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What to do when you retire?


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Got too many projects that I am responsible for.  I've been tired before and I'm tired now, but that don't make me re-tired! :P  My Dad retired from his law practice when he was 92, mainly because the "young" lawyer he shared an office with, died suddenly, and he didn't want to try to find another partner.  After he retired, he could discuss any point of law you wanted, with great clarity. But if you asked him about current events, he'd lost interest!  He only lived another six years, so I think retirement killed him.  I'm a month-and-a-half shy of turning 80, and I plan to see if the Air Force retires the B-52's in 2050, when I will be 108!  Retire?  No thank you.;)

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I am 80 now, retired when I was 58, 22 years ago. When I was 52 I was diagnosed with cancer, operation and chemo & radiation. Less than a year later, more cancer. More surgery & chemo and I was told I had a 10% chance to live 5 years. 5 years later the Dr told me it was in total remission. Told my wife that I had my wakeup call and we retired. Sold our house in so. California and moved to our property in sw Colorado and built a new home. Had a great job and was paid well. I travel, shoot SASS & Bulls Eye Pistol year round, hunt fish and camp. I am never bored and have loved every minute of retirement. 

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Well I retired (mostly) for 9 months, Now I'm pastoring a small church.

Hope to try the retied Life again soon and for longer, pastor duties almost killed me literally Jan 29th. 2021...

It might have been all those Mega Clotts.

 

Jabez Cowboy 

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I retired a good many years ago for just about a year then got an interesting part time job I held for six years. It got political and wasn't worth the fights needed to do it right, so retired again  I take care of the property, pursue several hobbies, play on a few internet sites, and always Dogs!

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Been retired since 2005.  I wake up every morning with a list in my head of things I don't have to do.  Then I spend a day with nowhere I have to be and rest of the day to get there.   But you know what?  I don't have much free time and have no clue how I ever had time for a job.

 

And just for fun I am working seriously on a fifth degree black belt in napping.

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I retired with one regret. 

That I could not have retired sooner!

 

I have tons of stuff to do, but being retired, I can work on things at my own pace, and schedule. I will never again have a bunch of toe-headed bosses to answer to, that don't know their be-you-tocks from a hole in the ground.  

 

I am now down to three bosses. 1. Jesus; 2. Wife; 3. Grandson. 

 

 

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I also like chocolate. :D
But I don’t do tours. 

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Until this latest round with health issues, I did just what I damn well pleased and absolutely nothing that I didn’t want to do!! 
 

Now I’m mostly sitting on my duff waiting for the healing to be complete.

 

Fortunately, there’s nothing pressing and I can still make it to the stage for a show and get to rehearsal without the need for major assistance.  
 

What you’re looking at after retiring is all those people who know it will be asking you to do something for them! “You’re retired now. You have time to help me (fill in the blank) now that you don’t have anything to do!” will greet you at every turn!!

 

If you have grandkids, or lots of family, you’re going to wonder where you ever found time to hold down a job!!

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I’m 75 and I still tune a few pianos every week. It keeps me busy and the money is great! $100 + for a tuning which takes me less than an hour. It’s fairly easy work and most of the people are really nice. :)

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Got a little over 2 years to go before I can retire.  Need for health insurance is keeping me working, as otherwise I'd already be outta here.  

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I retired 9/01/20 after 42 years of Machining, Supervisor and Tool and Die. I actually loved what I did and was good at it. I’ve always been a Skeet Shooter but have wanted to do SASS, just didn’t have the time or money for both. I started acquiring the correct guns for Cowboy Shooting, practicing, reading everything I could about Cowboy shooting. Finally shot my 1st match a month or so ago, didn’t embarrass myself and am very much addicted to this game and can’t wait to shoot more. I just won the Tennessee State Skeet Shoot HOA, HAA, Doubles, 12ga, 410 and runnerup in 20ga. I just might be done. Our club is having a Skeet Tournament this weekend, but there’s a Wild Bunch match that’s Cowboy friendly Saturday also. 

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Howdy,

I too wonder how I found time for a 40 hour job every week.

One thing is having time to shop and buy stuff at a really good price.

Its no trick at all to find an item 25 percent cheaper from one store to another.

Also I get to eat slower and enjoy tasting the food.  NO half hour lunches.

I do spend time with doctor and dentist and car repairs....things need repairs.

And a little gardening and other hobbies.

Had to avoid crowds with this virus thing. Never liked crowds much before.

Best

CR

 

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13 hours ago, Waxahachie Kid #17017 L said:

I retired with one regret. 

That I could not have retired sooner!

 

I have tons of stuff to do, but being retired, I can work on things at my own pace, and schedule. I will never again have a bunch of toe-headed bosses to answer to, that don't know their be-you-tocks from a hole in the ground.  

 

I am now down to three bosses. 1. Jesus; 2. Wife; 3. Grandson. 

 

 

I'm down to Jesus: my wife died over six years ago and my grandson lives somewhere in Las Vegas last I heard, but I have no real contact with him.  My children and their families have their own lives and we agreed many yers ago to enjoy each other's company and to stay out each other's business.

 

I spoke up in a group not long ago and after the meeting  a friend asked me how I can say such things.  I told her I'm 80 years old and retired.  No one can fire me, hire me, promote or demote me, transfer me, raise or lower my income, dictate what I do during my day, tell me who can or cannot be my friends and acquaintances, or whip me in my version of a fair fight.  What's left?  Are they gonna cut my hair and send me back to Vietnam?  I'll do and say and write pretty much what I damn well please and those who don't like me or my ways are free to stay away from me.  They have no control over me and have none over them...unless they cross a line I've drawn and then I'll fight back.  And it will be a fair fight by my definition.

