Senators, Weak Loonie, Superb Owls and #FreeFormFridays

So, there are no longer any Liberal Senators in Ottawa. No, I am not commenting about how Chris Phillips is now a rabid conservative, Justin Trudeau pulled a fast one and dismissed all of the Liberal Senators in his Caucus. I like it. Makes the political world in Ottawa a little less predictable and a bit more wild. I am assuming it is to short-circuit any Tory attacks on “over-spending” Liberal Senators. Well played, Monsieur Trudeau.

This weekend starts one of the most important Sporting events for me, the 6 Nations Rugby Championship. Rugby is a Hooligan’s game played by a gentleman (whereas soccer is a Gentleman’s game played by Hooligans). The Rugby World Cup is a while away, although Rugby 7’s will be in the Olympics in Rio, so more sporting enjoyment for me.

The Super Bowl is this weekend, but the hype usually makes the game less enjoyable by the time there is an actual kick-off. I may watch the game this year, I will certainly enjoy some chilli and beer. However, I am more excited about the Rugby this weekend than I am the NFL. I am hoping for a surprise “Snow Bomb” storm hitting New Jersey to make the game that much more interesting.

The Loonie continues to weaken against the U.S. Dollar which is causing a lot of “snowbirds” a great deal of consternation, but delighting Canadian exporters. The Canadian NHL teams are now feeling the sting of a weak loonie too. What caused this? Couldn’t be the Governor of the Bank of Canada saying he’d like to see some inflation in 2014, could it?

My Weekly Recap

My Writings for Week Ending January 31stJanuary ends with Hope of an Earlier Spring
Financial Plimsoll Line At least you learned a new nautical term this week?	I’d Rather Be Flossing My Cat’s Toes ‘ It is astounding the imagination of my readers, and what they’d rather be doing than their Income Tax return (even with TurboTax)	When To Let it Go No this is not a commentary on Mrs. C8j, just me lamenting a large repair bill on “the beast”, but it is still on the road at least.	By the Time You Have a Colonoscopy It’s Too Late Endoscopy or Colonoscopy it all ends up in the same place in the end. Do I not get an award for the oddest titles of the week?

Swiss Army Knife Section

Not much mention of football nor rugby by anyone else, mind you, no one else talked about colonoscopies either:

• So there was a chap who owned the Twitter handle @N, however, he no longer does and it’s not a pretty story How I lost my $50,000 Twitter username.
• The Canadian Capitalist gives us an update on his Sleepy Mini-Portfolio which I use as a template for one of my RRSP accounts as well.
• Evidently the Mac turned 30 last week? Doesn’t look a day over 20 Happy 30th Birthday Macintosh, the Controversial World-Changer. Funny I remember working on a LISA in my younger days.
• Michael James has some fun with the new CSA reporting rules A Portfolio with 3 Different Returns, you need to sit down with Michael James and see how his mind works to really appreciate this kind of stuff.
• Larry MacDonald suggest we all take a chill pill in the housing area with his article in Canadian Business Canadian Housing Should stay afloat in 2014. Move along folks, no bubbles bursting here right now.
• Gail Vaz-Oxlade gives us New Baby Savings and as a former new parent, I wish this was around when my babies were small.
• Mark W at 2nd Career Search does an interesting overview on Canada Pension Plan (CPP) versus US Social Security (SS) – “Star-Spangled Happiness” or “On Guard”?
• Mark from My Own Advisor pulls no punches with Do you really need $1 million to retire well? Of course you do, can anybody loan me a few hundred thousand?
• I was sad to read of the death of Pete Seeger, but his songs will live on 14 songs by Pete Seeger that are more relevant than ever, sadly, some very interesting topical lyrics (still).
• And for your patience of reading this far, I give you an Electric Porsche (thanks to Popular Science).
• Boomer and Echo brings us 4 Big Rip-Offs To Watch Out For , important things to look for.
• Mark at the Blunt Bean Counter argues with Mark from My Own Advisor with his article How Much Money do I Need to Retire? Heck if I Know or Anyone Else Does!
• Preet was hanging out at a #BitCoin rally this past weekend. He really is becoming a Bon Vivant Gadfly in the financial world, must be nice. A while ago he did ask in the globe Should B.C. couple have agreed to a 25% interest car loan?

Mary Poppins and Money

A more conservative view of money from the movie Mary Poppins:

Random Thoughts for 2014

Lots of these kinds of Best of articles in 2014. Here is a list of them.

