Supposedly We Won’t Have Enough

There’s a remnant of a typhoon swirling in the Gulf of Alaska bringing with it tropically warm, moist air. I don’t mind that so much, hell, given it’s October 28th 55^o feels like getting spoiled, just wish it wouldn’t bring it at 3 am in the morning at speeds > 90 MPH. It was about that time last night that I walked downstairs naked to investigate the noise on the deck; from our bedroom it sounded like the grill was taxiing for takeoff. It’s a special kind of vulnerability one feels when naked, trundling down stairs into the darkened spaces of the first floor, feeling for what is familiar by day but treacherous by night — chairs, bureaus, tables, jutting corners here and there — and trying to make out with half-opened eyes Harry’s form — where is he?, on his bed?, asleep on the chair?, stretched out on the floor where I don’t expect him? — hoping to avoid a calamitous fall on unprotected parts.

Just sayin’.

Saw the Packers bring down some serious whoop ass on the Viqueens last night. On the ground no less. Can’t recall the last time the Packers were a threat with the run game. Timely, too, given three of Arron Rodger’s top targets are injured. Looked like a playoff bound team to me last night, that’s for sure.

I can hardly talk about Sweat Pea. Yes, she’s recovering well, but that incision, my God, it must be 6-8 inches long, and the amount of fur that was shaved to do the surgery left most of her neck bare, so Happy Wife keeps it covered with a bandana (or two) and a bootie on her right paw to prevent her from scratching herself raw. That, and last night Happy Wife made salmon quiche cups to take to the vet staff this morning as a thank you for caring for Lucy. How sweet is that, you ask? Sure, super sweet, of course. However, let the record show that yours truly did not receive one — not even one — of those salmon quiche cups.

A news link caught my eye this morning: Will you have enough to retire? So I bit.

Inputs were simple, 1) current age and desired retirement age, 2) how much saved so far, 3) annual salary and 4) present savings rate.  I put in some numbers: 53 and 67, a million bucks, $185K/yr, and 20%. Result: Supposedly, we will need $3.9 million to retire, but with these numbers we will fall short, we will only have $3.2 million.

How can this be? $4 million to retire? Srsly? Divide by two (half to me, half to Happy Wife), and say we both live 20 years beyond retirement, that leaves $100K per year each of us can spend for 20 years. What’s the problem? I am quite sure that together we can subsist in our doddering years on far less than $16,800K/mo, no? And that doesn’t count interest on our savings, social security (no laughing), or our home equity (2), which, even by a conservative estimate should be significant by the time we retire. Phooey, I say, phooey.