Aspen Financial Strategies, LLC

11/02/2026

Schoolhouse Rock in 2026

10/30/2026

Most of the tax benefit for charitable giving disappeared years ago. Nearly 9 in 10 Americans now take the standard deduction, which means most donations no longer help manage a tax bill at all.

And yet people keep giving.

Maybe that says something. The deduction was never really why anyone gave. The cause was.

Talk to your tax, legal, and accounting professionals about how recent tax law changes could affect your giving strategy.

10/27/2026

Why So Bearish?

10/22/2026

🌌 Astronomers just detected the most distant blazar ever observed, and its light has been traveling toward us for 8 billion years.

Known as Blazar OP 313, it’s powered by a supermassive black hole feeding on surrounding material and launching jets of plasma at nearly the speed of light. Because one of those jets points almost directly toward Earth, we see an especially intense burst of energy.

The light reaching us today shows the blazar as it existed about 5 billion years after the Big Bang, when stars and galaxies were forming at an extraordinary pace.

🔭 By studying its high-energy gamma rays, researchers can learn more about how supermassive black holes accelerated particles and shaped their surroundings during an earlier chapter of cosmic history.

Eight billion years later, that ancient signal is still teaching us something new about the universe. ✨



Source: https://www.space.com/astronomy/black-holes/astronomers-detect-most-distant-supermassive-black-hole-powered-blazar-ever-a-cosmic-beacon-from-the-dawn-of-time

10/19/2026

Treasury yields pulled back from their recent highs after a strong auction eased some concerns about demand for government debt.

The 10-year Treasury yield climbed as high as 5.35%, its highest level since 2002, before easing following the Treasury's sale of $39 billion in 10-year notes.

Demand at the auction was stronger than average, particularly from indirect bidders such as global central banks, which accounted for 80.3% of the sale, compared with a 10-auction average of 72.4%.

The broader backdrop is still one of elevated yields, with investors weighing persistent inflation, rising energy prices, and expectations that the Federal Reserve may raise rates again before year-end.

For now, the auction offered a little reassurance that demand for longer-term Treasurys remains strong even as yields sit near multidecade highs.



Source:

U.S. Treasury yields came off their highs after a solid sale of 10-year notes.

10/16/2026

🌴 More Americans are deciding that enjoying life now matters just as much as making financial progress for later.

A recent SoFi survey found that 72% of Americans would be willing to make slower progress toward their financial goals so they can spend more time with family, travel more, and prioritize meaningful experiences.

That doesn’t necessarily mean abandoning long-term goals. In fact, 59% of respondents said enjoying life is how they define financial progress, compared with 27% who pointed to owning a home.

The challenge is finding a balance between what matters now and what matters later. ✈️ That can mean making room for a vacation, concert, or family event while still keeping an eye on retirement savings and debt.

But charge that trip to a credit card and carry a balance, and interest can turn a two-week memory into a much longer bill.

What does financial progress look like to you: reaching the next milestone, enjoying more of life now, or some mix of both?


Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/23/lifemaxxing-financial-goals-spending-saving.html

10/13/2026

The Big Mac Index turns forty this year. Forty years old and still fun to explain at parties. Check out what this classic burger can tell us about the purchasing power of our dollar.

10/08/2026

🎂 Japan just crossed a milestone: for the first time, more than 100,000 people there are age 100 or older.

According to the country's Health and Welfare Ministry, Japan now counts 107,677 centenarians, up nearly 8,000 from the year before. Almost 88 percent are women. The country's oldest resident, Kyoto's Fuyo Kishimoto, recently turned 114.

🎌 Officials point to progress in medical care, along with healthier lifestyles and diet, as part of what's driving the trend. And Japan isn't alone; life expectancies have been rising in many countries over the past several decades.

It's a good reminder of how many more years many of us may be around for, and why that's worth factoring into conversations about the road ahead, from healthcare to how a longer stretch of years gets supported financially.

That's exactly the kind of long-term thinking we like to talk through together.


Source: https://apnews.com/article/japan-aging-centenarians-population-decline-health-34e0fecbf9b31946d986abba42e3f427

10/05/2026

🏛️ The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate this week for the first time in three years, lifting the federal funds rate a quarter point to a range of 3.75% to 4%. Most officials expect at least one more increase before the year's end.

A few things are driving the move:
▪️Energy prices have climbed amid global tensions
▪️Spending tied to AI infrastructure has surged
▪️Together, they've pushed inflation above the Fed's 2% goal

The effects reach different corners of your budget in different ways:
▪️Credit cards and auto loans tend to reprice quickly
▪️Mortgage rates track longer-term Treasury yields, which have also climbed, pushing the 30-year average to nearly 7%

💼 The labor market has held steady through it all, with unemployment at 4.1%.

This is exactly the kind of shift worth talking through together, especially anywhere it touches your own borrowing or spending decisions.


Source:

Most officials penciled in one more increase this year. An energy shock and a surge of AI investment have reshaped the inflation outlook.

10/02/2026

A carton of milk 🥛. A set of golf clubs ⛳. A bottle of perfume 🌸. All three just got pricier to send north into Canada. 🍁

Canada's new tariffs on $20 billion in American goods took effect this week, ranging from 15 to 50 percent depending on the product.

It's the latest move in a trade dispute that's dragged on for more than a year between two of the world's largest trading partners.

The ripple effects won't directly affect most household budgets. But they're a reminder that global headlines and everyday costs are more connected than they seem.

That connection, and what it might mean for your own situation, is exactly the kind of thing we're keeping an eye on for you.


Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/canada-retaliatory-tariffs-us-goods-milk-perfume-golf-clubs-trump/