Four wks to retirement - mixed feelings
sherwoodva
10 years ago
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sushipup1
10 years agojim_1 (Zone 5B)
10 years agoRelated Discussions
Retirement: Sooner or Later
Comments (59)Boy, I've been thinking about this stuff recently myself. I just turned 50 this yr, and my husband will be 52 in January. We don't really make much money, but it's enough to get by with and still afford the multitudes of roses that I don't really need, plus his tinkering around with cars and stuff. I work in retail, so don't earn alot, but I get such a great discount that it's worth staying, plus the hours are easy. I'm just not feeling that well physically any more. The floors at work are concrete and I have all sorts of foot, back and hip pains, plus increasingly worse varicose veins. But at my age, what am I going to find that pays more than minimum wage? My poor husband is uneducated, altho not totally illiterate, and has dyslexia (which contributed to his lack of education). He managed to handle 10 yrs in the Navy, but was "let go" back at the end of the 80's when they started cutting back on the military and weeded out those who were not the "cream of the crop." We had the two boys and came home to be close to family. He had a hard time getting a decent job. But he ended up becoming a garbage man. Not the best job in the world, that's for sure, but it pays decently and we have medical, dental, optical, 401k. He's been doing that for going on 18 yrs now, and is sooo sick of it, he actually makes himself ill nearly every morning before leaving for work. He hates the job so much he coughs himself to the point of often throwing up. I lie in bed hearing him and want to cry. I feel horrible that he hates it so much. I just want to find a way to let him be able to quit. But we have a mortgage and a few bills too many for either of us to be able to quit working for at least 10-15 yrs. I know he's not going to be able to do this that many more yrs. He's in a deep depression. He comes home and does nothing but lie on the couch and watch tv and sleep. He even quit drinking beer because he feels so lousy. I recently made a decision tho. I told him if he can stick it out about 6 more yrs, I think he will be able to quit. His parents both died in the last 4-5 yrs, and his 4 sisters and he decided to sell the family home next summer. The house is practically a tear-down, but it's on a beautiful canyon-view lot, that's worth more than the house. So I figure once they sell the property, we'll get a decent chunk. Then, my dad passed away in Feb at 93, and my mom just turned 89. She's in somewhat ill health, and I know she won't be around forever. I know it's awful to think about losing her, but we all know it's an inevitability. If she doesn't end up with some catastophic illness that wipes out their money, I will stand to inherit a pretty good amount. Then, we can pay off the house. If this happens within the next couple of yrs, I told him if he can handle working about 4-5 yrs beyond that, we'll save up his income and then he can quit early and we can live on what we've saved up until he's eligible to collect his 401k and then SS. So, that's our tentative plan. But things change. As for winning the lottery... you can't win if you don't play. I keep telling our younger son, who has OCD, to try and come up with the winning numbers so we can all live happily ever after. He just laffs....See MoreWhy I'm enjoying retirement at this moment!
Comments (35)I've found that "Volunteering" is a bit like having a "Hobby". Best to find these before you retire, after which you can devote more time to them -- if you wish. I think it's difficult to find *meaningful* work as a volunteer. One thing DH has enjoyed is called Grand Times. About sixty Seniors volunteer in township high schools. Teachers request help with all kinds of things, and the leader of Grand Times matches volunteers to meet the needs. DH is usually 'at school' for a few hours twice a week on some assignment. He's worked with the same kids in a remedial English class for two years. It's sometimes one-on-one; sometimes he's working with a 'team' of kids on an assignment. He feels useful, and the kids seem hungry for help. He also helps judge presentations for the marketing classes and helps with senior essays -- nice mix of lower and higher achieving students. More schools could avail themselves of the Senior talent lying fallow in their communities. "Volunteering" needn't be primarily serving the entertainment or time-structuring needs of retirees with 'make work' assignments to keep them busy. What have some of you found to do in retirement that uses your experience and talents?...See MoreBest Place To Retire???? How about Asheville NC?
Comments (66)I know this comment is very much after the fact but I would just like to offer Seattle and the greater Puget Sound area as a wonderful place to retire. I have lived here my entire life and while I have traveled extensively across the country, there is nowhere else I would consider living. First, the area is extremely scenic.......make that drop-dead gorgeous!! Anywhere you might choose to settle will provide views to mountains and natural areas and you are never more than a few miles away from water.........lots of water!! The Sound, many lakes and rivers and streams. Because of the geography (nothing here is really flat), view properties are plentiful. Any outdoor activity you are interested in - skiing and other winter sports, hiking, camping, hunting, boating, etc. - can be easily addressed without any extensive car travel. Second is the weather. Most who have never lived here have huge misconceptions about the weather. IMO, it is excellent. Never too hot, never too cold and contrary to common opinion, it does NOT rain here constantly!! In fact, total average annual rainfall in Seattle is much lower than many other places in the US. Summers are sunny and very dry........winters damp and cool and snow infrequent. Seldom a need for any A/C and no summer humidity. There are 4 distinct seasons and each offers its own attractions. And no strange weather issues that generate ferocious storms.......no hurricanes, no tornadoes and while we do exist on a major fault line, earthquakes are extremely rare. Seattle is a vibrant, active and very cosmopolitan city. Lots of cultural activities, a major sports center and a foodie paradise. Yes, it is expense to live in town but there are scores of smaller communities within easy access of the city that are far less expensive. I live across the Sound, just a quick ferry ride away from downtown Seattle but a world away in terms of a rural feel and reduced cost of living. Puget Sounders for the most part are extremely well educated, entrepreneurial, friendly, and polite and many have a very artistic bent with many smaller communities known for their support of the arts. In short, living in the Puget Sound/greater Seattle area will provide all the advantages of a big city (colleges, employment, superb medical care, museums, theatres, restaurants and shopping) combined with a very strong community feel of the smaller, more rural and very scenically located surrounding towns. What's not to like ??...See MoreWhat is the Point - Saving for Retirement?
Comments (42)Both of my grandparents stayed at home until they were in their late 80's and then Mama had no choice but to put them into a nursing home. My GF lived about 3 years after and my GM is still living. She turned 100 in Sept. She has very good care and is the favorite in the home. She has a double room and has been lucky for the most part about room-mates but she has had a couple that were a chore to deal with. When they retired they had a substantial amount of savings and their home with a few acres of land. We hired one of the home health aides to come spend the night with them for a few months but were paying out about $300 a week and all she was doing was sleeping there. Anyway now my GM has been in the home for about 13 years and all of her money is gone. She gets $30 a month and goes to the beauty shop in the home once a week and the family pays for her TV and phone and any other things she needs. Her money was building up in her account and they told my sister that we needed to spend some of it because she wasn't allowed to have but a certain amount and she was over the limit. Family members moved into their home for a few years and then when it was vacated we sold it and the money went to the home. We had no problem with that. They've taken good care of her and know they will continue to. The main point is that people save their money for their old age and then when they get their and need it for health care the other family members often think it should be theirs. Yes, we've paid taxes most of our lives but nobody can live on the amount of taxes you pay in for a month. Probably the best solution would be to go back to many years ago where extended families just built onto the family home and the kids stayed after marriage and were there to help care for the elderly family members (great-grandparents) and the grandparents are there to baby sit for the grandchildren. Thus cutting out a lot of expenses. Of course we've gone away from this custom for too many years for most to want to do it. G'nite John-Boy! lol Nancy...See Moresherwoodva
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