# A Tale Of Woe - Be Very Glad It's Not You .



## G J D Swain (Oct 20, 2009)

Here I go again asking for free advice :

It's like this - 30 years in the trade and my dream of retiring early at 55 and getting a part-time job pumping gas or cleaning banks has faded due to the recent economic collapse (and the exporting of industrial jobs to various global camps) .

*I am 8.5 months away from receiving a DB (defined benefit) pension that will pay all my bills ... FOR LIFE !!!!!* Well , the Ad Hoc increases have always kept up to inflation , so far , anyway . Either way it's security for life and that's a very good feeling .

However , I have not worked for 2 years as of this last January 23/2010 . The money I put away for my retirement was spent just paying the rent and bills . I am 20K in debt now , as well . I have sent out 200 resumes in the last 16 months with no luck and very few responses . At 54 years of age , this white male does not seem to be at the top of the hiring heap these days , it seems .

So , I am on the verge of cashing in my very hard earned pension . Earned in steel mills and auto plant model year line changes . In chemical plant retooling and regular maintenance , power plant rebuilding . Welding fumes and corrosive dust galore , and god knows what else , of course (oh well) .

So , as I said , I am asking for free advice again . I figure I could probably make it if I declare bankruptcy and then go on welfare but this option has always seemed like death to me .

Nothing against those who have had to go on welfare in order to keep their heads above water and a roof over their kids' heads . S##t happens . It's assumed . Had I gone on welfare 12 months ago I would have enough credit left to make it until my first pension check arrived . It's a sick thought , but sadly true .

Well , I guess I could rob a bank ... just kidding . I'm painfully honest , I think , to a fault , perhaps . Anyway , what's a guy to do ?

If I commute now , before my early retirement anniversary date in August , I will loose around $75,000 , but worse than that I will loose that security that I have been working for all these years , my guaranteed DB pension . It's a sad , sad thing to be this close to reaching a reassuring milestone , and having to "Do What You Gotta Do" in order to make ends meet , somehow .

Does anyone have any advice , any considerations ? Is there something that can be worked out somewhere , with someone in order to get me through the next 8 months without having to cash my chips in just to pay the rent ?

Sincerely,
G J D Swain


----------



## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

Tough one to answer, I am sure no one response will do your situation justice.

I am sure that by this point, you have cut your cable, internet, increased the deductible on your auto etc...all to save of monthly costs.

After that...as much as you may not want to...consider moving...even if it is to the smallest bachelor or basement apt to save some $.


----------



## Berubeland (Sep 6, 2009)

How to get a job pronto. 

One of my exes taught me this technique and it has always worked for me when I needed a job. 

1 - Pick up a yellow pages

2 - Open the page to businesses that would hire you. 

3 - Start at A and don't stop calling until you get a job.

4 - Get ready to go to work the next day.

The reason why this seems to work is that people are constantly screwing up and losing their jobs/not showing up etc. With a small company it is a pain in the *** to put an ad in the paper, interview etc. so you put the painful process off as much as possible. You as a desperate job searcher are looking for a desperate job giver. Some people will ask you to fax a resume for your purposes consider this a no and keep calling. 

DON'T GIVE UP!!!!


----------



## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

Maybe instead of talking to the investment advisers at the bank (ref. your other post about commuting your pension), you should try talking to a credit counselor. If you have paperwork to substantiate your soon-to-be-received DB pension, it might be worthwhile talking to them about a bill-payer loan to tide you over. You would have to demonstrate your ability to pay when your pension starts.

(Finding any kind of job would be a better solution.)


----------



## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

_Is there something that can be worked out somewhere , with someone in order to get me through the next 8 months without having to cash my chips in just to pay the rent ?_

swain i'll bite i'll be happy to lend you 15K.

but i want my pound of flesh first. With the blood intact. Never mind that portia-and-the-merchant-of-venice stuff.

(signed)
dracula


----------



## G J D Swain (Oct 20, 2009)

Thanks to everyone who responded intelligently . Much appreciated .

G J D Swain


----------



## G J D Swain (Oct 20, 2009)

OhGreatGuru said:


> Maybe instead of talking to the investment advisers at the bank (ref. your other post about commuting your pension), you should try talking to a credit counselor.


Talked to them last year and they were not very helpful at all . I'm sure they have helped many people but for my situation they offered no solutions except the mentioning of bankruptcy , which I've previously mentioned in my opening post .

