JL Ray

Member
At 64 I could retire at any time, but I just can't see doing so. For the most part I enjoy the work I do (fab work, engineering, helping customers with part design in a large blow mold factory) and just cant seem to get a grip on what I can do all day long retired. I know I have quit a few jobs I can do that have been sitting for some time but if I retired today, a year from now they would be all done. Then what? I can only take so much time with grand kids then I get bored. I love them but that's the truth. I just wonder what you guys that are retired do all day long? I sure don't want to sit and watch TV.
Dad worked till he was 72. Maybe I will too?
 
Hi
I retired at 66 last april.At one time i thought money would be an issue but after looking at things my
biggest concern was what to do with my time! I worked since i was 15 yrs old a paper route.Now i do have
projects im taking care of and since my wife is still working i have taken over many of the household
chores. She still wont let me near the washing says i would mix colors and whites.So with that in mind my
days are rather busy.One other thing i have going for me is a circle of friends and family i can sit down
with and solve the worlds problems.If you have hobbies take time for them as well and you ll see you wont
have much time to sit around. Im glad i retired i dont miss that structured day i now do what i want when i
want
paul
 
54 years old and have been semiretired for several years. Still have a home builders license so I take a handful of jobs during the year. I enjoy bush hogging and other tractor work, steel fabrication, and community involvement. I stay busy as I want to. Always volunteer oportunities somewhere or civic groups like Civitans or Kiwanis.
 
Retirement is killing me, I'm exhausted. I've been working with a friend making target rifles, almost from scratch, for ourselves and the wives. Now he has relatives that want
some. Each one takes about 3 weeks of solid work. Still have "finishing" jobs to do around the house that always seem to get put off. Have to do a custom manifold project on our
collector car that I know will take me time and have to pull and repair an aircraft fuel tank. It seems that the projects come at me at a slightly faster rate than I can finish
them. My social calendar is also killing me. My wife, and friend, have me constantly involved with the local sportsman's club and the local EAA chapter (Experimental Aircraft
Association) along with too many people coming over for dinner or us going there. Include, at our age, constant doctor visits (I have several "repair" surgeries to schedule). And
this is only winter. Things ramp up in the summer. I have a pile of books I bought hoping I'd have time to read them but no luck so far. Seems like I had more time when I was
working.
 
Hello NO Ray,

Retirement is simply this. Do what you want to do, when you want to do it, for
as long as you want to do it,

Guido.
 
I retired at 49. I have always had more to do than I can get done. Got so much to do in the next week, I know I can't get it all done. So glad I retired early enough to have good health to do the things I want to do. Am 65 now and don't have the energy I use to have and hurt a lot more now. Retire if you have things to keep you busy.
I have a big farm shop and help both my sons and have more projects of my own than I have years left. But I am having fun.
Richard in NW SC
 
I'm looking at retirement next year and have been planning for a while. My definition of retirement is when you transition from what you have to do to what you want to do. I have a bunch of hobbies that will
keep me going.I think its good your giving it some thought before you actually do it. I'm a firm believer a person has to have a purpose for getting out of bed each day and it seems like the people who live
the longest have that purpose every day. Many of those that don't have a purpose don't seem to last long in retirement. If you have to sit in front of a TV then at least your brain won't live for more than a
couple of years. LOL
 
I cannot imagine ever being bored with a "lack of something to do." I was more willing to do nothing, once in awhile, when I
worked full-time. Now that I do not work for anybody and my time is mine - I have many more things I want to get done then
the time I have left here on earth. I am building a new cabin right now in the Michigan UP. That includes me doing all the
land clearing, road building, construction of the cabin, installing solar electric, drilling my own well, etc. If I was
working at a job somewhere, I likely would not think about taking on such a project (even if 1/3 the age I am now). Have not
even mentioned all the old cars and tractors I have waiting to get worked on. I guess I do not share your dilemma.

Now - maybe if I was senile, I'd stop doing things - but hopefully I would not care at that point. Getting disabled and not
being able to get things done is what scares me the most.
 
Go for it, you never know what life will throw your way as far as health issues. If you get bored you might pick up a part work. 64 is the about the time I retired. I was doing about the same thing you are doing. I worked the swing shift, I got my projects from the engineers. I made what they wanted, at night. I was by my self a lot and enjoyed the work. The plant moved is why I retired. I was doing my mowing during the day. At 75 I have my tractors, motorcycles, and one old car to work on. Just try and have something to do if you decide to retire.Stan
 
Every year people come in and ask me if I think they should retire. I ask them do they like what they are doing and are they happy. If they say yes, then I say don't. 30 years of working with people and one thing I can tell you is that people who retire later, live longer. Also, strangely enough, my oldest clients all seem to be late risers. None of them get up much before 8:30 AM.
 
If you like what you do, you are in the minority of people. Most retire because they want out. My Grandfather was an old farmer, had a trucking company and did a little dirt work on the side. I don't think he
ever "retired". When he was in his mid 70's he officially retired, which meant some mornings he would only show up at 8 instead of 7 beacause he had been out fishing for 3 hours already. The onlt time he didn't
show up to work every day was the last couple months before he passed at 81.

Depending on your situation, maybe you can discuss slowing down with management. Only work 4 days instead of 5? Some companies are open to such arrangements. There are others on this site that are not being
allowed to retire, they keep getting called back.
 
