Positive, Productive, Profitable Retirement News

Once again, I had to change the "war on terror" honour roll numbers on the Connect2Canada page of the home website.

A Canaidan soldier from Thunder Bay, Ont., was killed in Afghanistan as one of the deadliest months for Canadian troops in decades came to an end.

Pte. Josh Klukie, was killed while on foot patrol Friday when he stepped on an insurgent's explosive booby trap in the Panjwaii district west of Kandahar City.

They are dead; but they live in each Patriot's breast,
And their names are engraven on honor's bright crest.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Pte. Klukie was the 10th Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan in September, and the 37th since 2002.

More than 18,500 troops make up ISAF, with contributions from 36 nations.
To learn more about the NATO force make-up and mission - click here for their official web site.

Honor to the soldier, and Sailor everywhere , who bravely bears his country's cause,
Honor also to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field, and serves, as he best can, the same cause.
(Abraham Lincoln)

Today's edition of the Toronto Star features an interview with Brig.-Gen. David Fraser, commander of NATO's eight-nation effort to put down southern Afghanistan's increasingly visible insurgency.
Talking with the Star's Mitch Potter, General Fraser said the weakest link in the mission is Canadians' tendency to seize on negatives and worry them to death.

The following is an except from the Star's feature headlined - "General frets about home front"

The formula for failure, Fraser said, is "our country not supporting the needs of the Afghans who are looking for a future. We need to see this through for as long as Afghans want us here."

Fraser told the Star the complexities of the challenge in volatile Kandahar and its neighbouring provinces, where Taliban attacks have surged over the summer, play directly into Canadian anxieties.

But what many Canadians don't understand, he said, is that attacks are increasing for the very reason that NATO and the new Afghan government are gaining the upper hand and "the Taliban see their window of opportunity closing.

"The more success we have, the more they will attack The further out we get into the hinterland, the more they come and attack us.

"And we have spread out far more this summer than ever we had in the past. And if s putting more pressure on the Taliban leadership as we go into their backyard. We're in Helmond province and we weren't there last year. We're in Shawali Khot and we weren't last year. We're now all over Zabul, which we weren't last year. And we've spread out in Uruzgon, with 1,000 more troops."

Canadians, said Fraser, tend to be "our own worst critics. We criticize absolutely everything. We will find the pimple hi the navel and we'll say, 'My God, look at that pimple!'

"But let s not be overly critical of ourselves. We're gaining momentum now. Let's put our shoulders behind it and get the work done."

Later in the interview, General Fraser detailed the "big Picture" this way - "My battle space is 220,000 square kilometres. And I tell you, this is about hearts and minds.
This is about winning with an idea.
Our fight is not with the people of Afghanistan - they are looking at both the Taliban and their government and wondering who to side with.

"So, when the Afghan government enters an area, our job is to make sure there is not just security but education, medical care and reconstruction.
It's all about building.
And what does the Taliban offer? Destruction. Not building, just destruction."

"Every life given here, every soldier that is wounded and will live for the rest of his life with scars, either physical or mental, has to understand that what he or she did here this summer and this fall meant something,"

"I go to that hospital every day when there is a soldier that is wounded. I go over there to console a soldier, I come away inspired by their commitment and their determination to say, 'I want to get back out there.'

"You know, polls be damned. With the men and women in this theatre and the support we get from the government, we're going to go through it. We're going to see it through."

(Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 2, 2006 - From the Retirement news journal - a stack of stats

Before you Email - this is not some male driver chauvinist rant - it's just an unscientific survey taken while driving on a major highway.

Last week the wife and I headed out on our annual "fall colours" tour of our province and we had to travel a major highway to get to the "back road" portion of the expedition - once again, to help pass the time, we conducted our speed trail survey

I was once told the cops will allow 18 clicks over the speed limit because of the inconsistency in radar guns - so while driving our provincial highways, I set my cruise control at 118 kph or when driving the United States 18 miles over what the speed limit may be.

We then keep track of how many cars pass us over a half hour interval - during one such period it was if we were parked - cars blew past us as if they were trying to escape capture and the majority were women drivers - 23% were talking on their cell phones as they sped past us,

Was this just a fluke?. When we returned home it was time to Google.

I found Britain's ITV network recently conducted a poll asking - Are women drivers more aggressive behind the wheel nowadays? - Yes - 64% No - 30% Don't know - 5%

Other interesting stats -

• 80% of American women over age 65 operate an automobile.
• The overall percentage of female drivers is rising, while overall percentage of male drivers is decreasing.
• Women have become more powerful in the automotive industry, influential in auto buying and have increased their ownership of 4-wheeldrives and SUVs.
• Women are buying a lot more of the compact SUVs.

So, leave your stereotypes at the door. The ladies of the new millennium won't be confused with your mother.

And finally, take a minute to view this Google video on how a woman parks a car.

----------------------------------------------

The year is 1906 - One hundred years ago - What a difference a century makes!

Here are more statistics but this time for the Year 1906:

• The average life expectancy was 47 years.
• Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
• Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
• There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.(US)
• The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
• The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!
• The average wage in was 22 cents per hour.
• The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year
• A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
• More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .
• Ninety percent of all doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as "substandard."
• Sugar cost four cents a pound - Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen - Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
• Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
• Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
• Five leading causes of death? were:

1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke

• Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn't been invented yet - there was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.
• Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write - Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.
• Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a "perfect guardian of health"
• Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.
• There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE ! U.S.A.

Now I forwarded this from someone else without typing it myself, and passed it on to you and others all over the world - Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.

----------------------------------------------

Just in case you weren't feeling too old today, this will certainly change things. ..............

The people who are starting college this fall across the nation were born in 1987.

• They are too young to remember the space shuttle blowing up.
• Their lifetime has always included AIDS.
• The CD was introduced the year they were born.
• They have always had cable and Jay Leno has always been on the Tonight Show.
• Popcorn has always been cooked in the microwave.
• They never took a swim and thought about Jaws! - They don't know who Mork was or where he was from - They never heard: "Where's the Beef?", "I'd walk a mile for a Camel", or "de plane Boss, de plane".
• McDonald's never came in Styrofoam containers and they don't have a clue how to use a typewriter.

----------------------------------------------

Now let get back to our creative retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 3, 2006 - Boomers and the stock market and don't be a stock scam sucker

You baby boomers sure have the power - Stats show that boomers are influencing everything from advertising to health care and now the pundits are predicting boomers are about to blow a huge hole in the stock market.
They say this dollar doomsday scenario will unfold over several decades meaning my age group wouldn't have to put their broker on speed dial - however, our junior retirees might want to research the probabilities.

In yesterdays Financial Post edition of the National Post, David Berman reported on the debate currently underway about how boomers may or may not influence the stock market years from now.

A a host of influential authorities, such as Jeremy Siegel, the famous Wharton finance professor and author of Stocks For The Long Run, are sounding the alarm.
Siegel is calling the ageing population the most critical issue facing the developed world.

Berman writes - " As Boomers retire, they'll either liquidate their equity portfolios in order to fund their retirement years or they'll move into less volatile assets, such as bonds.

Either way, the impact could be huge, and by no means confined to Canada.
Since Boomers represent a bulge in the population in most of the developed world, there will be fewer active investors picking up the slack as they exit the workforce -- and the stock market.

Mr. Siegel believes that unless Indian and Chinese investors start buying developed-world stocks in big numbers or workers postpone retirement until their mid-70s, share prices in the United States, Canada and elsewhere will suffer from a bear-market mauling.

Berman also reports that "concerns about what exactly will unfold over the coming decades has inspired more debating than panic selling so far, with a number of observers suggesting that worries over the impact of retiring Boomers are vastly overstated."

------------------------------------------------------

One more stock market item - I'm getting more Emails from retirees who are complaining about the increase in stock market spam - the BUY NOW Emails - I got one the other day that warned me - "You will regret it for the rest of your life if you stay a bystander on this one."

