Funeral Decisions

Almost 40 years ago we purchased cemetery plots in the Kansas  City area.  I wasn't even 30 years old yet, but I'd already lost my father, and even a couple of friends.  I was convinced I wouldn't live to see my 30th birthday, and felt we needed to do something about it.  In looking back now, I'm surprised I was even thinking about being prepared for such a thing.

We purchased TWO plots for $650 and paid by installment until they were finally ours.  Good thing is that I'm now approaching my 71st birthday and I still haven't needed mine!  The bad thing about all that is that we haven't lived in the area for almost 30 years (lots of 30s in this post!) so we  (1) don't want to have our bodies taken back to Missouri, and we (2) do want to be cremated.

Today the value of those plots is $2,895 EACH!!  Quite a spike on our initial investment of $325 each.  Wowza.  The cemetery is not allowed to re-buy our plots or help us sell them, and have instead suggested we list them in church newsletters or on Craigslist, eBay, or Facebook Marketplace.  We haven't had any luck in selling them through any of those lists.

After another conversation with the cemetery people, I discovered there's a cemetery very close to me that will honor our agreement with the first company.  The problem is that for me to transfer the property will cost me some money because their plots now sell for upwards of $3,000.  Since I only want the plots so that I can resell them, I'm not too excited about putting more money into them.

I did discover that I can transfer them to the mausoleum so they can save our ashes, and the cost of that is $2,995.  At least it's just another $100 each.   We would still have to pay to BE cremated, and while I imagined my ashes being scattered in some remote vacation location, I do realize that in many areas, that's not legal.  I really don't know why they'd care about ashes when there's a lot worse stuff going into the water, but that's only my opinion.

I guess it's worth going to the cemetery and having a conversation with them face to face to see what's the best option for us.

So what's the reason for this post? Consider this:

1.  The cost of funerals and burials is only going up!
2.  Have you made a decision about what you want your family to do in the event of your death?  Cremation?  Burial?  Location?
3.  Do you have life insurance you will be able to use to cover the expense?
4.  Are you aware that there will also be other fees at the time of burial, even if you have a pre-paid plan AND insurance?

The list goes on and on.

No one wants to talk about such things, but it's definitely something you need to be talking about with your family.  While we are dealing with this pandemic, we are all hoping to get through it and get back to normal, but we have already lost one friend and it's a miracle that we didn't lose a family member.  Neither of them could have possibly seen this coming.

All They'll Need to Know is a guide to help walk you through the steps...

Bucket List: Preserving Photos

What's on your bucket list? 

A friend of mine was diagnosed with terminal cancer late last year.  She was optimistic up until about two weeks before her passing, and at that time, she only had one thing on her bucket list.  She wanted to go through pictures with her family and share what she knew about them.

The problem was that she had a huge tub of photos that weren't organized.  With her rapidly failing physical condition, it seemed to me to be an undaunting task. 

Her desire to go through this process with her children pushed me to do something similar.  For several years now, I've been taking pictures of photos with my phone and adding them to my own personal history blog.  As I uploaded the picture, I wrote about what memory I had of it.  One of the pictures was one of my mother holding me as a toddler.  It was filled with wrinkles and was definitely well worn.  There were several years that I didn't live with my mother, and for me, this picture spoke volumes because I think my mother must have carried it with her and looked at it frequently.  It wasn't the faces in the picture as much as it was the wear and tear of the picture that touched me so deeply.



With the photos uploaded, I wanted to share them with others.  I gave all of the pictures related to my sister and her family to my niece.  My sister didn't want them because she's passed on most of her photos to her kids, but this niece and her family loved looking at them.  I am happy to share them with her because they belong with her.

So think about your own bucket list.  Maybe travel isn't possible right now because of the covid-19 shutdown, but what about those things you can do at home?   Going through old photos and at least organizing them and writing a description of the people or places in them, can bring a great amount of joy during a time when so many are feeling afraid or anxious. 

While you're at it, why not snap a picture of your photo, or scan it so you can preserve it forever?  I love Google's Blogger for my own personal blog, but there are other photos that don't "fit" in the blog because of the content, and I've saved them to an external hard drive.   For me, it was a great relief to know that if I were to suffer loss through fire or flood, my photos, or at least pictures of them, were preserved.


