Out here in New England, we’ll soon be entering what my mom has dubbed “suicide squirrel season”. Winter is coming and food will be scarce, so our rodent friends begin a mad dash to build their winter reserve. In their frenzy they bolt across busy streets and oncoming traffic. Squirrel roadkill is no more unusual…

I hate losing things. Every winter, the whole family gets cabin fever. Thank God my wife is responsible enough to get us out of Dodge, at least for a weekend, to feel the sun. This year, we went to Fort Lauderdale. Our first day at the beach is near perfect. Bright sun, no clouds, but…

The Allure and Myth of Safety In Homer’s Odyssey, a wayward Odysseus and crew voyage past an island of beautiful mermaids called Sirens. The Sirens sing the sweetest of songs, the ancient equivalent of “Call Me Maybe”, bewitching passing sailors. Those mesmerized are blind to the bones littering the island, for the Sirens were in…

Most news related to financial planning for the last few years has been exclusively focused on the Department of Labor’s push to force the fiduciary standard upon the industry. For now, this push has been stymied. Though the proposed regulations were far from perfect the DOL did have its heart in the right place. I’m…

Several years ago, in anticipation of expecting our first child, my wife and I began searching for the perfect new home. Being high school sweethearts, we wanted to raise our little one in Exeter, our old stomping grounds! We wanted something safe, affordable and close to downtown. But affordability can be a bit elusive; there’s…

The phones were quiet. On February 5, 2018 the Dow dropped 1175 points. It was the worst single-day point drop in history.   And still the phones were quiet. The media did what it does best: speculate and incite panic. What caused this catastrophe? Fear of rising inflation? The FBI probe? Fed policy? Malfunctioning trading…

Picture the scene: the stove is at capacity; four stock pots, full of snow, are melting under high heat. On the counter, more pots crowned with colanders are busy filtering leaves, pine needles and other detritus from the meltwater. On the floor, barrels full of fresh snow sit ready to enter the assembly line.  The…

Kiplinger – The closer you get to retirement, the more power the stock market potentially has over you. A steep drop at the wrong time could pack a devastating punch. Let’s assume you’re ahead of your peers. You’ve saved, invested and paid down debts. Maybe you’ve even met with a financial professional to examine your…

It was an amazing game, and, admittedly, I spent most of it in a state of borderline depression and then bewilderment. But as agonizing as that first half was for Patriots fans, it must have been utterly demoralizing for Falcons fans, who had to suffer through watching their team snatch defeat from the jaws of…

I know you hate them. So why pay them? RMDs, also known as Required Minimum Distributions, are the bane of many a retiree. Once you reach age 70.5, the IRS is through waiting and forces you to take withdrawals from your traditional IRA accounts. Failure to do so incurs a steep 50% penalty. Now the…

A pension – there’s no great mystery here. People are living longer than ever. In the United States, people over the age of 85 represent the fastest growing population segment. Twenty percent of men and a third of women are expected to reach age 90. Without a plan in place to provide lifetime income, many will…

You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone … In less than three months, we’ll have a new president. But November 2016 will also mark the one-year anniversary of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2016. This little piece of legislation will forever be infamous for gutting precious Social Security strategies for married retirees. Amazingly,…