In a recent Toronto Star feature, Tyler Hamilton explained - You only need a few greedy suckers in this world to carry out a scam. And as researchers at Harvard Law School, Oxford University and Purdue University have found, stock spamming is popular because, well... greedy suckers are plentiful.

"Our analysis shows that (stock) spam works," the researchers write in a recent collaborative study that examined 75,000 stock "touts" over an 18-month period. "Among its millions of recipients are not only those who read it, but who also act upon it."

And how does acting on a stock spam benefit the sender?
You start with a penny stock that the spammer or its client owns.
That stock is typically traded in low volumes, making it more vulnerable to manipulation.

Theoretically, if only a few dozen people out of a million decide to buy the stock, the increased trading volume does two things: It drives up the price and the in-creased liquidity allows the spammer to cash out his shares at the higher price.

Once the spammer has cashed out, the stock spam campaign comes to a halt and the price of the shares settles back down.
The spamming victims, if you can call them that, usually end up holding shares that have fallen well below their purchase price and are difficult to unload."

Purdue professor Laura Frieder, told US. National radio last month their studies reveal that suckers who go for this scam, will tend to lose an average of 7 per cent after two days of holding on to the stock - retirees beware.."

------------------------------------------------------

Odd and ends - Thanks to retired buddy in oil rich Alberta, Bill Ozard for this interesting bit of internet wizardry - a human clock

and not yet retired buddies Tim and Toni Grace sent me this intriguing web time-filler - When you move the mouse around, her eyes follow - type in something in the left space and click on "Say it," she says whatever you have written!

Now's let's get working on our creative retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 4, 2006 - Lest We Forget - an old man with no answers

It's been only three days and once again I had to change the "war on terror" honour roll numbers on the Connect2Canada page of the home website.

Two Canadian soldiers were killed and five others injured in a fierce mortar ambush in Afghanistan's turbulent Panjwai region - an area where Canadian forces won decisive victories over Taliban insurgents recently.

Killed in Tuesday's twilight attack were:

• Corporal Robert Thomas James Mitchell
• Sergeant Craig Paul Gillam

both of the Royal Canadian Dragoons based in Petawawa, Ontario.

They are dead; but they live in each Patriot's breast,
And their names are engraven on honor's bright crest.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Corporal Mitchell and Sergeant Gillam are the 38th and 39th Canadian soldiers to die in Afghanistan since 2002.

More than 18,500 troops make up ISAF, with contributions from 36 nations.
To learn more about the NATO force make-up and mission - click here for their official web site.

Honor to the soldier, and Sailor everywhere , who bravely bears his country's cause,
Honor also to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field, and serves, as he best can, the same cause.
(Abraham Lincoln)

--------------------------------------------

Only one more notation - I just don't feel like doing much of anything today - for the first time, I feel my age - I feel old and confused because I can't find any answers as to why - this sadness covered me like a blanket five minutes ago - our local TV station just broke in with a bulletin that two children, both under the age of five, have been found murdered in an apartment building located about five miles from my place - at the time, I was reading the wrap-up story of the killing of the Amish children in Pennsylvania - adults killing children - in the school house, execution style - so many questions - too few answers.

(Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 5, 2006 - Another day off to play Deal or No Deal

Concerning my comment about violence against children in yesterday's brief entry - Mark Twain once noted -

" Of all the animals, man is the only one that is cruel. He is the only one that inflicts pain for the pleasure of doing it.
It is a trait that is not known to the higher animals."

However, as we move on, and move on we must, I confess that I haven't completed a lick of work since my retired buddy and former sister-in-law Carole Raycraft, forwarded the internet version of "Deal or No Deal"

Howie's not there - and unfortunately either are the beautiful long-legged, cleavage revealing, brief case carrying models, but the game itself is in tact - be warned however - it's time-wasting addictive, but a big help in taking your mind off all the heartache reports the nightly newscasts have been dumping on us recently.

I plan to get back to my creative retirement job later today, but right now I still have the million and 750 thousand dollar boards up - I have to go for it - my wife is 825,000 dollars up on me. If you want to play - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 5, 2006 - Thanks Ed

"Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln

I went searching for a funk breaker - I found it in a newspaper story about Edward Rondthaler, 101 years old, Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y. who was quoted as saying -

"Keep smiling. I've always tried to look at things in as happy a way as possible.
There certainly are tragedies in this world, especially now, but I would certainly encourage positive thinking."

Ed is 23 years older than me - and no matter if it seem at times that the world is going to hell in a hand basket - he works at maintaining a positive outlook.

However, breaking out of a funk is not easy - like everything in life, you have to work at it - the trouble is few folks are willing to make an effort.

Cliff Arnall, a psychologist who runs workshops in confidence and happiness says - "It's more about self-discipline and listening to what's going on in your heart, not your head.
Ultimately, we're responsible for how we run our lives and if we want to change, we can.
But the reason few of us do so is because only the minority of people are motivated enough to act on it."

Dr David Hamilton, whose book - It's the Thought that Counts explores how the mind can influence our health and lives, is convinced we underestimate the power of positive thought.

A former research and development scientist with a pharmaceutical company, he noticed a clear pattern emerging when it came to medical drug trials. "A hundred people would get the real drug and the same number would get the placebo, then 70 would get better on the drug and 60 on the placebo.
I realised that the mind really can affect the body, and I found tons of medical research to back me up."

Also, positive thinking means positive aging - lets face it, the biblical "three score and 10" (70) for one's lifetime is archaic.

At birth now, the average life expectancy in North America is 74.9 for males, 80.7 for females and building - so we had better work at the positive and eliminate the negative because many of us still have sometime to go - hopefully.
Making a conscious effort to change - and feeling good about it while doing so - is the hardest part.

However, it just doesn't make sense to travel the last portion of the trip bitching and complaining - especially about things you can't control - it's so much easier to take a deep breath - smile - and work on all the positives that surround us.

Now lets work on our creative retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 6, 2006 - Retirement News Quotations

First, a quick video - never, ever, fool around with Granny.

As noted on the Retirement Quotes page and the Motivational Quotations pages of the home website - I collect quotations the way others collect coins.

Here are some interesting quotes tied in with various notations I've scribbled in the Retirement News Notebook -

You may have heard about the skinny model controversy raging the world of high fashion - it started when a top-level fashion show in Madrid issued the world's first ban on overly thin models causing outrage among modeling agencies.

When Anthony Burgess was asked what it was like sleeping with super-thin Yves St. Laurent's models he answered - "It was like going to bed with a bicycle."

Brian Marshall commented - "I can't understand why a stick-insect thin woman is desirable - except maybe she doesn't cost as much to feed, since she doesn't eat anything except grass."

When my Doctor ordered me to lose weight he should have said - "When you "haul ass" you have to make two trips>"

I should have told him - "My ancestors didn't spend the last 2 million years clawing their way to the top of the food chain, for me to become a vegetarian." - no credits available on those quotes.

When Tiger Woods wins seven out of eight, and then comes back the week after a rare loss to win wire-to-wire by eight strokes it reminded me of a Chris Rock Quote - "Black people dominate sports in the United States. 20% of the population and 90% of the final four. We own this shit. Basketball, baseball, football, golf, tennis, and as soon as they make a heated hockey rink we'll take that shit too."

During a Retirement News research assignment, I came across an article on how Belgian scientists have proved that men's decision-making skills can be altered by the sight of a beautiful woman. (Dah)

Tests using business-transaction simulations showed that men who saw pictures of beautiful women in lingerie were more likely to accept unfair offers than those not exposed to such pictures.

"The average woman would rather have beauty than brains, because the average man can see better than he can think." ~Author Unknown

"She wore a short skirt and a tight sweater and her figure described a set of parabolas that could cause cardiac arrest in a yak. ~Woody Allen, Getting Even, 1973
" No matter how good she looks, some other guy is sick and tired of putting up with her crap." ~Author Unknown

"Is it too much to ask that women be spared the daily struggle for superhuman beauty in order to offer it to the caresses of a subhumanly ugly mate? ~Germaine Greer, The Female Eunuch, 1970

Now to a subject dear to many a retiree - power naps in the afternoon.

