DrLefty

Comments

• I have several items that fall into the "Self-Care/Wellness" category:

  1. membership to a massage studio: for my fee ($80/month), I get one 50-min massage per month and a discounted price on any other ones, though I usually just go once a month. I also tip my therapist about $35 each time.
  2. Pilates classes: I take a class once a week at a local studio; it costs me $37 for a 55-min class, so it's about $150/month.
  3. pedicures: I go every four weeks and pay $60, including tip.
  I started getting the massages when I developed "cranky" shoulders (recurrent bouts of frozen shoulder). At first I just had upper-body work but now do full body. My shoulders are OK at the moment, but I consider it maintenance. I probably could manage without the Pilates classes if I had to cut back; they do have Pilates classes on the Peloton platform that I already pay for. But I like the studio and I like having an instructor with "eyes on" my form. As for the pedicures, yes, I like my toes to look nice given that I live in California and spend about 10 months per year in sandals. But a nice pedicure is good for your overall foot health, too. My husband joins me for pedicures but not for toe polish!

  Post: One Person’s Luxury, Another’s Necessity

  Link to comment from July 21, 2026

• We got an 85” TV when we moved to our new house in May. I thought it was ridiculous (we had a 75” TV in the old place, and I thought that was plenty big enough), but my husband wanted it, and since he’s “taking one for the team” by working half-time instead of fully retiring, I felt he should get it if he wanted it. When it was installed, I said, “I feel like I live in a sports bar.” My husband: “You say that like it’s a bad thing!” 😂 This past weekend, he was flipping between the British Open and the World Cup games, and I do have to say that the golf course looked pretty nice on that big screen.

  Post: FIFA Financials

  Link to comment from July 21, 2026

• Our SF Giants won three World Series in five years (2010, 12, 14), and we never went to a World Series game. We did go to a couple first-round playoff games, but we still had a kid in college and I couldn’t stomach the price tag for the tickets. Here we are in 2026, and the Giants now haven’t won a playoff series since 2014. I have regrets.

  Post: FIFA Financials

  Link to comment from July 21, 2026

• We have neither $20M nor a Corvette! There are sports cars and there are sports cars.

  Post: A Can of Worms

  Link to comment from July 20, 2026

• OK, we bought a sports car in 2018, but we still have it, it has low mileage, and we’ll be driving it until we’re too old and feeble to climb in and out of it. The amount of enjoyment we’ve already received from it is worth a lot to us. A convertible in California is a beautiful thing. Other than that, I don’t think I’ve opened any other of your cans of worms! ✅

  Post: A Can of Worms

  Link to comment from July 19, 2026

• I just read it. It didn’t look like the Uncle Joe/Uncle Jerry scenarios accounted for RMDs, which is what we were discussing. If you have a huge amount of retirement account savings and became a widow(er) after RMD age, it makes sense that your tax hit, including IRMAA, would be (much) larger. Plus there’s the loss of one Social Security check. I take the point that, depending on how the couple spends money, the survivor’s expenses could go down, but that also doesn’t change your tax hit—it just makes it somewhat less painful. Maybe I’m missing something?

  Post: Will Your Death Double Your Spouse’s Tax Bill?

  Link to comment from July 19, 2026

• That’s a good point. We’ve been ambivalent on Roth conversions, even though we understand the reasons behind them, because (a) my husband is still working and (b) we have pension income. Our tax bracket will be lower once he goes down to 50% later this year and eventually fully retires, but it’s never going to be super low. But maybe it’s worth doing anyway for the “widow’s penalty” reasons.

  Post: Will Your Death Double Your Spouse’s Tax Bill?

  Link to comment from July 16, 2026

• That was a good article. I thought I knew the territory well, but the suggestions about what to do are worth considering. For example, I had considered Roth conversions for various reasons, but not specifically for providing a pot of tax-free money for the surviving spouse. We both have term life policies that end the year we turn 69, about six months before my husband turns 70. I’ll file for SS at 67, but he’s planning to wait until 70. Those policies are a hedge against him not making it to 70. But taking out new term policies specifically for the purpose of replacing the second SS is also an interesting idea. It wouldn’t have to be a ridiculously huge policy. Anyway, it gave me something to think about, so thanks for sharing it!

  Post: Will Your Death Double Your Spouse’s Tax Bill?

  Link to comment from July 15, 2026

• We currently pay $1465 ($732.50 each) for our Medicare A,B,&D + IRMAA. However, we get a partial reimbursement from my husband’s former employer (which provides our Medicare supplement, too) that is added to his monthly pension check. We’re still out-of-pocket about $500/month, but that’s for excellent coverage. It still seems like a lot, but really, I can’t complain.

  Post: A discussion on health insurance, premiums, profits and such- a 50 year perspective most people don’t want to accept

  Link to comment from July 15, 2026

• Sorry, Laura, I just saw this! I love what you said about the benefits of supporting a spouse’s creative endeavors! It’s definitely on the list of things I want to think about and try out!

  Post: Retirement, One Year On

  Link to comment from July 15, 2026