How do I remember all these PINs and passwords?

As most of us have realized, our memory isn't quite what it was a few years ago, yet we have to remember so much more stuff these days. With so much of our lives wrapped up in our personal computers and other electronic devices, there must be a better way to remember the dozens of access codes.

I have so many different accounts that require me to remember PIN numbers and passwords that I sometimes get lost. ATM codes, passwords for three different computer systems at work, passwords for Twitter, Facebook and this blog. My 401k account has a password and different user name. There are codes to get into my voice mail on my cell phone and work phone. . . I know there are others. . . I just can't remember them all.

To complicate this, some accounts require changing passwords every 90 days.

Consumer Reports offer several tips in this article. Here's part of the article:

Write down your passwords if that is the only way you’ll remember them. Wait a minute—isn’t that dangerous? The conventional wisdom is that this is a no-no. But according to Microsoft, passwords on paper are “more difficult to compromise across the Internet” than those that are stored electronically.

You’ll need to put that piece of paper in a safe place, of course. Muster all your CIA spy instincts and hide the document somewhere in your home, away from your computer, in a place that’s easy to get to only if you know where to look—say, tucked inside the pages of a favorite book, taped to the underside of a laundry basket, or slipped beneath the inner sole of a shoe stashed in your closet.

Dow closes above 9,000 and baby boomers cheer

Here's some good news for those of us who will be relying on our 401k investments when we finally retire. The Dow Jones Industrials close above 9,000 today -- the first time that's happened since January. So my retirement account, which I've been calling a 201k, is quietly moving back to being a 401k.

It's been rather depressing the past year as we've watched our accounts lose 40% of their value, but that is changing.

I was talking about retirement to a guy who joined our twosome the other day on a golf course near Pismo Beach. We were all vacationing out of the San Joaquin Valley heat. He works for an oil company in Bakersfield and said he was going to retire this year when he turned 60 in a few months. But the stock market crash delayed his retirement because he's fully invested in his 401k. A lot of us know what he's talking about.

It's not as big a problem for me because I don't plan on retiring until I'm at least 65 so I have five years to make up the ground lost in my 401k account. Not so for those who had an out-plan for this year.

Remember all those people who thought we should privatize Social Security or give the money to workers and let them invest it? You don't hear much from them now. That was one of many dumb ideas proposed by President George W. Bush.

At least I can withdraw from my 401k without penalty

Hitting 59 1/2 has some advantages, although it wouldn't be wise to take money from my 401k right now since most of it is in the stock market. But it's sort of freeing to know that I could, and not face a substantial withdrawal penalty. Those early withdrawal warnings always made me very nervous. So I'm happy to be 59 1/2 -- at least for that reason.

I know. . . It's very easy to please me. But the 401k account is supposed to be a next egg and since I'm still working, this is more of an academic exercise than a serious suggestion of tapping it early. I know I'll need the next egg. I just hope it isn't right away.

But all of us in this age bracket should start thinking about our financial situations, and get some expert advice. Don't rely on your brother-in-law or the Starbucks barista for financial information.

But there are two key ages to keep in mind: 59 1/2 when you can withdraw without penalty and 70 1/2 when you must begin taking withdrawals if you're not working at the company where you have the 401k account.

I you need to know anything else about your 401k, see an expert.