In a recent article, Phyllis Zee, a professor at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, suggests that most Doctors never discuss a patient's sleep pattern>

"If you're like most patients, chances are the subject never came up.Most physicians, they don't get a lot of education in medical school about sleep and therefore they don't see it as an important parameter and they're not usually asking their patients about sleep problems."

Zee says that over the past decade, we've been bombarded with the importance of nutrition and exercise and she feel they have to add sleep to the list because they are all related.

Thanks to a growing body of research that links lack of sleep with everything from obesity, type-2 diabetes and depression to hypertension and cardiovascular problems, she believes doctors should routinely assess their patients' sleep habits, just like they check blood pressure.

In the U.S., for instance, nearly a third of all men and women aged 45 to 64 now sleep only six hours or less each night.
That's much less than the nightly seven to eight hours that Zee says people need to stay healthy. Studies also show that a half hour power-nap can revitalize a person - for me it sure does - anyway , quotations -

"A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book. ~Irish Proverb

"If you can't sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying.
It's the worry that gets you, not the lack of sleep. ~Dale Carnegie

"No day is so bad it can't be fixed with a nap" ~Carrie Snow

"If a man had as many ideas during the day as he does when he has insomnia, he'd make a fortune." ~Griff Niblack

And to end the week - on the topic of me trying to persuade you to use your computer, the internet, and your work or hobby knowledge to build a creative retirement job - this one -

"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the one who'll decide where you'll go - Oh the places you'll go" - Dr. Seuss

Have a great weekend and to Canadian readers - have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday - we have much to be thankful for and when the family gathers together, remember to take a moment to thank the men and women of our Canadian Forces around the world fighting the war on terror - more info here - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 8, 2006 - Lest We Forget

Once again I had to change the "war on terror" honour roll numbers on the Connect2Canada page of the home website.

A Canadian soldier was killed during a pre-dawn run to pick up other troops in the Panjwaii district west of Kandahar - Killed in the attack:

Trooper Mark Andrew Wilson, a member of the Royal Canadian Dragoons and based out of Petawawa, Ontario.

They are dead; but they live in each Patriot's breast,
And their names are engraven on honor's bright crest.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Trooper Wilson was the 40th Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan since 2002 matching the number of British oldiers killed in the country since the Taliban were overthrown. Only the United States has suffered more deaths, with 341.

More than 18,500 troops make up ISAF, with contributions from 36 nations

To learn more about the NATO force make-up and mission - click here for their official web site.

Honor to the soldier, and Sailor everywhere , who bravely bears his country's cause,
Honor also to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field, and serves, as he best can, the same cause.
(Abraham Lincoln)

- (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 9, 2006 - Worth repeating and get a passport

Follow-up to Honour Roll changes on the Connect to Canada page on the home website - I just added an editorial from the Owen Sound Sun Times that's worth repeating - Nobility and Heroism in Afghanistan

-------------------------------------------------

To Canadian retirees - I hope like our clan, you're having a happy, family centered thanksgiving.

We're twice blessed when it comes to Thanksgiving holidays - we also get to chow-down with our American friends on their Thanksgiving day that this year falls on November 23rd

If all goes according to plan, in about three weeks we will join the flock of snowbirds, who like the Canadian geese, seek the warmer climates of the American south - and in that regard a word of warning.

Like many snowbirds I realize the American Congress passed a law requiring Canadians and Americans to carry a passports and this new law also includes a clause that passports for land entry would be postponed until the middle of 2009, from the original target of Jan. 1, 2008 - that's true - but what I didn't know, until I read a story by the Toronto Star's immigration columnist Allan Thompson - "there is still tremendous pressure from some quarters in the United States for the passport requirement to be enacted sooner than that - legislation passed by Congress does allow for the requirement to be imposed earlier than 2009."

In other words, that January 2009 date could change at any time.

Thompson points to a round of media interviews conducted recently by Frank Moss, the top passport official in the US. State Department - he was stressing this important point, that people crossing the United States border by land could need a passport "significantly earlier" than the 2009 deadline.

Thompson also reminds us - " Perhaps more important, there is still a rule in place that travelers entering the US by air or by sea will need to have a passport - or another approved tamper-proof document - as of Jan. 8, 2007."

Thompson warns us in his opening paragraph - "If you don't remember anything else from this column, remember this: If you plan to travel to the United States in the near future, spend the $87 and get yourself a Canadian passport."

Click Here - to get the passport application kit and guidelines.

Now back to the Thanksgiving day table -

• according to www.thedailyplate.com - eating the skin on a serving of roast turkey (dark Meat) adds about 18% more calories to a serving without the skin.

• Nutritionists believe that the amount of tryptophan in turkey is insufficient by itself to induce sleepiness. Rather, it's the traditional bread-potato-stuffing-pie Thanksgiving meal as a whole that triggers after-dinner lethargy - got this little bit of trivia from howstuffworks.com

--------------------------

Comedian George Carlin has come up with a list of new rules for 2006 - one is with retirees in mind -

Stop screwing with old people.
Target is introducing a redesigned pill bottle that's square, with a bigger label and the top is now the bottom.
And by the time grandpa figures out how to open it, his ass will be in the morgue.
Congratulations, Target, you just solved the Social Security crisis.

Now, let's get creative - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 10, 2006 - Retirement news alert -85 the new retirement age

The guy was about as trustworthy as North Korea.

Via Email, he was pitching me and apparently thousand of others, on computer software that would guarantee quick and easy money by building websites with pages of content containing keywords for high paying Google ads - all automatically - little work - big profits.

No mention of how to attract people to the websites so they can click on the ads - or how the search engines would react negatively to "same copy" content - his entire pitch made it sound as if all you had to do push a button and bingo - money in the bank.

I am far from being a techie-geek, but if there is one thing this old man does know - there ain't no easy way to make money on the web - it takes time, patience and work - but if you pick a topic that appeals to you, that your passionate about - the creative challenge of building a website is the thing - the extra funds is the bonus that measures your success.

Research - look out for the web sharks.

When it comes to trustworthiness, from personal experierence, I can recommend to newbie and pro alike, Site-Build-it to show you how to build a website and, over time, bank substantial revenue - and I'm not the only one who will tell you that.

-------------------------------------------

Check this out - the age of retirement will be 85 about fourty-four years from now.

At the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting in St Louis recently, Shripad Tuljapurkar of Stanford University says anti-ageing advances could raise life expectancy by a year each year over the next two decades - and that will put a huge strain on the world economy if current retirement ages are maintained..

Dr Tuljapurkar said - "People are going to do things they didn't get round to in their working lives. Current institutions are really not equipped at the moment to deal with such long lives," he said. "We are going to have to plan a lot more carefully, which people are not very good at."

He found that his projected trends in life expectancy would have profound effects on the economy, lifestyle and population demographics - "It might be possible to go through two mortgages, for example, or even have 50-year or 75-year mortgages,"

-------------------------------------------

Two stories I've stolen from the Elliot Lake Retirement newsletter -

A retired snowbird went to a Supermarket in Florida and tried to buy a half a head of lettuce.
The young produce assistant tells him that they sell only whole heads of lettuce.
The retiree persists and asks to see the manager.
The boy says he'll ask the manager about it.

Walking into the back room, the boy says to his manager, "some old idiot wants to buy half a head of lettuce." - just as he finished the sentence, he turned to find the old guy standing right behind him, to he immediately added, "and this gentleman has kindly offered to buy the other half."

The manager approves the deal and the retiree went on his way.

Later the manager said to the boy - "I was impressed with the way you got yourself out of that situation earlier.
We like people who can think on their feet - where are you from son?"

"Canada Sir." The boy replied.

"Well, why did you leave Canada?"

The boy replied - "There's nothing but whores and hockey players up there."

"Really?" said the manager. "My wife is from Canada."

"Is that right?" replied the boy. "Who'd she play for?"

