books

Jerry Stiller and me: A minor celebrities story.

by

The recent death of comedian and actor Jerry Stiller made me sad. Most people’s deaths make me sad. But I happen to know that in this case, the cliche everyone spouts is true: He’d had a great life.

How do I know? He told me.

Years ago he and his wife, Anne Meara, were guests of honor at the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, Alaska. At that time I worked at the Anchorage Daily News, and was given the chance to interview them both before they got here.

Both of them were perfectly delightful. The conversation with Stiller went on for quite a while, and at the end of the interview he said he wanted to send me a copy of his autobiography, “Married to Laughter: A Love Story Featuring Anne Meara.” I thanked him and said that I appreciated the offer but that it wouldn’t be necessary.

 

 

He sent it anyway, with a personalized inscription, and I still have it.

At the end of the conference there’s always a tour from a glacier cruise company. Stiller saw me come aboard and waved me over. I spent the entire cruise sitting next to him and listening to him tell stories about his beautiful wife and his amazing children (actors Ben and Amy). He told me more than once how lucky he had been in his life, to have had such a wonderful marriage and incredible children plus the chance to do what he loved.

Sniffling yet? I am, too.

But that’s not the only point of this post.

 

Read more

7 free financial resources.

by

My buddy Cameron Huddleston’s new book, “Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk: How to Have Essential Conversations With Your Parents About Their Finances,” is a guide to negotiating that potentially awkward and/or painful subject of your parents’ finances as they age. (She recently sponsored a giveaway of two copies.)

In conjunction with the publication of her book, Huddleston has created a pair of great (and free!) financial resources.

The first is a document called the “In Case of Emergency Organizer: A Fill-in-the-Blank Financial Inventory to Give Your Loved Ones the Information They Need,” and it’s one-stop-shopping as far as financial information is concerned.

This PDF is write-able, i.e., you can type into it from your computer, tablet or smartphone. Then you can either print it out or send it as a document to your kids or whoever needs to have this info. Or you can print it out as a blank document and fill it in with a pen. #oldschool

Obviously you’ll need to lock it away safely, and make sure the person to whom you send it is careful with the document as well. After all, it will contain your Social Security number, bank account number(s) and other identifying information. But it sure beats your kids (or whoever) scrambling to find this stuff during a crisis.

Consider filling one of these out yourself as well, even if you’re young and hale. Suppose you became very ill, or were involved in some sort of accident: Would your relatives, or even your partner, be able to deal with things like temporarily paying your bills or finding your health insurance information?

 

Read more

Giveaway: “Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk.”

by

Personal finance journalist Cameron Huddleston’s new book was written from painful personal experience. “Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk: How to Have Essential Conversations With Your Parents About Their Finances” came about after Huddleston’s mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

She learned a lot – and she learned it the hard way. Now she wants to help other people from having to go through the difficulties of dealing with someone else’s finances after the person is ill and unable to help sort things out.

End-of-life issues are never easy to discuss. With wisdom and compassion, the author offers a tremendous amount of expertise to take you through this touchy process.

Huddleston has graciously offered to sponsor a giveaway of two copies of “Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk: How to Have Essential Conversations With Your Parents About Their Finances.” If you or anyone else you know has aging parents, this book could save a lot of grief and wasted energy, and let you focus on what’s important: finding the best solutions for your family.

The book shows how to get the conversation started before your parents actually need any help. You’ll learn how to talk about things like estate planning, whether they can (or should) age in place vs. moving to a smaller home or to an assisted living facility, what kinds of documents and legal paperwork you should have just in case, how to bring siblings into the conversation and – this is super-important! – what not to say.

Suppose your parents resist any kind of talk at all? Huddleston has a chapter about that, too. These are invasive questions, after all, and your parents (who may still see you as “the kid”) might not want to talk about money– especially if it turns out they don’t have enough).

I haven’t yet finished “Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk,” but I can already say that anyone whose family hasn’t discussed later-in-life issues needs to read this book.

 

Read more

Calling all Sue Grafton fans.

by

Yesterday I pulled a T-shirt out of my “play clothes” pile, i.e., the stuff that’s too faded/holey to wear in polite company but just fine for slopping around like a freelancer. It was my old Alaska Sisters in Crime T-shirt, from way back in the 1990s.

In case you are unfamiliar with that organization: SinC is made up of readers who enjoy mysteries and wish to support and encourage those written by women.

