Contemplating what to do after retirement

[angie_nrs]

I'm getting closer and closer to retirement and even though it's super exciting, it's also a bit scary too. I'm wondering what exactly we're going to do. I'm a planner and I just don't have this completely figured out, which is part of the excitement I think. We already know we want to travel in the RV and see much more of the beautiful USA than we've ever seen before. I don't see us leaving for more than 3-4 weeks at a time though. We both love it at home and I just don't think I'll want to be gone for super long periods of time.....but I'm just guessing. I think I'd get homesick. DH will still work part time when we're home and maybe even chip in more here and there if the need arises. So, we won't be completely retired.....just retired part time I guess......with the permission to say NO whenever we want to. We're definitely going to have to get used to that NO part!

It seems that every time we go out to eat, I think "dang, I could really add some speed and fresh ideas to this place" and wonder if I should be a server at a local place for a couple of nights per week. I did it back in the day and had fun doing it. Most places around here are short handed and I can't help but want to be useful and add value when I see a need for it. But if I do that, I'm not retired anymore! LOL! I know that working for fun is way different than working b/c you have to, so I might consider it. Then again, there's no shortage of projects around the home for both of us to work on. I think I just need to list them all out and get started on them. Plus, soon the kids will be needing help with their homes and there's no grand kids yet, which is why we want to get some traveling in soon, while we still can.

I think we're fine financially speaking and we still have hobbies that we'll continue to do that actually generate income so we're lucky that way. Even without that, we'd still be OK. So, it's not the money part of it that I'm worried about. It's the time part of it.....

It just seems weird that I'm looking forward to retirement but thinking about filling some of that space with.....another job? Am I crazy?

For those of you who have retired, did you go through the same feelings? What did you end up doing? Did any of you take on new jobs? How do you keep the feeling of being useful or do you even feel the need to be useful? Where did you focus your time that you used to fill by working? What were the best parts, the worst parts, or the unexpected parts of retirement for you? Would you change anything if you could do it again?

 

[backlash]

I retired 2 years ago and I have never regretted it.
People kept telling me congratulations when I retired and I found that weird until I figured out retirement is a goal and I had made it.
I bought a boat and a motor-home but truthfully I don't use either much as I would like to.
I just putter around the place, work in my wood shop, drive my wife nuts.
I volunteered to drive for the DAV but that got to be a grind after a year so I stopped.
At this point I can't see myself ever returning to work, even part time.
I repaired medical equipment for 30 years and when the CT or MRI scanner is down the stress level is high.
I'm sitting here with the dog on my lap sleeping and the cat wanting to be petted.
That's the most stressed I get.
Everyone is different so you just have to find what makes you happy and do that.
Congratulations on your retirement.

 

[Amish Heart]

I can't wait to retire. I have a full time job at home that I've been treating like a part time job for too many years.

 

[Cnsper]

You could start a forum

 

[musketjim]

Exciting times for you. When I retired from the military I took up a part time seasonal job that gives me summers off. Gives me plenty of time during the day to get to the gym and plenty of time to travel so those are a couple things to look into. Don't just sit and be a sluggo. Time flies when you're our age. Live it up.

 

[ssonb]

I retired from being a FFEMT after 28 years and drove straight over to a job as an automotive technician (fancy words for grease monkey). I am trying to figure out how to cut back the work days but with the shortage of experienced automotive tech help that idea is not going to fly.

 

[The Lazy L]

First day of my retirement.

Take over the responsibility of keeping mom's yard mowed. Perhaps the church yard too.

Down size from two vehicles to one.

When I had the wife's dream house built it was with the understanding the garage and one room in the basement was mine. She has taken over the garage. The garage is going to get cleaned out and reclaimed by me!

Supervise the Contractor who will put the new roof on the house. Remove all of the asphalt shingles, drip edge molding and gutters. New steel roof and leaf guard gutters.

I'm going to sit down with the wife to eliminate the "stuff" she has stacked in the basement family room.

Part-time job with a lumber yard. Using the employee discount to purchase 2x4s, drywall and misc. to finish off the "family room" in the basement. Buy a new replacement front door.

Supervise the Contractor who will install the replacement front door.