-------------------------------------------

An elderly man walked into a confession booth - the following conversation ensued:

Man: "I'm 82 years old and have a wonderful wife of 60 years, many grandchildren - even a couple of great grandchildren.
Yesterday, I picked up two twenty something year old girls hitchhiking.
For some strange reason they thought I was kind of interesting and one thing led to another and we ended up in a motel where I had sex with each them - twice."

Priest: "Are you sorry for your sins my son?"

Man: "What Sins?"

Priest: "What kind of Catholic are you?"

Man: "I'm Presbyterian."

Priest: "Why are you telling me all this?"

Man: Hell, I'm telling everybody."

Now it's time for you - your computer - the internet to combine for a creative retirement job - start your research in the PPPretirement job book and video library - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 11, 2006 - Retirement future - trapped in traffic

Follow-up to yesterdays' entry about future retirement - longer life and 75 year mortgages.

How about -

• Five-star hotel-style retirement villages
• Granny day care at shopping centres
• Chemotherapy treatment in the comfort of your own home.
• A heart disease patient could put his finger on a touch pad connected to a computer to have his blood pressure and pulse tested and the result would be sent to a nurse via the internet.
New hospitals would be supplemented by increasingly sophisticated services to help people manage illness at home.

Once again, the sheer size of the boomer generation will force dramatic retirement changes for those who follow us "senior - seniors." .

Demographer Bernard Salt predicted traditional retirement homes will become almost obsolete, replaced by "lifestyle villages" offering five-star hotel-style services such as day spas and yoga classes - leisure industries would develop niche products ands there could be a new genre movies, books and - get this - reality television shows with divorced grey-hairs trying to find a new partners.

But there's another side to the retirement picture decades from now - recent studies predict for most retirees their pension income will only be enough to give them a basic standard of living - only a wealthy one-fifth will dictate consumer trends.

Pass it on - a creative retirement job via your computer and the internet is the perfect hedge.

---------------------------------------------

Man driving down road. - Woman driving up same road
They pass each other.
The woman yells out the window, PIG!
Man yells out window, B I T C H!
Man rounds next curve.
Man crashes into a HUGE PIG in middle of road, and dies.

Thought For The Day - If only men would listen....

---------------------------------------------

A family assignment forced me to drive into the "Big Smoke" the other day during the morning rush hour.
Like every major city the world over, the highways leading into Toronto were clogged like a hairdressers sink

It's been years since I had to face this hassle on a daily basis but even so, I was staying calm and collected because I was listening to an audio book - a James Patterson novel that held my attention - the honking stop-and-go didn't bother me at all.

I looked around at the other drivers trapped in this six lane parking lot and it was obvious the majority were fuelling a boiler of frustration and anger - strange though - they must know this is an everyday occurrence - why not turn the bad into beneficial.

Some suggestions -

• Breathe. Relax - Sunil Prabhu, a meditation teacher at the Art of Living Foundation in Kansas City, Mo. Says "Every emotion has an impact on our breath," says "Conversely, our breath alters our emotional state, too. Taking long, deep breaths helps us be at ease in the moment." Value peace of mind more than time.

• Exercising - concentrate on flexing a muscle - Sit up straight; retract your shoulder blades back and down. Tighten your stomach for 15 seconds, then release. Contract again for 15 seconds, and release. Repeat as often as you can.

• Mary E. Corcoran, management consultant suggests - use a voice recorder - Encourage yourself - Make a recording of positive statements, affirmations about your plans. Research shows that when you give voice to positive statements, Corcoran says, they have more significance. The statements should be future-oriented and begin with "I will" or "I am," not "I'll try" or "If I'm not busy."
  Examples: "I will successfully complete this Spanish course." "I will stay on budget." "I will prospect for three more customers this week."

• And finally, hear a book - to me, this is the best of the best - time flies, miles evaporate.

Sales pitch - that audio book I was listening to was "Judge and Jury" by James Patterson - maybe not one of his best but still worthy - a Patterson novel never lets you down - and another great idea is to spend traffic and traveling time listening to motivational books -

One more idea when your trapped in your car - keep working on your creative retirement job - use your voice recorder to collect your thought and ideas on how you want your website to look and feel - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 12, 2006 - Retirees and the web - seniors memory

1970's management guru Harold Geneen once said - "The information superhighway will open up a huge opportunity to waste your time"

But are the hours spent by a retiree aimlessly wandering the web a waste of time - nay I say - I call it - information overflow - just look at what I uncovered recently - OK, I have no idea of when or how I'll get to use this stuff -

• TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.
• A cat has 32 muscles in each ear - A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds. (and that's not a senior fish)
• Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer.
• If the population of China walked past you, 8 abreast, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.

Time wasted - I think not - want more?

• From AdAge.com - Among DVR (digital video recorder) users, 65%of men skip through commercials compared with 56% of women.
• From Career Builder.com - 46% of workers gained weight since starting their current jobs.
• From Center for History and New Media - The phrase "often a bridesmaid but never a bride" was introduced back in the 1920's by an ad for Listerine mouthwash. The text told the take of "Edna" who was approaching her 30th birthday unmarried because she suffered from halitosis.
• From Word Origins.org to "Let the cat out of the bag" originates with a scam of selling someone a suckling pig at market then, after payment, substituting a cat for the pig.
  If one lets the cat out of the bag, the secret is revealed. The scam dates to at least 1530, but the phrase doesn't appear until 1760.
• From BuzzWhack.com - a new word - Meno-paws - The time of life when you give up looking for a husband/partner and decide to get a pet instead.
• Here's another newbie word - from WordSpy.com - Mechanical placebo - A device or object that appears to perform a specific function but in fact does nothing at all - examples - pedestrian "walk" buttons and the complaints/suggestion box.

-----------------------------------------

Gabriel Radvansky, an associate professor of psychology at Notre Dame, conducted a study that involved students and senior citizens who were asked to read a fable, then, some time later, he asked them to remember the fable - the results - as expected, the young were superior at recalling specific details.

But he was surprised to discover that seniors did as well, if not better, than the college students in remembering the text's overall meaning.

As the why, the researchers suggest three possible answers -

• It may be that older adults are more adept at language comprehension because they've been practicing it longer.
• Another possibility is that older adults have acquired more general knowledge and rely on that.
• As a person ages, the frontal lobes of the brain, which control attention, begin to deteriorate. Consequently, older adults are less able to suppress irrelevant information and have a harder time staying on track.

Radvansky observes - "Ironically, the problem with memory and older adults may not be that they can't remember, but rather, they remember too much."

-----------------------------------------------

One more for our American friends -

Three newly arrived candidates for Heaven arrived at the Pearly Gates.
Saint Peter asked the first gentlemen what he did on earth - he said he was a doctor who had saved many lives, and had devoted his life to the good of mankind.
St. Peter told him to enter thru the Pearly Gates.

He asked the same question to the next applicant and was told that he was a social worker who did only good for the poor and homeless...and he, too, was told to go in and was welcomed by the angels.

St. Peter then asked the third man what his job was on earth and was advised that the man had served as the administrator for a large HMO plan.
St. Peter told him that he, too, could enter the Pearly Gates.........But.......he could only stay for three days!!!!

Have a great day y'all - now, lets get back our creative retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 13, 2006 - Royal retirement - video and senior personals

A follow-up to yesterdays entry about a retirees web wanderings - one more- intriguing stuff - a visit to the Royal Society journals archives to scroll through the most important and fascinating scientific papers of the past 340 years.

Examples - a 1742 report on and Benjamin Franklin's kite-flying experiment - Alexander Fleming's penicillin paper published in 1929 in the British Journal of Experimental Pathology.

By the way, Fleming assessed his own contribution to the discovery of penicillin in his address to the University of Edinburgh in 1952 when he took "Success" as the topic for his inaugural lecture as the newly elected Rector.