• Cuba, Rubles, Christmas and #BestThisWeek – getting close to Christmas but Ian McKellen can teach us about impulse control.
• Snow, Christmas, Enhanced and #BestThisWeek talk of more festive ideas, like how to save money at Christmas.
• A Gentleman, Day of Disability, Christmas, Rugby and #BestThisWeek noted the passing of Jean Beliveau and John Oliver’s views on Lotteries.
• Black Friday is Here, Advent, and #BestThisWeek speaks of the blessed Black Friday and associated sales but also includes a Fanfare for the Common Man.
• Lake Effect Snow, Web Cameras, Travel Insurance and #BestThisWeek November brings snow in Toronto, as we see, and other financial ideas.
• Asteroids, Tax Cuts, Lemurs and #BestThisWeek how many times has the Earth almost been hit by an asteroid? Too often to remember.
• Lame Ducks, Financial Literacy, Working for Free and #BestThisWeek lame duck leaders never really get that much done, no matter how they negotiate.
• Happy Halloween, Income Splitting and #BestThisWeek a wonderful financial time of the year is Halloween? Maybe income splitting is a better subject.
• Ottawa We Shall Remember, Bank of Canada and #BestThisWeek after a bad week in Ottawa, with senseless violence.
• Crashing Markets, Ebola, Low Loonie, Cheap Gas and #BestThisWeek even in 2014 the markets were a little volatile.
• Hockey, Turkey, Leaves, Carry On Bags and #theBestFin4TheWeek is it right that the hockey season starts before Thanksgiving?
• October, Hello Ebola, Give Blood and #theBestFin4TheWeek October arrived unexpectedly this week, almost unnoticed. As we have entered the final (calendar) quarter of the year 2014, it may be time to start considering a year-end review of your financial plans.
• Autumn , United Kingdom, Beer Money, and #theBestFin4TheWeek the colours in Ottawa during Autumn are truly spectacular.
• Pins, Alibaba , Apple Pay , Lecosse , and #theBestFin4TheWeek remember when Alibaba the IPO happened, those were heady days.
• Home Despot, iPhones, and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• Back to School, Tim Burger King, Knee Defenders and #theBestFin4TheWeek will the dutchie ever come back? I can only hope.
• Broken Humerus, Ebola, Anniversaries, Blood and #theBestFin4TheWeek remember when we thought Ebola was going to wipe us out?
• It is Done, Ice Bucket Challenge, Media Perceptions and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• WW1 Centenery, More Hacked Passwords and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• The Long Weekend with no Name, Defaults, and #BestFinancialForTheWeek
• Unmasking Super Heroes, Dogs of Summer and #BestOfFinancialForThisWeek
• All Stars, Al Stars and the #BestOfFinancialForWeek the world cup was a big thing in 2014 as was Bastille day too.
• Brazilian Defeats, Tour De Chunnel, and #BestOfFinancialForWeek you mean Brazil can lose at the world cup?
• Tennis, Racing, Inflation and #BestofFinancial Canada Day is the start of the summer for most Canadians, and financial stories too.
• The Stand, Football Biting, Naughty Banks and #BestofFinancial even in 2014 the banks were misbehaving with shenanigans.
• Elections, Dad’s Day, World Cup, Friday the 13th and #BestofFinancial somehow the Liberals won the 2014 Ontario Provincial Election
• No Rate Hike, Better Performance, Montreal Grand Prix and #Bestof-Financial back in 2014 we were worried about rates, but they were already pretty low.
• Elections, Farewell Knowlton, May Done, and #Bestof-Financial Knowlton Nash was the voice of news for Canada for a while.
• Internet Memory, Grand Prix of Monaco and #FreeFormFridays the Internet has memory?
• Time Off, Elections, Victoria Day and #FreeFormFridays Victoria Day is always a fun weekend.
• Frosts, Elections, Farley Mowat and #FreeFormFridays it does get cold in May!
• Rain, Budgets, Bloggers Meeting, May Day and #FreeFormFridays When financial bloggers meet what happens?
• Beware the Financial Jabberwock, Netflix Expansion, Model Trains, Backups and #FreeFormFridays a thematically odd article.
• Easter is Here and a Saturday #BestOf for the Weekend a time of renewal, new beginnings in life and financially as well.
• RIP Flaherty, Heartbleed, Tax Time, Quebec Elections and #FreeFormFridays the former finance minister did a lot of good for the economy.
• #Selfies, Quebec Election, Big Joe, Awareness, and #FreeFormFridays would Big Joe Mufferaw have been a good fit for the Redblacks? We’ll never know.
• Don Quixote, Tax Time, Cheap Mortgages and #FreeFormFridays gotta hate tax time.
• Spring Has Sprung, March Madness, Celebrity Blogger and #FreeFormFridays talking about Spring in March in Ottawa can be a bit early.
• Pi Day, March Break, Two Ferns, Snow and #FreeFormFridays given pi is infinite, how much pie can we expect?
• Quebec Elections, Eating Sugar, Suing Parents, Big Rocks and #FreeFormFridays those elections in Quebec are never dull.
• Saint David’s Day, Big Posts, RRSP Time, the Dating Game and #FreeFormFridays always a good time to put a Welsh Choir Clip in an article.
• Hockey Day, Tax & RRSP Time and #FreeFormFridays Hockey day in Canada? Well it does happen, right around RRSP time too.
• More Olympics, Budgets, Love Day and #FreeFormFridays Valentine’s Day: Celebrating Love and Dealing with Financial Whining.
• Olympics, Not Super Bowls, Creationism and #FreeFormFridays 2014 Olympics Opening Ceremonies and Soshi Stadium’s Doppleganger: The Super Bowl.
• Senators, Weak Loonie, Superb Owls and #FreeFormFridays Rugby is a Hooligan’s game played by a Gentleman.
• Polar Vorteces, Olympics, Mayors and #FreeFormFridays The Polar Vortex brings Winter in Canada. But don’t worry – -30C highs in Ottawa in January are normal.
• Giveaways, Oil tanks, Eagles and #FreeFormFriday Have you checked your oil tank if you heat with Oil? What will your insurance do if the tank ruptures?
• Truly Canadian Issues, Ultra HD TV, Car Loans and #FreeFormFriday Get your lock de-icer and unlock your Super Mailbox cubicle like I did – Canadian Tire to the rescue!
• Some #RandomThoughts from 2014 Some of the best of, best of posts on my random thoughts weekly post.
• CPP Reform, Snow, Christmas, Boxing day and #FreeFormFriday Did the CPP reform of 2013 fix much? Kind of, but Christmas was coming too.