Purchase a Class B motor home. Used, low mileage and realistic price. Use it to visit our children (all of them live out of state), gives us a place to sleep when visiting and (If I can talk the wife into it) take 1 - 2 week trips exploring this great country!

In the afternoon of my first day of retirement...

 

[Woody]

The big thing people do not think of is time. With no job, the day has a lot of free time in it. People think they will just sit around, read, watch TV, take naps… You can only sit and watch TV or movies for so long then it gets boring. You need activities, and for most of us, inexpensive activities as there is no more ‘paycheck.’

Luckily, I had my Father talk with me when I graduated High School. He said to spend your working life preparing for retirement. This meant more than just getting a job where I could have finds to retire on. “Money is nice but it is not everything.” “You have to have a reason to get up in the morning.”

I needed to pick something I enjoyed and work towards it. So I set towards that goal. I enjoy gardening, woodworking, fishing and the company of a Black Lab. Bought a home with some land, put in a garden. I gathered tools for fishing, gardening, shop tools while I was working. When I retired I had a nice BCS tiller, plenty of had tools, woodworking tools, fishing poles and gear… The major funds had already been spent. Now, I had lots of time.

Winter in the shop doing projects and fishing. Garden season I that that and fishing. Rain days in the shop or taking that time as a ‘day off’ to read, relax and just be lazy. I had a reason to get out of bed each day, even if there were no firm plans of what I would be doing on any particular day. Maybe just take the puppy out to a lake and partake in the joy that is being a Labrador Retriever! They approach life with such gusto and enthusiasm it has to make anyone smile! And having one there is no staying in bed all day anyway.

Of course… Plans fell through when I got sick and went in the hospital. It looked like I would need assisted care for the rest of my life so I gave my brother POA and he sold off pretty much everything I owned. It was a mutual decision, the outlook was not good for me ever getting up and around again. But I got better! LOL

Now my goal is to work back to where I was, although not as well set-up. I have scaled down my requirements a lot but will still have the same outcome. Just a smaller place, smaller garden, fewer fishing poles and maybe no wood shop anymore, but I can still do smaller projects, joinery, with hand tools.

Currently I do work part time to fill the days. Pick something with good bennies! I prep chef at a small Mom & Daughter eatery and the bennies are fantastic. I will drop the work once I do find another place with the same goals. And who knows, after I have a new place I may decide to go back somewhere part time for pocket cash and bennies. Perhaps at a bait store at the shore? Another restaurant? But it is not a mandatory decision and will defiantly leave me lots of time for the puppy.

OH, the best part is the days are my own now. I get out of bed, and that is as far ahead as I have to plan. I have plenty to do, I decide what it is going to be while having that first cup of coffee.

 

[hiwall]

I was fortunate to be able to retire while still relatively young. I have greatly enjoyed it. We have a RV and camped a lot at first but very little in the last 3 years or so but both of us are starting to get the urge to camp again.
I have stayed busy mostly with almost daily hiking. My wife stopped working in the 80's when we had children and never resumed working again. Lately I find myself quite restless and will likely take up something new and different.
I did start writing short stories several years ago but I have about quit doing that now. Too restless to write!
Everybody reacts differently to retirement. I took to it like a duck to water!

 

[phideaux]

Been retired since 1/1/2001.First 6 years was the hardest I ever worked,
Did everything for my kids and other family.
Building garages, adding rooms, remodeling houses for them.
Got a lot of "thank you" s

Ya see....once EVERYBODY figured out that I didn't have a full time job , and had free time , they were lined up,
Because they also knew that I could do things .

I don' regret that, but I finally had to stop.
Health went downhill, and I slowed way down ,

Then I did all that same stuff for myself, for about 6 years,
Then I stopped again, and only did the things that I want to do with my wife.

So, for last 6 years we have done only things that we want to do, and we relax a lot.

These days we hire everything done around the place,

The kids and family are too busy to come help.


Jim

 

[VThillman]

Angie, you are way more organized than I ever was, so I ain't going to advise you. I retired at 65, and stumbled around aimlessly (and reasonably happily) for fourteen years. Along the way I got older. Last year discovered an attitude in my head that I didn't know was there: I'd like to help other geezers get along in their lives. There are several ways to do that, well enough organized to block out most of the predators, and I found one of them.