No matter what your age or job, his comments are worth remembering - especially so for those of us working or thinking of building a creative retirement job -

He referred to the phenomenal success of Louis Pasteur, attributing it to hard work, careful observation, clear thinking, enthusiasm, and a spot of luck.

His own assessment of his role in the discovery of penicillin was that he saw something unusual and appreciated something of its importance and so began to work on it.

He stressed that it is the lone worker who often makes the first advance in a subject.
The details may be worked out later by a team but team members need to work in concert and so may prevent discovery if chance observations cannot be followed up because of other objectives or constraints.

He quoted from a friend, Mervyn Gordon: "No research is ever quite complete.
It is the glory of a good bit of work that it opens the way for still better and thus rapidly leads to its own eclipse."

--------------------------------------------------

While on the subject of retirement job motivation I like this inspirational promotion video - I don't know diddly about these folks and I didn't buy their package advertised at the end of the movie, but as I said, their motivational video is worth a look.

--------------------------------------------------

My thanks to retired buddy Carole Raycraft for sending the following -
Some "Senior" personal ads seen in Florida newspapers: Who says seniors don't have a sense of humor?

• FOXY LADY:
  Sexy, fashion-conscious blue-haired beauty, 80's, slim, 5'4" (used to be 5'6"), searching for sharp-looking, sharp-dressing companion. Matching white shoes and belt a plus.

• LONG-TERM COMMITMENT:
  Recent widow who has just buried fourth husband, and am looking for someone to round out a six-unit plot.
  Dizziness, fainting, shortness of breath not a problem.

• SERENITY NOW:
  I am into solitude, long walks, sunrises, the ocean, yoga and meditation.
  If you are the silent type, let's get together, take our hearing aids out and enjoy quiet times.

• WINNING SMILE:
  Active grandmother with original teeth seeking a dedicated flosser to share rare steaks, corn on the cob and caramel candy.

• BEATLES OR STONES?
  I still like to rock, still like to cruise in my Camaro on Saturday nights and still like to play the guitar.
  If you were a groovy chick, or are now a groovy hen, let's get together and listen to my eight-track tapes.

• MEMORIES:
  I can usually remember Monday through Thursday.
  If you can remember Friday, Saturday and Sunday, let's put our two heads together.

• MINT CONDITION:
  Male, 1932, high mileage, good condition, some hair, many new parts including hip, knee, cornea, valves.
  Isn't in running condition, but walks well.

Hope you return on Monday in meantime, keep working on your creative retirement job. As Alexander Flemming and his friend pointed out - research is the key to success - research by downloading some of these videos this weekend - take notes - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 15, 2006 - Lest we Forget

Once again I had to change the "war on terror" honour roll numbers on the Connect2Canada page of the home website.

Two Canadian soldiers were killed when a rocket-propelled grenade exploded over their heads west of Kandahar.
They were guarding a road being built by Canadians that would link the violent Panjwaii district with a main highway that has been a prime target for insurgent attacks.

• Sgt. Darcy Tedford
• Pte. Blake Williamson

  were both with the 1st Battalion of the Royal Canadian Regiment. Their hometowns were not immediately available

They are dead; but they live in each Patriot's breast,
And their names are engraven on honor's bright crest.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Sgt. Tedford and Pte. Williamson are the 41st and 42nd Canadian soldiers to die in Afghanistan since 2002 - six Canadians have died along the unfinished road or the 16-square-kilometre area around it since late September.

"The Taliban don't like roads because roads mean progress," said Brig.-Gen. David Fraser, the Canadian and NATO commander in southern Afghanistan.

More than 18,500 troops make up ISAF, with contributions from 36 nations

To learn more about the NATO force make-up and mission - click here for their official web site.

Honor to the soldier, and Sailor everywhere , who bravely bears his country's cause,
Honor also to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field, and serves, as he best can, the same cause.
(Abraham Lincoln)

(Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 16, 2006 - Retirement Shopping - happy retirement and retirement humour

So I figure, I may not be the only retiree who feels this way - so lets see if I can work a deal.

The holidays are fast approaching - gift shopping - trying to find a gift that would be truly appreciated rather than stuffed in a box never to see the light of day again - then there's the traffic and the crowds.

Nay, Nay I say to that hassle. Again, I turn to the internet - pour a cup of coffee and shop the world from the comfort of my own home and I have picked many a prize gift - unique stuff designed for each individual on my list - that humongous new neighbourhood shopping mall can't come close to providing the product variety the internet can offer.

Anyway, I've worked a deal with one of the biggest and best - Amazon.com and now the host website has its own RETIREMENT SHOPPING MALL. - I even have the opportunity of listing some of gift ideas I've used in the past - you can shop search without leaving this site.
However, gift shopping is a personal thing and the real assignment is finding something the recipient would really appreciate.

You bettcha - this is a sales pitch -but if you hate the traffic and crowds - take a tour - RETIREMENT SHOPPING MALL.

-------------------------------------------------------

As noted on the host website's Stress Relief chapter, one of the most important ways to extend your expiration date is to become a lifelong learner - that's why using your computer and the internet to build a creative retirement job is the theme of this Blog and website.

A number of studies reveal that education and lifelong learning actually creates reserve capacity in the brain - a hedge against cognitive losses that often accompany biological aging.

Lifelong learning is also a tremendous mental energizer that promotes good mental health - and in that regard, why not take a minute to work the mental health meter.

Penny Marrett, chief executive officer of the Canadian mental health Association's national office says the meter is a tool to measure your level of mental fitness and the steps you can take to improve it.
It's based on positive psychology, which studies how people can improve their overall well-being and enjoyment of life by adopting a mentally healthier lifestyle."

Think of it as a kind of scale for helping you quickly assess that kind of mental shape you are in.

-------------------------------------------------------

Have you heard the one about:

The husband a wife who were celebrating their 90th wedding anniversary, and the media was there to document the occasion.
One of the reporters asked the secret to their successful marriage and longevity.
The wife replied that they had never been sick.

The young reporter was astonished and to confirm said, "So, you've never been bedridden."
And the wife quickly replied, "Oh, 1000's of times, and twice in a buggy."

The man who once counselled his son that if he wanted to live a long life, the secret was to sprinkle a little gunpowder on his corn-flakes every morning.
The son did this religiously, and he lived to the age of 93.
When he died, he left 14 children, 28 grandchildren, 35 great-grandchildren, and a 15 foot hole in the wall of the crematorium.

Now, let's get creative with our retirement job and take a minute to tour the Retirement Shopping Mall - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 17, 2006 - Positive retirement and shopping security

Positives are powerful, especially for those of us in our retirement years - hence the Positive Thinking chapter on the host website.

But now, even the pros are changing their approach.

Anyone who has ever visited a shrink knows the procedure - make yourself comfortable and tell me what's bothering you - why are you upset?

But now psychiatrists are turning that around and instead of concentrating on the negative - they start with what's positive in the patient's life.

It's called "positive psychology" and they held the first International Positive Psychology Summit in Washington, D.C. recently to discuss new ideas or treatments.

The leader of this new shrink-pack is Dr. Michael Frisch, professor of psychology and neuroscience, who just completed his book, Quality of Life Therapy in which he explains that instead of focusing on what makes patients sad and miserable they zero in on what makes them happy.

Dr. Frisch says - ""People want more than to not feel bad, they want real fulfillment, inner peace and happiness. Happiness is like a stew with all the different ingredients. Every ingredient has a different importance for each person."

To overcome anxiety and depression, Frisch focuses on a deep contentment, not superficial happiness.
And another voice was heard from - "Treating negative moods will not automatically lead to happiness and life satisfaction in our patients," said Dr. David A. Clark, professor of psychology at the University of New Brunswick who added that therapy based on life satisfaction and a general contentment is more successful than traditional cognitive therapy.

It was interesting to note that in his address to the International Positive Psychology Summit, Dr. Frisch used the example of the Amish school shootings to illustrate the value of contentment.
The Amish believe everything happens for a reason, he said, which gives them a peace to overcome trials in their community.

There's a lesson to learned.

