https://www.playwrightsguild.ca/play/another-seasons-promise

I was reading a story  in the Ontario Farmer this evening about Keith Roulson and his career and life events. I came across this part that spoke about the farm crisis in 1980 with the high interest rates and the impact that had on so many farmers and how they lost their farms because of this.  Interest rates peaked at 23% and it was crippling , it was a painful, too painful at times.  This kinda hit home as I was one of those farm kids that was effected by this. I don't know the full effect it actually had on my mental being, since I am reminded about it, I plan to reflect on this and let it touch me once again and grow and deal with any ill effects it had. In the mean time, I'm going to find out some more about this play and seek  some peace in my heart regarding that time of my life and my parents life and my siblings lives. As the paper said, peole cae to watch the play as " they needed to unload this" .

Some other words of wisdom gleaned from the article.

Keith learned that people were more likely to support something that was community owned than an enterprise owned by n individual. He raised money for a new paper by selling shares to community members, many of his sales where considered simple donations for their community than an investment. 

He understood what was good about rural life and he did what he could to protect it. 

He was driven to maintain small papers and a rural voice in the face of a hostile world. ( remind me of the small Amish newsletter my dad subscribes to ) 

After 50 years he has stepped away from managing the magazine "The Rural Voice"  , thinking I should check that one out, I do not currently get it. 

City life did not appal to him, he missed being surrounded by nature. 

A strong interest in farming and admiration for what farmers do.

www.northhuron.on.ca/rural-voice

www.northhuron.on.ca/subscriptions

https://books.google.ca/books?id=wIRI2PDEEyQC&pg=PA7&lpg=PA7&dq=another+seasons+promise&source=bl&ots=vjHgOPfSoF&sig=qy-I2IZLn1FYiitRKqiYwjsGMfE&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjM4-brqKbYAhUE2oMKHWwQBhkQ6AEITTAH#v=onepage&q=another%20seasons%20promise&f=false

The Field Behind The Plow 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUM8mXJre1c&index=31&list=PLhhVyaUmOQuq-3ZjWsulDtaPt02fRFC0B

Kevin O'Leary love him or hate him, he has some great experiences and advice

Kids and Money thoughts

The dead bird under the tree is the one that never learned how to fly, so are you a dead bird or are you going to learn how to fly.

Thoughts on allowances, work for kids, learning lessons , equate the value of money to time worked , time and money are interlinked 

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/video/what-convinced-kevin-oleary-to-financially-cut-off-his-kids-after-college/vi-BBFyG38?refvid=BBEYZ3M&OCID=ems.display.welcomeexperience

I am reminded of my brother in law to be and what he has set up with his kids to earn money, it kinda neat and inspiring. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsMydMDi3rI&t=1614s&list=PLhhVyaUmOQuq50o-4_KarYampD3LVx691&index=37

Frank Abagnle - Great Story & Advice

It's a long video, worth watching it all the way through, great personal advice and some real thoughtful advice relating to finance and security ~ TLR

https://loblawcard.ca/

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/how-to-receive-a-25-loblaw-card-after-bread-price-fixing-arrangement/article37392332/

Loblaw discovered that Canadians were overcharged for the cost of some packaged bread products in their stores and other grocery stores across Canada. In response, they are offering eligible customers a $25 Loblaw Card, which can be used to purchase items sold in our grocery stores across Canada.

Registration for the Loblaw Card Program will open on January 8, 2018. Please check back then.

In the meantime, you can also provide your email address to receive a notice once registration has opened.

I have registered all our team for this, I encourage others to get registered and when the account opens up, Loblaws will send you the details. For our firm that works out to $150 in cards. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wseM6wWd74&list=PLhhVyaUmOQupT95UiO_74c0-wATcRxceV&index=13

Interesting video on how our cells stay young. Some great lessons to learn here in biology from the research in Pond Scum.

Health Span vs Disease Span  ... 

Do you have control over the length of your telomeres ?  Chronic stress effects , seeing things in a new light, seeing into the lives of the real people, the effect on  people who get worn down, the patterns.

The longer in a tough situation and the more you perceive your under stress the shorter your telomeres and the quicker your untimely death will occur. Interestingly you can change that through thought perception, so there is hope.  Be resilient to stress, a day in, day out, challenge, so you can control how you age way down to your cell level by how you feel about it, good attitude results in better aging process. Improve attitude, it matters, negative thoughts creeps up cortisone and damages your telomeres , vs a challenge to tackle where the blood flows and it is good, bring it on and you do just fine. 

You have power to change what is happening to your own telomeres. Factors outside our own skin, social , as early a childhood, all impact your telomeres and have a  long term effect We are interconnected, we can impact our own and others. 

What legacy will be have , will we invest in the next generation and what will that impact have on maybe the whole world ?

Are you curious, how will you make a difference?

Now you can protect your telomeres and how will you make sure the world invests in curiosity for the sake of the generations that come after us?