The Welfare State ain't all bad.

 

[angie_nrs]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

I retired 2 years ago and I have never regretted it.
People kept telling me congratulations when I retired and I found that weird until I figured out retirement is a goal and I had made it.
I'm sitting here with the dog on my lap sleeping and the cat wanting to be petted.

I'm glad to hear you have no regrets. We have a couple of critters too that are like our own kids. Thankfully even in our working years we have had the privilege of caring for our pups and they returned the favor of a longer life expectancy (according to studies) likely due to decreased stress levels.
Yes, retirement is something we have been planning for since in our 20's and now we are knocking at that door. It just seems weird to finally get to that point. It's almost the "ultimate" goal that I hope I am also prepared for, but only god knows that for sure. I'm always working on it.

You could start a forum

Nope! Angie has that covered! Besides.....I'm about as tech stupid as they come. LOL!

Gives me plenty of time during the day to get to the gym and plenty of time to travel so those are a couple things to look into. Don't just sit and be a sluggo.

I've been fortunate in that I've been able to carve out time for myself to workout almost every day even during the full time working years. Now, if I could only get DH to join me......that'll take a miracle. Neither of us can be sluggo's, especially him. I can do that for a few days but then get bored and have to do something. On his days off he gets more done in the morning than I do all day when working. He's a workaholic to the core....and an early riser to boot. Thankfully he loves his job. I'm just hoping this transition gives him a break so that he can do what he wants without feeling like he's letting people down.

I am trying to figure out how to cut back the work days but with the shortage of experienced automotive tech help that idea is not going to fly.

DH feels the same way. When he leaves for good, there's going to be a big gap in services in what he did. He's a super talented dude and there's nobody out there (that we can see) that will be able to serve his current customer base. He feels bad about leaving it that way, which is one reason why he'll still do it part time when he's not traveling. Those mechanical skills are going by the wayside.....but those services will always be needed. I foresee a price increase in the not-so-distant future as guys like you and DH retire b/c there's nobody left to take up the slack that they create.

The big thing people do not think of is time. With no job, the day has a lot of free time in it. People think they will just sit around, read, watch TV, take naps…

Luckily, I had my Father talk with me when I graduated High School. He said to spend your working life preparing for retirement.

Of course… Plans fell through when I got sick and went in the hospital. It looked like I would need assisted care for the rest of my life so I gave my brother POA and he sold off pretty much everything I owned. It was a mutual decision, the outlook was not good for me ever getting up and around again. But I got better! LOL

OH, the best part is the days are my own now. I get out of bed, and that is as far ahead as I have to plan. I have plenty to do, I decide what it is going to be while having that first cup of coffee.

You are right....it is about time. We've been planning this diligently since our 20's so we can do this. However, we haven't really planned for the time aspect of it. One of the reasons we want to give it a shot is b/c of what you mentioned......the illness part. I've seen so many people, including my step-FIL who planned for it and then got sick and died very shortly after reaching their retirement goal. I do NOT want that to happen to us. We are both healthy (at this point) and really want to capitalize on that. I'm so glad things worked out well for you!!! There's times now when I do exactly what you do.......plan my day while drinking my coffee. I kinda like it.

I was fortunate to be able to retire while still relatively young. I have greatly enjoyed it. We have a RV and camped a lot at first but very little in the last 3 years or so but both of us are starting to get the urge to camp again.
Everybody reacts differently to retirement. I took to it like a duck to water!

We are in the same boat. We are lucky enough to be able to retire young so thankfully we have our health. It's funny though....most folks never say congrats.....most of them just say you're too young to retire and then ask if we're OK health wise. LOL! We're not going to get out completely, but instead scale wayyyyyy back and take as much time off as we want to. We reached our goals and life is short. I don't want to have worked our butts off for as many years as we have and then not be able to call our own shots. It's just that as I stare down the barrel of it.....I'm not really sure what those "shots" will be.

