If you’re like most Baby Boomers, your working life is probably vastly different than that of your parents (OK, your dad’s, most likely).   One or both of your parents probably labored for the same company most of their working lives, while Boomers usually have 4-5 significant stints at different companies.

So it stands to reason that your retirement is likely to be different as well.  But exactly how different?  If you are a Baby Boomer, your retirement will probably be:

Longer – thanks to technology and medical advances, we’re living longer than our parents’ generation.  If you retire some time in your 60s, there is a pretty good chance you may live up to another 30 years in retirement.

More Expensive – Boomers’ parents grew up during the Depression and learned early how to live frugally.  Most did not retire to the Riviera or spend a lot of time traveling to and from vacation homes.  Our expectations for our retirement are higher, and we’ll need more financial resources to satisfy those expectations.

Funded by Savings – pensions are scarce commodities these days; most Boomers will retire on personal savings, investments and Social Security.

If your retirement planning does not take these realities into account, it’s time to examine it more closely.  Consulting with a California estate planning attorney about retirement will help ensure you enjoy the retirement you want and deserve.

According to Donate Life California, the official California organ and tissue donor registry, there are currently over 21,000 Californians awaiting an organ transplant.

There continues to be an urgent need for organ donations in the U.S. and California, with over 7,000 Californians on the donor waiting list who will die before a suitable match can be found.

If you live in California and wish to become an organ donor, you can do so by visiting www.donatelifecalifornia.org to register.  You must be at least 18 years of age.

The website also provides information about donating bone marrow, blood or making a living donation of a kidney or other organs that can save a life today.  According to the site, more than 6,000 Americans become living donors every year and one in four of these are not biologically related to the recipient.

You should also be sure to include your wishes as part of your California estate planning process, including specific language within your Living Will, Advanced Medical Directive or Health Proxy.  Check with your California estate planning attorney to see what is necessary to include organ donation in your estate plan.

Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are out to change the world, not just with their money but with half the wealth of 38 other billionaires.

According to a Reuters story late Wednesday, the philanthropic campaign launched by Buffett and Gates in June – The Giving Pledge Campaign – has gotten another 38 billionaires to pledge half of their fortunes to charity.

Some of the more notable names include New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Ted Turner, Barry Diller, moviemaker George Lucas, energy tycoon T. Boone Pickens and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison.

The article noted that since June, Gates and his wife have approached 70-80 billionaires and asked them to donate half their fortunes either during their lifetime or upon their death.  The billionaires are not asked to donate to any specific charity, just to donate.

According to Forbes, there are 403 billionaires in the U.S.  Gates and Buffett plan to host several events this year to recruit more U.S. billionaires, and also to travel to India and China to try to recruit more there.

You can visit www.thegivingpledge.org to view a full list of the billionaires and read their letters explaining their decision to give.

You can also visit a California estate planning attorney to learn more about setting up a charitable trust or other giving options.

Many of life’s activities that used to be done face-to-face or through the mail are now done online.  We bank online, we invest online, we buy and sell online, we keep up with friends and family online, and we even date online.

So what happens to your online identity and records after you are gone?

Savvy estate planners know that their client’s online identities and accounts must be protected after death just as well as their assets and properties are protected.  It is all too common today that a loved one trying to access a decedent’s online accounts and records is unable to do so because many popular sites like Google and Yahoo will not divulge account information to anyone but the account holder.

There are websites like LegacyLocker.com that provide users with a system for storing all their online information, which is then made available to named beneficiaries utilizing a secure process upon the account holder’s death.

You can also create your own secure repository of your online account information and passwords and leave a printed copy or an electronic file for your beneficiaries or the executor of your estate.

Consult with your California estate planning attorney about ways to protect your online identity and assets in your estate plan.

An article last week on CBS Moneywatch.com says that, on average, wives outlive their husbands by 5-10 years.  Unfortunately, the rate of poverty for women over the age of 65 is more than 12 percent, significantly higher than for men in the same age group.

The main reason for this is that many of the couples’ assets will be spent in the husband’s declining years on medical bills and long-term care, leaving little to take care of the wife following her husband’s death.

What to do?  Here are some tips from the article:

• Figure out how much retirement savings you need to generate a reliable lifetime income.

• Whoever has the higher earnings history (usually the husband) can max out their Social Security benefits by delaying the start date as long as possible.

• Make 401(k) accounts and retirement savings last as long as one of you is still living.

• Have a strategy for addressing long-term care expenses.

• If the husband has a substantial benefit from a pension plan, take the joint and survivor annuity — most retirees outlive their lump sum payments.

• Try to stay in good shape by practicing healthy habits.

• Try to retire without a lot of debt – in particular, try to pay off your mortgage before you retire.

Here’s a final tip:  consult with a California retirement planning attorney to ensure you plan properly for the retirement you want.