I have been writing here for more than 19 years now. Why? I am still not sure. Cathartic wailing? I hope to help a few folks. My hobby? I am not that sure, but some of that and many other things as well—time to reflect on these past 19 years.
To begin with, I thought I’d make money doing this. I didn’t. Thought I’d gain a level of fame? I didn’t. What I did was make some good friends and acquaintances. I hope I helped a few folks, and I know I learned a lot.
I have been reworking and rewriting many of my older works, mostly to read what I wrote early on. My opinions were a little over the top. I have learned that while I knew a little, I always have much more to learn.
My Reflections on Money
- It is still a taboo subject. Nobody really wants to talk truthfully about their money situation. Doug Hoyes’s book drove home this point to me. You should read it just to understand how money as a tool is dangerous.
- I get things wrong at first. Preet Banerjee and Michael James have corrected many of my (many) mistakes. Thanks to these two mavens of diverse information, my writings have become more accurate. Try to guess which one is an Engineer and which is a Neurobiologist (the 2nd one I may have wrong).
- I do not have the energy or drive to be big in financial kibitzing. Kerry at Squawkfox, even with her health issues, does more in one day in terms of building my brand than I have done for the past 10 years.
- My retired Accounting buddy the Blunt Bean Counter helped a great deal with building my son’s nest egg. He helped write a few letters for me and advised me in many areas. He also relentlessly mocks my golf skills, which is fair as well. His website is in stasis now, he is not writing anymore, but there is a lot of great info there.
- Larry MacDonald is a good friend, and I used to run into him around Ottawa, haven’t seen him much lately. He also enlightened me on some of my bigger misunderstandings. His blog entries on Canada Business seem to have disappeared; much is the pity.
- Robb and his Mum from Boomer & Echo were both very kind with me when we met at Financial Expos. He is another one that convinced me I was never going to be big, he works hard at his craft and brand.
- I have met Rob Carrick a few times. He has been patient with me and has linked to a few of my stories. I don’t agree with all of this commentary, but I am confident he would say the same about me.
- Mark Seed is another person who constantly shows me that I am a lightweight in financial chatting.
- You do realize that I write about technology at a site well named, Not How To Do It.com. Still writing there as well.
My Current Financial Reflections
I continue to prove that it is better to be lucky than good. Currently, we are out of debt, thanks to very little of my own action. My brother passed away, and thanks to his estate, my debts are currently at zero. I may be able to retire soon, however, given my son’s education is not complete, that is on hold.
The Future
I have no idea. I am still rehabbing a badly mucked-up knee. It has been 2/3 of a year, and I still look like a baboon with two club feet going upstairs. I will continue to write, sometimes in spurts and sometimes rarely. Drop by, and see what might be new, or subscribe to my weekly newsletter. The newsletter only comes out if I publish something new during the week.
We continue to deal with my Mum, who has dementia, and my son, who is on the Autism spectrum, so I will be writing more on those topics.
I started this while working at Nortel. I was a 6 figure blogger there, and still am. Now I am a Civil Servant.
Thank you for reading and dropping by. Hope to see you soon.
Previous Reflections
- Reflections on 15 Years My reflections on the past 15 years of writing on this and other blogs. It has been an interesting few years. #Blogging #Writting
- Still Financially Crazy after 13 Years
- Saint Patrick and Many Years of Financial Writing Not only is it Saint Patrick day, it is also the anniversary of me starting this important personal finance thome (ok, poetic license on that).
- Ten Years and Still Going After ten years of writing here, what have I learned? Not that much really, but it has been fun and that is the main reason.
- Eight Years Later (and a Happy St. Patty’s Too) Celebrate the 8th anniversary of my blog with me. Join me on this journey that started 8 years ago, and discover the evolution of my writing and thoughts.
Sing Me Out Ray
Ray Charles sings my favourite version of Still Crazy after all these years.
Your writing on the RDSP is a wealth of knowledge. It is a hidden gem in an otherwise barren government landscape.
Question – have you written anything / looked into what happens when the DTC expires and the person doesn’t have a family doctor. This happened to my brother and he still doesn’t have a family doctor. The problem is that for the DTC, the form asks for the doctor to certify how long you have been their patient and if you have medical records for all the years you are certifying. I get that this is to cut down on fraudulent applications but it makes a new family doctor reluctant to sign the forms. In my brother’s case, his DTC lapsed about 6 years ago but his disability began at birth so there should be no gaps.
For my mother, she has been diagnosed with Parkinsons and her new family doctor won’t sign. The neurologist will (maybe, we’ll see) but only for the parts that affect her. I explained that she only needs to complete 2 sections (walking and dressing). I wish the form wasn’t so overwhelmingly long. Most of the sections do not apply. Also, I have not found doctors to be interested in the new online application process.
Thanks for your 19 years of blogging Alan. I have been reading here for over 15 years I think. Lots in common with you as time has progressed, my oldest son also has ASD and my wife has been struggling with long COVID for about 2.5 years now.
I have enjoyed and learned a lot from your many posts over the years, especially those on RDSP as they became applicable as well for my family. All the best.
Drew