies (e.g. why does a group that says they care a lot about their fellow "men"/people, spend a ton of time trying to make life difficult for others)? I don't have any good answers.
We have one through mine, an automatic 1% goes in every pay period, but wethere is not an option to add more. When I retire, we can roll up to 50% of the cash value of our vacation balance into the HSA, buttechniclaly, I'd be losing eanred paid time, so might be better to formally retire later, but use up all my vacation time.
DeleteHappy Anniversary!! Hope you have a fun day!
ReplyDeleteWe have a FSA so we only contribute the amount of our deductible since it doesn't roll over. I need to look into HSA more as I don't know much about it.
I asked my husband if we were having a crisis of faith since we have been unhappy in the church for several years. He said that we didn't doubt what we believe, but the hypocrisy of so called christians has turned us off to the church but not to Christ.
I'd like to feel part of a community again-I seemed to have jus tlost that in the last 1/2 decade. Faith , I feel, I have an abundance of.
DeleteI had the luxury of being raised in secular humanism, but when I *do* go to church, I attend an Episcopalian church. I love the liturgy. But, more importantly, I love being with a group of people who believe fully that if you can't find Christ in the beggar at the do, you sure as hell won't find him in the chalice.
ReplyDeleteI thought spending time this morning with my family, cleaning up a park, having brunch together, was a good way to demonstrate care of others and care for the world.I do like the ritual of communion and when a good sermon, thinking about the messages. I'll find my way back to some sort of community again-just taking my time doing so. My daughter describes herself as as secular humanist.
DeleteI fully agree with your take on religion. It seems bad attitudes and actions and words are now the normal and approved for some Christians.
ReplyDeleteMy heart says it is not all though-and that is where I struggle. I miss the community I felt I had before being hypocritical out loud was applauded.
DeleteI worked in the office of my Catholic Church for five years. When I quit (new priest came in and started spending every penny we had on making the rectory pretty and buying flowers, etc.), I pretty much stopped attending. Between knowing (financially) how little the church was actually donating to the poor, and meeting so many "Christian" people who attended church every week but weren't very nice in person, I just stopped going. We now donate what we used to give to the church to a local food shelter and I volunteer my time to various causes outside of the church.
ReplyDeleteYour comment about being forgotten resonated with me - I was only one of five, but my family was very close to our cousins (another group of five and another group of seven). To this day my girl cousins will say "remember when we..." and I'll have to say, "no, I wasn't allowed to hang out with you because I was too young (by 3 years)..." Unfortunately the other cousins in my immediate age group were all boys so I wasn't included with them, either. Oh well, we're good friends now!
I still feel our church community does a lot of good in our community so still support. It's really a few individual people that have had me stepping back, but they do good things too. An example, ne such person runs a monthly free/free will donation community meal. In concept it is wonderful-get's people together, feeds people who migh thave food insecurity, give people a night to just "be." Yet this same person also though ti was great to see "real patriots" on their southern road trip and wen ton to post pictures that included the confederate flag and men and women openly carrying visible guns.
DeleteI have not been to mass in ages. I wasn't happy with the last priest.
ReplyDeleteI think I will try going soon to see if it is safe and what's up and who is there.
I'm probably an anti-Catholic snob. All the rules about who is fit to marry another, who is allowed communion, confession to a priest who's self important enough to think he can act directly for God to forgive, when to kneel, when to stand.... Too many rules to say how to worship.
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