The Retirement Newsletter: Ten Signs that summer has arrived

Issue Number: -33 — Plus, a new drug, more on the data breach and stories from the end of a ski trip

Nick

Jun 04, 2023

A double cone ice cream at the seaside — has summer finally arrived? — Photo by Author — has summer finally arrived?

Welcome

Welcome to issue -33, Ten Signs that summer has arrived.

This week in issue -33:

Has summer arrived? What are my ten signs?
Health — starting on a new drug
Money — more on the data breach at the pension company
Travel — Nostalgia Corner — the end of my ski trip and the return to Malaysia

Has summer finally arrived?

OK, this is northern-hemisphere and UK-centric, but what are my ten signs that summer has arrived?

1. The arrival of cuckoos (Cuculus canorus)

I’ve heard a cuckoo — I heard several when I was away on holiday (see Issue Number: -34 — A mixed bag — my last set of summer exam marking, a holiday, money worries and Wi-Fi etiquette). Their sound is unique and haunting, and unmistakable.

If you are not familiar with cuckoos, they are a bird that flies from Sub-Saharan Africa to the UK to lay their eggs in the nests of other birds. They stay in the UK for four or five months, then fly back to Africa.

For more information on cuckoos, see Wikipedia and The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).

2. The Swifts and Swallows have arrived

They have arrived, and I love sitting outside and hearing them scream overhead.

3. I’ve been to the garden centre and bought plants

If you read Issue Number: -67 — Gardening during your retirement — hobby or side-hustle? — you will know I don’t like gardening. But I am compelled to do it, and at the start of every summer, I rush to my local garden centre and spend far too much on plants, which I then have to plant out and spend the next three months watering every evening. Not enjoyable.

Photo by Author — my car boot (trunk) full of plants for the garden

Hence, going to the garden centre is another sign that summer has arrived.

4. My hay fever started kicking off

The switch over from tree to grass pollen is another sure sign that summer is here.

The switch-over happened last week — I know because I started sneezing. So, summer is here.

5. It gets light far too early in the morning

Sunrise is so early that it wakes you at 5 am. Summer is here.

6. The local fields are full of lambs

Another sure sign that summer is here is that fields are full of lambs.

Photo by Author — lambs playing on a bank

7. The Bluebells have been and gone

Every year I wait for the Bluebells to arrive, and after two weeks, they are gone. But, as they fade away and turn to seed, it is another sign that summer is here.

Photo by Author — Bluebells at their peak in my local woods

8. An explosion of green in my local woods

As the Bluebells fade, the trees in the local woods produce leaves of a fantastic shade of green. Summer is here.

Green leaves on a tree in a wood — summer green — Photo by Author — summer green

9. I can turn the central heating off!

And this year, it was sweeter than ever as after the worry of huge heating bills over the winter, it was great to turn the central heating off.

10. I’ve looked out the sunblock

I’ve looked out my sunblock and realised it is out of date (or gone lumpy over the winter), so I’ve headed to the chemist for a new tube.

And those are my ten signs that summer is here!

Have a great summer!

Money Matters — Data Breach

Last week in Issue Number: -34 — A mixed bag — my last set of summer exam marking, a holiday, money worries and Wi-Fi etiquette, I wrote about how a data breach at Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) had revealed much of my personal information. Anyway, the breach appears more severe and widespread than I first thought.

From a report on the BBC — Capita hack: 90 organisations report data breaches to watchdog — the data was held by a company called Capita who, according to their website, “Capita: we create better outcomes” — not in this case.

The piece at the BBC reported that Capita “left a pool of data unsecured online”, and this “pool” contained data on “hundreds of thousands” of people. It is possible that the leak could have revealed information on people in over 300 pension funds. You can find more information over at the Guardian in “Capita cyber-attack: 90 organisations report data breaches”.

So, if you have a private pension, check if Capita leaked your personal information.

If you have been caught in the leak, watch out for potential pension fraud attempts. (See How to avoid pension scams and see issue -49 of the newsletter on Pension scams).

Health — new drug

I started on a new drug two weeks ago, which hasn’t been a pleasant experience.

I have been slowly developing arthritis, and my doctor suggested last year that I should consider taking a particular drug.

Being a biochemist, I read up on the drug and decided it wasn’t for me. The list of side effects was horrendous.

My arthritis symptoms got worse to the point that I was moving like someone 20 years older than me (until I got “going”), so I decided to start on the drug.

If you are familiar with arthritis, you can guess the drug from what I am about to say. However, I would rather not mention the name, as this is not a ‘medical’ newsletter.

Anyway, I take the drug once a week, and the next day I get hit with the side effects, which I would describe as having a mild hangover — a funny taste in the mouth, a dodgy stomach, a headache, and feeling tired and sluggish. After a day or so, most of this clears, apart from the funny taste.

I took my second dose this week, and the side effects weren’t so bad. I wasn’t 100% when I woke up, but it was not as bad as the previous week.

If all works out, I should see some improvement in my condition in the next couple of weeks, with things settling down around weeks 8 to 12. Fingers crossed.

Travel — Nostalgia Corner

This week, my ski trip to the States comes to an end with a drive back to Las Vegas from Zion National Park and my return to Malaysia:

The drive from Zion National Park, Utah, to Las Vegas — the drive out was uneventful.
A day and night in Las Vegas, Nevada — I find Las Vegas weird.
Leaving Las Vegas — back to Malaysia — my bag had gained significant weight (how?), and a coughing passenger gave me a chest infection that took two years to clear.
Was it “My most mad ski trip yet?” — it is a close call, but possibly, yes.

Next week, stories from my trip to Yellowstone National Park in winter.

Next week

Next week in issue -32, I will continue with my summer theme and also share some stories from a winter trip to Yellowstone National Park, USA.

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Until next time,