---------------------------------------------

Follow-up to yesterdays introduction to our new Retirement Shopping Mall - with the upcoming holiday season about to set huge online sales records a reports by Javelin Strategy and Research is encouraging - incidents of fraud from Internet-based sources are in decline -

• In cases where the source of the identity theft was known, only 9 percent were reported to have come from hacking, viruses and phishing.
• In contrast, a lost or stolen wallet or credit/debit card was the cause of 30 percent of the incidents.
• Fraudulent activity is mostly (over 70 percent) conducted offline via phone or mail.

Even so, it's wise to stay alert and when it comes to shopping online, the security information website - privacyrights.org gives this advise -

How can you tell if a web site is secure?

It uses encryption technology to transfer information from your computer to the online merchant's computer.
Encryption scrambles the information you send, such as your credit card number, in order to prevent computer hackers from obtaining it en route.
The only people who can unscramble the code are those with legitimate access privileges.

You can tell when you are dealing with a secure web site in several ways.

• First, if you look at the top of your screen where the web site address is displayed, you should see https://. The "s" that is displayed after "http" indicates that web site is secure. Often, you do not see the "s" until you actually move to the order page on the web site.
• Another way to determine if a web site is secure is to look for a closed padlock displayed at the bottom of your screen. If that lock is open, you should assume it is not a secure site.
• The third symbol that indicates you are on a secure site is an unbroken key.

As for this Blog and host website - no "s" - because we are an information site - same for the Retirement Shopping Mall - you tour the mall, maybe click several items in the shopping cart and it's not until you click into checkout do you see the "s" and the lock.

---------------------------------------------

Retirement thoughts for the day -

• Regular naps prevent old age... especially if you take them while driving.
• You know you're old when ... Your darlin' says, "Let's go upstairs and make love," and you answer, "Pick one; I can't do both!"

Now lets visit the Retirement Shopping Mall - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 18, 2006 - Retirement jobs - smiles and thanksgiving

Another study reveals that many baby boomers who are approaching retirement age are continuing to work - this is especially so for women because they simply don't have the means to quit.

Since 1980 the number of working women over 65 has increased almost 40 percent, and the number for men hasn't changed.

Other studies show that many older women are turning to the internet to earn extra income through a home based business or as I call them - a creative retirement Job - check out the valuable information on our Work at Home Moms and Grans chapter.

--------------------------------------------

Ever hear of a smile line?

According to orthodontist Dr. Kyle R. Childers, "The smile line refers to the amount of tooth structure that shows during a normal smile and an exaggerated smile. An 'ideal smile line' is when the upper lip just touches the point where the tooth meets the gum line. What you don't want to see is half an inch of gum tissue."

The only reason I mention this is because apparently, more and more seniors are buying into cosmetic dentistry and reconstructive dentistry, including implants.

We all know that as we age our teeth get discolored, worn out and chipped, or suffer from further decay - and having your teeth returned to their former glory is playing an important part in this baby boomer - "young forever" era.

Dr. Christopher Hughes, DMD notes - "Even an 80-year-old may come in wanting some cosmetic dentistry and when we are done with it, they are proud as peacocks because they are so happy with the results!"

Another orthodontist, Dr. Kwonil Park, DDS notes many of his older patients say- "I may be 60, but my life starts again. Now give me the whitest teeth you can!"

The "smile line" report did not get into costs.

--------------------------------------------

Here's an intriguing website - Ben Goldacre's weekly expose in the Guardian of exaggerated, sloppy or just plain bad reporting by the media on medicine and science.
Don't believe everything you read.

--------------------------------------------

As I mentioned earlier - I'm fortunate to be able to enjoy two Thanksgiving Days - one here at home and the other with our American neighbours and while I was making plans for our annual trip south I found a history correction - I always thought the first American Thanksgiving was celebrated by the English Pilgrims when they landed in Massachusetts - not so.

The first Thanksgiving occurred in Virginia on Dec. 4, 1619 when Captain John Woodlief led the newly arrived English colonists to a grassy slope along the James River and instructed them to drop to their knees and pray in thanks for a safe arrival to the New World - that's one year and 17 days prior to the landing of Pilgrims.

"Wee ordaine that the day of our ships arrivall at the place assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginia shall be yearly and perpetually keept holy as a day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God."

This saying is now carved on a brick gazebo, at Berkeley Plantation, where it is believed that Woodlief knelt down beside the James River -

--------------------------------------------

Thanks to retired buddy Bernice Dini for this -

Bob, a 70-year-old, extremely wealthy widower, shows up at the Country Club with a breathtakingly beautiful and very sexy 25 year-old blonde who knocks everyone's socks off with her youthful sex appeal and charm.

She hangs onto Bob's arm and listens intently to his every word.
His buddies at the club are all aghast. At the very first chance, they corner him and ask, "Bob, how did you get the trophy girlfriend?"

Bob replies, "Girlfriend? She's my wife!"

They're amazed, but continue to ask. "So, how did you persuade her to marry you?"
"I lied about my age", Bob replies.
"What, did you tell her you were only 50?"

Bob smiles and says, "No, I told her I was 90."

Now let's get creative and start working on our money making retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 19, 2006 - Video and stress free retirement

Interesting video - only takes a minute - The Four Candles

Regular visitors to this Retirement News Blog and the Retirement Jobs host website know I'm a big booster of Montreal based Site Built It - as are tens of thousands of others, world wide.

Anyway, one the many extras is a daily report on how many visitors your site receives each day, how they found your site and what pages they viewed.
I'm encouraged by the dramatic increase of traffic to one of the back pages in the Positive Thinking Stories Chapter that deals with Stress Relief.

Obviously, stress is not just work related - it doesn't disappear when you retire - we all have some form of stress in our life - some of it is actually "good" stress - but it's vital to take action before damaging stress affects your physical or mental health.

James Tighe, clinical nurse research fellow, lists these common signs of too much stress:

• increased irritability
• heightened sensitivity to criticism
• signs of tension, such as nail-biting
• difficulty getting to sleep and early morning waking
• drinking and smoking more
• indigestion
• loss of concentration

Tighe offers the following tips on how to cope with stress:

• accept offers of practical help
• do one thing at a time - don't keep piling stress on stress
• know your own limits - don't be too competitive or expect too much of yourself
• talk to someone
• let off steam in a way that causes no harm (shout, scream or hit a pillow)
• walk away from stressful situations
• try to spend time with people who are rewarding rather than critical and judgmental
• practice slow breathing using the lower part of the lungs
• use relaxation techniques

And while on the subject of handling stress and building a more positive you - I found this informative piece while visiting the BBC Health Page -

Self-efficacy comes from life experiences and from people who serve as significant models.
It's built up over the years by responding to challenges with action, flexibility and persistence.
Research suggests that we can increase the self-efficacy we bring to bear on our experiences by:

• Living a life of goals. We can't develop self-efficacy unless we succeed at things, and we can't succeed if we don't have goals.
• Set goals for your life, and give yourself credit when you achieve them.
• Setting reasonable goals. Aim to set challenging levels, but also realistic enough to actually reach them.
• Finding good role models. A model or mentor doesn't have to be someone you actually know, but they should be inspirational figures who demonstrate mastery.
• Talking to yourself positively. Instead of belittling yourself for the tiniest faults, build yourself up for the smallest successes.

Remembering that it all takes energy and effort to succeed.

Athletes know that you have to want to win and put in hours of training to make the mark; everyday life also needs that push to succeed.

On a personal note - developing a creative retirement job answers many of the above recommendations - it help set goals that are realistic yet challenging - you'll meet many new friends and inspirational mentors and reaching some of the goals can reward you with extra income.

