COVID-19

2 illnesses (one COVID, one not).

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Let me say upfront that I did not have COVID. My poor niece has it, though, and she’s been suffering. Ever the momma, though, Alison opted to quarantine in a tent in the yard (more on that in a moment) rather than expose her two children to the virus.

My own illness was far more plebeian, though fairly uncomfortable in its own special way. It laid me low for most of last week and has left me fatigued and cranky. Which is one reason that it’s been, good grief, 11 days since I last posted here.

Still trying to form coherent thoughts, as well as to catch up on assignments whose deadlines I missed. I’ve also been dropping off things I think my niece could use: ice for the cooler, washed grapes, chicken noodle soup, Ritz crackers and, for fun, a sleeve of Otter Pops. (We’d been reminiscing about freezer pops recently, so when I saw a box of 80 OPs for just $3.29 in the “manager’s special” bin, I snatched it up.)

I don’t go into her home or her tent, or even near them. Instead, I set the stuff near the front door and text her kids to come get them. They come out with masks on, chat briefly (from a distance) about how it’s going and go back into the plague house.

About that tent: A friend of Alison’s referred to the quarantine tent as “the ’Rona Cabana,” and that earworm* would not leave my head.

The only way to get it out was, of course, to write about it. 

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Had a hibernating Christmas.

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The song “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas” has been running through my mind since Dec. 25, probably because a Sam the Snowman chew toy was waiting under the tree for my niece’s dog that day. The Burl Ives version of the song was featured in the Rankin-Bass animated special, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” so it’s been his voice singing the song.

Except I changed the title a bit. “Had a hibernating Christmas” is the way it plays in my head.

DF and I did go out the afternoon of Christmas Eve to meet up with his son, daughter-in-law and their kids for a couple hours of carol-singing, Chinese food and opening a few presents. (Let me say that we never opened gifts early when I was a kid, but life is about adapting, right?)

On Christmas Day, DF had to show up at church as cantor for a mid-morning Mass, so he dropped me at my niece’s home to watch her kids open their gifts. And, of course, to see the dog toy that inspired the earworm.

This morning, I dropped him at church for his usual 8 a.m. cantor gig, and headed off to see if any post-holiday specials were good enough to tempt me into using some Shopkick points. Short form: Nope. In fact, the two stores I visited had relatively little left to be marked down. Supply-chain issues strike again, I guess.

So we were back here by 9:30 a.m. and did more of what we’ve done since Friday evening: hibernate. No visiting with family or friends, no movies, no nothin’. A whole lot of reading napping has taken place in the past few days, though.

It felt pretty good, I have to say.

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Free weekly credit reports offer extended.

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During the pandemic, the big three credit reporting bureaus offered free weekly credit reports through April 21, 2021. Normally each of the bureaus – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion – would give you one free credit report each year. The pandemic changed that.

And continues to change it: The bureaus have committed to making a free weekly credit report through April 21, 2022.

While the extension is a response to the continuing financial issues caused by the pandemic, you don’t have to be in dire money straits to check your report. It’s a good idea to make sure there’s nothing on there that shouldn’t be.

Recently I checked my Experian credit report and found an error. According to the report, I’d had a certain card since 1976. Except that no, I didn’t have a credit card at that time. I didn’t get my first card until about five years later.

I challenged the information and Experian was all over it. I got an immediate note saying, “We’re looking into this, sit tight.” Soon after, I was notified that the incorrect info had been removed* and they were sorry it happened.

Mistakes happen – and sometimes they can be very bad for your credit. 

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COVID-19 and retirement.

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In a piece over at Money Talks News today, I address a Pew Research Center study about COVID-19 and retirement. But I didn’t write the headline.

That’s because “7 unusual tactics to keep COVID-19 from derailing your retirement” was made up of tactics that I personally don’t see as all that unusual.

Then again, a lot of money tactics/frugal hacks that others think are offbeat don’t strike me that way.

Learning to cook. Delaying a purchase if it means saving either money or your budget. Stocking up on items at today’s prices ahead of the inflation that’s already taking place.

But as I learned from my early days at MSN Money: It’s always new to somebody. Maybe to a whole lot of somebodies.

During the 2008 recession, personal finance blogs were offering posts on topics like “how to pack a lunch” and “how to save money by going to yard sales and thrift stores.” These are things that strike me (and maybe you) as just basic adulting skills.

This morning DF and I were talking about these and other basic skills. I reminded him that a lot of success as an adult depends on what you grow up hearing. For example, no one ever said to me “it’s best to start saving for retirement early because of compound interest.”

I was well into adulthood before I learned this – and other people would probably have responded, “How could you not know this?” Because we don’t know what we don’t know, that’s why. What I heard growing up was, “Work hard, pay your bills and if there’s anything left over, put it in the bank.”

Had I known better, I’d be so much farther ahead when it comes to money. For that reason, I’m going to add a few more tactics that could help people with regard to COVID-19 and retirement. If they sound familiar or even oversimplified, remember: We don’t all start at the same place.

 

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Monday miscellany: WFH and PF edition.

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(Edited to add: The Freelance Writer Academy now offers scholarships! See below.)

Almost one in four U.S. residents joined the WFH (work from home) club at least part of the time since the pandemic was officially called in March 2020. According to a recent Bankrate.com poll, more than half of those (57 percent) said that working from had a positive effect on their personal finances.

Among those effects: fewer lunches out, no commuting costs, less need to dress up and fewer impulse purchases. Some also didn’t have to pay for child care, although how they got much done with kids at home is a complete mystery to me.

In fact, one of the least-favorite parts about working from home was simply the distractions while they were trying to work. Those surveyed also said they missed interaction with coworkers, and cited fewer chances for salary increases and promotions while at home.

