After the gorgeous weekend in Whistler, we’ve returned home to dreary Vancouver. Isn’t is supposed to be spring? I enjoy spring because it gives me more of a chance to ride my bicycle as a means of transport. I’m not quite as hardcore as Mr. Money Mustache and won’t ride my nice road bike in the snow/cold. At least I can walk to work in 20 minutes! In preparation for the season, I’ve been doing some bike maintenance – usually I would take the bike into a shop and have a professional work on it. This year (with inspiration from The Simple Dollar), I am trying to do it myself. A bicycle is, after all, a simple machine! There are plenty of resources on the internet for how to do this. I am currently working on replacing my brake pads and (for the first time) replacing my chain, which had accumulated some rust. It’s very satisfying to do this type of work yourself.
- I included this in one of our posts this week, but I had to include it here as well. One of my favorite internet comic strips, XKCD had an excellent take on living differently, put as only they can put it. Check it out here. (I admit, it wasn’t published this week, but CF discovered it this week).
- With the Federal Budget this week, Canadian Dream looks at how the OAS Change is No Big Deal. I agree with Tim, although I would go further to say that in addition to not being a big deal for recipients, it didn’t do enough to temper the amount of benefits that will be paid out over the long run. Decreasing the clawback threshold would have done far more in my opinion. Hopefully if you’re reading this, it doesn’t affect you much at all – any good retirement plan doesn’t count on handouts from the government.
- Free Money Finance Maximizing Your Greatest Asset: Why Your Career is So Important looks a just how important it is to manage your career well. As I move into my new role at my company, it’s become apparent that I won’t be maximizing my value if I stay there indefinitely. Not that I’m going to quit my job anytime soon, but I’m getting to the point where it may be advantageous to move companies to receive a larger pay increase.