Note:    I'm not sure where this picture was taken, but I would imagine it was in the house my parents lived in when they first married.  They were happy.  They had started a family.  My mother kept the lamps in the picture throughout her life.  They meant something to her because they bought them as a married couple.   While I may feel a tinge of sadness that their marriage ended in divorce, it makes me very happy to feel that at one time they were in love and looked forward to a future together.

Gather Important Documents

This is such a great time to go through your files and gather important papers. We lost a friend to Covid-19 a few weeks ago and his wife is spending her days trying to locate paperwork to file claims. It may take months to get it all settled. Better to be prepared now, and what better time than when you're home and have time to work on those projects. 

All They'll Need to Know is a great resource for helping with this process.  See Here

Check Your Beneficiaries

Is there one person in your home who handles all the financial paperwork? If you're that person, have you thought ahead to educate your partner on what to do if you're not there? Have you done all you can to protect your spouse and your children/grandchildren?

There are things to do now that can simplify things later. One thing you can do is make sure you have the correct beneficiary/ies on your accounts. If you've had some life changes (i.e., divorce) make sure you've made those corrections. Most banks will let you add beneficiaries online; others require that you come to the bank and do it in person. Either way, it's a small amount of time to spend now to help save your family a lot of heartache later.

This won't cover everything, but it's a good place to start.

Flood Insurance

It's hurricane season. Did you know that flood insurance takes 30 days to go into effect? Having recently moved from property that flooded, and suffering losses during Hurricane Harvey, I can tell you that the physical loss of items can be a tremendous emotional drain as you document losses and go through the clean up process.

Now is a good time to check with your homeowners or renters insurance agent to see if flood insurance is a good idea for you.

Preserving Nuts

This morning, in going through some boxes to see what I can donate to a giveaway at the church, I opened a box that contained about twelve jars of nuts that I dry packed back in 2011.   I had almost forgotten I had them.  We have moved twice since then, so it's almost like Christmas when I open a box these days, and especially when it's something I want to keep!

I didn't know if the nuts were even any good anymore, so rather than just shoving them under the bed, I opened one.  First, I did the sniff test.  They smelled fine.  I popped a pecan in my mouth, and it tasted as fresh as the day I canned it.  I was very pleasantly surprised, and grateful I had thought to process them.   If you just bring a bag of nuts home from the store, they will quickly go rancid if not frozen/refrigerated, or eaten.  I'm sorry to say that I've learned that from experience.

So how do you dry can nuts?

I used my FoodSaver.  I just poured the nuts into quart jars, used the jar sealer attachment, and let it go.  The FoodSaver pulls the air out of the jar, and seals it.  It has a strong hold if done right, because today I had a bit of a difficult time just getting that lid off.

If you don't have a FoodSaver, there are other ways to do it, but I'm not going to recommend them here.  I've been researching it online, and too many people have commented on how canning jars are not to be used in an oven, and that putting them in the microwave, filled with nuts, causes moisture, and therefore has the potential of mold forming.

You may want to do your own research, but whatever you decide to do, make sure your jar looks dry inside, and you have a tight seal.  You should hear that familiar "pop" that I love when something seals properly.

This is a great way to take advantage of fresh nuts, or sales during the year.  Give it a try!

Emergency Preparedness Important Checklist

This is a great checklist provided by the City of Houston.  www.readyhoustontx.gov

With the COVID-19 pandemic right now, it would have been a good idea to use this list on the right of the page to help prepare for your family for staying in place.    The list includes masks, disinfectants, and other things that help keep you safe.

The list on the left side of the page give you a sampling of what can be found in All They'll Need to Know.    If you had AT LEAST the things listed here, you'd have more than most people do.  

We have a friend who went to the emergency room on April 1, testing positive for COVID-19.  During his two week stay, his wife wasn't allowed to be with him, and in the end, he passed away.  She's been going through paperwork since April 14th, trying to get his affairs settled.