Been retired since 1/1/2001.First 6 years was the hardest I ever worked,
Did everything for my kids and other family.
Building garages, adding rooms, remodeling houses for them.
Got a lot of "thank you" s

Ya see....once EVERYBODY figured out that I didn't have a full time job , and had free time , they were lined up,
Because they also knew that I could do things .

Jim

That's where we're at Jim. The family members who know our plans (and have finally accepted it) are constantly on the phone now asking if we/he could help with this, that, and the other. DH is getting a bit frustrated at some of them since this has not happened for us yet and he wants to tell them "I still have a full time job!" LOL! So, when he scales back I know that's going to be an issue. DH is a handy dude and he has a hard time saying NO to anyone.....especially family. I think we'll likely see each other about as much (or maybe even less) than we do now b/c he will be on the go.....just not getting paid for it. So you bring up an excellent point and one that I see being an issue for us as we transition over to "retirement". I guess that's another good reason to get out of dodge for a while!

 

[Bacpacker]

Congrats to all who are about to retire, or have already done so. I am about 9 years out yet, barring some unforeseen thing happening.
Our plans are to have a new piece of land purchased and have some key projects finished, such as well, septic system, out buildings, fruit trees, berries, grapes, perinneial food stuffs. Once I retire or within a year or so We will build our final home and sell our current place. We also want to travel some and get to see some of the beautiful areas of the country we have yet to visit.
I know time to do things is a critical factor after retirement. For us, being able to work on projects, raise more of our own food, and visit areas to hike or camp I don't think we'll have much issue with finding something to do.

 

[Meerkat]

If you can downsize. Time flies and work gets harder to do. :lil guy:

 

[joel]

I hope to retire at 60-61/ 2020.
Wood work, a little metal work & garden full time.

 

[Cascadian]

I am am going to sit on the porch with a bag of that legal weed. Figure out if I like it and then ponder on the rest of it.

 

[Caribou]

I am am going to sit on the porch with a bag of that legal weed. Figure out if I like it and then ponder on the rest of it.

Do you mean ponder on which munchie to try next?

 

[gumpy]

I am am going to sit on the porch with a bag of that legal weed. Figure out if I like it and then ponder on the rest of it.

Pondering how big of a bag to get next time?

 

[Weedygarden]

I decided to retire earlier than I had planned, because I was always so tired and just couldn't do it anymore.
I always thought I would work until I was 70. I had always worked long days and weeks--minimally 75 hours a week. I began to be so much more tired, sleeping at least one 12 hour night on the weekends. Common Crap was the last straw for many former teachers I know. Children were becoming more needy and less able and prepared to learn.

And, I had little or no time for my own life after working as long as I did each day.

I wasn't as prepared for retirement as I could have been, but I have some investments, some savings. I have been doing pet care for a while. I don't plan on getting rich from it, but it helps with exercise and some cash that I just add to my savings.

 

[Amish Heart]

Great decision, Weedy.
I'm with you there in the thinking about having little or no time in your own life after working long hours each day.
I'm right there right now. In the weeds.

 

[Meerkat]

Do you mean ponder on which munchie to try next?

Pondering how big of a bag to get next time?

Well guess it is ' natural'. I never liked it but to each his own.

 

[Meerkat]

I decided to retire earlier than I had planned, because I was always so tired and just couldn't do it anymore.
I always thought I would work until I was 70. I had always worked long days and weeks--minimally 75 hours a week. I began to be so much more tired, sleeping at least one 12 hour night on the weekends. Common Crap was the last straw for many former teachers I know. Children were becoming more needy and less able and prepared to learn.

And, I had little or no time for my own life after working as long as I did each day.

I wasn't as prepared for retirement as I could have been, but I have some investments, some savings. I have been doing pet care for a while. I don't plan on getting rich from it, but it helps with exercise and some cash that I just add to my savings.

Good for you Weedy, glad you got out. Some people wait too long to retire and then nothing is fun so why wait.

 

[CrackbottomLouis]

I would love to retire now. Not in the cards for the next 20 or so years though. I have a lot of hobbies I would devote time to. Most importantly I would have the time to explore and learn all of the things I just cant now. Each new hobby is significant investment of time and funds. I would love to devote more time to organizations I feel give back a little. For example, I love Appleseed shoots. Teaching shooting combined with revolutionary war history with a bunch of great people to interested folks is something I feel I could spend a good amount of time and energy on and receive a great deal of personal satisfaction from. Maybe find some way to pass on what you've learned and deem important in a constructive way while leaving plenty of time to travel occasionally and enjoy your family?