 

Try it for yourself.  It's very liberating and relaxing.

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I'm 61 and on my second career. Retired in 2003 from the U.S. Army and took up IT. Now it's just building enough nest egg/income so that my final retirement, I will not have to cut back on hobbies. Couple more years and I think I'll be ready.

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Retired 7 years ago and lovin every minute of it, lots of time with the grandkids, lots of CAS and long range shooting and elk hunting when I draw a tag, with no set return time until I tag out or the snow runs me out. Then whitetail hunting though the fall interrupted by CAS matches of course, the rest of the time reloading. Did I mention I’m lovin it?

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It wasn’t really a question. :lol:

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I am now retired 5 years. Had a few part-time/full-time hour jobs while the Missus was still working, but technically unemployed now. May find something again just to get out of the house and make some extra gun money.

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The problem of doing nothing when you retire is that you don't know when you are done so you go back to doing it again.  The hardest thing is trying to explain to your children why you did not have time to do whatever it was they wanted you to do!  I find it it is simple.  You just ease into it.  I also find that doing nothing is quite exhausting so you are obliged to take naps.

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I'm 56, and do not see myself retiring anytime soon, unfortunately. Fortunately, I seem to be in good health, and I am trying to stay that way, so once I do see clear to retire, maybe I will be able to enjoy life.

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58 minutes ago, Dawg Hair, SASS #29557 said:

The problem of doing nothing when you retire is that you don't know when you are done so you go back to doing it again.  The hardest thing is trying to explain to your children why you did not have time to do whatever it was they wanted you to do!  I find it it is simple.  You just ease into it.  I also find that doing nothing is quite exhausting so you are obliged to take naps.

Doing nothing is a learned skill.  I've not mastered it yet, but I'm still working on it. 

Lesson Learned:  Before I retired I had no idea just how lazy I can be!

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I retired in 2020, due to a pinched nerve in my neck that prevented me from using my right arm. Since I was working as a security officer and am right handed, I couldn't draw my duty weapon. Luckily, I went through physical therapy and got most of my use back so now I'm working part time to keep me in shooting money. Mostly what I do is chores around the house.

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Chores?  Isn't that what a house keeper is for.  I have a lady who comes in once  month and does the odd jobs that I can'r any more.  Charges me $33.33 an hour and very carefully gets all this stuff done in three hours.  

 

About all I do anymore is my own laundry and dishes and feed the dog.

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Retirement was a surprise. I mean, I always knew it was there, just not as soon as I expected it. In June of 2014, I stopped into the State Employees Retirement System office in Springfield, IL. I was working and was in town to pick up equipment. I just wanted to see where I was in the retirement/pension system.

 

No appointment, but a nice lady let me wait for a staff member. She showed up and we went to her desk. After verifying my ID, she asked what did I want to know.

"When can I go?", I asked. My calculations had me two years down the road. She clicked through several computer screens and said, "You can go at the end of July."

 

"You mean July two years from now, right?"

"No, July as in next month."

That can't be right.

"What were you doing in 84 to 86?"

I was at a state university after taking 8 years to complete junior college. (sometimes you had to work to get money to go to school). Both years I got state jobs, mostly summer internships, but some lasted longer.

"State employment is state employment," she said, "Pension payments were deducted from your checks."

Wow. Didn't know that.

"So," she continued," with your prior state employment and your accumulated vacation and unused sick time, you get bumped up to retire next month."

My jaw dropped. I was flabbergasted.

I then said, "Do you have any of those retirement forms on you?"

She did and I went home.

I put down my final date near the end of September . I was now officially a "short timer."

Didn't stop many cars, but backed up and assisted some of the new troops that would be chewing on the same pavement I was working. Drove to all the courthouses and said good bye to prosecutors, clerks, judges, and even some public defenders that were not too bad. My farewell tour.

 

You are required to work your last day. It's silly because all of your equipment is turned in, except your squad. I gassed it up for the last time and drove to headquarters. Had some coffee with the admin people, the the shift took me to lunch. After lunch, my last partner drove me home. I asked him to stop and pick up a prescription I had waiting, I got my medicine-and a bottle of scotch. I jumped in the front seat of his squad and we left. He saw the bottle and asked if we were celebrating tonight. I sad, "Tonight, I'm starting now." His eyes got wide as he saw me break the seal and take a gulp. I said, "I always wondered if cheap scotch would taste better in the front seat of a fully marked squad car on the way home for good. "

 

It didn't.

 

We both laughed. In my driveway we shook hands, I used his radio to go off duty for the final time after 25 years.

 

I miss the clowns but I don't miss the circus.

 

Addendum:

 

The OP was about AFTER retirement and I babbled on about what led to retirement.

 

I maintained my substitute teacher license, and continue to do so. Something about working with kids just makes it fun, even the junior high drama. After the passing of both of our fathers, sorting out estates, remodeling and selling their houses, we started shooting SASS and have met so many truly wonderful people, and continue to do so. Many of my former colleagues wagered I would get a job as a small town police chief or a part-time deputy. No thank you. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Now if the local sheriff called and said I'm really short-handed could you help direct traffic- I would help out. I've been pretty good with closing chapters in my life and moving on to the next one. I had a brief stint with private security as a favor to a friend in the video poker machine business. When the CFO (an accountant) began making decisions about what I should carry and wear while guarding the $$$, I said good bye. Still do some armed security at events for local clubs or organizations (volunteered). But for me, it's being a substitute teacher that I really enjoy. The Cowboy Sub, as the kids say, and Shortcake is a lunch lady sub. And yes, the kids use our SASS aliases to address us.

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