Random Thoughts

A bit of fun from 2016 but also a Celebration of St-Jean Baptiste Day or La Fête nationale in Quebec (land of my birth).

For those of you who did not grow up in Quebec, today is La Fête National or St. Jean Baptiste day, typically the start of the summer in Quebec. For me it was always the end of school, but that was 40 years ago. The rest of Canada waits for July 1st for the summer to really start (next Friday).

It seems the Canada Pension Plan is being revised to help Canadians retire. It seems to be to protect younger folks so more money is saved for their retirement, we will all pay higher premiums (phased in over the next little while), and the maximum payout will increase over time (but if you are already retired, you won’t benefit from this). I am still investigating, whether this will change much for someone like me who might retire within the next 5 to 8 years. I am searching for an actual Government document that explains the changes, nothing seems to exist yet. Is this a good thing? As usual, I will reserve commentary until I read an official document.

How will all of this change my retirement plans? I will comment when I can figure out how this new system works with my pension, but I suspect, at the end of it all, it won’t change my retirement plans much, but, I (55 year old) am not the demographic that these changes were put in place to help.

Will the Rio Olympics end up like the 1980 Moscow Games and the 1984 Los Angeles Games? There are many folks saying they will not be attending (or are being told they can’t attend), for many reasons. Is the Olympic movement still relevant? Yes, I think. However, the Olympic organization seems suspect.

The Cleveland Cavaliers won the NBA Championship, how much money does that mean to the City of Cleveland? It will certainly mean less jokes about Cleveland, well, maybe not. Is Lebron James better than Michael Jordan? Not in my opinion, and the Warriors team from this year is not better than the 95-96 Chicago Bulls, but, only my opinion.

My Writings for Week of La Fete National

Another slack week for me, only writing one article, but to me, an important article, that needed to be written. RDSP the Savings Plan Nobody Knows About, came from a discussion I had with another parent about the Registered Disability Savings Plan, and how the people who seem to know the most about the program, are those who are trying to use it (not the folks who offer it, like the banks).

A Money Thought

People get very offended when you tell them how to raise their child, unless you wrote a book about it. Then they’ll pay you for it.  -ShowerThoughts Reddit

The same is true for Personal Finance.

If you had all the money in the world, you wouldn’t be able to spend it, as no one else would use currency.  -More Shower Thoughts on Reddit

Read More »La Fête nationale, Enhanced CPP and #MoneyTalk

If there is money to be had, there are always scams to steal that money, hence RESP scams are cropping up all over the place and other financial news.
#RESP #CRA #Scams

For a while it has miffed me that every time I have ranted about PayDay Loan places, Google Adsense (my major advertiser) decides that the article should be surrounded by advertising for those very same PayDay Loan places, but evidently this will be changing! Google will be removing PayDay Loans from their Adwords networks, but I remain skeptical. My guess is that the High Risk Loan industry will just market themselves in a different manner, but, good on Google for taking this step (wouldn’t it be nice if the CRTC did the same thing for those ads on TV?).

Are you curious whether your boss or your neighbours (or even family) are mentioned in the Panama Papers? Now, you, can search and see what is going on at ICIJ Offshore Leaks. Yes, I did search, but none of my relations seem to be mentioned. As I have mentioned, I aspire to be in that kind of a database (i.e. having that much money).

Fort MacMurray is still under threat of forest fires, but it is good to hear the damage to the city is not as extensive as it might have ended up. Remember you can donate to help at many different outlets (including most on-line banking web sites).

I didn’t realize that there are over 500 Billionaires (with a ‘B’) in the United States. #TIL

My Writings for Week Ending May 13th

I guess the fires in Fort Mac had me thinking about house insurance and claims, and thus the two posts from this week were in that area.

Home Insurance Gotchas was from my archive of unfinished stories, outlining the importance of making sure you are always following the rules of your Home Insurance Policy. If you think something is covered by your policy, it never hurts to ask your agent whether it is covered or not (finding out later it is not, is a likely outcome if you do not ask).

In Home Insurance Follow Up I point out again, that exceptional things in your house need to be identified in your Home Insurance Policy, or you may not get them replaced, should there be a fire at your home. Ask your agent if you are unsure what is or is not covered (I seem to be repeating myself here).

Evidently in Ottawa there is a full moon tonight, and it is Friday the 13th as well, for those interested in that type of stuff.

Where do Bitcoins Come From Mommy?

For those curious, here is a tweet about where some of them come from.

A 360-degree tour of a secret bitcoin mine https://t.co/bIPsBQFfpW via @BBC_Future pic.twitter.com/df2I6svg9X

— Alan Whitton (@alan_whitton) May 11, 2016

Read More »Panama Papers, Google & PayDay Loans, Full Moons and #MoneyTalk

Loose money policies continue, but we still can talk about other things like hockey, free stuff and tax season as well! Tight money would be a bad thing.

Remember that Tax Season is in full swing, so it might be time to file your return (primarily if you are owed money). Don’t loan the Government money. Make sure you neither owe nor get a huge rebate.

You can call the CRA if you have questions about your taxes, but remember, many folks are panicking working on their taxes right now as well, so be patient with the wait and with the folks trying to help.

This week, a big snowfall should remind folks who live in Ottawa that Spring may be in the air, but that does not mean there won’t be any more snow. Most of the snow is gone, but does that mean we are finished with the white stuff? Not until after your taxes have been filed!

The Panama Papers leak seems to be causing a great deal of consternation for many of the 1% and many politicians. I guess my question is, would you rather be mentioned in the Panama Papers or the Ashley Madison leak? (maybe both?). RBC was mentioned in the Panama Papers, and they don’t think there is anything wrong with it.

April 2nd was Autism Awareness day. At our house, we call it Saturday. It’s also my Daughter’s birthday. Autism awareness has a noble goal. However, frankly, more services and support would be great too. The new Ontario Autism services model isn’t going to help. We are fortunate my son is higher on the spectrum. Nonetheless, that does not mean I deserve little (or no) services because he is older. People assume I am evidently rich.

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My Writings for Week Ending April 8th

A busy week meant I really only got 1 article written. However, I continue to put up my best on my Twitter feed. There is a lot of other great stuff too.

We are getting close to Tax time. Tax Reflections for 2016 highlights the things I keep forgetting for my taxes.

I have Said This Before

Not asking, is rejection by default

Big Cajun Man

Or better still, the Answer is Always No, unless you ask.

Read More »Tax Time, Spring Delayed, Panama Papers and #MoneyStories