Welcome to a new week here on the Retirement Quick Tips podcast! I’m your host, Ashley Micciche.

On the podcast this week, I’m going to do something quite different.

My father-in-law, Doug Micciche, passed away on May 22nd, after a very brief battle with cancer. I first met Doug when I was 16 years old, and for the last 24 years that I’ve known him, he’s been a confidant and someone I love and miss deeply.

Doug was also a financial advisor in our advisory practice, and over the years, I learned from him - not just personally, but professionally as well. So I wanted to take this opportunity to share a few things about Doug - the kind of man he was, the way he inspired me, and the things he taught me.

To do that, I think we’ll start at the beginning. I don’t remember the first time I met Doug, but my husband and I started dating in high school, so I’m sure 16 year old me walked into his house acting like I owned the place.

Because my husband and I were high school sweethearts, I spent a lot of time at his parent’s house, countless hours in the family room watching TV and movies with Doug. He and I both shared a mutual love for bad 90s action movies.

By the time my husband moved out of his parent’s home, I had already spent more quality time with Doug than most daughter-in-laws get to spend with their father-in-law in a lifetime, and for that I am grateful.

One of my favorite pastimes was needling Doug, which was a tradition that continued until the end. Back in the early days, I would plop down on their couch so aggressively, I might as well have been working on my high jump, using the couch to break my fall. I would immediately look over at Doug with a sly smile, waiting for the inevitable sigh or eye roll. Eventually, after thousands of forceful couch plops, the spring broke in the exact spot where I would always sit…I still maintain I had nothing to do with that janky couch spring.

Their house had hardwood flooring on the stairs, and like a 7 year old boy, I would fly down the stairs. The pounding reverberation on the stairs irritated him to no end, so whenever I would run down the stairs he would always yell: “stampede!!” I took that as an invitation to pound my heels as loud as possible whenever I came down the stairs, just to see if I could get a stampede yell out of him.

Doug was a great listener, and I often went to him when I had a problem or needed some advice. He was always honest and a no-BS guy. He was great at telling me what I needed to hear, even if it wasn’t what I wanted to hear. I could trust his advice, knowing that he always had my best intentions at heart. There was no duplicity in Doug, and I very much appreciated that about him.

Doug was one of the most selfless people I know. Anything you asked him to do, he would do it, and whether he wanted to do it or not, you really had no idea, because he cheerfully devoted himself to other people and their needs. He would give me rides to and from the airport - often picking me up in the pre-dawn hours for the early flights I habitually booked. He always joyfully helped out with school pickups for my kids, and this past year, he picked up my 4 year old, Theodore, from preschool twice a week, always first in line because he was also ridiculously and annoyingly early for EVERYTHING. He and Theoore had their routine - he would bring him some gummi worms that Theodore quickly came to expect.

Doug was so deeply authentic, genuinely interested in other people, and kind down to his core, that he made friends wherever he went. He wasn’t super extraverted, but he could relate to anyone, and making new friends was a superpower he had. He made friends with parents at my kids sports games, with other grandparents at school pickup, and most stunning of all - he made friends and stayed in contact with a guy he sold a car to - a chance encounter that turned into a friendship, and they stayed in touch for many years after.

Doug valued simplicity and he was content to spend his days at home, and as his wife Becky wrote in his obituary - “His pleasures were simple: daily exercise, command of the TV remote and a Friday night pizza, an enjoyable book and a nice slice of pie or cake. He was uncompromising when it came to his faith, to keeping his home and yard well-tended and his cars impeccable.”

What I admire most about Doug was his enduring faith. He was Catholic, and attended Sunday Mass every week. He watched daily Mass on the TV livestream nearly every day. He prayed and read the bible often, and like most men, was quite private about his spiritual life. But I caught glimpses of it often - a spiritual book he was reading, a text from him before a doctor’s appointment or during a hardship to let me know he was praying for me. He did this often with me, but I found out after he passed that he did this with many other people too. After my dad had a health issue...

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It’s Sunday and I’m wrapping up the week by summarizing this week’s theme: America's $36 Trillion Tab - Understanding how The U.S. National Debt Impacts You

Everyone’s favorite topic - the crushing US national debt - yay!

In case you missed any episodes this week, here’s the recap

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This week on the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast, I’m talking about America’s $36 Trillion Tab on the national debt and what that means for you.

Today, I’m talking about how you can prepare and protect yourself from the US National debt’s doom loop.

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This week on the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast, I’m talking about America’s $36 Trillion Tab on the national debt and what that means for you.

A very smart investor told me recently that the national debt will begin to decline when the growth rate of the economy outpaces the growth rate on the debt.

Ok, so then one could conclude that we just need more robust economic growth to get out of this debt doom loop we seem to be headed for.

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This week on the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast, I’m talking about America’s $36 Trillion Tab on the national debt and what that means for you.

Today, I’m talking about the ugly tradeoffs for reducing the national debt and how each of those options, and likely some combination of all 3 could impact you.

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This week on the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast, I’m talking about America’s $36 Trillion Tab on the national debt and what that means for you.

Today, I’m talking about why the US national debt is problematic.

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This week on the Retirement Quick Tips Podcast, I’m talking about America’s $36 Trillion Tab on the national debt and how it impacts you - what does that mean for your social security & medicare benefits, inflation, taxes, the value of your investments, etc. The unfortunate truth is that the growing debt problem potentially has a big impact on all of these aspects of your life.

Before we go any further, we first need to clarify what the US National Debt is…

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Welcome to a new week here on the Retirement Quick Tips podcast! I’m your host, Ashley Micciche.

I’m a financial advisor and co-owner of True North Retirement Advisors, a fee-only fiduciary financial advisory practice managing over $425M in assets.

For 17 years, I’ve helped clients retire with confidence, and my goal on this podcast is to simplify the complexities of retirement planning so you can focus on what truly matters—enjoying your retirement years while maintaining financial security.

I remember having concerns about the US national debt and having conversations with clients about this back in 2011.

That’s what I’ll talk about this week. Because the US national debt isn’t like you or I having debt. It’s quite different. If we don’t have enough income to pay our debts like the US government, then we don’t have money trees. The US government has their own personal money tree, and that can work, up to a point.

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It’s Sunday and I’m wrapping up the week by summarizing this week’s theme: Right Accounts in the Right Order - Prioritizing Your Savings as a Pre-Retiree in 2025

In case you missed any episodes this week, heres how I recommend prioritizing savings especially as you approach retirement:

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