Will the checks stop?

With no end to the government shutdown in sight, and the October 17th debt ceiling fast approaching, people are getting worried. Obama has raised the possibility that Social Security checks might not go out. That would get interesting.

As luck would have it, by the 17th I should be visiting my dad at his retirement park. If things are not settled before then, I'll be around a lot of angry old people.

Under normal political conditions that would not be allowed to happen. Old people vote. They also have pretty good lobbies. Usually that's enough to keep the checks flowing. These are not normal times. Politicians are much more concerned about ideologies than the good of the country.

My very own lovely wife is on a SS disability. Her check is almost half of our income. What would we do if that was cut off? How would that affect our travel plans?

Most likely we'd go sailing anyway. However, it would affect how we'd travel. Forget about spending a lot of time at marinas and dock side restaurants. Rice and fish would be a big part of our diet, cooked on the boat. There are a lot of things to do and see that don't cost much money. Reading good books on a beach somewhere isn't too hard to take.

Maybe that's the wise thing to do. Head out to sea until the whole thing blows over. Of course, that's pretty good advice for just about anything from personal troubles to a full blown zombie Apocalypse.

-Sixbears