Also , the reason I was at the bank was because they (the bank) initially led me to believe that they had a method where I could commute my pension , get a low interest debt consolidation loan from them , some cash , and put the rest in mutual funds . That's why I started that other thread you are referring to , because , to me , his offer and advice seemed way out in left field .

Went back today and the person I was dealing with must have finally talked to someone who knew the in's & out's of pension commuting because he told me that a loan & some cash was not possible after all . Not a good day .



OhGreatGuru said:


> If you have paperwork to substantiate your soon-to-be-received DB pension, it might be worthwhile talking to them about a bill-payer loan to tide you over. You would have to demonstrate your ability to pay when your pension starts.
> 
> (Finding any kind of job would be a better solution.)


thanx 4 ur time

G J D Swain


----------



## scomac (Aug 22, 2009)

G J D Swain said:


> Talked to them last year and they were not very helpful at all . I'm sure they have helped many people but for my situation they offered no solutions except the mentioning of bankruptcy , which I've previously mentioned in my opening post.


That's too bad because the proposed solution of bankruptcy was a good one. It made by far the most economic sense based on what you have written in the two threads you have started.

Commuting your pension at the cost of $75K for a few months of cash to avoid bankruptcy is just plain stupid when the pension is creditor proof.

It's time to park pride and do what is in your financial best interest rather than continue to search for someone who will tell you what you want to hear.


----------



## Spidey (May 11, 2009)

IMO Berubeland gave excellent advice. I usually agree with Scomac's advice, but I wouldn't declare bankruptcy for the sake of a $20,000 debt. My son recently got a part time job stocking shelves at a department store on graveyard shift. (Against my wife's and my better wishes as he is in college and we're paying his expenses.) I'm sure the turnover is high for this type of thing and would probably carry you over until your pension kicks in. Call Walmart, grocery stores, Costco, etc. and tell them you are available.


----------



## G J D Swain (Oct 20, 2009)

*Human Nature - Oh Well .*



Spidey said:


> IMO Berubeland gave excellent advice. I usually agree with Scomac's advice, but I wouldn't declare bankruptcy for the sake of a $20,000 debt. My son recently got a part time job stocking shelves at a department store on graveyard shift. (Against my wife's and my better wishes as he is in college and we're paying his expenses.) I'm sure the turnover is high for this type of thing and would probably carry you over until your pension kicks in. Call Walmart, grocery stores, Costco, etc. and tell them you are available.


Right . Very good advice too . The bankruptcy advice is not good at all , but does allow a poster to call someone "stupid" . Like the above "vampire post" , some see an opportunity to kick a guy when he's down , and simply can't resist .

Give good , useful advice , or none at all . It's simple . Even a kind word or a "good luck" can be helpful .

Cheers

G J D Swain


----------



## scomac (Aug 22, 2009)

If you've got all the answers, why are you asking for advice?


----------



## Berubeland (Sep 6, 2009)

Dear Scomac,

It sounds like the OP is in a difficult situation and asking for help in this form because we might have some information about this rather esoteric area. 

In absence of us being able to give him the information he needs it leaves us to be human and commiserate and be empathetic. I challenge you to dust the cobwebs off your people skills and be a little nicer to the OP who scarcely needs your nastiness to add to an already intolerable situation. 

Maybe you can remember far back in the mists of time to a situation when things were not going so well for you.....


----------



## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

Swain - you should post what you have done, you mentioned the credit counsellor, and that you discussed w a rep at the bank.....just curious as to what other measures you have taken to find work, and/or cut your monthly expenses.

I know this is an unfortunate situation for you, but perhaps a little more info would help spur some helpful advice.


----------



## scomac (Aug 22, 2009)

Berubeland said:


> I challenge you to dust the cobwebs off your people skills and be a little nicer to the OP who scarcely needs your nastiness to add to an already intolerable situation.


You may view it as being nasty. It's pretty obvious that the OP thinks so too. I'm not being nasty, I'm being frank and blunt. Unfortunately I don't have the advantage of all the details of this situation, only what the OP has decided to disclose. He has sought out "professional advice", but doesn't care for what he has been told. That doesn't mean that what he has been told is incorrect. Sometimes you have to do something that you don't want to do because it's still the "best" choice of what's available.


----------



## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

Well. At the risk of adding to the insensitivity, I don't think the OP sought out professional advice. I think he sought out *investing* advice from a front-line bank FA, who isn't qualified to provide professional advice on commuting a pension. (Internet fora aren't any better, in my view; which is no slight on this place, which I actually really like.)


