Retirement!!!

Before my event as they call it, I was living in FL. and hanging around a very active sailing club.
I would listen to all the talk about "When I retire ,etc" from these folks.
They would spend all sorts of money getting the boat ready for the big trip. Then suddenly the wife would say, uh i didn't really mean it that I would like to do this and the boat would sit.

Or all the money was spent outfitting the boat, a bunch of trips were planned for when the retirement day/mortgage was paid off/kids graduated etc. The dock lines would go limp from rot and the old man would drop dead.

What i am trying to convey is this;
if you can at all possibly do it, GO NOW !!
do not fall into that trap of waiting just one more year until whatever the excuse/reasons you use to justify not going and doing that life long dream.

I got to do a lot more and see a lot more than many, but if I had only gone a year earlier than planned , maybe, just maybe i would have dodged that bullet. I'm certainly not dead yet , but my plans have been drastically altered. The good news is i still can and do what i can manage and do not regret anything in my life.

No plans to retire, will work until I drop. I've worked for myself most of my life and like what I do. I'm 61.

Sorry, I didn't read every word of every post, so may be repeating this:

My WORST day of retirement is better than my BEST day at work.

Got entirely out of debt, sold a lot of stuff and simplified. Retired at 55 on very little money, and have had the best 12 years of my life, so far. The best.

Good on you for taking the leap, and never look back.

Walking Eagle

[QUOTE=kantuckid;736517]Hey MARS,please keep me in mind to lay in on one of these sails as a hired hand/no pay hand etc.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! .[/QUOTE]

Too late! I gave up life on the water for life on the prairie about 6 years ago. Learning to stay put has added a whole new dimension to my world.

Tom

[QUOTE]No plans to retire...like what I do...tommcgee[/QUOTE]

+1.

The issue of whether to retire is unique to each individual.

I'm 63, and have been an attorney for 38 years. My work is interesting, and I can control work load, type of work, and the stress levels of the work. I have a wonderful group of clients.

My wife, who is an ophthalmologist, is also 63, and has no plans to retire. At this stage of our lives, we are not working because we have to, and we enjoy our lifestyle, and don't want to live anywhere else in the world.

But many of our friends have retired, and I think they did so for good reasons.

Congratulations, Hugh. :thumb

[QUOTE=Walking Eagle;736564]

My WORST day of retirement is better than my BEST day at work.

Got entirely out of debt, sold a lot of stuff and simplified. Retired at 55 on very little money, and have had the best 12 years of my life, so far.

Walking Eagle[/QUOTE]
Sweet! :dance

I never thought about retirement because that was for the really old guys. The ones that were all crippled up, using walking aids and drooling. I seemed to be stuck in my thirties, great health and working for a rock solid company. I didn't have the $10 million in the IRA that I was told that I should have so it just seemed ok to just keep working, been at it for decades and used to it as a way of life so I was ok with it.

Then it happened. Normal life went out the window leaving me adrift in a sea of uncertainty. Or so I thought. The first month after being laid off I was scared silly and couldn't do anything other that get out of bed and go back to bed. Month two was better but the outlook of being called back to work kept growing dimmer with the passing days.

Then it happened. I got to fear the phone ringing. Was it going to be an offer of work at another division of the company? Fill in for a week or two? I had taken stock of myself and realized everyday was Saturday for me! No alarm clock to answer to! No jackwagon co-workers to deal with! Want to go somewhere? Lite the fires, smoke the tires! No waiting for the weekend! Life is good!

Yes it stings to loose the pay and perks of the job but not as much as it feels good to be out of the rat race! The only thing left for me to do is the formal retirement in April.

No regrets.. Walked out of work on April 15th of last year (official retirement on June 1st, turned 65 that month.) Was called back once to sort out some programming, and haven't been back, and more importantly - haven't missed it since.

I used to dream about retiring - very regulary. And the dreams usually had some element of loss involved... perhaps being the loss of some work that I liked doing. Luckily - the last boss I had made certain that I didn't like the work environment so he made it easy to make the decision to pull the plug when I could.

Spent most of the summer driving (I know..) coast to coast, then up the west coast, then back home.. was a fun trip and got to see a lot of stuff I really enjoyed. Had the time to spend with my son and his fiancee before the wedding, then after the wedding without worrying about having to be back at work. My ex-boss nicely called me the night before the wedding, leaving an unpleasant call on my voice mail (long story about why.. but it was just his way..) I saved that voice mail so I can play it whenever I think about going back to work.

I may do some fun work like writing some motorcycle articles once in a while, but these will be no deadline sort of articles, so the pleasure is there without the stress.

FWIW - my blood-pressure dropped 15 points within a week of retiring. I think that made it all worthwhile.

Congrats to you in retirement!!!!

I retired at 50 from the Fire Service after 32 years. Yes, I started at 18. Best job ever!!! Injuries took their toll and I had to leave. I would do it all over again. That said, this retirement stuff is pretty cool!!!

You will see!!!

[QUOTE=BCKRIDER;736488]1. Figure out most of the things you think you would like to do when you retire - then do them as much as possible BEFORE you retire. Far too many people go from the boredom of a job they hate to the boredom of retirement with nothing they really want to do. (We all share ONE thing we like to do, but it's good to have a few more irons in the fire.) Pretty common for people without compelling interests that they developed before retirement to end up in the ground within 12 months of retirement.

