Monday, May 5, 2025

As the Barometer Falls, My Body Feels It

Heading toward retirement, it helps to have solid pension and benefits plans to take care of our financial and physical needs

Blogs National

By Neil Houtman, Local 52 and National Board Member

There is a saying: youth is wasted on the young. It’s a saying old people waste their breath saying trying to tell young people to enjoy their “limitless energy and freedom” while they have them.

I didn’t listen when I was younger, and truthfully, I don’t think it is possible to understand some things, like ageing, until they happen.

I never thought that retirement would come at the decline of my career. I thought I would go out with a bang, not a bum shoulder, tired back, or stiff joints.

I can feel atmospheric pressure changes in my elbow, but I don’t know remember which of the times I banged it that caused this barometric sensitivity. I am over halfway to retirement, and I will probably make it in one piece, but my pace and physical ability will taper off by the time I get there.

So, I find it very important to have measures in place to get me there, and beyond. When I was younger and the older guys pushed for pension increases years ago, I thought of what I could do with the money right then. It is hard to put off immediate needs and wants for future benefits.

But now as I think of the balance in my pension, I know it was the right thing to do. There are some people in some jobs that can keep working past 65, but I do not want to count on being that person. A robust pension plan, such as the one CLAC offers, helps me sleep at night.

Another part of the plan to get there is the benefits plan. Paramedical services may not be needed by everyone, or all the time, but knowing that coverage is there to help pay for them as my family and I need them is comforting. Unexpected prescriptions or visits to an osteopath may not add a serious strain to the budget, but getting the care you need without a lot of concern for cost removes one more barrier in booking the appointment and getting better.

Neither the pension nor the benefits plan will keep me from being a rudimentary weather station. But they do help with the long term picture, and the day-to-day surprises that come up.

As the Barometer Falls, My Body Feels It

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