Today is your day Boomer! Well, I did it.....I mean, we did it. My wife and I finally bit the bullet and applied for my Canada Pension Plan yesterday! It's a tough decision because there are a million internet articles telling us to take it at various times from ages 60-75. I am almost 63 and will receive about a thousand dollars a month minus taxes, but it was something I wrote on this blog this week that really got me thinking. The average age of death in Canada is about 82; that means I may have only 20 more years to live! It never really hit me before. Also, my family has a history of both cancer and heart disease. And, I've already had one heart surgery with another one
(valve replacement) scheduled for possibly next year. So, why not take my CPP early and live a little? Once COVID is over, we can maybe take two trips a year instead of one and enjoy our last few decades. My wife can also take over my CPP with survivor benefits. Makes sense. A Boomer wakeup call. Cheers and here's to life!
Today is your day Boomer! Relaxing in my hot tub this morning, I had reflections of the 1970 CCR song "Lookin' out my Back Door". Yes, that kind of druggy, but catchy song, about the view of your backyard. Mine is spectacular: colourful sunrises, big ponderosa pines, cheer, apple, fir, and weeping willow trees, two mountains, sheep and chickens next door, two frolicking golden retrievers, beautiful green grass and what seems like a thousand birds...including quail, pheasant, chickadees, woodpeckers, and blue jays. And what else? Well....the quiet, the solitude, and the chance for reflection with no sirens, car noise, yelling people, or neighbours invading your privacy. It was...is...just beautiful, and I am so blessed to live in a rural area in BC's Okanagan Valley. Boomers, what's out your back door? John Fogerty's "tangerines and elephants" or something like my cheeries and coyotes? Check it out and appreciate the little things in life. Cheers...

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