Encore.org

Tracey Good News

Here’s an organization that is changing lives, in every sense of the word. Encore.org (www.encore.org) “provides free, comprehensive information that helps individuals transition to jobs in the nonprofit world and the public sector.”  The site is published by Civic Ventures, a national, nonprofit think tank designed to focus on boomers, work and social purpose. Pretty good, right? It’s downright great …

Bring it on!

Tracey Tracey's Blog

I’ve never considered myself to be especially techno savvy, although once upon a time, I did manage to rebuild the carburetor on my ’61 VW bug. And math? Ha! If a problem requires more than my ten digits, I head straight for the calculator. So (bear with me, this might not strike you as a logical leap)  my initial reaction …

Husband is Afraid to Spend Retirement Funds

Tracey Columns

Original Date of Publication: 3/8/11 Dear Tracey, My husband retired last year after a lifetime of careful financial preparation. He’d meet annually with our financial planner to map out the year and save for our retirement. We have always managed our money to the penny and have spent our lives socking it away for our “golden years.” Well, those golden …

Parents Are Having to Rethink College Plans

Tracey Columns

Original Date of Publication: 3/15/11 Dear Tracey, I am a professional man with a lovely wife and three kids who will all be college bound within in the next few years. My wife and I have worked hard putting away money for their college education and our retirement. Now, there really isn’t enough money socked away to make all of …

Reader’s Letter is a Teachable Moment

Tracey Columns

Original Date of Publication: 3/22/11 “You can’t please all of the people all of the time” is an adage I learned to believe a long time ago. And when you write a weekly advice column, you better accept that philosophy pretty darned quickly or you won’t last six months. That said, I’m sharing some reactions I received from one reader. …

Perspective and Gratitude

Tracey Columns

  Original Date of Publication: 3/29/11 I’ve had trouble deciding on the topic for today’s column. For the last few days, I found myself torn between two issues: 1) the value “perspective” plays in our lives and; 2) how grateful I am to live in a community full of responsive, hard working people, who turned a potential disaster into a …

Husband is Exhibiting Personality Changes

Tracey Columns

Original Date of Publication: 4/5/11 Dear Tracey, My husband is 75 and I am 63. We’ve really had a great marriage and communicate well, until now. My husband abruptly “decided” we should sell our home and move into an apartment in a “senior community” in the San Jose area. He just announced it one morning. I was shocked. He says …

Oldies but Goodies

Tracey Columns

Original Date of Publication April 12, 2011   The first time I ever saw the musical group Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, I was a fresh faced seventeen year old. It was a brilliant summer day. The sun was shining, the outdoor coliseum swarmed with happy teenagers and young adults. Beach balls bounced from hands to hands. No one had …