A Pocket Full of Change

Tag: retirement

Why I Hate Pensions – Episode 4: The Balrog

March 17, 2023 /
Image from Balrog | Non-alien Creatures Wiki | Fandom

“…Demons with whips of chain and claws of steel….shrouded in fire, darkness and shadow…”

“This is a foe beyond any of you” -Gandalf

Would I be so bold as to equate the HOOPP pension with one of the most monstrous horrors of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings? Should I go that far? Is it really that bad? Hmmm… So many rhetorical questions, about to be given concrete answers! Perhaps in matters such as this, the question is not “if” you find something of a Balrog caliber, but “when”… So… The answer to these questions is yes. The deeper we dig, the more we’ll find. And in this episode, we’re going to unearth the buried; quantify the un-quantifiable! And Uncover hidden secrets! Read on if you dare!

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Why I Hate Pensions: Episode 1 – The Beginning

October 7, 2022 /
Yeeepp. That’s where we’re headed…

Right now, if you could, would you choose to have $1,000,000 in your bank account that you could access as soon as you retire, to spend as you see fit? Or would you rather have that money in equal payments over the course of 30 year period? Well, being part of a pension doesn’t give you a choice in the matter. Or does it?

I have questions. And the answers I’m looking for aren’t going to be pretty. So come along with me for the ride! We’re going to investigate all the reasons as to why I hate pensions! Because where we’re going, we don’t need roads! We’ll need a shovel. That’s right, a shovel! Because we’re going to do a whole lot of digging, through heaps of shite!

We’re about to go down a rabbit hole of unknown depths… Will we find strange and bizarre things? … Perhaps rabbits.. Maybe chipmunks… Possibly coyotes… Maybe even a hippopotamus or two if we get deep enough… and if we dig too deep… A Balrog even? Do you have any idea what a Balrog is? It’s quite frightening, that’s what!

But at the very least, we’ll hopefully discover truth…

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Pension Wars: Teachers vs Healthcare

February 13, 2022 /
2021 Edition

Ask anyone in Ontario. What is the best pension plan out there? The answer I’ve most often come across is the Teachers’ pension! Not only is it widely touted (perhaps not by Teachers themselves) that they are paid well, but that they also seem to have the best pension plan in existence.

If you ask the same question of healthcare workers, they may also name the Teachers. But healthcare in much of the province has their own solid pension which many also rave about.

Do Ontario Teachers really have the best pension? Or do healthcare workers have the best? And what exactly does it mean to have “the best” pension? Are there better ones out there? And can we figure out all of this without the topic ending up dryer than sand-paper in the desert? And will we run into any cactuses along the way? And will I ever stop making really terrible desert jokes? Let’s find out!

Welcome to Pension Wars!

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A Primer on Fire Part 2: Saving A Mountain

February 5, 2020 /

“Great! Now I know how to make my nest egg last for my early retirement. But what if I don’t care about retiring early or saving up enough to become financially independent? I love my job and want to do it forever! YAY WORK!“

That’s great! You’re either lying to yourself (and me), or you may be one of the very tiny minority that honestly feels this way, and I might be just a little bit jealous.

REALITY CHECK: Your Job Doesn’t Love You!

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