Welcome to the Retirement News Articles for the week of April 8th. I was too busy with a road trip to Atlanta for medical testing for a family member this week to produce any posts beyond the weekly newsletter.
My favorite retirement newsletter articles for the week are below.
- Bonus Story: Hail to the Chief: One Great Article About Every U.S. President
- Travel for Seniors: Best Places to Visit in Italy
- Financial Management for Seniors: How much money Americans in their 50s have in their 401(k)s
SOLAR ECLIPSE NEWS
NASA Eclipse Explorer – gives you all you need to know for your zip code.
Also, if you missed my article about today’s Solar Eclipse, check it out here at the top of last week’s newsletter in the “week’s favorites” section.
Though I am not the author of these Retirement News Articles, I have searched earnestly for quality content that will prove of value and interest to my subscribers. I hope you enjoy these articles and encourage you to comment on not only the content, but with thoughts on what subjects you would like to see in this weekly compilation.
Please note that you can now subscribe to this weekly edition on the upper right-hand portion of my website (or for those viewing this on a smart phone, it should be at the bottom of the page).
Thank you
Mike
Retirement News Articles – Bonus Story
This article, from Pocket, provides an interesting article about each of the 45 Presidents. I was especially intrigued with the story about Zachary Taylor and the Whig Party, which was ironically replaced by the Republican Party in the 1850’s when America was as “fractured” as it is now. If you are a fan of history or politics, this is a worthy read.
Hail to the Chief: One Great Article About Every U.S. President
Travel for Seniors
Article one, from the US News Travel Team, gives us a list of the best places to visit in Italy, taking into account a number of factors, from affordability and seasonality to sights and crowds. Hopefully, this list can help you decide exactly where you would like to go. Do you have a favorite destination in Italy? Cast your vote at the bottom of the article to influence next year’s ranking.
Gorski Kotar, deemed the “Green Heart of Croatia”, is a lush, mountainous region in western Croatia nestled between Karlovac and Rijeka. It consists of expansive forests and wide lakes covering a staggering 63 percent of the landscape that make the region perfect for outdoor life. What’s more, it isn’t as of yet a tourist mecca, so this can be an ideal getaway. If you plan to travel to the Balkans, or if you are like myself and have Croatian heritage, you can’t miss this gem. Article two tells you why…
Why you should put Gorski Kotar, Croatia on your bucket list
Lifestyle, Health & Welfare for Seniors
Article one, from Shots…a health series from NPR, which gives us the low down on art and how it affects our brain and overall outlook. The article is so convincing, I will be featuring art as a hobby in that section of this newsletter as well.
Article two shows there is growing evidence that signals sent from our internal organs to the brain play a major role in regulating emotions and fending off anxiety and depression. I for one am intrigued, as I have known someone who I always believed “felt” things about his body most of us don’t. It was to him, a mixed blessing.
Feeling Artsy? Here’s How Making Art Helps Your Brain
Interoception: The Hidden Sense That Shapes Well being
Food, Nutrition & Cooking
In article one, Takeout gives us a slideshow of 13 foods we can make in our slow cookers. The brownies, cinnamon rolls, and lasagna have me sold.
I’m not going to suggest you use the slow cooker to impress your dinner guest, who happens to be the head chef at the local 5-star restaurant. However, article two, from The Takeout, is a GREAT lesson on cooking for a friend who happens to be a professional chef. Most importantly, what the article points out is the social aspects of the meal are at least as important, and likely more memorable, than the meal. I liked this article so much, that I have saved it to my files.
13 Surprising Foods You Can Make in a Slow Cooker
How to Cook for a Way Better Cook Than You
Recreation, Exercise & Hobbies
Article one is not one article, but an introduction to 14 helpful articles to get you started gardening the right way. So, before you buy those seeds or pull out your gardening tools, read about the essential plans and skills you’ll need for your first (or first successful) garden.
Article two is a bit whimsical, but as you have seen me advocate repeatedly, I believe in keeping your mind active as you age. Reading things of interest and out of the ordinary allow us to step out of our rut once in a while1. The article tells us that squirrels were an extremely popular pet in the 17th and 18th centuries and provides further detail, even quoting a reference from none other than Benjamin Franklin.
1Another tidbit I came across as typing this article: Awhile vs. A While. Awhile is an adverb that means “for a while,” and a while is a two-word noun phrase that means “a period of time.” Typically, a while is found after a preposition (after a while) and with ago/back (a while ago/back). Awhile is found in all other contexts (dance awhile).
How to Start Gardening: A Beginner’s Guide
When Squirrels Were One of America’s Most Popular Pets
Arts, Entertainment, and Reading
Article one, from Vogue, features an interview forty years after the release of The Go-Go’s star-making debut album, “Beauty and the Beat,” wherein the key players recall the forming of the band.
Article two is from Rolling Stone and highlights some of the worst movies from some of the best directors in the movie industry. As the article points out, if you are a director without a flop, then you haven’t been around very long…it’s almost inevitable.
How the Go-Go’s Found Their Beat: An Oral History
50 Terrible Movies by Great Directors
Financial Management for Seniors
Admittedly, if you are recently retired and downsizing after a lifetime in your home, you may not be in a perilous position in the current housing market. However, given the reasons shared in article two for the current tight housing market (high interest rates and exorbitant prices), it makes for a difficult, perplexing situation for everyone. Even for retirees who are sitting on a lot of equity, they may ask themselves, “why would we leave our current home, with a 3% interest rate to buy a much smaller home, for as much or more money at an interest rate that is at least two times as much…?”
The median 401(k) account balance for Americans in their 50s is $60,900 as of the last quarter of 2023, per Fidelity data. Not surprisingly, this is not good news, but for some (or many) of you it does tell you that you are not alone. Article two, from CNBC, gives you some ideas to get things back on track.
Why buying a house feels impossible right now
How much money Americans in their 50s have in their 401(k)s