Mole Hills Round III

Dear Friends and Family,

You remember last week's drama on Thursday?

We had a close call on Sunday when the flights back from Seattle filled up. Mr. mouse bought a one way ticket at the last minute as an insurance policy to getting home. Fun. Fun. Fun. We made it home, barely. We got the last two seats on the first leg. And, made the second leg by 2 seconds, literally.

Well, hoping to avoid all of that AND more importantly all of the drama associated with it all, we actually BOUGHT a ticket for yesterday morning's flight. Wouldn't you know it, the flight gets delayed for over an hour due to mechanicals. And, the words out of my dear colleague's mouth?

"That's unacceptable."

I could have screamed. Don't get me wrong, I felt bad about it all. I really did. Ask Mr. mouse. He saw me running frantically from gate to gate before coming back to my original gate and collapsing in a pile of tears.

What got me was that she was upset at the lack of commitment from the overall team - another person bagged on the meeting. And, she was in a rush to go on vacation herself. So why take it out on me? Because I'm available? We need a "#$%@! happens" t-shirt for her. We really do.

What I've come to realize is that she can be a control freak. Everyone must be in their spot at every moment, because at any moment she might need to ask them something. Any moment someone is somewhere else is a moment they're not accessible to "move the ball forward."

Hello. Some of us have a life outside of work. And, if I had a sick kid? Would that be unacceptable? Would that be a "lifestyle choice" that I would need to have a bullet-proof plan for? Come to think of it, I can still scream prettily easily about it. It just ticks me off to no end.

The poison associated with my current work can't be good for my health. So, here's my resolve.

September 18th. I'll be back from vacation. I'll have a week to do the pile of errands that will crop up. And, then, I will focus renewed energy on a new job for mouse. Something not in this group. I'll miss Frenchie, but it's time for a change.

September 18th. I'm finally ready.


Cheers!
mouse

Fast Food Nation

Dear Friends and Family,

Recently, it seems like I've been living at the airport. Maybe, because I have. Wednesday, I came out to see Mr. mouse. Thursday, I went back. Friday, I left for Seattle but only made it as far as Denver. Saturday, Seattle. Sunday, back home. Monday, out to see Mr. mouse. Tuesday: a blissful birthday break. Wednesday, back home.

All this flying inevitably means I'm eating at the airport sometimes. And, the food options at the airport. Tricky, tricky, tricky... So, what's my game plan? Option 1, plan ahead, eat ahead. But, let's say that fails miserably...

Sushi

It's a lot more common at airports now than when you and I were growing up. Mostly, made ahead rolls of decent quality. Each piece is ~1/2 point. most containers range from 9 - 12 pieces. 9 pieces = 4 Weight Watchers points, 12 pieces = 6 points. The soy sauce, wasabi and ginger, all free.

Subway

Another good option, is Subway. Their turkey breast, ham, turkey breast and ham subs. 6" sub on white or wheat without cheese or mayo are 5 points each. Add a bag of Lays Baked Chips (original) for another 2 points. Meal in a bag.

McDonald's or Burger King

The last resort. But, it happens. Friday night, I had a Whopper Jr. no mayo no cheese. 6 points. And, a side salad, no dressing, no croutons. 0 points. Most people don't take their salad so extreme. I actually prefer it that way.

Gotta run. It's time to fly.


Cheers!
mouse

Happy Birthday, Mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

It's my birthday :)

I came out and stayed with Mr. mouse.

Big day ahead of us today. Going to the salon for some new eyebrows. Then, headed out for some new shoes and a new "interview" suit. My old one magically turned into a potato sack. Then, over to the store to get a new cell phone.

Then... drum roll, please...


We're off to see the King Tut Exhibit at the Field Museum. I can't wait! I'm a huge Egyptology fan - fourth to sixth grade, it was my absolute obsession.

Dinner to follow and maybe Hot Chocolate for dessert.

A bunch of little chores as well: call our neighbor to get the contact for roof repair (had another incident), finish assembling a chair that needs a drill bit, mail our other neighbor a key, and I'm sure I'm forgetting something...

