Every year around this time, I get together with my younger kids and we do our taxes. It’s one of those small family rituals that the older I get the more I treasure. Filling out those tax forms — by now we all use TurboTax — is a way to relive the past year, sort of, and fill each other in on our scorecards.
Because that is what financial records amount to — gains and losses, ups and downs, a rendering of the past 12 months.
The kids are all in their 20s and at a very different stage of life from me. They are just starting out in their careers, whereas mine technically ended three-and-a-half years ago.
There is a synchronicity to our income levels, however, thanks to the reality of the bell curve of earnings. They are on the way up hopefully, and I’m on my way down, right back about where they are, at present.
For the purposes of simplicity, I’m going to say that a career typically lasts 50 years. If so, they may not hit their peak earning years for a couple of decades yet, whereas I hit mine a long time ago. Of course they are impatient and somewhat anxious. They have needs and desires now but those are well beyond their means for now.
If I were a rich man, I could just sweep in and meet some of those needs with financial gifts, and I wish I could do so. You know, be a Super Dad. As it is, I am the one of last resort because I have a small emergency cash fund that has come in very handy lately, due to some adverse circumstances in their lives.
After we’d finished the taxes, we had dinner and talked. They spoke about how daunting the job market seems to be, how they worry about AI taking their jobs, how life seems so expensive these days. They seem frustrated by these difficulties.
They are, variously, a medical assistant, an historian and an artist. I’m an old writer.
It was far from a grim evening. We laughed and told each other funny stories and talked about our memories living together in the Mission when everything seemed much simpler. I assured them all will be well; they’ll be fine, come what may.
Afterwards, as I drove home through rain, I thought about how grateful I am that I have them in my life. But much later, trying to sleep, all I did was worry. How will they cope with the world to come and its complexities?
Without me, not as a superhero, but at least as the guy who always showed up…
LINKS:
Russia's Wagner boss suggests 'betrayal' in Bakhmut battle (BBC)
Wagner representative barred from Russian army HQ in Ukraine, its boss says (Reuters)
Ukrainian Soldiers, Nearly Encircled, Push Russians Back (NYT)
How Trump’s big lie played out on the CPAC stage (Guardian)
Fact check: Trump delivers wildly dishonest speech at CPAC (CNN)
George Conway Makes Ominous Prediction About Donald Trump (Newsweek)
Fox libel defense at odds with top GOP presidential foes (AP)
In California speech, DeSantis stokes fight over pandemic (WP)
Thousands of pro-Trump bots are attacking DeSantis, Haley (AP)
Is it time to start considering personhood rights for AI chatbots? (LAT)
Elon Musk recruits team to develop OpenAI's ChatGPT rival (Reuters)
German publisher Axel Springer says journalists could be replaced by AI (Guardian)
ChatGPT has thrown gasoline on fears of a U.S.-China arms race on AI (NBC)
Elon Musk reportedly tried to sell Twitter's office plants to employees as part of his push for cash (Business Insider)
Tennessee Law Limiting ‘Cabaret’ Shows Raises Uncertainty About Drag Events (NYT)
Canceling student debt would help level the educational playing field. That’s why some people hate it. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Afghan universities open solely for men amid ‘heartbreaking’ ban on women (Times of Israel)
A crisis over suspected poisonings targeting Iranian schoolgirls escalated as authorities acknowledged over 50 schools were struck in a wave of possible cases. It's unclear who is behind the attacks that have raised fears that other girls could be poisoned, apparently just for going to school. [AP]
Obesity rose in adults ages 20 to 44, from 33% in 2009 to 41% in 2020, according to a new study. Diabetes rose from 3% to 4% over the same period. (WP)
New remains of multiple extinct species excavated on Chilean coast (Jerusalem Post)
Planets Remarkably Similar to Jupiter And Neptune Found Orbiting a Sun-Like Star (ScienceAlert)
Why certain foods taste better the next day (WP)
Demand Grows For Stricter Transit Regulations After Derailing Train Hits Airplane At 30,000 Feet (The Onion)
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