We’re having a cold February. Some people are comparing this February to all the other Februaries in recorded history. That’s quite a trick, considering the month isn’t over yet. But there’s no doubt we have a cold one this year. That’s one reason why it’s inconvenient that our furnace stopped working. We talked to two different repair companies. The parts are under warranty, but we have to pay for the labor. The have to pull the furnace apart to replace the parts, and they’re working in a tiny closet, so this isn’t going to be cheap. Parts are on order. But we’re not the only people in the state with a furnace that doesn’t work. We’ll see when it gets fixed. In the mean time, our gas fireplace is doing a good job of keeping the house warm enough that there’s no danger of pipes freezing. Sweaters and blankets take care of the rest.
I’ve been checking our financial site for the last 1099 every day. Finally it was posted. I downloaded it and opened it, only to find that the account summary information was incorrect and the 1099 information wasn’t in it. I called our friendly financial advisor. He had been getting quite a number of phone calls on this subject, and as friendly as he is, he was beginning to get a little frustrated. It turns out he had told several of his clients that the 1099s were finally posted. But I was the first person to actually look at the form and see the emperor had no clothes. The advisor kept his cool, but I had the distinct impression that he was wondering about his career choice. Three days later, they had the file renamed from “Summary and 1099” to “Account Summary”. The summary was still wrong. Finally today, the 1099 was posted. I don’t know if it’s correct, but it’s close. Fortunately, it doesn’t make any difference whether it’s exactly correct. It only matters that the numbers on our tax return match the numbers reported to the IRS. Taxes are completed, and will be filed after Danita reviews them.
Retirement is a strange beast these days. There are so many rules. If one delays Social Security payments, they increase 8% a year until age 70, so it’s a good idea to delay Social Security if one can. IRA accounts require minimum withdrawals after age 70 1/2, so it’s a good idea to delay withdrawals until 70 1/2, if one can. For us, Danita plans to retire next year, and I won’t be 70 yet. I’m close, but we need something to live on while we’re waiting for that magical moment. We decided to use some stock. We decided it would be a good idea to sell the stock now, because a major market downturn would put a definite crimp in our life style while we’re waiting for me to be 70. So we sold the stock near the end of last year. Between the taxes on the stock, the trip to China, and repairing the furnace, we’re doing an breathtaking job of spending money.
My online Chinese Culture class is getting stranger and stranger. We had an assignment to pick a topic and lead an online discussion for one day. My topic was “Working Through Cultural Differences”, which I based on my experiences working with Chinese people at Axalto. I posted my blurb on the web, and got no comments. Some discussion. I figured I’m so old I just don’t know how to do it. The next day, another student posted a blurb about Chinese holidays on the web. She also had zero replies. Nobody else has been brave enough to give it a go.
It’s started snowing. According to the weather folks, this could be the biggest snow so far this year — as much as whopping 8″, before it switches over to rain. Somebody asked me my opinion. I told them that if the snow was a big one, I wouldn’t go to work. They didn’t catch my humor. It’s supposed to warm up tomorrow. The temperature could “rocket up to 38 degrees.” That would be nice, because we have a SOCA party Sunday.
I hope this finds everybody doing well.