Now, a retrospective on the past year which has gone so quickly. I guess a lot has changed, but a lot has stayed the same. This time last year, we had just sold the "Ranch". In the fall, we bought the "Brownstone". We moved the bulk of our stuff from the "Winter Cabin" to clear up space there. We lost a dear friend and realized another had grown from a boy to a young man. Mr. mouse got promoted. I found my health, or at least I'm well on my way - 10 more pounds to being "normal" on the whole BMI scale. Work is still a debacle, but I've got the time and energy to focus on that now.

I'm sure the year to come will be as exciting, but, all in all, this past year wasn't all that bad either.


Cheers!
mouse

PS: Food thoughts either tomorrow or Thursday.

Weekend Update - Mouse Tries Photo Blogging

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm going to try something new today and add a bunch of photos from our weekend. We flew out to Seattle this weekend to see a bunch of our friends.

This is Babo, one of my travel companions. He's an Uglydoll.


We went to brunch with my cousin and her husband to a place called Salty's. Did great points-wise, too, until I compiled my 30 point dessert plate.


We went for a walk on Alki beach. The weather was perfect. And, it helped walk off brunch.


These guys are much better than the ones we saw on Lake Michigan. None of us "get" the socks.


view of downtown Seattle


We met up with some of Mr. mouse's old buddies. Several have moved out to Seattle.


One of them got tickets to the game from work. The seats were great. Row 8 at first base.


The Mariners won 4-3. It was a riveting game.


Afterwards, we headed over to see Mr. mouse' old college roommate. And, their two kids.


#2 just joined us 2 weeks ago. So, Mr. mouse was very eager to go see him.



Happy Monday. Hoped you enjoyed the glimpse into our weekend.


Cheers!
mouse

Mountains Out of Mole Hills

Dear Friends and Family,

What an ABSOLUTE debacle yesterday turned out to be.

I went out Wednesday night to meet up with my friend for dinner. We tried a new restaurant a couple of blocks from the house. Yummy yummy to the tummy tummy.

Yesterday morning there was a freak thunderstorm and the airport turned into mass chaos... flights cancelled, flights delayed, runways closed, you name it we had it.

So, I promised a colleague at work that I would take care of some stuff for a meeting we had. And, with the flight disaster, I couldn't. I'll take full ownership of that. My bad.

But, it got so blown out of proportion. It was telling. Me. I would have winged it. Found a way to make it work. My god. How many times have I had to wing it when things don't go my way? But, no, oh the drama. It was ridiculous.

To top it all off, the 30 minute meeting. It was cancelled. So, the actual impact of me being late? Nil.

Wow.

Let's not have more of those days. It's like seeing yourself in the makeup mirror - the close ups sometimes reveal details we're better off not seeing. In others AND in ourselves.

Putting it all behind me, I'm off to the gym this morning. Hopefully, it'll help me find center.


Cheers!
mouse

Weather Update

Dear Friends and Family,

Don't ask me why... I feel the need... The need... to report the weather :)

It's raining cats and dogs and frankly elephants, monkeys and small hippos.

It's a solid sheet of water out there, but I'm safe and sound in the mouse house. It feels therapeutic.

sigh...


Cheers!
mouse

Mandoo (aka Korean Dumplings)

Dear Friends and Family,

We all have one... the ultimate childhood comfort food.

For me, that's a no-brainer. I love mandoo. They're Korean dumplings. They can be boiled, fried or steamed. My favorite is when you boil them first then lightly pan fry them. I remember making them with my mom and grandma when they both had the time and energy. Now, sadly, we buy pre-made in the frozen food section of the local Asian grocery store.

There's a bewildering array of choices. And, everyone has their preference. Mine is CJ Vegetable and Meat Dumplings. They have noodles inside of them and are a fair to good approximation of the recipe my mom used. Here's a picture of the bag, in case you want to hunt them down.

