I think I saw a list of the Bene's our Rep's get but I don't recall where. I'd sure love to find it again. So --- if anyone has a good link to this info, please post it.

I am posting today because there is a warning on letting this subject drop for lack of response. 

Yes, our politicians love to reward themselves with perks and even awards.  Writing  an award to self to save a legacy!

We are in Tucson as snowbirds so the news is different than other areas.  Being a border state - the news last night is that the border was closed for protests on the Mexico side regarding the jump in the price of their gasoline - also big jumps in their food prices.  With gas going up (it is rising here too) everything goes up.  Mexicans are driving over the border for gas and food. 

Kelley:  Snowbird is the name we are given when we drive or fly south during the winter months - anything to escape the wind and snow. 

"I am posting today because there is a warning on letting this subject drop for lack of response."    I've never seen that, so not sure what would have prompted that here at S&F.

I think "snowbirds" is used for people who go south to AZ or FL.  Here in Texas the Texans insist the term for us is "Winter Texans."   

Have any of your smaller banks offered Kasasa accounts...checking and savings to their customers? 

jane

Hi Jane!  Where do you winter in Texas?  Our family was transferred  from a town of 500 on a Minnesota lake to Plano, TX (a Dallas suburb) and we lived and worked there, kids went to universities after school, for nine years.  We had relatives drive to the southern area near Padre Island for winters.  Remembering all the beautiful flowers and birds. 

What is a Kasasa account? 

Carol...we rent a condo on the beach at South Padre Island, Tx.  We're about as far south as a person can go and still be in the USA.  We're 22 miles from Brownsville.

Kasasa is a program of checking and savings our local Iowa bank is offering.  It seems to be a program offered by smaller banks, and the interest they're paying is far above what other banks in our area are offering. Our bank requires one use a bank debit card 12 times a month, get e statements, use online banking and have at least one ACH/ ? payment.  We do all of that and so are eligible for the higher interest.

Here's info on it:

https://kasasa.com/



https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=kasasa+banks+list


It seemed too good to be true, but so far, what they've promised is what they've paid us. 

It will be interesting to see if there will be any significant changes in the money/investing world with the change in our Admin.

If investing gets too boring we can always check on the upcoming 2020 political news. They should start covering it soon (my sarcastic remark     )

Looks like "spell check" is not working.

It sure will be interesting, Rick..and to see if regulations and what ones are repealed. 

Jane:  Thanks for that information.  I just put something into an interest bearing fund - and will keep an eye on it.  I went for the medium risk.  It isn't much but I scrimp and save all the time just to have something to invest.  Would rather buy a new Volvo or something fun - 

Carol...that's what we did...my husband bought a new 2016 Volvo this past Sept.   

We like the new safety features on the new cars as we get older.

Rick:  Well, I cannot ever afford to buy a new Volvo so that idea is out.  Our politics has turned into a feud like the Hatfields and Mc Coys! 

Don once asked one of our European relatives why a pair of shoes (top quality) was 3 X the price of a top quality US shoe. He replied that they work far less hours, have many perks like child care, aged parents care, and on and on.  So, the shoes were over $300 but made the same as a pricey pair here.

Sweden has some nursing home attendants working a 30 hour week with full pay - and they are having to ditch that idea as the cost of hiring extra people for the fill in hours has about bankrupted those businesses.  They good thing they saw was the nursing aides were not as exhausted, were happier and less sick days.  However, the nursing homes could not afford the real expense of hiring so many extra aids.  So - there it is!  What sounds so good just doesn't  always work.  I would hope that there could be a common sense alternative that would help everyone in some ways - with the idea of checking out the real cost and what is truly affordable. 

Oh, Jane!  Love it!  You bet they are super safe & I love the tight turning radius.  Sticking with our Toyota Venza which I call our Edsel because it is no longer being produced.  Enjoy! 

The term snowbird is interesting, especially the term, "Winter Texans." It seems that many in the lower 48 states use it in regards to Florida while we in Alaska tend to associate it with Hawaii. There is a saying that everyone you meet while spending a Hawaiian winter is from Alaska! 

As to savings, I'm living on a pension and all those saving I worked at all those years ago.

Angel:  You duly deserve that pension you worked hard to access.  I hope no one messes with your pension. 

Quite a few companies are selling their pensions to Insurance Companies to leave their retirees with annuities. These are not covered by the Governments Pension guarantee program. Different States do cover them at different "levels", but not to the extent the Gov't program did. There is some effort afoot to put the brakes on this but the wheels turn slow.

Does anyone using Windows xp use the "One Step Update" feature in Quicken?
    Does it still work for you?  Mine stopped working.

