Is Pizza More Important than Life?

 

Sounds like a silly question, right?!  Could someone possibly think that a pizza is more important than a human life, or better yet the life of a loved one?  No Jason ... that's just too silly to imagine.  Now, what a minute, lets talk this out.  First off we need to establish what we are really talking about here.  I mean a pizza dinner at let's say Monical's Pizza, in Linton, if you order a large pizza Meat Eater Special with breadsticks and sodas for 4 people would cost roughly $32 (including tip).

 

Does that sound about right?  I think it does, and I think most of us will have pizza at least once a month (it's reported that 70% of Americans do).  So that proves to me that Pizza is more important than life!  Because nearly half of those folks having pizza this month will say that they don't have enough life insurance (according to a LIMRA study in 2013)

 

"But Jason", you say in a whiny voice, "Life insurance costs so much and pizza is so cheap!'  Most Americans greatly over estimate the cost of a life insurance policy.  For example, a non tobacco using man age 30 who is good health and a normal body weight can get a level term policy with a face amount of $500,000 for $28 a month.  How much does he need?  Well if he is 30 years old and he currently provides $40,000 a year for his family, he will earn $1,400,000 over the next 35 years until he retires, at age 65.  So lets say he wants to be worth 1,000,000 .. guess what the monthly cost would be?  About $46 a month or less than a pizza dinner and one trip to the Linton movie theater (full price adult tickets are $6.75) for a family of 4 ...

 

Life insurance is affordable and necessary ... don't make dinner and movie more important than your family's security.

 

Jason

Too Busy? Not Really!

Sometimes when I think about years ago, I imagine that I was less busy and that I had more time.  Maybe you think that too from time to time, but it's not true.  We chose to do different things today than we did when we were younger, and sometimes we have more responsibility than we did early in life, but all in all we still get 24 hours each day to spend as we see fit.  My brothers and I are good examples here ... we all seem to be too busy with work and life to visit each other very often but we all somehow manage to squeeze out a movie and dinner out every now and again.

 

Even as I'm writing this I look back and it's been a month or more since my last post, and I'm thinking I just didn't have time to write it.  But that's a lie, I did have time, I just chose to ignore some activities in favor of other ones.  The time we have doesn't change, we just change what we do with it.

Now, don't get me wrong we are all busy, but it is the important stuff that we should pursue and ignore the things that don't mean much to us.  I enjoy fishing, but I rarely get out to fish and I'm always saying I'll go when I have time, but if the truth be told, I could just go fishing and fill in the rest of my life around that time. 

 

So take a moment this week (and every week) and decide what is important, then do that and the rest of your life will still be there when you're done.

 

J

 

Protect what is really important with life insurance, call me for a quick quote!

Sometimes life sucks!

Ever have one of those days? weeks? months?  You know the kind of week or month that defies a good attitude, the kind of month that makes you question that there is anything good left in the world?

Yep, me too!  It's like when you drive to the town of Worthington after a big rain and see that 300 foot on the road was under 8 feet of water.  If you live around here you know that means to get to Worthington I had to back track 20 miles to go that final few feet and get into town.

While that was aggravating and it seemed like a big deal at the time (30 minutes of wasted time) it didn't effect me for long.  It's the rest of life that weighs us down, the traumas and conflicts that bite deep into our hearts and minds.  So yes, sometimes life sucks and there is nothing we can do about it.

It's during times like these that I seek the face of my creator ... I know he may not turn back time, or erase the heart sicking events.  But perhaps just seeking his purpose and asking for comfort is enough.  

I don't know ... I don't feel very wise today so take what you can from this ... I hope your month is uneventful.

Insure against what you can!  Pray to avoid that which you can't insure against.

What happened to Customer Service?

This week has been the worst week of customer service for me!  I spent several hours working on getting a phone / internet provider to do what they promised us they would do for our church.  They spend they same amount of time trying to get out of doing what they promised to do.  Plus they tried to make me feel stupid for demanding that they do what they promised to do when we agreed to let them provide the phone and internet services for the church.