They keep forever in the freezer. My recent modus operandi has been to have them for dinner on those nights when nothing else appeals to me. I've been having them boiled to save on points. They're an easy to calculate 1 point per dumpling on Weight Watchers. And, I have them with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar on the side.

Mr. mouse came over last night to pack for our upcoming weekend and to help cheer me up. I didn't sleep well Sunday night or Monday night, so by yesterday I was a wreck. It was good to see him on a week night.

Service interruption alert: I'm headed out tonight to meet a friend for dinner. He's visiting the mouse pad from Michigan where we worked together. So, I probably won't have a chance to write again until Thursday evening/Friday morning, if anyone is checking on a regular basis.


Cheers!
mouse

PS: Had a chance to update last week's post with pictures from the restaurant. Enjoy!

Catching Up on Info from Last Night

Dear Friends and Family,

I had grandiose plans for a long post... My old boss left the company and yesterday was the first day without his evil presence at work. But, somehow, I don't care enough to spend the time and energy to write a long post about it. Duly noted: he's gone from my life and I can move on.

Last night, my neighbors had me over for dinner. We went to a local bike shop to pick out a helmet for my noggin. Basically, the protection level is the same across all of them so it's a matter of trying them on for fit. It's like scuba goggles, it's all about fit. And the winner is...


Specialized Air Force Helmet

We went for a quick "ride" when we got home. Basically, we went to the parking lot a block away and I tried getting on the bike. I came back to me pretty to quickly, at least the basics did. Then, we rode home together. He's a lot faster than I am. A) I haven't figured out gears yet. B) I still get really dicey with corners. C) I get nervous downhill so I apply the brakes more on them. D) He's probably in a lot better shape than I am. But, I'm equipped now. I think I'll try going for a bike ride in the mornings since it's still light out. Not today, today, I have my personal training session. Maybe later this week.

Food. What to write about today? Sorry to let you down. The food post will be coming tomorrow. I need to get ready for the gym. Ugh. Too tired for the gym.


Cheers!
mouse

Weekend Update

Dear Friends and Family,

Ahh... A glimpse at what life can be like. Mr. mouse and I had a great weekend - nothing special, blissfully normal.

We slept in Saturday. Then, spent all day cleaning the house from top to bottom. I love a clean house. Mr. mouse also weeded, mowed and watered the lawn. The weather was perfect this weekend - warm, dry and sunny.

Sunday, we slept in again, read the paper, and ran a ton of errands. We dropped off a pair of pants to be tailored. We picked up the latest copy of Norton Anti-Virus. Fortunately for us, Best Buy had a slew of mail-in rebates. Theoretically it'll be free once we complete all of the paperwork.

We baby-sat our neighbor for a couple of hours, but it's not really baby-sitting, it's more like just hanging out together. We made dinner together (pasta, sausage and salad) and watched Lady and the Tramp.

Sunday night, our financial planner came over to review the quarterly numbers. The good news is we've had great returns on our investments. Yeah! He also outlined what we should attempt to save this year for our retirement. It all still looks reasonable. It finally feels like we're making progress.


Cheers!
mouse

TGIF!

Dear Friends and Family,

No central theme here today. Just odds and ends to wrap up for the week.

I met up with Mr. mouse last night. We tried a new restaurant, a Korean dumpling place. We ordered a ton of food with the intent of trying everything. The boiled dumplings were good. The consistency of the skin was just right. But the amount of filling was on the low side. Grandma put in 3X as much filling. The fried dumplings were deep fried... My grandma would boil them first and then lightly pan fry them. And, the red bean paste buns were nicely done. We just didn't have room for more than one apiece. Will add pictures over the weekend, hopefully.


Oops, there goes the timer. Gotta jump into the shower and head out to the dentist.


Cheer!
mouse

Home Sweet Home

Dear Friends and Family,

Home again.

Sexy as it may sound to be jet-setting it over to Miami for a day, it's tiring. With the connection in each direction, it's even more tiring. Add travel companions, and, it's good to be home. Not that I don't like either of my colleagues because I do. But, it's still not the same as traveling with Mr. mouse.