My dad told me years ago that having a job that you enjoyed was more important than chasing the almighty dollar. I found this to be true for me enjoying almost 28 years in the USN and after retirement in 1987 being lucky to continue performing maintenance on SH60B Helo Simulators at NS Mayport, FL. On Dec 31,2012 I will retire for the second time at the age of 70. My best friend and wife of 45 years is afraid of motorcycles but enjoys Cruise Ships and trips to Las Vegas so my touring by bike is a solitary ride that I've come to enjoy more as I get older. I have seen too many Military retiree's pass away within 15 years after retirement from the service. I strongly feel that having a hobby such as riding, shooting/reloading, golf, hunting, hiking, etc, is essential for anyone that retires. Riding cross country to me is not wanderlust but just the simple enjoyment of seeing, learning, and enjoying this country and our nieghbor Canada. The History and Scenic wonders of this country are strongly represented in my version of "The Bucket List". 28 States have been touched by my bikes and I hope to ride in all of the lower 48 and much of Canada before 2016 when I'll be 74 years young. God willing and the creek not rising too much, I hope to meet many of you at future Rally's and on the road.

I mean, look at me for an example. I've been retired over 9 years and some friends call today asking us to come visit them for a few days in January. Can we do that? Well lets look at the calendar. Hmmmmmmmmm............

The ONLY 3 consecutive days we don't have something already on the calendar is next weekend.

See what I mean, busy all the time with hardly a free moment to ourselves.

It is hard work to not work.:laugh

OTOH I have not had a single day where I wished I was working again. NOT ONE!

To those still working I say your time will come and please do it as soon as you can.

Ride Well
Ride Often
Ride to :eat

[QUOTE=rinty;736602]+1.

The issue of whether to retire is unique to each individual.

I'm 63, and have been an attorney for 38 years. My work is interesting, and I can control work load, type of work, and the stress levels of the work. I have a wonderful group of clients.

My wife, who is an ophthalmologist, is also 63, and has no plans to retire. At this stage of our lives, we are not working because we have to, and we enjoy our lifestyle, and don't want to live anywhere else in the world.

But many of our friends have retired, and I think they did so for good reasons.

Congratulations, Hugh. :thumb[/QUOTE]
Reminds me of a man I worked with,Hunter Blair, @ Ohse Meats,Topeka,KS, in the 60's.He & I were in a company job as a production foreman in a medium size union meat pkg plant. Hunter ran the boning & ham operation, I the packaging room. His job involved working ~60+ hrs per week, coming to work @ 5a.m., 6 days a week & on your feet all day with stress. He had already retired at another packing plant. He was 75 yrs old & there because he was "born to work" & serves as my e.g. of the fact that some people need it & should continue to do it until they cannot or they die, whichever comes first.
I don't really buy into this notion that one "should leave & make room" for the next person, it's your life & you should live it as it works for you & as long as it doesn't interfere with others. On the contrary, we have all seen workers that should GET OUT! for reasons that matter.
I'm glad to see so many of you able to enjoy your later yrs!

[QUOTE=kantuckid;736740]Reminds me of a man I worked with,Hunter Blair, @ Ohse Meats,Topeka,KS, in the 60's.He & I were in a company job as a production foreman in a medium size union meat pkg plant. Hunter ran the boning & ham operation, I the packaging room. His job involved working ~60+ hrs per week, coming to work @ 5a.m., 6 days a week & on your feet all day with stress. He had already retired at another packing plant. He was 75 yrs old & there because he was "born to work" & serves as my e.g. of the fact that some people need it & should continue to do it until they cannot or they die, whichever comes first.
I don't really buy into this notion that one "should leave & make room" for the next person, it's your life & you should live it as it works for you & as long as it doesn't interfere with others. On the contrary, we have all seen workers that should GET OUT! for reasons that matter.
I'm glad to see so many of you able to enjoy your later yrs![/QUOTE]

For me, the difference between retirement and work is the "having to" aspect of work. I love to work; retirement means that I don't *have to* work. Makes all the difference in the world when you get to that point were going to a job is done because you want to rather than you have to.

Tom

[QUOTE=Rpbump;736695]I have seen too many Military retiree's pass away within 15 years after retirement from the service. I strongly feel that having a hobby such as riding, shooting/reloading, golf, hunting, hiking, etc, is essential for anyone that retires.[/QUOTE]

I agree. You have to have something to keep you busy when you retire. A lot of people and the pundits concentrate on money when it comes to planning for retirement. It is important but I don't think it is the most important. It doesn't matter how much money you have if you sit around in a condo all day. If you do that, you won't live long enough to use your money and you won't enjoy it anyway.

When I bought my retirement house to retire at 55, I intentionally bought a well built large house on six and a half acres with two well stocked fish ponds. People said I shouldn't do that because I would have to keep it mowed and maintained. I replied that that was the reason I bought it because I would HAVE to do it. I thought I would fish a lot with big bass and catfish in my yard but I don't fish much at all. However, I really enjoy watching the neighborhood kids, neices, nephews and my grandchildren catch their first fish there and continue to enjoy fishing. I thought I would do a lot of shooting when I moved back to the sticks but I haven't. I have bought or inherited about 8 firearms that I haven't shot is a couple of years. I did not inherit my Dad's skill with firearms (unsupported rumor that he was a sniper in the Army)

I find I stay busy helping kids and the community with the Kiwanis Club and the Ruritan Club, chasing parts for my brother's one man body shop, taking care of an ailing wife, helping with grandchildren, riding my motorcycles and doing anything I want to do.

[QUOTE=Rpbump;736695][QUOTE=BCKRIDER;736488]

My dad told me years ago that having a job that you enjoyed was more important than chasing the almighty dollar. [/QUOTE]

My dad told me the same thing. I have been employed as a corporate pilot for the last 46 years and am being forced to retire at age 71 as of Jan 3, 2012. If you love what you do it is not boring or a chore to get out of bed in the morning. I am not looking forward to retirement but only time will tell if spending more time on my three bikes and playing with grand kids will help.

I sure have enjoyed all the comments and surprised that most guys spend their life doing something they don't like to do. Keep the comments coming.

Jim in Alabama