I have another friend who is battling cancer, and although she received her diagnosis in November 2019, just two weeks ago she started failing fast, and doctors told her to get her affairs in order.  I was there earlier this week to witness documents being signed by her to help her family during their deepest time of stress and transition.   

In speaking to groups about the importance of having this information in one place, I've actually had people say, "Oh, I don't need to do that.  I have a will.  Besides, when I'm gone, I'm gone.  My spouse can figure it out."    What do you say to that person who is so insensitive that he just doesn't care about the mess he/she is leaving for their spouse?

This isn't just about dying, though.  There are lots of reasons we may have to evacuate our homes, and if you ever have to do that, because of ensuing wildfires, tornadoes, hurricanes, or flooding, it is important that you have this information in your 72 hour kit so you can carry it out with you.  When it's time to file claims, you're going to need all the information you can get your hands on.

Tracking Income and Expenses with Mint

For many years I paid for Quicken to track my expenses.  It's about $50 to purchase, and while I loved the way it worked, I got tired of having to upgrade it every year or two to keep the features.  They would force you to upgrade or they would stop downloading transactions.  Even though I was happy with what it offered before the upgrade, part of what I liked about Quicken was keeping the transactions up to date.

I decided that in retirement, and re-evaluating the way we spent our money, it was an expense I could eliminate.

I decided to try Intuit's Mint.  It's totally free, and if you just enter your banking information into their secure site, the program downloads and syncs transactions for you every day.  It's always current, practically to the minute.    It even works with your investments, AND allows you to enter loans as well as assets.

In trying to be prepared for filing my taxes the first quarter of 2019, I decided to scroll through all of my transactions for 2018 and make sure they were categorized correctly.   They have plenty of standard categories to choose from, but you can also create your own.  Under income, for example, I can designate what comes from Social Security, or my Etsy shop. 

Once you set the category for an expense, like electricity, it will generally continue to put that payee in the same category, but one thing that I realized I needed to change was payments to credit cards.  For example, we have a Wal-Mart card that we use primarily for fuel because we get a discount by using it.  We pay it off every month.  In my register, however, it was showing Wal-Mart payments as "shopping."  I was able to go in and change that to "Transfer:  Credit Card Payment."   If I wanted to, I could create another category that read, "Transfer:  Credit Card Payment to Wal-Mart."

While you can set budgets in Mint, I have also found that it helps to have a spreadsheet to see what expenses I have coming up.   For instance, I will enter my income and dates it should be deposited, and list all of the expenses for the month.  I usually have about three months entered at any time, so that I can see that on those rare times that I have extra money, I still can't spend it because I have an expense coming up later.   While it would be great to look at that balance and think I have extra to spend, usually that is not the case. 

Mint will allow you to go in and add future transactions, and then when they come in, they will match up, but I have found that it is a bit time consuming.  I like using the spreadsheet.  While it may seem like double work, it helps me stay on track.  I just have columns for:

Date
Payee
Deduction
Deposit
Balance
Bank Balance

And then I do a formula to keep a running balance at all times.  I just have to be careful to include the deductions as a negative number!  One time I thought I had loads of money in the account, only to discover that I'd entered them as a positive.

When checking in with Mint, I will enter the balance the bank shows, and then use another column to add my balance plus any outstanding transactions to make sure we agree.

These may seem like extra steps, and perhaps you have a better way of doing it, but it really helps me have a good snapshot of where my money is going. 

By the way ... while going through personal files and documents, this is a great time to record information that would be helpful to you in the event of an evacuation, or for your family in the event of your absence.  My ebook, All They'll Need to Know, is a quick download, and available on my Etsy shop for $9.95.    You can get started today and enter the information from your computer.  

Year-End Medical Expenses

As the year starts winding down, I've started thinking about what I'll need to file my taxes for 2018.  Having given up our business and retired two year ago, this will be the first year that my only concern will be our personal income and expense.  I won't need the help of my CPA to file my taxes and am excited to download Turbo Tax and do it on my own.

This week I went through a pile of receipts that needed scanning.  We've had a lot of dental expense this year - a total of two root canals, a couple of fillings, and two crowns - and I wanted to see if we had enough to use the medical expenses as a deduction.