Prior to that I spent a great deal of time talking to the bank that is doing the refinance on my home.  After telling me for 80 days that the closing costs would be one figure they proudly informed me on the eve of closing that the closing costs would be double what they originally quoted.  This without the slightest hint of regret or any explanation as to the difference.  They merely gave me the new figure and were puzzled why I told them no, I won't pay that without a reason. 

I struggle with this because I am in the service business, as an insurance Agent I have to take responsibility for the actions of the companies I represent even though I can't control what they do and that is on top of being responsible for what I do.

Think about this ... if gas goes up, we all complain to each other.  If your auto insurance goes up you complain to the agent.  No one ever tells the gas station attendant that they need to sharpen their pencil and give them a better rate on the gas.  Why would you think the insurance agent could make the insurance company lower its price?

I'm not complaining about that perception, I just want to establish that as an agent I have to provide great customer service or people will move on to a new agent ... and they should.  But by the same token, I demand the same level of service in my life that others do from me.

Demand good service and make companies do what they are supposed to do, then be loyal to them so that we can all finally get the service we deserve.  Those of us that provide good service want to know that you appreciate the effort, and those that don't care about their professional image should not be encouraged to continue giving sub par service. 

J

How important is good service when talking about life insurance? I'll be the one giving your loved ones a check when they need it most!

Girls with Guns ... a Warning from Dad!

As the father of four daughters I have a pretty unique view of the world.  In fact unless you have lived in a totally female home with little women that you helped make, you can't really appreciate the dynamic that exists for me.

 

Having only daughters, which are mysteries from the time they are born and no male influence other than your own is truly like being King.  It's lonely sometimes, overwhelming sometimes and scary all the time.  But that's not what the world sees, they can only be allowed to see the scary Dad.

 

I don't sharpen my knives in front of the boys, or clean my gun, no I want them to know that I am so much more dangerous than guns and knives.  I want them to fear me, not know what I'm capable of and hope that they don't ever find out.  Because as King, I would hunt to the ends of the earth, anyone that harms my family.  Of course it goes without saying that as a Christian man it would go against my nature to hurt someone, but I would. 

 

I also believe that I have taught my girls (even if they forget sometimes) that they are worthy to be treated as princesses and that they are capable of inspiring the same fear in the hearts of the common boys that are always lurking about.  Oh, and believe you me, those boys better feel fear in their hearts.

 

Some of the girls really like shooting rifles, shot guns and pistols and they are good shots too (Grandpa taught them right).  Some of my girls really know how to handle themselves in a fight but, all of them know that the King would wage war or even lay down his life to save them from harm.  Not that they need me as much any more ... but here's my warning to the young men of the world. 

 

Treat my girls respectfully, treat them with kindness, and treat them like the princesses they are or you'll suffer, because they are worth it to me.

 

the King

 

Protect your Princesses with life insurance, they are worth it!

 

Old guys are the lucky ones!

Time marches on ... we all know this and yet looking back on the days gone by, we all seem to say, "where has the time gone?"  But I must say that as I slowly become an old guy, I find that I feel like a really lucky person.

 

I've had both success and failure in my life ... so, I know what I can accomplish but, I'm not afraid of missing the mark.  I've seen peace and war, both up close and I know that one can not exist without the other.  I work hard so that I can have sometime to play, and that makes me understand the value of both work and play.  I have enough money to pay my way ... but not enough to make me greedy.

 

As we get older we realize that it isn't the money, fun times, peaceful world, or successes that make us happy or even lucky.  Happiness and indeed luckiness comes from a generous helping of life!  The messiness, the highs, the lows and the craziness of a life through the years makes it more valuable to the person living it and more interesting to anyone that is observing it.  Some folks will tell you that success comes from planning for the future and there is truth to that, but success is not the only element of life worth pursuing. 

 

So here is the last word from this "old guy" in training. Plan what you can, accept what you must, pursue what you love and give 'til it hurts.  When you look back at the days gone by, you'll still say "where has the time gone", but you'll feel like the luckiest old guy on the planet.

 

J

 

Here's my commercial for this post.  Life insurance is only for a person that owes someone or loves someone.  If either fits you, call me for a quote.  It's a lot less expensive than not having will be for your family.