Take a minute to visit the Retirement Job Library - grab a coffee and view the videos or read the manuals - take stock of your life experiences or hobbies - you may have information others around the world are looking for - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 20, 2006 - Newspaper Clippings - Retirement tips and getting to heaven

Notes taken from scanning newspapers via the internet -

From the The Scotsman - an article by Dr Ian McKee is an Edinburgh-based GP, about mentally preparing for retirement -

"It is not much use exercising the body if you don't exercise the brain as well. Tests have shown that older people who play bridge, do crosswords or regularly engage in similar mental activity are much more likely to keep their wits about them than those who lack such stimulation

I have lost count of the number of folk I have seen whose physical and mental health has deteriorated rapidly since retirement because they were lost without the routine of work. Develop hobbies before retirement that can be continued after stopping work."

In other words my friends - a creative retirement job and working your computer and the internet is a great mental energizer - build yourself a website.

Here's an interesting story from the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

TransCanada Inc. and Enbridge Energy Inc., both based in Calgary, Alberta, are developing pipelines that would stretch from eastern Alberta to a key oil hub in Southern Illinois. The projects would cost a combined $3 billion and pump more than 800,000 barrels of crude oil to be processed into gasoline and other fuels.

The pipelines are being driven by America's ever-growing thirst for dependable oil supplies, particularly cheaper Canadian crude oil preferred by some refiners. They also reflect sky-high oil prices that are providing an incentive for oil producers to invest billions of dollars in new projects in Canada's oil sands...............

Canada -- not Saudi Arabia -- is the largest exporter of oil to the United States.............................

The pipeline boom isn't limited to the Midwest. Pipelines are also being built or reserved to move Canadian oil to Gulf Coast refineries and to the West Coast. Enbridge is talking to shippers about a $3.6 billion oil pipeline from Canada to Texas, and the $2 billion Gateway Pipeline proposal across the Rockies to the West Coast, where crude could be loaded onto tankers and shipped to Asia.

---------------------------------------------------------

Retired friend Elma Hickman sent in these tips to help make life easier -

• Broken Glass
  Use a dry cotton ball to pick up little broken glass pieces of glass- the fibers catch ones you can't see!
• Flexible vacuum
  To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.
• Reducing Static Cling
  Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks and - voila - static is gone.
• Foggy Windshield?I like this one - Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!
• Snowbirds - Take baby powder to the beach
  Keep a small bottle of baby powder in your beach bag. When your ready to leave the beach sprinkle yourself with the powder and the sand will slide right off your skin
• New bike for the grandkids
  If you purchase a new bike this holiday season for your grandchild, place their picture inside the handle bar before placing the grips on. If the bike is stolen and later recovered, remove the grip and there is your proof who owns the bike.

---------------------------------------------------------

A Retirement Movie Special - in other words a movie for the older crowd - no explosions, car chases or mayhem of any kind - just plain, down-to-earth entertainment offered up an extremely talented cast.

Sometime back I recommended you see Robert Altman's "A Prairie Home Companion" - It's out on DVD this week - in case you don't know what it's all about - here's a A review from some time back by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

If you have an extra minute - check our this video - you have to wonder what motivates these people.

---------------------------------------------------------

Did you hear the one about -

This 85 year old couple, having been married almost 60 years, died in a car crash. They had been in good health the last ten years mainly due to her interest in health food, and exercise.

When they reached the pearly gates, St. Peter took them to their mansion which was decked out with a beautiful kitchen and master bath suite and Jacuzzi. As they "oohed and aahed" the old man asked Peter how much all this was going to cost.

"It's free," Peter replied, "this is Heaven."

Next they went out back to survey the championship golf course that the home backed up to. They would have golfing privileges everyday and each week the course changed to a new one representing the great golf courses on earth.

The old man asked, "what are the green fees?".
Peter's reply, "This is heaven, you play for free."

Next they went to the club house and saw the lavish buffet lunch with the cuisine's of the world laid out.

"How much to eat?" asked the old man.
"Don't you understand yet? This is heaven, it is free!" Peter replied with some exasperation.

"Well, where are the low fat and low cholesterol tables?" the old man asked timidly.
Peter lectured, "That's the best part...you can eat as much as you like of whatever you like and you never get fat and you never get sick. This is Heaven."

Hearing this, the old man went into a fit of anger, throwing down his hat and stomping on it, and shrieking wildly. Peter and his wife both tried to calm him down, asking him what was wrong.

The old man looked at his wife and said, "This is all your fault. If it weren't for your blasted bran muffins, I could have been here ten years ago!"

Everyone have a great weekend - keep working on your creative retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 23, 2006 - Retirement eating - A retiree's web wanderings

I didn't know that - according to Brian Wansink, director of the Cornell Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University, the average person makes well over 200 "food" decisions every day - I thought maybe twenty - thirty tops but not so.

Wansink says - " The problem is, nobody realizes that. Most of us believe we make a few here, there and wherever. What we're not aware of is how the environment is influencing us again and again in our decisions."

As most of us living our "retirement years" know, putting on the weight is as easy dunking a French fry in Ketchup.

With that in mind I thought you might be interested in what Wansink told a joint meeting of the Canadian Diabetes Association and the Canadian Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism last week - It's not just fast foods, we unknowingly "booby-trap" our own homes in a way that can lead to overeating.

Remember the Kevin Costner movie - Field of Dreams and "Build it and they will come" - the same can be said for your dinner table - "put it in front of them and they will eat it."

Wansink and his research staff have conducted many studies that confirm that folks will just keep on munching if it's available.
One study involved two groups serving themselves Chex snacks from either large serving bowls in one room or smaller serving bowls in another room at a Super Bowl party.

Their individual bowls were weighed, and it was found that those who served themselves from large bowls took portions that contained 53 per cent more calories - leftovers were tracked, and it turned out that the group that served themselves from large bowls also ate 59 per cent more food, in general, than the group that served themselves from smaller bowls.

Wansink makes the following suggestions:

• Replace wide, short drinking glasses with tall narrower ones.
• Use smaller serving spoons.
• Plates should be filled before they're served at the table.
• Serving bowls should be kept off the table to avoid mindless refilling.
• At-home buffets on occasions like Thanksgiving dinner, hosts could use two small bowls for mashed potatoes, rather than one huge bowl.

Here's another from my wife - when watching Saturday night hockey and Sunday afternoon football on TV - put the TV snacks in a tea cup instead of an oversized salad bowl and place it were you have to get up to get it instead of resting it on your stomach.

--------------------------------------------------------

Notes from a retiree's web wanderings -

From the The CIA's World Fact Book I learned that at birth, a female in Canada can expect to live approximately 2,511 days longer than a Canadian male.

BuzzWhack.com is on my favourite sites lists because I like joining others who obviously have too much time on their hands - and I mean that with respect, because these folks create new words and expressions and some of them hit the bulls eye - examples:

• Sip and Click - Also known as "clicking under the influence". The result is online purchases you can't remember making.
• Directionally Correct - To be in the general direction of, but not exact. A great way to cover your butt. "His analysis was directionally correct. It was wrong, but it was in the ball park."
• Officle - Work space that's a cross between an office and a cubicle. It's much bigger than a cubicle, but doesn't have a door - giving status hungry managers the false sense of having an office, while still being reminded that they're only a notch above the other working peons.

From - BBC NewsAbout 40 people in the world cannot control one of their hands. In one reported case, a patient regularly tries to strangle himself at night. (editors note - the report did not mention whether he was retired.)

--------------------------------------------------------

Thanks to retired buddy Dan Dombroski for sending this -

An old man and woman were married for many years, even though they hated each other.
When they had a confrontation, screaming and yelling could be heard deep into the night.
The old man would shout, "When I die, I will dig my way up and out of the grave and come back and haunt you for the rest of your life!"

Neighbors feared him.
They believed he practiced black magic, because of the many strange occurrences that took place in their neighborhood.
The old man liked the fact that he was feared.
To everyone's relief, he died of a heart attack when he was 98.

His wife had a closed casket at the wake.
After the burial, she went straight to the local bar and began to party, as if there was no tomorrow.
Her neighbors, concerned for her safety, asked, "Aren't you afraid that he may indeed be able to dig his way up and out of the grave and come back to haunt you for the rest of your life?"