Their favorite parts: more freedom, family time and sleep.

It’s worth noting that a lot of those who did well with at-home work were already doing well. More than a quarter of those surveyed (28 percent) earned $40,000 to $80,000 a year and more than half (54 percent) earned $80,000 or more. 

 

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Weather, COVID and a deep discount.

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A couple of weeks ago it was below zero. Today it’s supposed to hit 62 degrees. This has been a weird spring, full of weird weather.  

Re the photo at left: Either the greenhouse effect is real, or the remote thermometer in that greenhouse is defective. Maybe a little of each. (The temperature on the right is that of our living room.) This picture was taken on Monday afternoon, when the temperature was in the 50s outdoors –  not what you would call extremely warm, but the angle of the sun hits the greenhouse just right.

About that sun: Sunday, April 18, was the first night of 2021 without complete darkness. According to the National Weather Service, the sky will not darken past “astronautical twilight” until Aug. 25.

If you, like me, are unfamiliar with astronautical twilight, here’s how the NWS explains it: “the level of light observed when the sun is 12 to 18 degrees below the horizon.”

Okay then. Until I moved here I also had never heard the phrase “civil twilight,” either. Live and learn.

Incidentally: The sun rose at 6:23 a.m. today and will set at 9:34 p.m. But thanks to that astronautical twilight, it will seem earlier/later. And, as DF points out, we still have lots of snow left on the ground to amplify that light. Um, yay?

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Giveaway: $25 gift card.

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I had the second COVID-19 shot on April Fool’s Day, two days after my most recent post. Felt okay for a while, meh by the end of the day, and uncomfortable enough to spend  the next two days mostly lying down, either napping or reading.

Was better on Sunday, took care of business Monday through Wednesday (even started writing a post), and on Thursday felt myself sliding back into mehville: fatigue, slightly sore throat, mild headache. Got one of those nice arm rashes, too. 

Now, one day later, I’m feeling a bit better. Well enough to put up a post, anyway. But when I sat down to finish the post I started writing on Wednesday, the crummy feeling returned. This could be my body telling me to stop staring at the screen for a while. Or it could be just plain old work avoidance.

Thus I decided on a giveaway, even though I’d done one fairly recently. Completely playing the COVID card: I just don’t feel like writing. Besides, most people are pretty cheerful about the chance to win some retail scrip.

What kind? That’s up to the winner. Any retailer that will let me send an e-gift card is fair game.

 

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Ode to my COVID shot.

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Finally, finally got an appointment to get the doggoned COVID shot. I thought they’d never ask.

In fact, I was a bit surprised it took so long. The vaccination door has been open to the 65-and-up-crowd for weeks and weeks. Yesterday they opened it up to people over 55, and I pounced on the opportunity like a raven on a French fry.

The website kept telling me that I could get the COVID shot at this pharmacy or that pharmacy – except that those pharmacies didn’t seem to have any vaccine available.

A very kind woman at the state department of public health stayed on the phone with me and walked me through the signup. I can’t quite remember what I was doing wrong, but she somehow figured it out and made it possible for me to get an appointment at 9:40 a.m. today.

My arm is a bit sore but I haven’t developed any major complications. I still intend to go to bed early because heck, why not? I love to sleep.

I was so happy to get the COVID shot that I felt like singing. Which is probably why I found myself humming the song “Maria,” from the musical “West Side Story.”

Moderna

I’m getting a shot called Moderna…

But first, let me acknowledge that Dolly Parton – who also got the Moderna shot – did the song parody better. (She also donated a bunch of bucks to help get the vaccine developed in the first place, bless her heart.) 

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Monday miscellany: Love and money edition.

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If the Policy Genius “Couples & Money” survey is any indication, one of the things COVID didn’t change was love and money. Specifically, it didn’t change how paired-up households manage their dough.

About 40 percent manage their finances together and 22 percent “keep and manage” money separately, which is consistent with PG’s previous two surveys.

A few other interesting tidbits:

About two-thirds (66 percent) say money doesn’t have any influence on their relationship.

Almost one in three (30 percent) have paid off a partner’s debts. In that group, 44 percent have plunked down more than $10,000 to settle their loved ones’ obligations.

Lots of partners aren’t sharing money specifics. That includes topics like salary (41 percent), retirement savings (49 percent), credit scores (54 percent), debt (42 percent), investments (48 percent) and monthly spending totals (53 percent). And one out of five respondents say they don’t know any of those things about their partners.

Speaking of not-knowing: Almost two-thirds (64 percent) of those surveyed said that lying or hiding money could mean the end of a relationship. Yet one in five of them have an undisclosed will or some kind of secret account (credit card, banking, retirement, life insurance).

One way to get around all the secrecy is simple: Talk about money.

 

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COVID hack: Use rewards points.

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According to a recent report from Bankrate.com, about one in three rewards credit cards holders did not cash in any rewards points in 2020.

That’s not surprising, given how many people save their points for air travel. Not much of that last year; only 11 percent of the 2,449 cardholders surveyed cashed in for flights.

On the other hand, 30 percent of those surveyed redeemed points big-time, to the tune of $300 or more worth of gift cards or actual spending cash.

When times are good, rewards points are a savvy consumer’s way of getting the most bang for the buck. And when times are not so good? That $300 cash-in can be a fine budget-booster.

“You could use it to defray big expenses or for small, everyday items to make your life better,” says Ted Rossman, a credit card analyst at Bankrate.com.

To paraphrase the credit card commercial, “What’s in your (virtual) wallet?” That is, what kinds of rewards points are languishing, rather than being given something to do? 

 

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