One sad Day!

You know this business is great!  Everyday I get to help people protect themselves from disaster.  Insurance is there to stop a loss from being total.  Everyone wants maximum coverage for the minimum premium but, in general we all know that insurance is a necessary part of life that will someday help us out.  However, one type of policy is more important than any other. 

Here's a quick story about a man named William Pettry, who flew to Jacksonville Florida Friday, October 5th to watch his favorite team play, the Bears.  That Sunday at a local bar in Jacksonville William was murdered in an unthinkable way.  He was stabbed to death right in the middle of the bar.  Now they caught the guy right away and have a confession but that won't help Mrs. Pettry.

You see William leaves behind a wife and three young children and no income.  Mrs. Pettry will struggle to pay the funeral costs but that is just he beginning because William's contractor business will not continue to make money without him there and they had no life insurance on William.  Mrs. Pettry is a stay at home mom that takes care of 3 young kids, so now she has to leave her kids, get a job, and pay child care to make ends meet, because he husband's income will no longer be there.  Not only will he not be there to see his kids grow up, take them to the doctor, play baseball with them, hug his wife when she has had a bad day, fix the toilet, and all the other things he did but his current and future income is all gone!

If William had just spent a couple of dollars a day on a term life policy, his family would not have to worry where next week's mortgage payment was coming from.  Don't put your family in this position!  Life insurance is cheap!  It's important! and you need to get some!  Call an agent that you trust and buy a policy today! 

J

Ask me for a quote!

I Invented the Internet and He Hates Puppies!

I don't know how you feel during election time but I always feel a little less smart just listening to the ads and the candidates.  It's always funny to me how everything is always someone else's fault, no candidate ever says "yep, I did that and it was wrong, but I'm trying to fix it!"  In fact most go out of their way to show how everything is the other guy's fault, even when there is no way that the other candidate could have had anything to do with it. 

Better yet, don't you love it when the candidate takes credit for something totally out of their control.  Remember when Al Gore said he invented the Internet?  What President ever personally created a million jobs in 4 years?  What President ever personally caused a financial crisis in 4 years?  Many of the policies a President would want to enact, take funding that is not under the control of the President, and must be approved by Congress.  So why do we listen to these ridiculous claims that in 4 years they will do something they can't possibly control?  Why do we hand our precious vote to a guy who claims that he can walk on water while accusing the other candidate of hating puppies?

The answer is three fold.  First we are looking for a leader that we can trust, and in the absence of personal knowledge of their trustworthiness we must rely on the evidence pointing to the opposite.  If the other candidate can show himself to be less untrustworthy then we have to go with him.  Second we are looking for a leader that really wants the job, if a candidate isn't willing to go toe to toe and take a beating for the job then they don't really want it and that means they might not have the "GRIT" or "STONES" to do what needs to be done.  Finally, we are looking for a leader that leads.  Claiming authority and making decisions is a skill and inspiring others to do what needs to be done is the primary skill necessary to be a successful leader.  In fact I believe that the best speach is the they way to pick your president.  If he can stir emotions and inspire you to action with just his words over the TV then he's the one.

So, good luck choosing a leader this year, I hope you pick the right guy!

Be the leader in your family and get life insurance on yourself!

Never, Never, Never, Never, Never Give up!

Sometimes taking a stand is painful ... no scratch that, it is always painful!  Everyone (even those that stand with you) seem to have a ax to grind with how it is handled.  Some thing you are too strong, some think you are too weak.  Some say don't be so gruff, some say don't be a wimp.

The bottom line is that when you find an issue meaningful enough for you to take a stand on ... you know drawing a line in the sand and saying everything on this side is okay but when you cross this "we've got a problem" ... don't expect that the crowd will rally around you and praise your eloquent handling of those that have an opposing view.

People are often afraid of how the world will judge them if they stand too firm.  They're afraid that someone will "call them out" and make fun of them or argue better than they do.  In short they are afraid of being made a fool of, and that is a powerful deterrent for most folks.

