In My Old Age

The other day I went on a craigslist run for a credenza (I really love saying that word, with the emphasis on the nnnnnnnnn) and the person who was selling the item turned out to be a 70 year-old man who was retired, had lost his partner and had made the decision to sell his life belongings and move to Panama. All because he could no longer afford to live where he lives based on his income. Now this was a man who had lived in the Bay Area for at least 30 years (I know because he still had the receipt for the credenza which he gave to us) and had never been to Panama in his life. He picked the location based on an extensive internet search and chose it for its weather, friendly ex-Pat community and the fact that he could live much more cheaply than he can here. Now I just want to point out that it's not as if he was living in the city where everything is exorbitantly priced. He lived quite modestly about a hour away north of San Francisco and in a very rural area. The price he currently pays for rent is about what I was paying for my apartment in San Jose back when I had just graduated from college.

He had worked in IT for his career and with the fast changing times, it just became too hard for him to keep up and stay relevant in the field when he's competing against recent college graduates who grew up with the internet and computer their whole lives. While he was exceedingly excited about this change and really seemed to be in good spirits, the whole idea of it made me sad and worried about not just for my own retirement but for my mom's as well.

I find myself wondering what his kids had said or thought when he first brought this up to them. I know for me, if my mom would of told me this, there's no way I would of been ok with it. I would of rather have her move in with me if possible or find a way somehow to be able to support the both of us if necessary. My friend had said that it's probably a culture difference as well but it also got me thinking about my own retirement and how maybe I'm not saving enough and I should be more responsible with what I spend my money on these days.

When I first graduated college, I had met with my financial planner, whom I still have to this day and love, he encouraged me to open up a couple of different retirement accounts even if it was to only put in $100/month. At the time, I had wanted to put all my savings into short term accounts for a down payment on a new car or something more fun but I listened to him and now I'm very glad that I did. It gives me comfort to know that I'm saving for the future but I have no idea if it's enough or not. If I think about it for too long, getting old really depresses the hell out of me and it probably doesn't help that I just recently read an article about a man who's father was sent to a hospice to live and was expected to pass away within a few months due to cancer. However, now it's ten years later and he's still alive. He wears a diaper, has to be spoon-fed and sits in a wheelchair all day long, a shadow of his former self. I would never want to be like that one day.

I've started following the guy's blog and he promised he would be updating his adventures once he got to Panama and after his four/five month exploratory visit, he'll decide whether he will be able to make a new life for himself down there or if he will come back to the States and live in an assisted living facility.

What is my point in all this besides making myself sad whenever I think about it. I guess it's to stop and remember how lucky we are and to not take anything for granted. And if you haven't already, to start putting some of your hard-earned money away each month for the future because I can only have so many people living with me when we're old and frail.