The Press-Dispatch
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Katiedid Versus By Katiedid Langrock Unicorn request My 5 -year-old changed her Christmas/Hanukkah list. Now all she wants is a uni- corn. This was per- haps the easi- est request we'd ever received. Within mo- ments, my hus- band was send- ing me links to unicorn plush- ies, while I told my daughter that be it from us, her grand- parents or Santa, she is guar- anteed a unicorn. My daughter was delighted. I was delighted. Finally, some- thing easy after a year of im- possible. My mom asked what the kids want for Hanukkah. "A unicorn," I shared with the relieved sigh that accom- panies life at its easiest. "A stuffed unicorn or a uni- corn figurine for her dolls to ride on? " Mom asked. Oh! I hadn't considered the latter. I asked my daughter for clarification on her unicorn. "A real one," she said. I hoped I was misunder- standing, even though I knew I was not. The previous week, she had wanted a real-life sun- dried strawberry sasquatch. How on earth had I convinced myself she had given that up for a stuffy? "You mean a toy unicorn that walks and neighs and lights up? " "No, a real one. It can be a baby unicorn, if that helps." Yes, that totally helps. I found myself scanning page after page on Amazon. I was in an online shopping craze for about 45 minutes be- fore I stopped myself. This is absurd. If I'm going to buy something as expensive as a real-life baby unicorn, I should see whether I can find one at a local store first. Duh! I left Amazon and typed the name of our locally owned toy store into my search engine. "You'll figure it out. I know you're going to give her the world after the world has taken so much from her this year," my mom had said. I continued my online search, now looking even harder. Perhaps I should clarify that my mom, the person, hadn't said this as much as the imag- inary mom in my head was saying it. My real mom, the person, proba- bly had said some- thing supportive, but the Mom Guilt (mine) has a way of distorting things. All online searches to pur- chase a real live unicorn came up fruitless. I turned to my son. "Wormholes," he said. "Wormholes? " I asked. "It's the quickest way to get to the isle of unicorns if you don't have a boat," he said mat- ter-of-factly. "Plus, it's the pre- ferred travel of unicorns." I have so much to learn. My online search for worm- holes led me to tech stuff, Morgan Freeman and explic- it over-18 sites. This was not going well. "This is your fault, you know," my son said. "You've probably passed thousands of opportunities to have a re- al-life unicorn and never tak- en it." Have I? My son reminded me of one of my favorite stories from when he was about 3 1/2 and obsessed with Jeep Wranglers. He had said, "We should take the next Wrangler we see." Jokingly, I had prom- ised we would. Later that day, my son spotted a Wrangler in a busy parking lot. "OK, if the doors are open," I said to him conspiratorially, "the Jeep is ours! " I pulled on the door handle, expecting it to be locked, but the door opened. Uh-oh. I hadn't exactly thought this through. Grand theft auto with a toddler had not actually been on my to-do list. It was supposed to be sil- ly, a lark. I turned to my young son. He was overjoyed. The Jeep was ours! "Bad news," I said. "I just re- membered I don't know how to hotwire a car. Without the keys, we can't steal anything." "You mean those keys? " my son asked, pointing to the keys hanging in the ignition. Retelling the story, my son looked at me with disappoint- ment. "You put it out into the uni- verse what you wanted, and the universe delivered," my son said, shaking his head. "You didn't grab the moment." This story may not speak very highly of my parenting skills, but the kid did have a point. Or I thought he did in my mad craze to purchase happiness after horrible 2020. "What would you do? " I asked my son. "I mean, if you couldn't find a wormhole to get to the isle of unicorns." "Cruise ships are all docked and probably have minimal se- curity," he said. Foolproof! If you hear about a crazy lady on a stolen cruise ship headed toward an imaginary island, please send me post- cards in prison. Follow Katiedid Langrock on Instagram, at http://www.ins- tagram.com/writeinthewild. Puzzled about what to read? ..and you will have your solution. subscribe to 812-354-8500 The Press-Dispatch Wednesday, December 9, 2020 D-3 Social Security Matters By Rusty Gloor Should I claim Social Security at 62? Get more from giving this year with a gift subscription to e Press-Dispatch. By delivering the latest local news updates, shopping deals, announcements, events and entertainment each and every week, it's the gift that keeps on giving. Get more from giving this year with a gift subscription to S ER V I N G P I K E C O U N T Y 1 8 1 0 - 2 0 2 0 NetEdition subscribers: If you are adding or renewing your NetEdition subscription, please include the following: Email: _________________________ Password: ______________________ (Minimum 7 letters, can include letters and numbers) www.PressDispatch.net/Edition Payment Amount: P.O. Box 68, Petersburg, IN 47567 Phone: 812-354-8500 Fax: 812-354-2014 Name: ______________________________ Mailing Address: ____________________________ City: _______________________________ State: ____________ Zip: ______________ Phone #: ____________________________ ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏ Check (enclosed) Card #: _____________________________ Exp. Date: ______________ CVN ________ CALL 812-354-8500 Local Subscribers' Price 475 or 476 zip codes and every week, it's the gift that keeps on giving. One-Year Subscriptions Local (475/476 Zip Code) ......... $35 State of Indiana ......................... $38 Elsewhere in USA ...................... $55 Online Only ................................. $35 One-Year Senior Rate Must be 65 or older. Write "senior" on form below. Senior Local Rate ...................... $32 Senior State Rate ...................... $35 Senior USA Rate ........................ $52 35 $ Longer subscriptions available. Call for details. Dear Rusty: I'm looking for information about retiring and starting my Social Secu- rity very soon at age 62. I'm not sure if I want to do it be- cause I'm not sure if I can. Can you help me figure this out? Signed: Hesitant. Dear Hesitant: I know it can be daunting trying to fig- ure out whether and when to claim your Social Security benefits. I'll give you some of the basics: First, you should know that if you claim your benefits at age 62, your benefit amount will be considerably reduced from what it would be if you waited longer to claim. At 62, your benefit will be about 28 percent less than it would be at your full retirement age (FR A) which, for you is 66 years and eight months. Your benefit will continue to grow by a fraction of a percentage point each month you wait, until it reaches 100 percent at your FR A. You can choose to delay even longer than your FR A, and your benefit will continue to grow up to age 70 when you reach your maxi- mum benefit amount. For you, that maximum at age 70 would be about 28 percent more than you would get at your FR A and about 75 per- cent more than you would get at age 62. There is a considerable financial advan- tage to waiting to claim. If you contin- ue working, and you claim at age 62 (or at any age before your FR A), you'll be subject to So- cial Security's "earnings test," which limits how much you can earn before they take back some of your benefits. Start- ing at age 62 and continuing until the year you attain FR A, there will be an annual limit to your earnings (the 2021 limit is $18,960) and, if you exceed that, SS will take back benefits equal to $1 for every $2 you are over the limit. That could mean you will go some num- ber of months without receiv- ing benefits until Social Secu- rity recovers what you owe be- cause you exceeded the earn- ings limit. Of course, if you fully retire from work now that is not a concern, but it may in- fluence a future decision to return to work. Social Secu- rity's earnings lim- it no longer applies after you reach your full retirement age. Your marital sta- tus also comes into play. If you are mar- ried, and your ben- efit as a spouse will be more than your personal benefit will be, then there are some special con- siderations which might affect your claiming decision. Gen- erally, if your spousal benefit will be more than your own benefit (from your lifetime work record), and your hus- band isn't yet collecting ben- efits, it's often wise to claim your own earlier and take the larger spouse benefit later. Of course, if you're not married you need only be concerned about your personal benefit from your own lifetime earn- ings record and waiting for a larger life-long benefit, if pos- sible, is often the most pru- dent choice. Those are the basic things you should consider when try- ing to decide when to claim your benefits. But your need for the money now, plus your health and life expectancy are also key to your decision. If you need the money earlier to make ends meet, and you won't be severely affected by the earnings limit, then claim- ing early can be your most prudent choice. Or, if you are not enjoying good health and have reason to believe that you won't live at least until to- day's average age for a woman (about 87), then that also sug- gests claiming early. But, if you are working and don't re- ally need the money, and you are in good health and expect to live to a ripe old age, then waiting longer to claim a high- er benefit is usually a better strategy. The reality is that every- one's personal situation is different and there is no sin- gle answer to the question of when to claim Social Security. I hope the above gives you at least a starting point for your decision. To submit a question, visit our website (amacfoundation. org/programs/social-securi- ty-advisory) or email us at ss- advisor@amacfoundation.org. How to host virtual holiday celebrations The 2020 holiday season figures to be vastly different than seasons past. The nov- el coronavirus COVID-19 has transformed daily life in ma- ny ways. The public has be- come accustomed to wearing masks while shopping, limit- ing the number of people in public venues and keeping their distance from friends and loved ones. Many events have been reimagined as vir- tual celebrations because of social distancing protocols. For those with large fami- lies or people with inherent risk factors that make them more susceptible to illness, sharing the holidays over vid- eo conferencing apps may be the safest way to go in 2020. The following tips can help holiday hosts make the most of a virtual holiday experi- ence. Pick a bright, festive spot Set up your tablet, smart- phone or computer in a bright area with a festive backdrop. You'll want others who join the virtual hangout to be able to see you clearly. A Christ- mas tree or a decorated fire- place in the background can set the scene. Choose the right conferencing app Certain programs may work better than others de- pending on your needs. For example, if everyone has the same operating system plat- form (iOS or Android), you may be able to use an app in- herent to that system, which won't require a separate download or login. Apps also may be chosen depending on how many peo- ple can be invited in, as some set limits. Do your home- work and conduct a test run prior to the holidays. Keep props nearby If the goal is to open gifts virtually, be sure to have ev- eryone gathered and gifts nearby so no one is scram- bling in and out of view. Position the camera at eye level Try to set up the cam- era so you're not looking up or down. Practice looking straight into the camera in- stead of at yourself in the minimized window or even others on the screen. This way you'll appear engaged. Use mute when not speaking Muting yourself (and encouraging others to do the same) when you are not speaking will limit the amount of background noise. As the host, serve as the moderator and encourage everyone to speak one at a time. Choose a visual cue to signal when someone has the floor to speak, such as rais- ing a hand or even showing a festive picture. Tune into virtual worship While some places of wor- ship have reopened to some capacity, others may still be offering hybrid services. If your place of worship offers services via YouTube or an- other video platform, gather around and watch together and participate just as if you were there in person. Better yet, share the link with oth- er family and friends so they can tune in as well. Share dinner 'together' Set up your camera source so it captures the holiday ta- ble. All parties gathering virtually can then sit down to the holiday meal as one and enjoy one of the season's more endearing traditions. Virtual celebrations may continue through the holiday season. Adapting with some video conferencing tips can ensure everyone enjoys the festivities.