As I age I'm less likely to take a stand on minor things but much less fearful of being made a fool of, in fact I could care less about people that know me thinking I'm being foolish.  The lack of fear is my best asset in a moral battle.  People can sense when you are are solid ground with your understanding and at peace with the consequences of your stance.

Your confidence will shake theirs, your fearlessness will instill fear in them, your calm attitude will shake their resolve.  When you are not worried about the pain of a moral stand ... truth and right will prevail!  So, don't be afraid if you are standing firmly on the side of right, the pain will fade and when the smoke clears the world will be better for your sacrifice!

Email me to see how inexpensive it is to protect you family's future!

You don't need to be faster than the bears just faster than your friends!

The theme of the week for me seems to have been, you don't need to be faster than the bears just faster than your friends.  Only thing is, the bears in my life are chasing me while no one else is around.

Most of the time I am just running from one thing to the next with precious little rest between.  I think that many of you can relate.

Work, kids, church, keeping up on my house and chores ... it's enough to make you think that the cave man had it right.  Just a cave near the food and no dishes to wash!

I think we all look for simplicity from time to time but I usually find a reason that I need to keep up my crazy busy life.  Of course when I look back at years gone by I realise that Tena and I have packed a lot of experience in to the days we have had together, and if running like a madman is part of the deal then so be it.

I may be wrong here, but I don't think you'll ever hear someone at the end of the their life say, "I wish I had rested more."  Just doesn't sound like something that you would hear at the Pearly Gates.

I hope your week is so full that you sleep like the dead and I hope you cram a ton of adventure and excitement into the time you have.

Take care

J

If you died tomorrow, would your family still have enough money to survive?  Email me and let's talk about how affordable a term life policy is.

Hog wrestling a noble pursuit for young people!

Living in Indiana and in rural Indiana at that, we have a culture that is a mystery to the rest of the world.  Since it is county fair time, hog wrestling is on every one's mind.  It is the single funniest thing you will ever see and is unique to the county fair.

A group of kids (some older than others) will be in a pit of mud chasing a pig around in circles with the goal of snatching that pig up and pl;acing it on a barrel top in the center of the mud pit, and the fastest time wins.

I have to tell you though, it is the slowest ones that are my favorite.  Everyone is covered in mud and laughing so hard that they are probably eating some of that mud.  It is one of the best photo opps ever! 

My kids have all tried it at different times and some years they were more successful than others but in the end it is about the experience for them and not the prize ... which I believe is a tee shirt.  So it is purely hog wrestling for the sake of muddy performance ... art for the sake of art.  What could be more noble than that?

I'd like to insure your home and auto ... send me an email to get a free insurance quote from a real person, not a talking lizard ...

Bacon Ice Cream ... like licking a cold pig on a hot day!

Sometimes you have to throw caution to the wind and try something that scares you. The only problem with that philosophy is that once you throw caution a couple of times you start to get braver and doing wilder and crazier stuff.


So when I was a very young man, my mom encouraged me to try new things, and especially food. Later in live I challenged myself to try new foods all the time, sometimes in a foreign country with questionable sanitation and unrecognizable meats.\

This has led to a lifetime of foodie thrill seeking and the latest is bacon ice cream. Don’t stop reading now, you really need to try this as it is incredible and worthy of a thrown caution!

I’ll get to the point, below is the recipe … try it and let me know what you think … oh and remember I’m a insurance agent and I’m wanting to quote your business (although if you are such a risk taker with your food, I might have to rethink that.


Bacon Maple Ice Cream

1/4 pound Bacon, raw, roughly chopped
2 cups half & half
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar, light, packed

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine bacon, half and half, cream, maple syrup, and sugar and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Reduce to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, cover, and set aside to steep until a deep bacon flavor develops, 10 to 20 minutes. Strain through a medium-mesh strainer and set aside to cool to room temperature.
Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
Put it in your ice cream machine and run it according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Makes about 5 cups of ice cream.

Candied Bacon bits

While waiting on the ice cream to get done you can take ¼ pound of bacon and pack brown sugar on top then boil in the oven on low until the sugar is melted and the bacon is crisp. With kitchen shears chop up the bacon into small pieces to sprinkle on top of the ice cream.