I think they want (are forcing) me to upgrade to the most recent version, but they don't indicate it supports Win XP.

And it seems their price continually goes up, with few new, usable, features.

I don't use XP, so can't help you, but I agree with Q trying to get you to upgrade every year and each new one is more complex (for me, anyway) to figure out. 

jane

Quote from: jane on March 04, 2017, 01:43:50 PM
I don't use XP, so can't help you, but I agree with Q trying to get you to upgrade every year and each new one is more complex (for me, anyway) to figure out. 
jane

Thanks Jane.
I'm reviewing the possibility of dumping Quicken. Certain Brokerages have available info or accounting available that might do just as well.  Recent Government Regs put more of the burden for reporting and accounting on the Brokerage.

I just use it for our checking account...to keep track of donations, medical expenses that are out-of-pocket, etc. for income tax. 

Our bank is local and small, so here are no "downloads" possible.  I don't use Quicken for investments....keep a spreadsheet as I get quarterly reports, etc.

Good Day all, I am just checking in after spending weeks of not feeling well.  Our insurance covers ER visits out-of-state so I had to use the ER (7hour wait) in Arizona.  All is well, I confirmed with my doctor's office when we drove home last week.  Happy as a clam!

We use Quicken daily and check each morning in case there would be an unexpected expense.  It is just a matter of routine and keeps us informed. 

Jane:  Not using "downloads" is probably safer than what we take for granted.  There are too many sneaky people looking for an easy dollar. 

It is rather annoying when a program you have been using for years is suddenly obsolete.  Newer isn't always better even when the brilliant ones say the new way is so much better.  If I "like it", why can't I keep it? 

I was using the download feature to get monthly Brokerage info. That made it easier to enter into Quicken. They force you to upgrade every three years even if there is no improvement.  Twice during my last three years the download capacity just stopped - not announced. Probably a Win-XP thing, but they gave no notification.  NOW, they are flooding me with pop-ups and email that unless I upgrade my downloading (and other on-line services) will be interrupted. They stopped a while back, so I wonder who they are trying to convince.  The upgrade supposedly provides new services but I see them as "fluff" items, of little to no value to me. 

Off my soapbox

Carol - Hope you are completely over your "not feeling well".  Don't you just love the term "EMERGENCY ROOM".  A seven hour wait could be enough time in an emergency to allow bad things to happen  . But that seems to be a fairly universal situation. Too many people using it in place of a doctor's visit, and for non-emergency reasons.

Again - off  the soapbox.

Rammel:  You can be on a soapbox anytime - it is always interesting.  Thank you for your concern - all is well.

Last year, one son had a snowmobile accident and had to be driven out by his brother, then miles to a little clinic then ambulance to Denver - 7 hours we waited for him to arrive.  He was the only person in the crowded ER who had insurance.  Not kidding.  Police all over - and we witnessed a fight on the grounds just outside.  A teenage mother from not the USA - was driving without a license, baby and toddler without secure belts - and head trauma on the children.  The nurse said they see it all the time.  I used to volunteer to stay overnight at one of the major hospitals here and we did see a part of society that many people do not ever experience.   Loved the volunteer work - but I just can't miss my sleep like that anymore. 

I will say that if one stays in the ER waiting room long enough, you can begin to experience pain you never felt until the hours go on and on. 

We have been with one car for a few years but found that our lifestyle needs us (ME) to have my own vehicle.  We found a 2009 Prius with only 38,000 miles on it driven by an old lady.  True!  Her son had the car after she passed and she never went on a freeway.  This car gets 51 mpg going uphill (mountain driving).  It was just checked and the mechanic says everything is perfect - so, we are feeling good about this one.  It may be the one for a drive from CO to Minn in September - the back is quite roomy too.  That is all I want to say - we are being teased for this one. 

There is a population boom in the Denver area and much of it comes from the legalization of marijuana.  Traffic is many times what it was about two years ago.  Houses sell over the asking price and there are bidding wars.  It is so hard on the ordinary commuter - now takes extra 45 minutes each way for us to go to Fort Collins.  So - I don't know your feelings about the vote for legalizing marijuana but do check out how children's safety, car crashes are causing huge increases in insurance.  Not many think of "unintended consequences".  Oh, not to mention the increase in homelessness and crime.  --- I am not against the use and study of drugs to ease pain and control epilepsy. This has caused an increase in emergency services as children and pets get into the baked goods - and a few head-on crashes.  some would say - that is minimal and people have the right to feel good.  It is a debate that will never end.   

Isn't a Prius an electric car?  Obviously I haven't kept up on which car does what, and why.  But if it is electric, what is the status of the batteries (assuming they have them)?