Off to work today. Then, off tomorrow for the tooth check. This morning it feels fine. Go figure.

Sorry such a short post, but I'm still exhausted.


Cheers!
mouse

100th Blog Milestone

Dear Friends and Family,

This is post #100 according to Blogger. Wow!

I feel the need to talk about something extra special.

Trixie loaned me a book called Maybe Baby, ISBN# 0060737816. And, one of the stories really resonated with me.

There's something I've struggled with over the past year with Mr. mouse. He has THE life. He's got a job he loves at a company he loves. He's been regularly recognized and promoted for his efforts. He took four years to make THE move with the ability to wait for the right opportunity. He lives in a city he loves at a house he loves. He's got a partner he loves (moi!) and friends he really likes too. Overall, what's not to like? Sounds perfect.

Then, there's me. I'm in a job that doesn't fulfill me. It's a dead end job at a company I know I will be leaving. I'm in a house that's for sale living in limbo for the past year. I'm in a city I know I will be leaving with friends I will miss. I have the pressure (internal and external) to make the move as efficiently as possible making me feel like I have a lot less time to find THE right job.

In all, I feel like I have nothing to his everything.

So, where does that leave Baby? Well, he's the one that really wants one and I am still very indifferent. And, I'm always concerned at the sacrifices a child adds. What if I'm the one that ultimately ends up sacrificing more? The statistics say probability runs that way. Baby has a high likelihood to adding to his everything and taking away from my nothing - widening the gap instead of narrowing it.

There's a point to all this... What have I learned by reading? I'm getting older. That's a stat we're not changing. That's a risk I have been and am still willing to take. But, I am going to take my sweet time. I am going to do what I need to do to feel I have something before taking on the endeavor of Baby. And, it's okay. If I use four years as well, and it ends up too late, it's not all my fault. Mr. mouse used four as well, and he's the one who wants one. I'm okay with that.

I'll tell him my new found revelations once I'm back home. He's always supportive of everything. And, really, what choice does he have in the matter? Truly? When it's time, it's time. And, there's no rushing time. And, impatience will only make time go slower. We've certainly not going to attempt Baby if both parties aren't willing to sign on the dotted line.

Switching topics completely, we flew into Fort Lauderdale for another business meeting. We took an earlier flight yesterday which gave us time for a decent dinner. I had crawfish etouffee. Yum! It cost me 17 of my 22 points for the day, but was absolutely worth every point. I'm still savoring it. I'm going to try and sneak in a quick swim this morning.

The tooth? No change from yesterday? I have an appointment Friday to have it looked at.

The ocean beckons.


Cheers!
mouse

Pizza, Glorious Pizza

Dear Friends and Family,


Pizza. It's one of my favorite foods. It's also not Weight Watchers friendly. What's a mouse to do? Give up pizza? Never! Let's take the Weight Watchers philosophy back to it's roots. And, see if we can learn more.

Small changes in your life can mean big changes in your weight.

Okay. I can do that. So what qualifies as a small change in pizza? Well let's break a slice down into its core components.

1. crust
2. sauce
3. cheese
4. toppings

Crust

Basically, the rule here is the thinner the better. Thin crust is best, pan is marginally worse and deep dish is the worst. Don't get me wrong, I love deep dish pizza, but I recognize it's not the healthiest option on the menu.

Sauce

Stick with tomato based sauces. The cream sauces get you. See my pasta topper post for info on points differences.

Cheese

Quality matters. A little good mozzarella tastes a ton better than lots of bad mozzarella. Stay away from extra cheese and go to a place that has good cheese.

Toppings

Okay. This isn't rocket science here, boys and girls. Meat lovers, bad. Veggie, good. So, I do mushroom, onion, basil, and plain cheese now. And, if I have to have a meat, I go with a single topping, not a combo pack.

