A letter from February 27th, 2020

Dear FutureMe, Well, did you make it? I'm setting this letter to arrive on my 70th birthday, which will be just over 6 years from now, on May 25th 2026. It's hard to imagine being 70, getting my threescore and ten up, but that's only six years from today, Thursday 27th February 2020. The Beatles had a a famous hit with 'When I'm Sixty-Four' in 1967, it was on their iconic 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' album, and this year I'll hit 64. It's a bugger, but a lot of people never make it this far, so I'm grateful.... Anyway, the burning topic just now is the Corona Virus, or to give it it's official name, Covid-19, which originated in China and is now sweeping the world. As of today there have been just over 83 thousand confirmed cases, and just under 3 thousand deaths. It's dangerous and frightening, but it's nothing like the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918 when over 50 million died worldwide, and nearly 300,000 died in the UK. We've had several cases in the UK, but no deaths.....yet. The media is absolutely all over this story, and of course they're emphasizing the doom and gloom side of it. The government line is that you're unlikely to get it, if you do get symptoms then 'self isolate' don't go to the doctors, but call 111 and wait to be officially tested. If you test positive, then it's off to the quarantine centre for you, matey....nobody is saying 'Plague Centre'......or ***** Camp.......but give it time. It's February, it's freezing, it's snowing today, so lots of people have the normal winter coughs and colds, and as usual there's a bit of flu going round. I'd hate to be an NHS phone drone working those 111 lines, I'll bet they're swamped by the worried well, and those who've got a sniffle and think they're dying. It could get worse. It could get very much worse, for example there are major cities in China where nothing is moving, nobody is going to work, and the cities are locked down for quarantine purposes. Don't think it couldn't happen here, there are town in Italy which are in quarantine, with police road blocks to stop people moving. I went to Morrisons this morning to pick up some butter and other bits and pieces, and thought to myself "What if it really goes to hell in a handbasket and we start getting food shortages? Maybe I should get a few things put by.....you know, just in case?" So I did.....a few tins of beans, peas, tinned sardines, tins of tuna, some packets of rice, some pasta, couple of blocks of cheese....just bits and pieces. I got home, pulled out a large plastic storage box from the shed, and packed it away in there. It won't last long, but it's better than bugger all.....so we'll see. What else is on my mind? Well, as always, I think about having to schlepp off to work every day, and at age 64 it's not easy, I don't set off to the Salt Mine with a song in my heart and a hop, skip and a jump. I don't get my pension for another 817 days, and I've still got the mortgage hanging round my neck, I still owe just under 50 grand. At the moment the plan is to pay it down over the next couple of years, which should get it down to around 35 grand by the time I'm due to retire, then use my pension lump sum, and some of Dorothy's pension lump sum and pay it off. So we'll have a mortgage free house worth around 350,000 to hand over to the government for Care Home fees, or split between the three kids when we cork it. What's the benefit to me and Dorothy, who've worked our socks off for 37 years to pay the bloody mortgage? Not much.....So I'm seriously thinking about looking into a Retirement Interest Only mortgage, where I can get some money out of the house and have a bit of spending money for my dotage. The kids will still inherit a sizeable whack, but we'll have some spends as well. I'm thinking of about a hundred grand...... which will be paid back when the house is sold. The debt won't increase, as we'll be paying back the interest each month, but for a hundred grand you're only looking at about 330 a month in interest. Which is a *** sight less than we'd be paying if we were renting somewhere. So I'm looking into it.... I've got an appointment with a Nationwide Later Life Mortgage adviser some time in March. Anything else? Well, I'm concerned about my son Barry and his wife, Jo, as they don't seem to be getting on very well just now. Jo suffers from crippling anxiety about their two year old baby, Maddie, and it's getting more and more of a problem. Barry bears the brunt, and is starting to wonder if that's how it's always going to be, as to be honest his options are limited. I think they'll stay together........ Was I right? Me (PS....check the grey shed, see if that emergency food is still there :-) )