Good questions, now what are we going to do? For me, I am going to nip those negative thoughts with positive solutions. ~ TLR 

Calculating Returns

Calculating the rate of return of any investment or endeavor has many aspects to it. If we look at the financial there is a lot of moving parts. The deposits, the withdrawals, the purchases, the sales, the dividends, the interest earned, the expenses, the fund company, the dealer, the operating costs, the trustee fees, the HST, the GST, the broker fees, and the timing, it never all happens at the same time, every transaction weighted, balanced, accounted for over time, short times, long times, various times, changes in fund codes, fund companies, mergers of one with another ….. how do you calculate it all ? Well, here are the main methods that are standardized in our industry, the best practices, for real true returns. Have fun with the figuring. ~ TLR

”It is only when you watch the dense mass of thousands of ants, crowded together around the Hill, blackening the ground, that you begin to see the whole beast, and now you observe it thinking, planning, calculating. It is an intelligence, a kind of live computer, with crawling bits for its wits.” ~  Lewis Thomas

# 1  GAIN/LOSS CALCULATION EXPLAINED

The gain/loss RoR calculation is a simple formula and is not time weighted.

GAIN/LOSS SINCE INCEPTION (NET INVESTED)

Gain/Loss Dollars = MVE – (MVB + Net Invested)

Gain/Loss Percent = Gain/Loss Dollars

MVB + (Net Invested)

Where:

MVE = end market value

MVB = beginning market value

Net Invested = cash flow coming into an account – cash flow going out of an account

Note: This rate of return is being calculated since inception; therefore the market value at the beginning is going to be zero. Please see Gain/Loss Since… for entering a beginning date.

Assuming an account has the following values, the account rate of return would be calculated as follows:

Step One: MVB = $0

MVE = $12 514.97

Net invested = $10 000.00

MVE- MVB- Net Invested

= $12 514.97- ($0 + $10 000)

=$2 514.97

Step Two: Gain/Loss Dollars

MVB + (Net Invested)

= $2514.97

$10 000

= 25.150% (The Gain/Loss return is 25.150%)

GAIN/LOSS SINCE … (NET INVESTED):

This formula uses the same calculation as above, except rather than the market value at the beginning being 0, it would use the market value from whichever day you entered in the “Since” date field available in the report option screen. This would calculate a rate of return based on a time frame rather than “Since Inception” of the account.

http://reward.vistaprint.com/go.axd?ref=BPU7ZK

I have had good experience with Vista Print, this link will get you a good discount and a referral fee back to us on our next order.

Thanks

Tim

Year-end planning for RRSPs and TFSAs (December 2017)

For most Canadians, registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) don’t become top of mind until near the end of February, as the annual contribution deadline approaches. When it comes to tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs), most Canadians are aware that there is no contribution deadline for such plans, so that contributions can be made at any time. Consequently, neither RRSPs nor TFSAs tend to be a priority when it comes to year-end tax planning.

Notwithstanding those facts, there are considerations which apply to both RRSPs and TFSAs in relation to the approach of the end of calendar year. Failing to take those considerations into account can mean the permanent loss of contribution room, a loss of flexibility when it comes to making withdrawals, or having to pay more tax than required when funds are withdrawn. Some of those considerations are outlined below.

When you need to make your RRSP contribution on or before December 31^st

While most RRSP contributions, in order to be deducted on the return for 2017, can be made anytime up to and including March 1, 2018, there is one important exception to that rule.

Every Canadian who has an RRSP must collapse that plan by the end of the year in which he or she turns 71 years of age – usually by converting the RRSP into a registered retirement income fund (RRIF) or by purchasing an annuity. An individual who turns 71 during the year is still entitled to make a final RRSP contribution for that year, assuming that he or she has sufficient contribution room. However, in such cases, the 60-day window for contributions after December 31^st is not available. Any RRSP contribution to be made by a person who turns 71 during the year must be made by December 31^st of that year.

Make spousal RRSP contributions before December 31

Under Canadian tax rules, a taxpayer can make a contribution to a registered retirement savings plans (RRSP) in his or her spouse’s name and claim the deduction for the contribution on his or her own return. When the funds are withdrawn by the spouse, the amounts are taxed as the spouse’s income, at a (presumably) lower tax rate. However, the benefit of having withdrawals taxed in the hands of the spouse is available only where the withdrawal takes place no sooner than the end of the second calendar year following the year in which the contribution is made. Therefore, where a contribution to a spousal RRSP is made in December of 2017, the contributor can claim a deduction for that contribution on his or her return for 2017. The spouse can then withdraw that amount as early as January 1, 2020 and have it taxed in his or her own hands. If the contribution isn’t made until January or February of 2018, the contributor can still claim a deduction for it on the 2017 tax return, but the amount won’t be eligible to be taxed in the spouse’s hands on withdrawal until January 1, 2021. It’s an especially important consideration for couples who are approaching retirement who may plan on withdrawing funds in the relatively new future. Even where that’s not the situation, making the contribution before the end of the calendar year will ensure maximum flexibility should an unanticipated withdrawal become necessary.

Accelerate any planned TFSA withdrawals into 2017

Each Canadian aged 18 and over can make an annual contribution to a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) – the maximum contribution for 2017 is $5,500. As well, where an amount previously contributed to a TFSA is withdrawn from the plan, that withdrawn amount can be re-contributed, but not until the year following the year of withdrawal.

Consequently, it makes sense, where a TFSA withdrawal is planned within the next few months, perhaps to pay for a winter vacation or to make an RRSP contribution, to make that withdrawal before the end of the calendar year. A taxpayer who withdraws funds from his or her TFSA before December 31^st, 2017 will have the amount withdrawn added to his or her TFSA contribution limit for 2018, which means it can be re-contributed as early as January 1, 2018. If the same taxpayer waits until January of 2018 to make the withdrawal, he or she won’t be eligible to replace the funds withdrawn until 2019.