I started a spreadsheet and went through not only receipts, but checking account and credit card information to see what documentation I had.  At one time I used Quicken to track everything, but in retirement and cutting unnecessary expenses, I find that Intuit's free version, Mint, works just fine.  Next, I logged each expense for these categories, including the date of service and payee.

I might add that while some of our doctor's visits only cost us $5, and often we just pay cash, it's important to keep the receipts.  We use our debit or credit cards for almost everything, and I like to do that because it's easier to keep track, but if you pay cash, don't forget about those payments.

Doctor
Dentist
Prescriptions
Hospitals
Insurance (Medicare)

Doctor expenses were minimal.  We fortunately don't have to take any regular medications, so this was just for drugs prescribed for short-term illnesses.  My husband had a one night stay in the hospital and that was a whopping $75.   Insurance, which for us is Medicare, is broken down at the end of the year on our Social Security statement.  I looked at the amount we claimed last year, and since there were no changes, I'm expecting it to be the same.  However, I will adjust when we get the final this year, just in case.

I'm off to a good start.  Hoping that we don't have anything to add to that in the last two weeks of the year, I already have a good idea of what I can claim for medical expenses.

Stay tuned for more as I work on our taxes.

By the way ... while going through personal files and documents, this is a great time to record information that would be helpful to you in the event of an evacuation, or for your family in the event of your absence.  My ebook, All They'll Need to Know, is a quick download, and available on my Etsy shop for $9.95.   You can get started today and enter the information from your computer.  

Documenting Belongings for Insurance

We are in the process of documenting our losses.  What a horrendous task to go through hundreds of items and take pictures.   While some of it may just be junk, it's important to document it all, because every penny counts when you're trying to reach the maximum for insurance coverage.

Your camera is your friend and can help you simplify some of this documentation.  At least you won't have to sit there and write everything down.  You'll have the photos, so just look at them from the comfort of your home instead of spending more time in your smelly, slimy surroundings.

Here are some things we're doing that we feel will help simplify the claim, and hopefully rush the payment.

Have a system.  We had several people pulling items out of the barn, and we put the stuff in piles.

1.  Electronic or mechanical

2.  Food items that will have to go to the dump

3.  Clothing 

4.  Things that can be cleaned

Take a white board, chalk board, or whatever you have, and write a number on it.  Place that white board next to the item so that when you take the picture, it shows.  Then use that corresponding item number on your spreadsheet.  Once you upload the photos, you'll be able to go back and do a description.

Take a picture of the actual model number and serial number for any items.  This will help you when you're trying to determine a value.

If your item is still in the box, take a picture of it IN the box, and then pull it out and take a picture of the item BESIDE the box.  If your item is new, insurance will not depreciate it.  Don't forget to number it.

1.  We are hoping that the electronic or mechanical items may dry out and be usable again.  We don't know that at this point, though, so we are adding them to the list.  It could be dangerous to use them even if they work because they could damage the item we want to use them with.

2.  Most of our food was in cans or sealed buckets, but I did have a tub of sugar in plastic bags, and also some wheat in mylar bags.  I'm not taking a chance on any of that.  It's going to the dump.  Same thing goes for the soda cans and bottles that were in our refrigerator.  I wouldn't drink out of them.

The aluminum cans that have dry food inside are starting to rust, but we are going to remove the rust and save them.  You can tell the food is still dry because you can hear it when you shake the can.  The buckets will have to be washed and then submerged in a bleach/water solution.

3.  FEMA recommends getting rid of ANY clothing or fabric items that were in the flood waters.  I've been hearing about people washing these clothes, but the mold spores and bacteria in those clothes are dangerous.  If you insist on washing them, at least use a mold inhibitor and wear a mask.  Personally, I wouldn't want the clothes in my washer, and I sure don't want the dryer spewing those mold spores through my house.

4.  We have a lot of tubs that were filled with water, or are just dirty from the sediment.  We plan to use a strong antibacterial product to clean them so that we can store other items in them.    

Once we have determined what we might be able to salvage and what is trash, it's going right to the trailer to take to the dump.  Fortunately, there is a free dump site set up about 5 miles from us, and we are able to take our stuff there.