The past, present and future are tied together

In a September 2005 column printed here, I mentioned my amazing
cousin, Louise. This year, she will be 95 and her physician tells
her to plan for her 100th birthday. Louise was born Aug. 1914. Just
think of the history she has seen. Actually, she was the last of my
great uncle Jim’s children. He had 10 children by his first wife,
who died. Then, he had four children by his second wife.
 
In a September 2005 column printed here, I mentioned my amazing cousin, Louise. This year, she will be 95 and her physician tells her to plan for her 100th birthday. Louise was born Aug. 1914. Just think of the history she has seen. Actually, she was the last of my great uncle Jim’s children. He had 10 children by his first wife, who died. Then, he had four children by his second wife. 

Louise is the last living member of more than 30 cousins, the last of all those children born from the four Anderson boys, Jim, John, Dyton and Stacy Washington, Jr., whose mother brought them to Louisiana, after their father, a member of the 37th Mississippi, was wounded by a “Minnie” ball to the leg in July 1864, captured by the Army of The Cumberland and died in August, after leg amputation.

Daughter of John, Louise, remains gorgeous and is still the ultimate lady, the queen, the matriarch, is still much in control and has visited us over the years.

But, even more interesting is the following:

You may remember the best seller and movie, Laura Hillenbrand’s, “Seabiscuit, An American Legend,” which revealed the history of the great racehorse and the Howard family.

The owner of Seabiscuit was Charles S. Howard. An entrepreneur at the turn of the 20th century, Howard left his first wife, Fannie Mae, mother of their three sons, in New York and in 1903 toured west to become a bicycle mechanic in San Francisco. Not long after the 1906 earthquake, Howard parlayed his entrepreneurism into becoming a Buick mogul on the West Coast. As an automobile magnate in 1932, he married his second wife, Marcela, the sister of his son Lin’s wife. 

Charles Howard and Marcela shared a passion for horse racing. In 1936, they purchased the thoroughbred, Seabiscuit, for $8,000. The rest is history.

However, my cousin is not in the book. Cousin Louise, married Charles Howard, Jr., one of the sons of Charles S. Howard’s first wife, Fannie Mae. 

No matter, Louise Howard is one of the most vivacious people I have ever met. 

And, she still lives in a penthouse on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles; supported by the Howard legacy.

Interesting story, you say. But, what does it have to do with me.

Just wait a moment for another story.

I left the aerospace industry 16 years ago. My wife and I retired at the same time. We both receive Social Security and retirement, mine from the aerospace company and hers from the state retirement system. But, that would not be enough to support us.

Yet, our income approximates the Morgan Hill average, as recently reported by the San Jose newspaper, only because we have additional income.

Now, when you retire, will you have a lifelong trust or a reasonable enough retirement income to live a normal life?

And, for how long? Those younger than 55, please take note.

Year by year the average life span increases. My cousin approaches 95. My wife and I are approaching 80. 

My wife and I have been retired for 16 years. It is quite possible for us to go on for another 10 years.

You, younger than 55, how long will you require an income to support you?

I have twin 50-year-old sons, who have been in Silicon Valley-type business management for 25 years.

One twin says, “Retirement?? Are you kidding? THAT is something of the past. Companies no longer feel obligated to provide such a benefit. My pension is gone, that was a dying breed. Now companies are no longer going to contribute to 401Ks.

“This is all to get their liabilities very low and make their ‘EBIT’ (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes) look attractive to investors.

Imagine the future for a retiree, Social Security will be milked and pilfered by the Obama administration and will only provide a trickle of income, no one will even know what a pension is unless that person works for the government, and what is left with any 401(k) money (mine lost 30 percent of its value), will have been paid out in non-hardship withdrawals to pay off debt.

“Retirement? Don’t count on it. You are on your own.”

The other twin says, “No, I think you can retire if you put all your 401(k) money in safe money market funds. Not stocks.”

At this point, who knows?

Nevertheless, for years, Americans have spent more than they earned. Credit card debt, consumer debt, auto debt, mortgage debt, corporate debt are at record levels. And, we save nothing.

So, young people younger than 55, how will you survive to an ever increasing old age? Maybe, for the next 10 or 15 years, you need to start being frugal. Stop spending on everything your heart desires. Start investing in your future in “safe” ways, which will maintain your lifestyle.

You better start planning and saving, now.

Or, maybe you could win the lottery.

Or, marry into a trust fund.