As far as legalizing drugs ----- if nothing else, think gateway.  This type of a comment usually leads to an argument but it is my opinion..  I've known a couple/few.  Look at certain States where "medical marijuana" is legal  --- There is a notably high number of sick people there.  More sick people than ever before.

Kick my soapbox

Anyway, ------ good luck with the car.

As long as this is the "Money Matters" discussion (do we mean money matters, or is it matters of money),

On a whim a long time ago I picked up some shares of (symbol) OLED. It was PANL when it started. They were into development of LEDs (different colors and sources) and the like used in phone screens and a bunch of other things.  They were sluggish (like dead in the water) for a while but it has now taken off.  It's nice to pick a winner once in a while.

Carol...it sounds as if you got a good used Prius.  Our niece bought one from a friend and it had a little less than 100,000 miles on it but was assured these go for several hundred thousand miles....unfortunately, the battery has gone and that's in the $4,000 range.  So...she'll try to sell it for parts to someone. 

Rick:  re: As long as this is the "Money Matters" discussion (do we mean money matters, or is it matters of money)   I think it's both.  It sounds as if you did find a "winner." 

jane

Jane:  What a shame that the battery didn't last longer for your niece.  Our checking on the battery shows that it may go to 200,000 miles and the price is about $1,000.  That is a huge chunk of money to be sure.  Still, this is so maneuverable that it reminds us of our old Volvo (which we sold in Texas because the A/C was terrible at that time) - now, that issue has been corrected.

I just figured out that I have been cleaning, cooking, doing laundry since the age of 8.  That has to be part of Money Matters.

Two of my cousins talk about their money a lot and it shouldn't define one's life.  My dad and mom grew up poor and made a really good living from starting their own business.  They always gave generously to church and to waitresses especially.  We had renters in our house for many years and lived off that rent.  What I want to say is that there are so many people out there with low incomes - for their good works, they deserve a very good tip whenever serving or assisting us.  My two money talking cousins are so cheap in tipping  - their mother never tipped unless she sat at a white tablecloth.  Isn't that sad?  I appreciate the message in this forum and want to thank you, Jane for taking over this interesting spot. 

Carol...we tip, too, and as generously as we can,  to wait staff when the service is at least adequate.  I play bridge with one woman, whose family has a VERY large farm, and she tips our waitress nothing.  The waitress is working 2-3 jobs, a single Mom, and is a great server.  I want to shake Donna, when she tucks her change into her very expensive handbag.     She's suffering from what appears to be early signs of dementia, so maybe she just doesn't think of it.

Perhaps it's the year for the battery on the Prius that makes the difference.  Cathy was quoted $4,000 by the Prius dealer she took it to for repair, but hers was a 2009.

It's been my experience that people who are essentially bragging about the money they have, or the great job they have, or whatever are usually "All hat and no cattle" as Dan Rather used to say.  They THINK they have more than anyone else, when in reality, if the truth were known, they're probably the least wealthy, having the great job, having been a "world traveler," etc.  Those who truly "have it," don't need to brag to try and impress others.

 I lived in Texas for nine years so I am familiar with that big hat message.  The other one I use is "you dance with the one who brung you".  Staying true to friends and family.  As for your friend having dementia issues, may very best to all the family and friends.  It is such a terrible end of life.  Tell the family to check if she is depressed as that elaborates the disease.  Hugs to all.

Ours is a 2009 car.  We shall see....   

Yours has far fewer miles on it, so you should be fine.

The sad part about my bridge friend is her older sister had dementia and there may have been others in the family.  She's very active...they go dancing once a week, she plays bridge and other card games with other groups, etc.  She's not bad yet....forgets which card game she's playing at times, but she still drives, etc.

jane

Finished my walking and it sure is cooler at this time of day.  Nice!

I always check Swedish news - and an interesting article is that a group over there has proposed business pay 70% of average income to new and young workers (their attempt at income equality).  At the same time, they are short over 7,000 teachers, short of actual school buildings, and the list goes on because of their acceptance of immigration. 

Jane:  I feel sorry for your friend, her family and all her friends.  At the end, my mother suffered Alzheimer's Disease.  She was in Minnesota and I had to quit a nice job to drive/fly back to care for her many times.  My biggest regret is that the doctors would not help with her depression in the beginning and that just made the disease triumph faster.  In my opinion, and that is now more accepted.  My doctor knows that I am terrified of the disease and she is just great - always grilling me with questions. 

It is a terrifying thing, Carol, especially for the Family.  One of the Nurses in the Alzheimer's Unit here at our local nursing home told an acquaintance that her husband, a patient there and former dentist here in town, was in such a good mood that day.  She said he told her, "What a wonderful day...I'm 24 and just got out of the Navy." 

It's surely something we all want to escape.