Covid 19 and My Kids’ Inheritance

I play poker with a group every two weeks.  Nothing big.  Just a friendly game.  My friend, Dave, and I are the last of the original group that started forty-three years ago.  Players have wandered in and out, but most stay until they move away.  The majority of the  current  group has been playing for about twelve years.  That’s when Ed joined.  Our newest member, Tom, has been a regular for about six after serving a multi-year internship as a sub.

I learned to play by watching my dad.  He and my uncles played as a part of most family gatherings.  His advice regarding gambling was crystal clear, “Don’t gamble with more than you can afford to lose, because over the long haul, you’re going to lose.”  His words have been my guiding light.

My sisters didn’t catch the bug.  That’s a good thing.  During our Christmas family  gatherings  we had a tradition of buying $1.00 stocking stuffers for each other.  We received $1.00 scratch off lottery tickets on a regular basis.  One year my sister, Sharron, screamed with delight after scratching off hers.  I thought she’d won big.  After she stopped  hyperventilating  she excitedly proclaimed, “I won $5.00.”

A few years ago, one of the poker playing regulars and I played golf the morning after our card game.  He lamented that he had stayed too long in some of the pots and played many hands poorly.  “I lost a $100.00.”  While that was an unusual loss, I corrected him and said, “You didn’t loose $100.00.  Each of your kids lost $50.00.”

We bantered the two numbers back and forth for a couple of rounds and then I added, “Look, you’re never going to spend all of your money.  Each of your kids will just get $50.00 less after you’re gone.”  He couldn’t argue with logic like that.

Shortly after doling out my words of wisdom, I realized that if it was true for my friend, it was for me as well.  It changed how I looked at spending money.

Ruth and I have done a good job of saving for retirement. (Heck, I’m still working a bit.)  We don’t have expensive tastes and live a life we both find comfortable.  It’s funny how life works out.  When you’re young, raising a family, and can use all the money you can muster up, you don’t have much.  After your children leave home, saving becomes easier.  When we discussed our retirement goals traveling was high on the list.

We split most of our time between Michigan and Florida. We take our time driving between the two in fall and spring, visiting new spots in between.  We like Palm Springs and try to spend at least a week there every year.  Our California kids join us, and everyone enjoys being together.  We all try to get together each year in northern Michigan as well.  Ruth and I head to Vegas at least once a year because that’s where our adventure began.

I’ve always been pretty conservative regarding my spending habits.  I bought few things that I “just wanted”.  If I needed it, I’d make sure I found it on sale. Big ticket items like cars were done on payment plans.  After my spending revelation with my golf/poker friend I’ve been more open to spending.

Three summers ago we hired a painter to paint the inside of our Michigan home.  In my tighter days I wouldn’t have considered such a thing.  When we had our house floods the past two summers, we did some extra sprucing up while the workers were on site.  That would have never happened before.  I thanked my kids each time I spent the extra money,  because down the road they’ll be inheriting less.  When the paint job cost $3,000, that meant they would each be taking a $1,000.00 hit.  Looking at the math that way made the spending easier.

The current world-wide health crisis has changed our travel plans for the foreseeable future.  We have been staying home more and carefully consider all travel before venturing out.  We do have one short three day trip planned in September, but that’s it.  Staying home has allowed us to save the money we had planned for travel.  In a sense Covid-19 has increased our discretionary funds.

We made two big purchases this summer.  When we first returned from Florida, Ruth got a new car.  Last week, we bought a new pontoon.  We spent less on the car, and more on the boat, than we planned.  In the end, we have our three kids to thank because down the road they’ll be inheriting a chunk less.

We’re having our 43 year old wood dock replaced next week with a fancy new aluminum one and have been researching wave-runners for next summer.  Can a pool in Florida be far behind?

Thanks kids!