Purple Balloon Monkey

I have talked about this on previous blogs, I feel I must continue to talk about it.

There are sharks out there, looking for you to give away your nest egg, often in return for something trivial, perhaps as trivial as a Purple Balloon Monkey.

The so called Reverse mortgage has gone mainstream – they are no longer sold as something for seniors who are house rich and cash poor and need money to make ends meet. Today, they’re marketed as a way for homeowners 62 or older to crack open a giant (yet imaginary) piggy bank.

The pitch is attractive, “Isn’t it time you started to enjoy retirement your way?” and "Why sit on thousands of dollars in unused equity when you can buy stuff?" or something along those lines.

The truth is that all reverse mortgages are costly and complicated. Clearly, they’re a godsend to some seniors who have no other way to pay their bills. But they can be an absolute nightmare for people who don’t understand how they work.

The reverse mortgage, sold on a promise of unlocked wealth and happiness, can often destroy a safe future for the elderly, money that perhaps should be used for residential care in your later years, squandered on consumer products, far too late in the game.

I would encourage anyone considering this method of entering back into the world of debt to do more research, talk to people who do not have a vested interest in stealing your house in the autumn of your life, and as usual, do not fall for a flawed pitch based on the shiny objects game.

Loosen the grip

In my retired world I am reminded, almost on a daily basis, of how important some of the habits I acquired over the last fifteen years of my working life were.

Although, I suspect some of those latent habits had been there from my parents influences, one such thing was that in 1952, when they married, they did not sell the farm to do so.

I'm watching a cute TV show at the moment called "Rich bride, Poor bride" that demonstrates some of the absolute stupidity that brides, and grooms, indulge in for the special day.

In life, staying together and working at happiness has to be more important than that one day, and one of the things that tears couples apart is money and the constant tug of war that the substance can bring in a relationship.

So, if you are planning that special day, remember that it is just one, in potentially twenty thousand days to experience together so don't start the process with a wallet flush, or worse, debt, to attempt to prove to your friends how much you love each other.

Bring home the Bacon

Convenience food is bad for your checking account.


A few products available today, from a list of thousands I suspect, show that the consumer can be robbed of precious dollars for so called, time saving foods.

I've said before, I don't want the blog turning into a series of lists, but a couple of items have caught my eye in this weeks grocery flyer, the first being bacon.

Fully cooked bacon, 65 grams of it, for $3.49 a package, which on closer inspection has 15 slices of the precious metal. That's thirty cents a slice, and a small slice at 4 grams a piece. Now, call me crazy, but I hear that a whole pound of bacon, a whacking great 454 grams of bacon, can be bought in the same store for $3.99

The second item that riles me, is a new product called purely potato chunks, that can be steamed and mashed, they have been selected, peeled, chunked and all you have to do is defrost and steam them, oh and then mash them. $3.99 for 750 grams, which, by my reckoning is less than two pounds of potato.

In the same store, potatoes can be had for $3.99 for a ten pound bag (and that is expensive).

The point, well, roll up your sleeves and cook your own bacon, peel your own spuds and eat lots of fresh vegetables instead of frozen.

The only thing that will be fatter is your wallet.