Month: July 2017

Hi Readers,
I am sorry that I have not been writing many blog posts. As many of you know I am still grieving the loss of my husband, co-author, companion and the kindest, insightful and funniest person ever–Dan. But the good news is that I am making progress. After 1 year and 9 months, I am beginning to enjoy this club I never planned on joining–the single club. I have nobody to be accountable for and I can do whatever I want. It still hurts sometimes, but that is to be expected. Like most of us who lost a close friend or relative, we will never forget them. And that’s good.

Life has a way of throwing both small petty stuff that interferes with our routine, and huge blows occasionally. One can never avoid the pain or the discomfort but to anticipate by thinking and planning for the future is always a good idea, whether it’s a personal loss or personal finance. Through my bereavement group participation, seeing a counselor, writing in a journal and maintain a connection with family and friends, and making new friends have helped a great deal.

Similarly, disruptions, volatility and market crashes also must be planned. Like my grieving experience, I have also sought help for modifying my portfolio. I rebalanced and took some distributions from my portfolio with the assistance of Vanguard’s inhouse Certified Financial Planner. I took out money to fund my retirement such as helping my niece and my sister financially, buying a new wardrobe, new eyewear, throwing a party for friends and relatives, making donations to Palm Springs Writer’s Guild and the Dharmachakra Buddhist Center and Gilda’s Cancer Center for their support of the bereavement group I attend, and planning on a return trip to Vietnam in 2018. The Vanguard financial planner made some excellent suggestions for rebalancing my portfolio and carefully making distributions to keep my capital gains taxes at a minimum.

Look at my portfolio and how I constructed it for low costs, diversification, stock bond split, and best of all SIMPLICITY.