So, I guess they are right, small changes can mean big changes over time. Oh, and one last thought, portion control. Have the pizza with a salad or a fruit dessert to make the meal go farther. If you try to fill up on pizza alone, it'll be too "expensive" points-wise.


Cheers!
mouse


PS: A tooth on my lower right side feels funny, might be time for an emergency trip to the dentist. Will keep you posted.

PPS: My first blogger photo collage :)

Weekend Update

Dear Friends and Family,

Another Monday, another weekend update.

Mr. mouse came over Friday night to mow the lawn. We had our neighbors over for wine and movie. We watched Eight Below. Typical Disney movie, but I was still glad when ***spoiler alert*** the dogs got saved in the end.

Saturday, we braved the airport, to go visit grandma. The lines at the airport weren't bad. We didn't bring any liquids, gels or creams with us, so we didn't attempt luggage check-in. Walked to the gate and boarded the plane. Not much outside of the normal process from what we could tell - the chaos from Thursday and Friday had passed.

We went out to dinner with my parents on Saturday night for my favorite soon tofu. There was a good article on the wall while we were waiting for a table. Here's a picture of the soup. It's so spicy and creamy and healthy, I'm sure there's a catch somewhere.


Sunday, we headed home to prepare for open house #2. We made sure the house was all "set up" and then headed out to the movies. I won movie passes at work, so we spent the afternoon hugely entertained. The Devil Wears Prada made both of us laugh so hard. It reminded me of what I love about New York and what I hate about New York.

Sunday night, I got curious as to who was planting cookies on my computer. So, I set the cookies on my computer to manual prompt. OMG! It's ridiculous the number of sites tracking stuff. It was an eye opener. I'm experimenting this week to see what comes of it all. But, if you want to have a look, go to

1. tools
2. internet options
3. privacy
4. advanced
5. choose prompt for both options
6. OK and OK
7. watch and be horrified

I'm not sure where this all will end, but, I feel marginally better that I'm taking a more active role in all this.

The best part of the weekend? Talking to grandma and seeing that she's doing okay.


Cheers!
mouse

Victorious Mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

My friend, let's call her Frenchie, had the team over for dinner last night. She introduced us all to the game of Petanque. It's similar to Bocce but played with metal balls. That's two new games I learned this week.

We split into two teams of three and played a round. Our team won! I get the feeling I'm a little too competitive if I'm still savoring the win this morning.

Afterwards, we had pizza and cake. By the time I got home, my head was spinning from the sugar highs and lows. So, I ate more food - rice and chicken, to try to bring it all back to equilibrium. No more cake for mouse.

On the way home, I decided to spend my remaining $10 on extra gas. That's the only mechanism I have to "bank" money from week to week. So, what's the break-out for the week?

• $30 gas
• $9 Target (dishwashing liquid and contact lens solution)
• $1 copies
• $11 dinner with Trixie
• $9 lunch at Applebee's

Voila! Success. Easy as pie.


Cheers!
mouse

Satisfied, Sigh

Dear Friends and Family,

Yawn. Good morning. Work is still uber slow. I met up with Trixie last night for a walk and dinner.

We got in about five miles which felt great. I've been getting weights in pretty consistently, but I've been really bad about getting any kind of cardio in. So, last night was a great step in the right direction. Get it? Great step? I crack myself up. The walk was a great opportunity to catch up on everything going on in both our lives.

We went out for Vietnamese afterward. Mmm. I love Vietnamese. It's also very doable on the Weight Watchers routine, unlike Thai, which I've pretty much had to give up since joining. Okay, you don't have to give it up, you can have it in smaller portion sizes. I've done that with Indian. But, Thai, I haven't had the time to sit down and figure it out. The coconut milk in the curry is what kills you. Get it? Kills you? I really crack myself up! So things like Thai Basil Chicken are probably fine. I just haven't done the research yet.