Now buy life insurance from me cause you’ll need it if you keep this up!

Ever need something and not have it?

As an insurance agent, I often review client insurance policies to make sure they have the appropriate type of policies, amount of coverage and most cost effective policy. The most commonly overlooked protections is a personal umbrella policy.
An Umbrella or personal liability policy is usually an all risk, all peril policy with coverage limits that start at $1,000,000. There are some very specific reasons that you might want to consider purchasing an umbrella and there are also some adjustments that you will want to make to your homeowners and auto insurance if you do. How do you know if you need an Umbrella?
Well, do you have youthful drivers in the home? One of the most basic reasons to purchase a liability umbrella is if you have young children that are learning to drive or are under age 25. Young drivers are inexperienced, easily distracted (friends, cell phones, texting, etc.) and statistically are involved in more accidents than any other age group. An umbrella policy will cover them all and protect you from losing everything if one of your children happens to cause a serious accident.
Do you have assets to protect? Most homeowner and auto policies have liability coverage between $300,000 and $500,000. But if you have assets in excess of this amount, you are exposed to a potentially higher liability problem if someone decides to sue you. Maybe you were involved in a car accident or someone slipped on your property, etc. If they sue you for more than the $500,000 and win, the rest will come out of your pocket or you may have to sell some assets (usually at a loss). If your net worth is over this limit, (value of home, land, retirement, autos, investments and all other assets added together) consider purchasing an umbrella policy for the appropriate amount. Think about the last time you heard about a lawsuit for less than a million dollars, how many do you hear about that are below two million these days?
Another reason to consider is if you are in a profession where incomes are typically high. Someone may think that you are wealthier than you are just because of your title or profession and may be more inclined to sue for a larger amount.
Today we live in a sue happy society. Lawyers are suing for larger and larger amounts and if you bear any liability, they are winning. Even if you are not liable, the legal defense fees are expensive. Some say that having a million dollar umbrella causes attorney's to sue for more. This may be true, but if you need the protection, it is better to buy the policy and hope you never use it, than it is to need it and not have it.
For many families today, young drivers, increasing net worth and higher incomes make personal liability protection a necessity rather than an option. The additional cost is not extreme, and if you make increase your deductibles on other policies, you can possibly cut your extra out-of-pocket cost in half.

Email me if you want to discuss your Liability needs

The Best Gift Ever !!!

When I was a kid I used the phase "the best gift ever!" quite often.  Maybe I was easily impressed or perhaps I had a grandiose way about me.  Either way, I'm sure that the person who gave me the gift felt good about getting me something that I really loved. 

Christmas time is a great example of how giving and receiving is an important part of life ... both for the giver and for the receiver.  Nothing feels better than being able to get someone a gift that hey love, so in a way the receiver is the most important person in the exchange of a gift.  Without those that would receive ... our gifts would have no value.

Have you ever given a vagrant with a sign some small donation or helped a young mother pay for groceries while in line (when she didn't have enough to pay for them)?  Made you feel good, didn't it?  Well sometimes we who have look down on those that don't have ... not concisely, it's just sometimes we time, "why don't they just get a job?" 

We should however remember that in God's world we all have a role and no role is more important than the next.  So the beggar is just as important as those that donate.  Our role in the gifting process doesn't determine our value only our reward.

Merry Christmas ... may the gifts you receive bring you great joy and the gifts you give be joyfully received.

J

Giving your family the gift of life insurance will make the difference in paying for food, heat, and medicine if your pay check stops when you die!

Beware of falling rocks in Alabama!

On November 30th 1954 Mrs. Elizabeth Hodges, was sleeping on a couch when a meteorite crashed through the roof and into her living room, bounced off a radio, and hit her on the hip. This was the first modern instance of a meteorite striking a human.  It happened in Sylacauga (syl-a-cau-ga), Alabama. The space rock was a sulfide meteorite weighing eight and half pounds and measuring seven inches in length. Mrs. Hodges was not permanently disabled but did suffer from a bruise along her hip and leg.

