No, I am not retiring – yet I am going to violate one of the rules my mama taught me, a lady never tells her age. Here it comes, I am 64. Next year on my birthday, I turn 65, the traditional age of retirement. Retiring often means not going to work anymore. But in truth [...]
Sally - “If it seems too complicated, make it easy on yourself – just send money. How about tens and twenties?” My how the times have changed! This quote from “A Charlie Brown Christmas” is 52 years old this year. The 1965 holiday classic centered around Charlie as he struggled to find the meaning of Christmas [...]
January is often the coldest month of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. In fact, in January 2017 there was a European cold wave that hit a lot of Eastern and Central Europe. Greece was blanketed in unusually heavy snowfall. Santorini, which typically has Mediterranean weather, was covered in snow causing transportation delays. This is great [...]
Do you ever feel “-meh” about the holidays? Some people love them too much! They will put their decorations up too early and keep them up too long. Others, well, they just despise the holidays and refuse to decorate at all. I certainly fall somewhere in the middle, but people will never admit they are indifferent [...]
November is a big birthday month in my family. My two sisters and father have birthdays in November. So not only do I have to worry about their birthday gifts, but I also must start addressing Christmas shopping! November is always an absentmindedly expensive month for me, and then you add some additional expenses like gifts. [...]
At Mackey Advisors we are all about taking simple steps to maximize your financial well-being. Each year some of the most beneficial steps often go unnoticed. While filing taxes each Spring is important, planning for taxes each Fall is often MORE financially rewarding. It’s not every day I come across a worthwhile article, however Kiplinger has [...]
What is the Medicare open enrollment period? The Medicare open enrollment period is the time during which people with Medicare can make new choices and pick plans that work best for them. Each year, Medicare plans typically change what the plans cost and cover. In addition, your health-care needs may have changed over the past year. [...]
Is there anything better than a fire on a nice fall evening? Enjoy some apple cider, an outdoor fire and the lovely foliage. It is a wonderful time to be out in the yard enjoying the change of season. Just make sure that if you are doing this on Halloween, you take the appropriate precautions. Fall [...]
The Romans were lazy. That’s right, I said it: “Lazy”. The typical response would be that, along with building an empire, Romans built highways, aqueducts, coliseums, etc. Many of those basic designs are used today, as is the Julian Calendar, another brilliant innovation under the Roman empire. How could they have been lazy? Well, the Julian [...]
Every year, the Trustees of the Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds release reports to Congress on the current financial condition and projected financial outlook of these programs. The newest reports, released on July 13, 2017, discuss the ongoing financial challenges that both programs face, and project a Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2018. What [...]
