While it is natural to feel bad, the thing about the current crisis is everyone is caught in it. Just because your husband took the overly conservative approach and holds CDs, doesn't mean his choice is the better one! He has protected assets, BUT unless that interest rate on his CDs stays high he is going to see the deadly effects of inflation chip at his savings.

In other words, the idea that somehow his CD approach is "superior" and that you have a "losing" portfolio is total b.s. I strongly believe your investment strategy is superior - it may not look like it now, but in 25 years when you have 2.5x the amount of his investment...

A previous commenter has it right - if the stock market doesn't bounce back by 25 years, I'd take your money and invest it in guns, because you'll need it to protect your cave from the neighbour tribes.

it's going to be at least 25 years until I retire

Assuming you don't plan on accessing this money before you retire, you really don't need to worry that much. Unless you think that our economy is permanently destroyed and stocks will remain permanently depressed for over 25 years you have plenty of time.

Look at it this way. My 401k has basically been cut in half too. But I am maintaining my regular contributions at the same level and now my contributions buy twice as many shares of each index fund I own. I am not afraid to do this because I have 30 years before I retire.

When the economy does eventually recover and stocks start going up again -- which could be long time, but I think will be in much less than 30 years -- I'll have a lot more shares to go back up!

Of course, the closer to retirement you get, the more defensive you need to be. But if you truly don't need this money for 25 years, I think you should just hang tight.

(I am not a financial advisor!!!)

Cary's last line is one of my favorite quotes, from the late Warren Zevon. When he was dying, he appeared on his friend David Letterman's show. Letterman asked him if facing his mortality had taught him anything, and Zevon said, "Just how much you're supposed to enjoy every sandwich." A Zevon tribute CD released after his death was titled "Enjoy Every Sandwich."

For the record, I owned what was (earlier this year) $40,000 worth of AIG stock, inherited from my grandmother. It is now worth under $1000. So I can empathize with you, dear LW. Luckily, I have about 25 years to go 'til I hit retirement age, as well as a new financial adviser to help me make decisions and put things into perspective. He got into the business the week before the crash of '87. I recommend finding an unbiased financial planner with some years under his or her belt who can help you make some good decisions.

You reminded me of someone who said:`Enjoy the ice cream served upon the dish.' I nice commenter @ UT said:`Eat pistachio, vanilla, chocolate, rocky road, butter pecan, and do enjoy a waffle cone before the cone becomes soggy. I hate drips of nutty buddy on my keyboard. So, Eat sorta hurriedly before you/anybody 'kicks a rusty trash can'... Enjoy the bowl before the ice cream melts. I hate ice cream headaches.

Eating the ice cream bowl is indigestible.

Gwendolyn Brooks- said this. C.T.s idea.

`Exhaust the little moments. Soon it dies.

`And be it gash, or gold, it will not come,

`Again in an identical disguise-G. Brooks.

This is a fairy tale. "At least 25 years to retirement?" That means you are only 30 years old. Holy snots! You actually deserve criticism for even worrying about retirement when you are only 30.

You deserve credit too, but most Americans are living hand to mouth right now. Pray to God that this economy will not continue, and just keep saving.

You are lucky. Most Americans cannot afford to save. We need all our income just to keep going. Living happily ever after is a fantasy for most of us.

You should brace yourself for possibly his CD going off the way of the Dodo bird. Banks are failing all over the country. Only ten grand on any account will be covered if there's a loss if the bank fails. It wouldn't hurt to check out his bank for possible failure and yank his money out of there SAP. Get a financial planner to help you with this, Best advice Carey has given.

About the market likely rebounding, and then some, before those 25 years have passed, so I have naught to add to that.

However, my own financial adviser told me--when I called her, freaking out, a couple of weeks ago--was exactly what you are already doing (after she helped me re-arrange my portfolio a bit):

"Don't open your statements until at least 2011."

She also left me with a great quote by Warren Buffett:

"Be greedy when people are fearful, and fearful when people are greedy."

You're buying stuff at fire sale prices right now. Buy low, sell high: this is what "buying low" feels like.

Relax and have a glass of wine. It'll be OK.

The world will change radically several times before you reach retirement age. This issue will be trivial by that time. If either of you has a big problem about it now, if you quarrel about it now, you will be wasting your breath.

Use this loss as an opportunity to learn, and to laugh. Or perish. To heck with your silly multi-million versus single million concerns. I am trying to figure out a way to kill and dress seagulls to supplement my retirement diet.

Cary,

I believe that the phrase "tightening your belt" had more to do with keeping one's pants up than anything to do with kinky punishment. The kinds of involuntary weight reduction programs brought on by periodic financial panics and crises seem far removed from 401k wielding Americans, and it may have taken on other meanings through the generations; and I'll grant you that losing one's pants after losing one's shirt can be a prelude to many exciting alternatives, but there is a reason it's called a "Depression". I do suspect the phrase will be making a comeback, but then, I'm an optimist.