Sylacauga is roughly 51 miles southeast of Birmingham, it's a small town of about 13,000 and yet it is the sight of one of the most rare injuries in the history of man. This is proof that you never know what's going to happen, so be at peace with your life, don't go to sleep angry and don't with hold forgiveness.  Life is short and if you don't slow down and smell the roses every once in a while you're going to miss it!

By the way the meteorite was eventually returned to Mrs. Hodges, even though the landlord, government and her husband all laid claim to it.  She donated it to the Alabama museum of natural history.

Life is uncertain ... so insure yours for your family's sake!  Call me for low term rates!  812-847-2243

Let's fix Washington!

Are you listening to the junk that Washington is spewing these days?  I know that politicians are always making a big deal out of little things and down playing big things so they are always casting themselves in the best light, but come on!

Let's take jobs for instance ... the White House says that Congress is being lazy and if they don't pass the JOBS BILL, all is lost and it's Congress's fault.  Congress says that the White house is going to tax those that can afford to create jobs and make it less attractive for growth.  The White House says that we have to tax the rich to correct the budget and give relief to the working class, the Congress says we need to stop spending on social programs and let the wealthy create more wealth and create jobs.  Who do you believe?

Being the social genius that I am ... I have come up with a plan that will fix everything.  First off, we should level the field ... I pay taxes and I pay for my own health insurance.  So I would say that everyone else should have to do that too.  Including congress and the president ... We as a nation spend billions on the health care of our employees and well ... nobody else is getting that so they shouldn't either.  The one exception should be our military and police forces ... we need them in top physical shape and we don't pay them enough.

On taxes I see a flat tax on income as a fair compromise.  Eliminate the tax brackets, loop holes and all the infrastructure that manages that ... everyone pays a flat percentage of their income no matter how much they make or where the income is being generated from.  Then the only IRS function would be to make sure that all income was reported and the bill paid ... no more tax returns, no more audits, no more huge cost from 106,000 employees.  The projected budget for the IRS in 2011 is just over 12 and a half billion dollars. 

Once the President and Congressmen are forced to pay taxes and 100% of their health insurance premiums they'll figure out the least painful path for us all.

There you have it ... all fixed, I lessened the expenses, increased the income and leveled the playing field for everyone in one fell swoop! 

Next victim!

Living in the Moment ... looking back at 9/11

Life moves fast and you have to stop and smell the roses every once in a while or it could just pass you by!  Sounds like a movie quote - right?  But 9/11 if it taught us anything, it showed that life is unpredictable.  But you know the idea of living in the moment doesn't mean we stop planning and live hand to mouth ... sometimes we get that juvenile concept.  You know what I'm talking about, some folks think that to live in the moment they need to quite their job and spend every second of the day contemplating the beauty of the world and our meaning while on the planet.

But we don't have to drop out to live in the moment, we just need to focus our efforts on what is important.  Work is a big part of our lives, not just to make money but to achieve (anything).  We measure our life time by work and even schedule our vacations around it because it is central top who we are and what we will be remembered by.

However, while no life is complete without work (whether at home or away from home) it would not be complete without leisure time or personal relationships.  In other words take time for work, time for play, and time for your loved ones ... if you do that then you are truly living in the moment.

9/11 really made us look hard at having balance in our lives, it reminded us all that work, while important, isn't everything and while we need to plan for the future we need to make sure we are living in between the planning.

I hope you are living a balanced life and that you have many great personal relationships at work and play.  Plan smart, work hard, pray, and be in the moment!

Living Large!

Time marches on ... and on ... and on ... each day has a drudgery of it's own and when we string them together in long spans it makes the drudgery seem that much more unbearable.  Work, home repairs, laundry, charity efforts, bills, chores, responsibilities and even TV and cell phones ... all these things rob us of our natural joy in life.

We got away as a family last weekend to a place without TV or cell phone service or any of the things that bring us down each day.  Instead of treading water with finances, scheduling and responsibilities, we talked, played games and enjoyed being with each other.

The noise of modern life seems to clutter our every moment and that will keep us from enjoying our lives and even from just being creative in our everyday efforts ... so it's important to get away from it all and be quiet for a time to recharge those batteries and jump start your creative self again.