 

[angie_nrs]

I can't believe I posted this 2 years ago. Where did the time go? We're still at the same place we were back then. LOL! The only difference is that hubs is on his own schedule and calls all the shots now, but that really doesn't mean squat. He is still working just as much as he did before b/c he schedules himself heavily. Dude still has problems with that NO word. However, he has gotten more projects done around here. And we still have a long list of "hey, wouldn't this be cool" things to do. So.....even more projects in the works. I foresee a very busy fall season. We're having a lot of fun and staying busy and still making money too, so we're not really retired. Although, those day drinking moments seem to be finding us more and more. Hmmm......folks just stop by and say hey, let's have a drink. Maybe I need to take that beer fridge out of the man cave. LOL! Hubs would not approve.

 

[backlash]

I retired at 63 and I have never regretted it. I stay as busy as I want to be. We can't travel like we had hoped to because of taking care of my brother but other than that we're doing good.
Nobody that I know ever lay on their death bed and said "I wish I had worked longer."

 

[Haertig]

I find retirement is boring at times. So be sure and stay busy. I have never been a super motivated person when it comes to doing things that I don't care for (mowing the grass, pulling weeds, etc.) Those things didn't magically become fun for me after retiring, they are still unwanted chores. Granted, I have a lot more time to do them now, so that's an improvement. Some of the things I thought I'd be doing a ton of - like getting back into reloading ammo - have fallen by the wayside. Yes, I still reload, but I'm not there at the bench hours each week doing it like I thought I might be. My wife is still working, so I do most of the chores around the house now. For example, I am the sole cook and dishwasher now. I don't really mind that, and it's only fair. But it's different than it was when I was working too, and we split the task between us. I find myself gravitating back towards things similar to what I used to do in the working world. e.g., right now I am maintaining and expanding my eBook server, music streaming server, photo server, personal cloud, etc. I can't say that this is critical infrastructure that I need during retirement, but it does involve using my brain in a capacity it is trained for. One thing I do more of is target rifle shooting. At least once a week on that. And my skills have markedly improved during retirement in that area. One trap to avoid is, "No hurry, I can do that tomorrow". Then tomorrow becomes the next day. Then tomorrow never comes. Everybody jokes about not knowing what day it is once they're retired. Initially you will still know, but joke about it anyway. But the time will come when you really don't know what day it is, so have plans ready to occupy yourself during those unknown days. I think a lot of the folks here have nice homesteads that require a lot of work. I doubt you will ever have my occasional issue of "I wonder what I'm going to do today?"

 

[joel]

I retired a little early, still see coworker, who tell me all the wild rumors about why I lift, one I was run off, two I left before they run me off, three I am working in another job & lied about retirement.
Like a friend always says"Everyday is Saturday". I caught on my reading waiting on my tractor to come in.
Got a lot of stumps up, but there are more to go.

 

[Amish Heart]

I retired a year ago, and a lady who worked for me for a number of years called yesterday to catch up. Two more of our old staff stay in touch, too. But they are having hard times...2 are teaching preschool under covid conditions, and the other is bored silly out of her mind, lives alone, still on stay home orders. Bummer.
I couldn't wait to retire. I felt like I was working two full time jobs. Work and home. Husband said 65, but he just (kinda) retired at 67. Still gets phone calls and occasional online meeting.

 

[MoBookworm1957]

I retired in 2012, not because I wanted too.
But because I don't bounce good anymore.
Takes me tad bit longer to get up than it used too.
But I'm alive, above ground.
I do some volunteer work with Veterans, crochet blankets for Veterans at Christmas time.
I garden, play with the grand children.
When I first got hurt in 2009 and then retired in 2012/
It was hard for me to adjust.

 

[havasu]

5 years before retiring, I became involved with helping with the American Red Cross. Since then, I promoted to manager and on call most of the year. Right now, I'm virtually deployed helping with the Northern California fires, and standing by for the dual hurricanes.