The shirt our chapter made up bore the slogan: “Sisters in Crime Alaska: Where the trail is always cold.” Which is a lot funnier if you’re a fan of mysteries, thrillers, whodunits or police procedurals.

(I’m proud to say that I came up with the slogan myself.)

What does this have to do with the late writer Sue Grafton? I’m getting to that.

 

Read more

Giveaway: “Frugality For Depressives.”

by

Greetings from sunny Phoenix! I’m visiting my daughter and meeting some deadlines. While I do have to finish the paying work, I also wanted to put up a new post. Yet why come this far south and spend my non-work hours writing?

The solution came to me this morning: Do a giveaway post! Haven’t done one in a while, after all.

And why not make the prize a copy of Abby’s book? That’s a hostess gift she can really appreciate. #virtualetiquette

One lucky reader will get either a paperback or Kindle copy of “Frugality For Depressives: Money-Saving Tips For Those Who Find Life A Little Harder.”

Of course a mother would think her kid’s book is awesome. But I’m not the only one who thinks the book can help depressives and the chronically ill (and maybe others — more on that below).

 

Read more

Life in the Entitlement Zone.

by

Today I spent several hours in the main public library, working at a long countertop that holds a sign saying “QUIET ZONE.”

To be utterly clear, the sign also features “no” symbols placed over a cellphone and a talking head.

Pretty straightforward, right? That rules-enforced peace is the reason I work here* fairly regularly.

And fairly regularly I’m accosted by cell yell. Today was one such day.

Hey, can you hear me?

I look up and a guy, maybe 19 years old, is approaching. Can you hear me? Yeah, what’s up? And naturally he plunks himself down in the Quiet Zone and opens up his laptop while continuing to talk.

 

Read more

Books: Why aren’t we reading them?

by

At the end of the year I saw a lot of New Year’s resolutions mentioned on blogs and social media. Chief among them: “I will read more books/read a book a week.”

As a nation we aren’t doing that. According to a Pew Research study, 26 percent) of U.S. adults say they haven’t read a book – or even part of a book – in the past year.

We can’t blame Kindle Unlimited or Audible for this trend since the study encompassed e-book, audio and print formats. However, the Pew Research Center notes that adults with a high school education (or less) are three times as likely as college grads to cop to ignoring books. People who earn $30,000 a year or less are twice as likely to be non-readers.

 

Read more

A life-changing holiday gift: Personal finance books.

by

th(Note: This is an update of an article that ran in 2016, with some new books to go along with ones I feel confident re-recommending.)

Some people are into experiences rather than gifts. Physical presents take up space and need to be dusted, whereas a massage or a theater ticket is a one-and-done event.

I suggest that a personal finance book is both a gift and an experience. Sure, it takes up a little space – but it can lead to life-altering changes and literal enrichment. And if you get the Kindle or PDF version, it doesn’t take up any room in your domicile.

When you give the gift of personal finance, you’re giving people tools that can get them out of current money troubles and/or help them build the lives they want. Doesn’t that beat the heck out of a scented candle or a cheese log?

 

Read more

Giveaway: “You Can Retire Early!”

by

Early retirement has spawned a subset of personal finance blogging. Those who write on the topic call it the FIRE movement, i.e., “Financial Independence/Retire Early.”

Their readers tend to be younger, but it’s also possible to construe “early” as earlier than you thought, as in “maybe you won’t have to work until you drop dead.”

Understand: Not everyone wants to retire early. Some of us like what we do so much that we can’t quite imagine ourselves not doing it. That said, some people who love what they do would like the option of changing the way they do it.

Members of both groups should be interested in “You Can Retire Early!: Everything You Need to Achieve Financial Independence When You Want It.” And one of you will get this book for free, because I’m giving away a copy.

 

Read more

‘The secrets of super savers,’ revealed.

by

Think coupons aren’t worth it? Not if you’re doing them right – and it doesn’t have to eat up hours of your life. A new book from the authors of the Living On The Cheap website shows why.

“The Ultimate Guide to Coupons: How to Save More Money in Less Time and Get The Best Deals” shares what authors Teresa Mears and Laura Daily call the “secrets of super savers.”

Specifically, “the smart way to use coupons, investing just minutes to save dollars.” They’ve produced a book that stays true to the LOTC mission: to help people live their best lives without breaking the bank.

 

Read more