My weekend get away wasn't the only thing that inspired this rant ... last night Tena and I watched the Bucket List, great show!  I highly recommend it!  If you've not seen it I'll tell this much the two main characters are from opposite ends of the economic scale (one is a life long mechanic and the other a rich hospital mogul) but they have both been given 6 months to a year to live.  They decide to finish their Bucket lists (things they wanted to do before they die) ... It's never too late to make a difference, enjoy living, or make a fool of yourself ... and all three are important.

So take some time away from the TV this weekend and on a yellow pad of paper write down a bucket list, then Before midnight on Sunday, mark off one item ... or at least spend some quiet time imagining all the things that you will do. 

Live Large ... J

"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 to go..."

— Dr. Seuss (Oh, the Places You'll Go!)

Getting Old Sucks!

I know this is obvious to anyone that has moved beyond their youthful days, but it really needs to be said.  I came to this conclusion not long ago after my last eye exam.  I let Doc know that I have been seeing fuzzy for a while, he tested my eyes and said that my vision is technically 20/20 with my glasses but I had a second set of letters showing up when I look at signs.  After much testing and measuring and poking and prodding, he tells me that I have wrinkly eyes.  Now let me pause here and tell you my eye doc is Brian Steward in Lyons and Bloomfield.  As docs go he is aces, no fluff or bull just good service and advice on the health of your eyes, I trust him completely with my eye health. 

That being said ... wrinkly eyes?  I mean come on!  I'm not that old am I?  The condition is called an Anterior Basement Membrane Dystrophy ... but it's really just a wrinkly eye.  It's not too serious and the most common treatments are hard contacts or surgery, where they scrape your wrinkles off the eye (sounds fun huh?).

Needless to say I tried the hard contacts ... I won't bore you with the details but 4 office visits (1 to 2 hours each) 3 weeks of bloodshot eyes and at least one contact stuck for an hour and a half on my eye later, and Brian and I had the talk.  Maybe contacts weren't my thing.  But he suggested that I wait on the surgery until it gets worse.

I guess it's not bad but imagine seeing someone that looks familiar but you can't see the details of their face until they are 3 feet from you.  Not what someone in the business of dealing with people really wants to admit.  I wave at everyone and I can carry on a conversation for several minutes without knowing who I'm talking to for sure, sometimes I totally miss people because I can't see their features.

Driving is okay but I can't read signs no matter how big they are until I'm right on them ... GPS is the best invention ever!

I guess I take Brian's advice and wait til it gets worse before getting scrapped, so if I don't recognise you at times perhaps you'll understand, and if I get lost easily perhaps my wife will understand! 

Happy Aging!

What's the Cheapest Life Insurance?

I hear this question a lot, and it is a easy question to answer.  It's the life insurance that you buy when you are young, healthy and don't need it.  So what do you do if you've let the years slip by and find yourself in need of a policy to protect your family?  I'll give you the short and simple answer.

Straight annual renewable term, which renews automatically each year and is based on your age.  But if you are getting up there in age this quickly becomes too expensive.  This type of term is the cheapest if you are talking about right now.

Traditional whole life which builds cash value and eventually begins paying it's own premiums when purchased for a young person will be the cheapest when they are older because the cost never goes up and it will have value to use later.

But my favorite cheap life insurance is the FREE kind!  It's called Return of Premium term.  The name says it all, it is a term policy that lasts for 20 or 30 years and if you die during that time your heirs get the death benefit but if you live (which most are hoping to do) you get all your premium back (tax free).

Why doesn't everyone buy this option, you ask?  Well some financial experts (the next statement makes this sound funny) suggest it is smarter to buy the slightly less expensive term policy and invest the difference between the two.  Hhhhhmmmm?!?!?!?  Sounds good except you are not guaranteed to even make back what you invest let alone enough to pay for the life insurance and still come out ahead.  Why not buy the Return of Premium policy and in 20 years have a lump sum to invest (guaranteed) and have protected your family all along the way?

So, what's the cheapest life insurance? Free!

J