The wife put down her drink and said, "Let him dig. I had him buried upside down..."
Don't mess with old broads.

Now let's research how to build a creative retirement job - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 24, 2006 - Positive retirement -Americans and Canadians an editorial from Australia

For some people, the thought of growing old can plunge them into a lightweight bout of depression - such thinking can also kill you.

The Ohio Longitudinal Study Of Aging and Retirement, a 20-year study of people that were 50 years or older found that our attitude about aging affected how long we lived.

People with a positive view about aging lived an average of 7.8 years longer than those than those with negative views about aging.

Edward W. Smith, the author of Sixty Seconds To Success suggests -

"Be your own fortune-teller and predict good things for yourself.
Here is a trick that fortune-tellers use to predict someone's future that you can use on yourself.
Fortune-tellers quickly get a sense of what a person is thinking-are they positive or negative. Then they can project what will happen given that type of thinking.

You can do this for yourself. If you are positive, good things are going to happen to you: if you are pessimistic, things are going to go badly for you.

If you want to predict a good fortune for yourself, act positive, think positive, etc., and the world will be yours.
Always be positive about yourself when you talk.
If you're negative, it causes others to lose faith in you; you also lose faith in yourself.

Remember, your attitude is contagious to others as well as to yourself, so predict good fortune for yourself and others and it will come true."

Remember, growing old ain't for sissies or pessimists - check out the various pages that make up the Positive Thinking Chapter of the Retirement Jobs host website.

-------------------------------------------------

Thanks to retired buddy Bill Ozard for Emailing this piece this morning - To Kill an American or an Canadian

You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American or Canadian, any American or Canadian - because of their participation in the NATO backed mission in Afghanistan.

In response, an Australian dentist wrote an editorial the following day to let everyone know what an American or Canadian is, so they would know when they found one. (Good one, mate!!!! )

An American or Canadian is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani or Afghan.

An American or Canadian may also be a Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache, Seminole or one of the many other tribes known as native Americans or Canadians.

An American or Canadian is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America or Canada than in Afghanistan .
The only difference is that in America and Canada they are free to worship as each of them chooses.

An American or Canadian is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.

An American or Canadian lives in the most prosperous land mass in the history of the world.
The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence (or in Canada, the Bill of Rights), which recognizes the God given right of each person to the pursuit of happiness.

An American or Canadian is generous.
Americans or Canadians have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need, never asking a thing in return.

When Afghanistan was over-run by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans and Canadians came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country!
As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.

Americans and Canadians welcome the best of everything, the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best services.
But they also welcome the least.
The national symbol of America, the Statue of Liberty, welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These in fact are the people who built America .
Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of September 11, 2001 earning a better life for their families.

It's been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 different countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.

So you can try to kill an American or Canadian if you must.
Hitler did. So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung, and other blood-thirsty tyrants in the world.

But, in doing so you would just be killing yourself because Americans and Canadians are not a particular people from a particular place - they are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom.

Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American or a Canadian.

Now let's get creative - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 25, 2006 - Retirement twaddle and microwave facts

Every eight seconds, another baby boomer turns 60 - and most of them have a computer - wander the internet on a regular basis and have at least given some thought to the possibility of building their own website - only to scrap the idea because they think it's too difficult - and they would fail.

So they use the old excuse - "I'm too old to learn how to build a website." - defeatist twaddle - you're never too old to learn something new.

In their book Successful Aging, authors John W. Rowe, M.D., and Robert L. Kahn, Ph.D., share the results of a 10-year study on aging by the MacArthur Foundation and they shoot down the time worn myth that - You can't teach an old dog new tricks - more claptrap.

The fact is - Research shows that older people can, and do, learn new things - and they learn them well.

The pace of learning may change, but research on mental function in old age is encouraging, and fears of age-related loss are often exaggerated.

Three key factors predict strong mental function in old age -

• Regular physical activity
• A strong social support system
• And the biggie - a belief in one's ability to handle what life has to offer.

If nothing else, take the time to browse the Retirement Job Library read the manuals, sit back and watch the videos - and learn how to make your life more interesting the longer you live.

----------------------------------------------------

When it comes to preparing food, for many retirees, the microwave is their main kitchen helper, but many folks suspect that the radiation can destroy nutrients in food and vegetables.

For micro users - I found the following in a New York Times article -

According to most studies, however, the reality is quite the opposite.
Every cooking method can destroy nutrients in food. The factors that determine the extent are:

1. how long the food is cooked;
2. how much liquid is used; and
3. the cooking temperature.

Since microwave ovens often use less heat than conventional methods and involve shorter cooking times, they generally have the least destructive effects.

In studies at Cornell University, scientists looked at the effects of cooking on water-soluble vitamins in vegetables and found that spinach retained nearly all its folate when cooked in a microwave, but lost about 77 per cent when cooked on a stove.

They also found that bacon cooked by microwave has significantly lower levels of cancer-causing nitrosamines than conventionally cooked bacon.

When it comes to vegetables, adding water can greatly accelerate the loss of nutrients.
One study published in The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture in 2003 found that broccoli cooked by microwave - and immersed in water - loses about 74 per cent to 97 per cent of its antioxidants - when steamed or cooked without water, the broccoli retained most of its nutrients.

----------------------------------------------------

Thanks to my "not even close to retiring" daughter-in-law-Julie for sending this -

If Jeff Foxworthy lived in my province of Ontario

• If you have worn shorts and a parka at the same time, you live in Ontario.
• If you consider it a sport to gather your food by drilling through 36" of ice and sitting there all day hoping that the food will swim by, you live in Ontario.
• If you have had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number, you live in Ontario.
• If you know several people who have hit a deer more than once, you live in Ontario.
• If you know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road construction, you live in Ontario.
• If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in Ontario.
• If you can drive 110 kph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard with only one hand on the wheel, you live in Ontario.

Now back to the Retirement Jobs Library - (Go to URL)

To reference this entry please copy the url in this link: (Permalink)

October 26, 2006 - Retirement news video and creative retirement jobs is the answer

First, from Retirement News video - a couple of chuckles - ya I know, I spend too much time on the web - but hey - welcome to retirement.

A senior talks about his Christmas bird

How long can you hold your breath?

--------------------------------------------------

These Baby Boomer stats from Janis Ehlers, a Florida market feasibility consultant -

• 42 to 60 years old - (born between 1946 and 1964)
• Doesn't like the words "senior" or "retired"
• Is at the height of career
• Are wealthier
• Half still work - Will probably live longer - Fastest growing population
• 70 percent are widowed females - Some are on their second marriages and starting another family - Referred to as "botox generation"
• Doesn't act old, talk old or shop old - From the Woodstock era
• Geared to living with credit debt
• Are probably the best-educated generation
• Doesn't want signs on neighborhood saying what they are, such as "Senior Retirement Village"

--------------------------------------------------

I am a big promoter of Site Build It for many reasons - one of the main ones being the community forum. I've lost track of the number of times I've received guidance and encouragement from SBIers around the world.

Recently, I participated in a Forum discussion on having a special section aimed at those about to retire or already retired - to urge them to consider building a website based on their life experiences - their hobbies or any topic that interests them - - in other words, the target audience for the host website

During the discussion, these quotes stood out - first, from a submission by LUCAS EZEQUIEL from iguassu-misted-falls-vacation.com

"There is a place where nobody will consider your age before listening what you have to say.
No barriers of age there, only the intrinsic value of your message is considered.
Have a lifetime's experience, knowledge or wisdom to share? The internet is the place............"

"The internet has a tremendous advantage for elderly people who want to keep on being useful to society and themselves… nobody needs or cares to know the age or physical appearance of the author of a site, it's only high value information what counts."

This story from Francine from www.the-happy-immigrant.com

"I am the oldest of the baby boomers - making my website has been an unbelievable experience. I feel alive and vibrant. My brain has always been important to me and I feel that in those last 4 months it has expanded from megabytes into gigabytes.

I h