As a #WomanInHer40s I've Learned

Every decade of life is considered a milestone. 

• Remember when you turned 10 you were so happy to be out of the single digits.
• Then when you hit your 20s, you celebrated making it out of your teenage years with your dignity intact.
• As you crept into your 30s, you believed you had life all figured out. 

But then the time machine of life pushed you into your 40s and panic start to set in because you think life is playing a trick on you. 

In this episode of Better Said Than Written, I share what life has taught me in my four decades of life.

So what has life taught you? Engage in the Twitter campaign, #WomanInHer40s, or E-mail your views to TCsViews@gmail.com. You can also leave your comments in the box below.

Related Stories: 

• Women Over 40: A Man's Perspective
• 26 Life Lessons I learned by the Age of 42

From Rags to Folk Art

video by Timeline

To read more, go to: TimeLine.com

Related Stories: 

• Reri Grist: A Voice That Flourished Through Travel

• Misty Copeland Breaks Barriers One Pirouette at a Time
• Hip-Hop + Ballet = Hiplet

Reri Grist: A Voice That Flourished Through Travel

article by Timeline

Reri Grist sang and fought her way to auditions for which she was being passed over—and in the process managed to get the ear of Leonard Bernstein, one of the world’s greatest conductors. She never rested on her laurels, but set her sights even higher in some ways, and broader in others. She wanted to see the world.

 

To read more, go to: TimeLine.com

Related Stories: 

• Misty Copeland Breaks Barriers One Pirouette at a Time
• Hip-Hop + Ballet = Hiplet

Vietnam War: The Picture Max Was Allowed to Keep

A little piece of history through the lens of a Vietnam Veteran

There are just some stories you won't find in documentaries, history books or old newspaper clippings. Some of the most fulfilling stories are told by people who lived during a pivotal moment in time, and they come with pictures in tow which helps shape their story. 

Max, now 70, was a medic in the United States Army during the Vietnam War.

Twice a month Max worked at an emergency room in a civilian Vietnam hospital. As you can imagine, he witnessed plenty of deaths and trauma. 

Out of curiosity, a friend back home, who specialized in trauma care, asked Max to take pictures of what he saw in the hospitals and mail them back to him in the states. 

Max captured some gruesome images. Many of those pictures were sent to his friend, but a lot of them were confiscated by the Military Police. "They even took the negatives," Max explains. "They probably were afraid the pictures were going to end up in American newspapers."

The image in this post is one of the photos MPs allowed Max to keep. This photo was taken in December 1968 in the courtyard of a civilian Vietnam Hospital with a toddler he didn't even know. "The little boy just showed up,"  Max recalls.

While on duty and off, Max says he was always on guard. Hence why you see a rifle strapped to his arm. "I didn't feel safe unless I was back home in the U.S."


A Little Tidbit

As you can see, Max has a cigarette dangling from his lips. He first started smoking in 1958. And his brand of choice while serving in the Vietnam War was Pall Mall Cigarettes (red) with no filter. "Wherever particular people congregate - was their slogan," says Max.

Max spent ¢0.17 for a pack and $1.75 for a carton. Today a carton of Pall Mall goes for $26 plus tax.

Do you have a moment in history you like to share? E-mail your views to TCsViews@gmail.com

Money Method: The Great Tax Escape to Puerto Rico

Did you know there are tax loopholes for Americans living in Puerto Rico? Well, at least that's what I learned from PolicyGenius.com's contributor, Alex Webb. 

But don't pack your bags just yet. There are several barriers to entry for you to consider before you make a run from Uncle Sam. 

Guest Post: Alex Webb, PolicyGenius Contributor

It has been said that the only things you can’t escape in life are death and taxes. While moving to Puerto Rico won’t help you live forever, it’s one of the few places on earth where Americans can legally escape many forms of taxation. Intrigued? You should be.

Global Taxation

Most countries tax their citizens on a residency basis. For example, if you are a Swedish citizen living in Thailand, you will owe taxes to Thailand, but not to Sweden. But the U.S. has a system of global taxation, meaning that if you are an American living in Thailand, you’ll still have to pay U.S. taxes. While there are deductions and exceptions, it’s nearly impossible to escape the IRS — unless you live in Puerto Rico.

That’s because Puerto Rico falls in an interesting legal grey area. It’s part of the United States, but it’s a territory, not a state. Puerto Rico doesn’t receive voting representation in Congress and Puerto Ricans—while being American citizens—can’t vote in federal elections. But they also don’t pay many federal taxes. Puerto Rico has the power to tax their residents, but, in an attempt to lure investment, they slashed the rates for new residents to next to nothing. And, since Puerto Rico is part of the United States, any American can move there and become a resident. All of this creates an unusual and fascinating tax loophole:

Americans who live in America pay U.S. federal taxes. Americans who live in foreign countries pay U.S. federal taxes. But Americans who move to Puerto Rico often don’t have to. With the correct tax planning, new Puerto Rico residents could legally pay a tax rate close to 0%.

How to Move to Puerto Rico

To gain and maintain your residency you’ll need to move your primary address to Puerto Rico, but you’ll only need to spend a minimum of 183 days in Puerto Rico per year. The rest of the time you can travel to other parts of the United States, or the world.

Beyond physically moving you’ll need to fill out some important paperwork. Act 22, also known as the “Individual Investors Act” is behind many of the tax advantages, and to receive the benefits you’ll need to apply for a tax exemption decree. If your application is approved, your individual tax exemption decree will have the full details of your exact tax treatment, which may vary from person to person.

If you control a corporation, you’ll need to look at Act 20, which provides for a 4% corporate tax rate — far below the 35% tax rate on the mainland United States. If you are an entrepreneur with, say, an online business, you may be able to relocate to Puerto Rico and attain large tax savings. 

Of course, your exact situation will vary and tax law is very complicated, so don’t use this article as legal advice.

This article first appeared on PolicyGenius.com, which is a financial protection planning startup educating consumers on common monetary pitfalls of life. 

Alex Webb, founder of Take Risks Be Happy, is a freelance writer and author. 

Webb co-authored and contributed to books published by National Geographic, the Financial Times, and Skyhorse.