October 17, 2012

October 17, 2012 (Wednesday)
(Post 631, Day 291 of 2012, 656 days since 1st post)

Daily Comment

Follow-up on yesterday's comment:

Since I'm going to be in LA on election day, I voted early this year. After, I posted on FB that it was the last Presidential election I'd be voting in as a resident of the US. It got a thumbs-up from a few people, but little comment.

Until today, when I had a fairly long conversation about leaving the US with an old college friend (both meanings of old in this context).

My friend and his wife are better-traveled than I am. Yet, he was intrigued but skeptical about my idea. He didn't understand the appeal. These are his questions, and the points I made in the discussion:

By him:

1. Can you afford to live out of the US on a Social Security check?
2. Can you get decent medical care, other than in Europe?
3. How do you convince your wife? (He is assuming it would be a hard sell).
4. What about changing the political situation to make things better here?

My answers:

1. There are tens of thousands of people from the USA living overseas on just their Social Security checks (and less) or other income that is equal to or less than that. In fact, as far as I can tell, moving overseas is one of the only ways to be able to afford a reasonable lifestyle on Social Security-level income. These people tend to congregate, which means that in the more popular areas to retire (Mexico, Central and South America, Southeast Asia), there are fairly large groups of them, forming associations and even neighborhoods - so there are some social advantages to this as well, if you want them (which, by and large, I personally do not). Also, most cultures treat their elders much, much better than we do here in the United States, and that's worth something as well.
2. According to various reports, chief among them by the UN, the US is currently ranked 39th in the world in health care and health services, and it is the most expensive place in the world to get medical care. That means there are at least 38 places where the health care is better, and every place on the planet gives you more affordable health services. Every single one of the countries that is on my personal top-5 (which, due to a tie at 5th place, is actually 6 countries) list, and every country that has ever been on my list over the last 20 years, has excellent health care, at least as good as what is available in the US, and, it goes without saying, much, much more affordable. In fact, the cost of good health care is one of the best reasons to look outside the US when you get older. Anecdotally, I have heard reports of people who become medical tourists because they need something done that is either not covered by their medical insurance, or whose out-of-pocket expenses are higher than the cost transportation, lodging and the total medical cost when having the procedure done in one of the many medical tourism destinations globally. I have also heard how they believe the medical care, even just the standard office visits, are better than what we get with our commoditized medicine here. Finally, for the most part, you can live a much healthier lifestyle in a place where the weather is good, walking is encouraged, and the food supply comes from farmers, ranchers and fishermen, not corporate food factories.
3. I don't think you can ever convince anybody that this is a good idea - it is a waste of time. I do think that you can ask them to do a little research, be open-minded, and come to their own conclusions. A lot of resistance to the idea of offshoring your retirement is based on travel as a tourist, and the information we get through our various corporate-controlled media about life in other countries. Both are irrelevant, in my opinion. First of all, you look at a vacation destination differently than you look at a place to live. Secondly, we get terrible information about life in other countries from our corporate-owned media sources (in my opinion, we get terrible information about everything from those sources). You have to put boots on the ground to check a place out with the idea of living there - the priorities are different. And media is not interested in stories of the commonplace lives of people in foreign countries. That isn't news, that doesn't sell advertising, and, frankly, is not interesting (or, maybe, relevant) to most people in our consumer culture. So, yes, research the idea. It either sells itself or not. If you don't have equal enthusiasm for this, it is difficult to imagine succeeding.
4. I personally feel that this country is circling the drain. Corporate dominance has usurped public service - the government is almost entirely beholden, either through the economics of reelection, ideology, or corruption, to a corporate business agenda that is, and has always been, at odds with the idea of the greatest good for the most people. We have, in this country, since the post-World War II period, built up and then torn down our Middle Class. I am of the opinion that this will not change for the better in my lifetime - the imbalance of power has become too great for a peaceful or negotiated situation, and most Americans, apparently, don't want to face the problem. In the unlikely event of a full-blown uprising/revolution, I want very much to be somewhere else. My ideals are intact, but pragmatically and philosophically, I believe my best option is to work on myself.

In another follow-up to yesterday's musings, I discussed my thinking about my incipient car purchase or lease. Today, while attempting to exit my apartment complex's driveway and make a left turn on to the four lane road in front of it, my transmission mis-shifted - it went into a high gear, and I almost stalled in oncoming traffic before hitting the throttle hard caused it to downshift and find the right gear. It was frightening. 

I decided I wanted the new car now, meaning I won't be able to lease. A short time later, at the dentist's office, I picked up a newspaper, and saw an ad for a deal on a remaindered 2012 Honda Insight. I had never driven this version (I drove the original one about 10 years ago - it was discontinued for a while), so wasn't sure about it, but its great gas mileage (hybrid) made it interesting to me, if it was affordable (I didn't think it would be, but since it was so close, decided to check it out.

Long story short, I bought it.

It is red. 

So it goes.

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Food and Diet Section

Today's Weight:        205.6 lbs 
Yesterday's Weight:    205.0 lbs
Day Net Loss/Gain:     + 0.6 lbs

Year 2012 daily weight from December 31, 2011

Diet Comment

I admit to being surprised by this gain. Today should be good fora little loss, as I didn't go overboard (for once).

Food Log

Breakfast
Cocoa-kale protein shake (almond milk, whey protein (36g protein), kale, chia gel, a large egg, cocoa, cinnamon, stevia-erithrytol blend).

Lunch
Skipped (dentist appointment).

Dinner

Chili (Ground beef, black beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, spices) on spaghetti squash.

Snack
Red cabbage cole slaw.

Liquid Intake
    Coffee:  22 oz,  Water: 88+ oz. 

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