So, the other "thing" I've been trying the last two weeks is going on a sharp budget restriction. Like a weekend fast, it's a way to cleanse, only on the material consumption side instead of the bodily consumption side. I've limited myself to $60 a week and am seeing how I'm doing. That includes all of the day-by-day purchases like gas, groceries, lunches out, etc. It's tough, but, it's definitely doable. I'll do it through the end of August. Then, it'll become more natural, and I won't track it on a week-by-week, dollar-by-dollar basis.

Still thinking about dinner from last night. It was so yummy.


Cheers!
mouse

Happy Days

Dear Friends and Family,

Yesterday was fun, fun, fun! We had a company picnic. The weather was perfect - finally! I had a chance to catch up with a really close friend. He makes me feel so special. Maybe that's why we're such good friends.

I learned how to play Bocce. I'm no good at it, yet. I won a couple of prizes: a camera as part of a raffle and a gift card for being on the winning tug of war team. The tug of war was so much fun! I don't think I would have participated pre-Weight Watchers. I don't know if I would have had the confidence. We had a great team and a plan.

My friend won the grill he had been eyeing. It felt like a special day. I needed the break from work.

Last night, I returned Caesar to his family. And, got a chance to catch up with them and see pictures from their trip. Alaska is beautiful. I wanted to go with them on the trip. Too bad work got in the way of fun.


Cheers!
mouse

Strawberries Galore

Dear Friends and Family,

Good morning.

Here's a great article on antioxidants.


My favorites summer fruit? Last year, I would have said peaches or pineapples. This year, it's been berries, berries and more berries. Strawberries have the added bonus of being "free" on the Weight Watchers point system. For some unknown reason, the first serving (5 oz) of strawberries is 0 points. You can't beat zero when you're looking for "cheap" foods. Five ounces is about five medium strawberries.

They're great plain. They're yummy drizzled with some balsamic vinegar. Add them to cereal. Add them to yogurt. Top a salad with them. Reduce them into a syrup for a nice topper to poultry or fish. Blend them into a smoothie. The ways to get a serving in a day are almost limitless. I confess. I'm a simple kind of person. I eat mine plain, and that's just perfect for me.

What about other berries? Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries... All good for you. Tough to eat 5 oz of any one of them in one sitting. Those are better in handfuls. Do I have a favorite? Tough to say. Blackberries have a sweet nostalgia to them. My grandfather and I used to pick them off a tree that grew in the park near us when I was young. So, they've got sentimental memories associated with them. Blueberries are Mr. mouse's favorites, so they have the shared goodness associated with them. And, raspberries were less interesting until this summer. A couple of friends have raspberry bushes, and the fresh ones. Omigod. They're so good.

In conclusion, you really can't go wrong with any of them. With the rain in the Northeast, there's a bumper crop of high quality affordable berries. Perfect!


Cheers!
mouse

PS: Trixie told me about Organic Raisin Bran and Rice Krispies. I'll try them out as soon as I finish my conventional box.

Weekend Update

Dear Friends and Family,

I hope I'm coherent as I try to recap our weekend.

Mr. mouse came over Friday to mow the lawn. We had an open house on Saturday.

In a parallel universe... We had an association barbecue, Saturday, with the neighbors at the mouse pad. I met all of my neighbors for the first time. They were all very cool. I'm glad, as I love all of the neighbors I've had so far. It was funny talking about the renovations everyone has done over the years. They've given me inspiration for our place.

We also had some time after the barbecue to assemble some of the furniture Mr. mouse got on clearance. Namely, we assembled the ottoman and the hammock. We both promptly fell asleep in our respective pieces for a couple of hours. Mr. mouse loves his ottoman and I absolutely LOVE my hammock.


We got a call Sunday from one of Mr. mouse's bestest friends. She was in town for a family wedding and wanted to get together. So, we headed out to meet everyone for lunch. Wow! Do kids grow quickly! How does that happen?!?!

Back in this world... The lowlight of Sunday was returning to the mouse house to find... (on second thought, ask me about this one the next time you see me... Frenchie, not in front of the cubicle-mates) WTF?!?! I was so pissed, angry, annoyed, angry, scared, angry, freaked out, angry it ruined my whole night. Thank god nothing happened, but, still, I had a lot of trouble getting settled and falling asleep last night.

