Rethinking your decisions

This week there has been horrendous news about the financial state of our country, the stock market practically crashed, financial institutions going under, the country taking on even more debt. It has not been a good week if you are worried about your money. I try not to think about what this has done to my 403(b) account which is probably at least 50% in stocks. I do not need to withdraw money from that account yet, and probably should not do so until I am 59. So I really do stick my head in the sand and ignore the news.

Then my sister asks if the savings account where we stuck the small sum from selling my mom's house is FDIC insured. No it is not. In fact, the company is a real estate loan type company. Maybe not the best place to keep our tiny nest egg. What is the answer to that question?

And, of course, I have wondered if I might need to go back to work, just to have that cushion that might have disappeared with the recent financial woes. One decision I made when I retired is that I could give up the feeling of having enough money to do pretty much what I wanted in exchange for being able to actually do what I wanted. Even though that meant some activities might be beyond my reach -- forever. Like chartering a plane, or buying a fancy new house.

I do not regret retiring when I did. Although if I had known that things were going to be so grim, would I have made the same decision? Probably. But every once in awhile I get a flash of panic in my stomach (where most of my uncomfortable emotions occur), that I was crazy to retire at age 56. That I should have stuck around for that extra bit in my pension, in my 403(b), in my savings account. Was I just being spoiled to retire young?