----------



## Four Pillars (Apr 5, 2009)

I smell troll...


----------



## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

it's interesting how this situation has spurred a division into gender points of view.

the girlz are all bleeding heart nurturing & supportive.

the guyz are a little more skeptical.

me i'm more than skeptical. There are too many parts to this story that don't hang.

for example, 18 months ago the official story has it that Swann was already "meeting" with a "financial advisor" to discuss the looming financial difficulty. So for 18 months he has known how to apply for, and obtain, relief monies from his ontario pension under the hardship provisions. Yet he has failed and refused to do so. The excuse today is that the procedure will take 60-90 days and he's not willing to wait. One cannot help wondering if this pension even exists.

also, it's plain that Swann does not respond to, or even acknowledge, numerous suggestions that he deliver pizza or newspapers or take any other kind of temporary menial job just so he can tiptoe through the next few months until his pension commences. There were also numerous suggestions that he find ultra-cheap lodgings and cancel his internet service, but he doesn't respond to these either.

most telling of all was Swann's not-so-subtle hint that "someone" could work out "something" that would "get [him] through the next 8 months." This sounded like a request for a loan. Oh kind sirs, won't you spot me to ten thousand, just until my ship comes in and my surefire pension commences in 8 months ... 

and there are several other fair & legitimate questions that any social aid worker would ask, but these are dark and darker - like why did Swann quit work at 52 - so i won't go there now.

all in all, it's possible that Swann may be an artful local version of a nigerian spam artist. I'm winning the jackpot guaranteed, if you'll please just give me bridge financing.

Swann, apart from your slight british accent in the language signature, you've given the word "locavore" a whole new dimension. Yours might be Swann's Way, but you're no Marcel Proust.


----------



## Spidey (May 11, 2009)

I've also had suspicions, but decided to give the guy the benefit of the doubt, since I have nothing to lose in doing so. He has appeared on several forums under different names. I don't think he is soliciting for a "loan", though, and if he is he is being very subtle. I think if that was his intention he would have included a story about a sick wife, hungry kids or something of that nature rather than a single guy with no dependants. I've wondered if perhaps it could be something like someone writing an article on the quality of advice on the various forums. However, it could be legit and perhaps he just needs an anonymous way to express his problems.


----------



## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

I don't think he was looking for a loan, but I am still very curious to know what he had done to cut monthly expenses/find work.

I read that Robert Kiyosaki (rich dad/poor dad) lived in his car for a period, when he was on tough times. I am just curious as to what extent Swain has went to already to try to make it a few more months.

Me...well I am pretty cheap (and surprisingly honest!) and would probably go to great lengths in a situation like that.


----------



## investnoob (Jun 29, 2009)

So, if I have this correct, you only have to make it until August until you collect your pension?

My advice would be to get a job, any job, to pay for your expenses until August. This will at least slow the bleeding. Reduce expenses, and work a couple of jobs. They don't have to be in your field. I think any job would greatly improve your spirits and help you feel like you've gained control of your life, even its pouring coffee at Tim Horton's. 

Berubeland's advice on how to get a job is fantastic. This is how I used to do it, accept I would show up in person and I would tell them I was ready to work today! Some employers are caught short and just need a body.

And, its not forever! Its only for six months! (Or, a little longer if you want to knock off the 20k in debt). 

YOU CAN DO THIS! 

Hope this helps.


----------



## the-royal-mail (Dec 11, 2009)

This doesn't work for techie jobs. Reception or whoever comes on the phone just tells you to visit their website. HR never even answers the phone. Seems to be the easy copout for them to not have to actually deal with you.


----------



## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

nt


----------



## Brian Weatherdon CFP (Jan 18, 2011)

Hi Swain, I help a lot of people consider risks vs opportunities in (a) staying in their pension, & (b) commuting and taking the lump sum. They get beyond any confusion and complexity and simply see their preferred choice clearly. 

What you have shared - so briefly - leans toward keeping your pension intact, and that's what you always intended. 

Berube gave stirring guidance toward work; she's right.

As for borrowing: if banks don't help, try credit unions. If they don't help, find an insurance advisor who will connect you with Manulife Bank (their ManuOne program). 

Shouldn't need a vampire!

Best wishes and hoping all will work out for you!

BW


----------