So, the agent was pretty glib about the whole thing... Says it sometimes happens. That annoyed me as much as the incident itself. He's gonna get a good talking to later today. I'm on a rampage.

I'll close with a Weight Watchers update. Contrary to all the advice I've read on the boards, I've decided not to force feed myself the extra points. In fact, based on my math, I'm going to try reducing my daily point intake by a single point - which is something like 50 calories. I figure instead of stair-stepping down two points every 25 pounds, I'll stair-step one point every 12.5 pounds. I'll see how this week goes and if it works for me, I think it makes a lot more sense than last week did. The thing that concerns me was everyone writing about your body going in starvation mode and starting to hoard calories. We'll see how this week goes.

Here's to no repeats of last night.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse Blues

Dear Friends and Family,

I took today off to have people come in and work on the house. The carpet cleaner came this morning. It was a huge success. I am waiting on the carpet stretcher. He was supposed to come between 2 and 4. It is now 4:30. Fun.

The other thing on my mind is my appetite has been off this week. I've been force feeding myself to get my daily points in. If this doesn't seem down right ludicrous yet, it gets better. I'm up 3 lbs this week! So, you can only imagine my frustration in forcing food down when I'm not hungry and then watching the scale go up.

I think it's time to step back and think about this. Time to re-evaluate, am I approaching this correctly? Or is it time for some minor adjustments?

Open house tomorrow. No new news otherwise.


Cheers!
mouse

Financial Planning Notes (cont'd)

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm taking today off. We have carpet cleaning coming in and I need a break from work. Mr. mouse successfully completed his mission yesterday. Our deck is now completely furnished.

So to continue on yesterday's monologue. I went to an estate planning seminar last Thursday. Estate planning seems to be a fancy word for what happens to your stuff once you're gone.

There are three important considerations:

• leaving as much as you can
• to the right people
• in the right manner

Leaving as Much as You Can

You want to minimize tax and other things if those things are particularly complex in your jurisdiction. Also, there's things people can do (can I be any more vague?) to speed the time it takes to get funds to people. And, there are more things those same people can do to keep some of the records more private so they don't become everyone's business.

To the Right People

Huh? Your heirs, right? Not so simple. Think a step out from that. Your heirs' heirs. These same people can set it up so that you control not only who gets your money, but who they're allowed to pass it on to. Don't ask me how, I don't quite understand that part yet. But, it makes sense.

For example, let's say I die. Mr. mouse gets it all. Okay so far. He'll probably keep it equitable between my folks and his because he's a good guy. Let's assume he does, to draw the example out. Let's say, my folks then croak. What'll he do next? Don't know. Let's say he leaves it all to his dad. It's in the realm of reason. Then, let's say Mr. mouse joins me and it all goes to his dad.

Well, from there it starts to roll downhill. It'll go to his step-mom and then his two step-brothers. And, here I am, a perfectly normal person, going HUH? I'm not sure that's what I want to happen. I'm not working my @$$ off to enrich his step-brothers. How about my siblings? I'm not sure I would want them to get it, but sure as heck they're as entitled as the step-brothers. Mr. mouse would agree, since he's not particularly close to the step-brothers. Better yet, we'd probably both prefer a charity over any of the siblings/step-siblings. So, how to do that...

In the Right Manner

If you're heads not spinning yet. This gets into how much you trust your heirs. Do they need to reach a certain age? Is it a lump sum? Is it an annual stipend? Is it a 1:1 match with their own savings? Is it a 1:1 match with certain expenses? All of the above have pros and cons and someone needs to sort through it and make a decision on how to do it.

Now you know what I know.

Right now, I got more pressing matters. Tea. Yoga. Feed Caesar, the fish. Carpet cleaning.


Cheers!
mouse

Financial Planning Notes

Dear Friends and Family,

First off, I had the weirdest dream. I dreamt I was growing taller. I had those dreams a lot when I was a teenager, but I can't say I've had them since. Weird.

