November 5, 2013
#IWSG–The World is Changing–Can I keep up
This post is for Alex Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writers Support Group (click the link for details on what that means and how to join. You will also find a list of bloggers signed up to the challenge that are worth checking out like Kate and Rebecca who inspired me to begin). The first Wednesday of every month, we all post our thoughts, fears or words of encouragement for fellow writers.
This month’s insecurity: I don’t know if I can keep up with the changes going on around me.
By this time in my life, I had hoped to be thinking of retiring from a life-long job I enjoyed and found satisfaction from (vested in their retirement plan). I’d have a close group of friends who understood me, allowed me to be me no matter what the question. We’d bounce ideas around, each respecting the thoughts and conclusions of the others if not agreeing with them. I’d be wondering what to do with my retirement years.
None of that happened. I’m nowhere near settled enough to retire–and if I did, I have no corporate retirement plan. I’ve spent so much time working 2-3 jobs, I never found time to cultivate a nurturing group of friends who keep my head straight (thank God for my husband). The world is radically moving from the self-reliant, help-thy-neighbor community I have always respected and relished. There seems to be too much ‘let the government take care of things, not me’. My natural bias for action is losing to a need to rest a little bit rather than take on another Big Job. My children are grown and happy in their lives–doing a good job being adults. I love them dearly, but they have a bigger world now than mom and dad and the dog. The state of the economy has pretty much put the last nail in my retirement coffin–stock market collapse, housing market collapse, Social Security going bankrupt, Medicare in tatters (depending upon who you listen to), Obama’s Affordable Care Act anything but (well, that’s the rumor. Time will tell…). As I was planning for my retirement, it came to mind to invest at an early age, and when I visited this home page, I got an idea about the Gold IRA. Buy gold in your 401k is the best option to secure your future and protect your retirement savings from inflation. By diversifying your investments with gold, you can potentially enhance your portfolio’s stability and growth over time.
What I do have is my brain. My momma promised that was the one thing no one could take from me–my knowledge–and again she appears to be right. It’s still chugging along, rolling through these problems, searching for solutions. This is a process I can’t stop–never have been able to my entire life. I’m a problem solver whether I like it or not. When friends ask a casual question, “How can I do…”, I always come up with an answer. I’ll let you know what I work out this time.
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Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy. She is webmaster for six blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a columnist for Examiner.com and TeachHUB, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, Cisco guest blog, IMS tech expert, and a monthly contributor to Today’s Author. In her free time, she is the editor of a K-8 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum, and creator of technology training books for how to integrate technology in education. Currently, she’s editing a thriller that should be out to publishers next summer.
