The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) launched the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry in June 2014 to better understand the long-term health effects of exposure to burn pits and other airborne hazards during deployment. The number of new participants in this registry is climbing steadily, and will soon reach the milestone of 100,000 participants. As of December 9, 2016, the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry includes 95,593 Veterans and Service members. An estimated 3 million Veterans and Service members are eligible to join the registry.
Some people plan extensively for retirement, worrying about it obsessively. Others sort of slide into it, apparently assuming things will take care of themselves. Either approach can work, and either one can blow up in your face. I think a middle course is more likely to produce the result you desire.
Let’s look at nine important retirement decisions, each of which can have a big impact on the quality of your “golden years” as well as what you have left over to leave to your heirs.’
Every so often the Congressional Budget Office, a non-partisan federal entity known as the CBO, releases a massive list of ways to decrease the federal deficit. Think of it as the CBO’s dream sheet. They throw out every option they can come up with of, crunch all the numbers and then tell us how much, or little, each one would help to move America into the black.
One option in the CBO’s latest 300-page “I wonder what would happen if…” piece of fan fiction, which was released on December 8, has the military and veteran community more than just a little peeved.
But, before we get to the (awful) idea in question, remember: this is just an idea. In fact, it’s an idea that has been presented annually for many years running, along with a whole pile of equally terrible money-saving ideas (example: “raise the retirement age,” or “cap military pay raises” and “charge more for Tricare for Life.”)
On average, 60-year-old Americans can expect to live another 20 or 25 years, depending on their gender and other variables. And most baby boomers can also count on a couple of extra years free of disease and disability compared to 60-year-olds of just 15 years ago due to improved medical treatments, according to a study from Harvard University.
So how can we make the most out of our ever-lengthening lives? Here are four cornerstones to a healthy, positive retirement.
Do not resent growing old.
Many are denied the privilege.
– Irish Proverb
When Dr. Christopher Callahan examines older patients, he often hears a similar refrain.
“I’m tired, doctor. It’s hard to get up and about. I’ve been feeling kind of down, but I know I’m getting old and I just have to live with it.”
This fatalistic stance relies on widely-held but mistaken assumptions about what constitutes “normal aging.”
In fact, fatigue, weakness and depression, among several other common concerns, aren’t to-be-expected consequences of growing older, said Callahan, director of the Center for Aging Research at Indiana University’s School of Medicine.
Instead, they’re a signal that something is wrong and a medical evaluation is in order.
From the Open Table website
100 Best Restaurants in America for 2016 are consistently putting out delicious dishes, providing impeccable service, and paying attention to every detail to orchestrate one-of-a-kind dining experiences time and again.
Our list of honorees is based on an analysis of 10,000,000+ reviews of more than 24,000 restaurants across the country — all submitted by verified diners.
From the TRICARE website
Holidays are a time when families come together to eat good food and spend quality time. They also can be a time of stress whether you are worried about having enough money, hosting the largest family get-together of the year, or traveling long distances.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it is important to give yourself a break from holiday stress from time to time to keep from feeling overwhelmed.
You can register to receive an email every time there is a new post. In the “Follow Retiree News via Email” section and press “Follow”. On the next screen, enter your email address and press ENTER. Shortly, you will receive a confirmation email to your address from WordPress.com. You acknowledge the email and you are a registered reader.
After you compete this short registration process, you get a notification email every time there is a new posting. The email has a quick teaser of the posting, along with tags that indicate how the posting relates to special topics/areas. There is a direct link to the website (Read more of this post)
Ad click on graphic to enlarge
Thanks to these Retiree News readers who registered to “Follow Retiree News via Email”: Melissa Zen, Nolan Kanekuni, Stephen Tom, rhajime570, gstender
Christmas is both a sacred religious holiday and a worldwide cultural and commercial phenomenon. For two millennia, people around the world have been observing it with traditions and practices that are both religious and secular in nature. Christians celebrate Christmas Day as the anniversary of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, a spiritual leader whose teachings form the basis of their religion. Popular customs include exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees, attending church, sharing meals with family and friends and, of course, waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. December 25–Christmas Day–has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1870.
An artist’s impression from The Illustrated London News of 9 January 1915: “British and German Soldiers Arm-in-Arm Exchanging Headgear: A Christmas Truce between Opposing Trenches”
The Christmas truce (German: Weihnachtsfrieden; French: Trêve de Noël) refers to a series of widespread but unofficial ceasefires along the Western Front of World War I around Christmas 1914.
In the week leading up to the holiday, French, German and British soldiers crossed trenches to exchange seasonal greetings and talk. In some areas, men from both sides ventured into no man’s land on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to mingle and exchange food and souvenirs. There were joint burial ceremonies and prisoner swaps, while several meetings ended in carol-singing. Men played games of football with one another, giving one of the most memorable images of the truce. Peaceful behavior was not ubiquitous; fighting continued in some sectors, while in others the sides settled on little more than arrangements to recover bodies.
Christmas Eve has many of its own customs and traditions. The most widely practised one that still exists today is going to a Midnight Mass Church Service. In many countries, especially Catholic ones such as Spain, Mexico, Poland and Italy, this is the most important Church service of the Christmas season. People might fast during Christmas Eve (not eat any meat or fish usually) and then the main Christmas meal is often eaten after the Midnight Mass Service in these countries. In some other countries, such as Belgium, Finland, Lithuania and Denmark the meal is eaten in the evening and you might go to a Midnight Service afterwards!
From the Vinino website
Very few of us actually know why a standard bottle of wine contains 750ml. Do you?
If only to answer this question, wine bottle sizes needed some clarification and a guide. There’s also time in life when 750ml is too much or not enough for the occasion.
Get your head around the available bottle formats and their intriguing names. Pick up what’s right for you and impress your guests with your knowledge thanks to our simple guide to wine bottle sizes.