I had a chance to catch up with a friend last night and I realized I didn't do justice to the whole financial planning quandary. These are a couple of aspects we're considering:

Fees

One firm charges up front fees of ~3.5% and then there's no incremental charges over the life of the investment, the other charges nothing up front but charges ~1% every year. The up front costs more up front, obviously, but over the life of the investment costs less.

Active Investing

The firm that charges 1% each year takes a much more active role in re-balancing the portfolio every quarter. The 1% pays for research and analysis to optimize everything, so you should end up making it back and more in increased returns. The other firm says its not possible to time the market so in their view you don't get the 1% back in increased returns.

Average Client Size

One firm tells me that my assets are larger than the average assets at the other firms accounts. Their claim is that the other firm won't be able to meet my needs because they're not used to dealing with clients "like me." The other firm claims that my assets aren't large enough for the other firm. Their claim is that the other firm will de-prioritize me because I'm not an important part of their portfolio.

Confused yet? Me too. Like I said, it'll be back burner for the next couple of months, but, just thought I'd share.


Cheers!
mouse

Mini Updates from the Mini Suburbs

Dear Friends and Family,

Mr. mouse is headed out tomorrow to pick up the eBay goods. I'll post pictures after the weekend, when, hopefully, we assemble it all.

We've finally had some rain here. It rained a couple of days last week, but yesterday was the first day of steady rain we've had in a long time. Mr. mouse brought over our "rain-luck-charm" so it seems to be working. More rain forecasted for this week :)

Last night, I met with an old friend from school. He's a financial planner now. And, somehow, after speaking with him, I'm considering changing from UBS to Edward Jones. I'm not sure I have a preference between the two brands, but I am forming a preference between the two agents. He's just much better than my current agent at explaining everything and giving good examples. Also, he showed some math as to why his fee structure is a lot more profitable in the long run for us. Once things calm down on the home front, we might consider switching operations. Back burner for now.

And, last, but not least, yesterday, I hit my 30 lb loss mark. Yeah for me!


Cheers!
mouse

Chicken Tinga Tacos

Dear Friends and Family,


I tried a new recipe last week that came out pretty good. I was in the mood for something spicy, my cold-deadened taste buds needed it badly... (photo from flickr, not motivated enough to take my own)

Chicken Tinga Tacos

2 tbs peanut oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large tomato, peeled, seeded, diced
2 chipotle peppers, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp nutmeg
12 oz shredded cooked chicken (about 3 cups)
salt and pepper to taste

garnishes
cilantro
finely chopped onion
lime

I modified the cooking approach some. And, based on my first attempt, I would modify it more.

1. pre-heat oven to 275°
2. in a medium skillet, heat the oil (I'd use 1 tbs oil in the future, it's plenty)
3. add onion and garlic and cook over medium heat until softened, 3-5 minutes
4. add tomato, chipotles, cumin and nutmeg and cook, stirring, ~3 minutes
5. mouse modification #2: in the future, I would take this mixture and take it off the heat, blend it smooth, and add about 1/4 cup water or chicken stock
6. add the chicken, cover, seal cover to pan with foil, braise in oven for ~30-45 minutes (Mr. mouse and I have become big fans of braising)
7. season with salt and pepper

Makes 8 tacos, serves 4.

To serve, plate the tacos and put together an assortment of garnishes. I like cilantro, raw onion and lime. Other ideas are salsa, guacamole and sour cream. I used corn tortillas. Feel free to improvise with wheat tortillas and/or taco shells.

Weight Watchers point information:

• 3 oz chicken prepared, 6 points
• 2 medium corn tortillas, 2 points
• future point savings: 1 point for reducing the oil
• future point savings: 1 point for all light meat - I used a whole chicken this time

Enjoy :)



***MOUSE HOUSE NEWS FLASH***
As of yesterday, the mouse house is officially on the market.


Cheers!
mouse