I retired after 34 years service. My job had become boring and I had lots of more fun projects at home. My wife and I liked to travel and had just started taking some
serious trips. Then three years later she was diagnosed with breast cancer. After 27 months of treatments the Dr.s said the cancer was gone but she began showing signs of
serious complications/side effects. A year later she was totally disabled. I cared for her over the next 7 years. I am so glad I retired so we could do some things before
our world crashed and then care for her. Just my experience, you make your own decision based on your situation.
 
My dad retired when he was 62. The farmer that he worked with when he was in his 30's found out he retired and asked him to help in the spring and the fall. Between that he found plenty of other stuff to do. He is 80 now and says he doesn't know how he had time to go to work. He still cuts his own firewood. With some help from the grandsons of course. I know he is glad he retired when he did.
 
I "retired" in 2007 but after three years went back to work for various reasons, none having anything to do with income.

I'm now 68+, just signed up for SS, effective Jan 01, 2018 (still have not gotten my first deposit) and plan to retire again at the end of June.

I too, wonder what I will do with my time once I no longer work. I have no close family within 1,500 miles and there is only so much time that I can spend maintaining and "improving" my little family/hobby farm. After all, I've been successfully doing so for decades while working.

I've had an antique tractor "retirement project" waiting me for several years but, even if I am very lazy, it will be finished within a year or two. What then?

I'm in one of those situations where there is no going back. At my age and in my profession, once I retire, there is no going back.

Perhaps, if I become bored enough, I'll start writing books....

Thoughts, anyone?

Dean
 
Everyone I know is glad they retired, I can't think of one that wishes they had worked longer. I can't wait to retire and be home every day.
 
I'm 83 and I haven't thought of retiring. I'm having too much fun at what I'm doing.
 
The thing is you are not yet old enough for medicare and if you retire are you going to have health insurance untill you can get the medicare or planning on going withoit health insurance? I am sure if you do you will find plenty to do. So that insurance-medicare thing should be your first considerstion.
 
I retired in 2002 after 32 years with the DOT. I have had a few part-time jobs but mostly work here at home doing odds and ends. At times I am more busy then when I worked full time and enjoy every moment.
Today I live by one rule, " No Stress " and have no problem telling someone no or not today = I'm going fishing.
 
(quoted from post at 18:16:04 01/26/18)
Depending on your situation, maybe you can discuss slowing down with management. Only work 4 days instead of 5? Some companies are open to such arrangements. [u:ddfe9f2618]There are others on this site that are not being
allowed to retire, they keep getting called back[/u:ddfe9f2618].

Which often times means they are not paying the person enough. And would rather continue to pay the person wanting to retire because they would have to train and then pay way more for their replacement.
 
afternoon jl, in 1995 I bought the current acerage im on with my retirement in mind, I repair and build custom welding machines for pipeline welders, do a bit of landscaping work with my skidsteer, backhoe and trucks, have a small haying operation in the summer, love tinkering on old iron, picked up 2 mm m-5 tractors and now on the hunt for mm implements for them. if I get all the projects done I have here and ones I'm looking for should have them all done (maybe) by the time I turn 125 :lol: jl if you enjoy the work you do carry on! the biggest thing in retirement is keeping your mind and body active, I have gone to funerals of class mates and co-workers and friends that their main goal when they turned 65 was to go home sit on the couch, drink beer, and watch sports. the ones that did that are all gone. I'm pretty sure your current employer would not want to loose you to retirement, finding a person with your skill and knowledge and work ethic is next to impossible these days! just take a look around your workplace jl and you'll know what I'm talking about. to sum up all this rambling jl just stay active and I mean both your mind and body, and do what you want to do, if that's staying at work go for it, I;m 100% sure your boss will be happy with that decision. good luck and take care jl. john
 
I retired when I was 57 and I never looked back. I had a plan and I have been a busy beaver. There is a lot to be said for being your own boss and not have to answer to some one with a sore butt. I can get up when I want, go where I want and do nothing if that is my plan. I also happen to live in an area with great fishing and hunting and I enjoy doing both. Please keep working as long as you can, we retirees need people to contribute to the retirement funds and do the work.
 
If I had not gotten fired at 60 years of age, I would be still working today six years later.
The best thing that happened was me being fired. Now I do what I want, when I want.
You can not run fast enough to get me to work for a paycheck.
I love the time doing what I want, and am always busy.
 
I took early retirment at age 57, one of the best things I ever planned for and managed, nothing to beat being your own boss. Some of my friends think I must have time on my hands, nothing could be further from the truth as I seem to be more short of time than ever.
We go to bed late, always after midnight and plan to get up by 8.30 unless we need to get up earlier for a particular reason. Gym for 65 minutes then breakfast then spend an hour or so relaxing before begining our day for real. Ive got a large garden to keep in order, cars to maintain along with a couple of rental properties then of course there are the tractors and bikes to worry about. Almost forget the additional help family members need and if this doesnt keep us busy then there is always the opportunity to socialise or go on vacation to the USA. Just my thoughts.
 
I once was told there's two kinds of tired
the one from sitting and the one from
working.As for me i worked two job's most of
my life and never did much except work i
plan on slowing down taking care of the farm
and travel when i can.But it's nice to know
that i don't have to depend on an income and
can work at my own pace.The problem i have
is that the work ethic today is terrible i
feel guilty even for taking time off and my
employer knows that so they push the older
workers to do labor that is better if a
young person does it .
 
If you wait till full retirement age you will get more money. I just signed up on Jan. 8, but I am still doing the same work I have been doing for the last seventeen years and probably will continue till I die here. I have no wife and don't feel like trying to travel anymore by myself. Nothing else to do.
 
i was forced to retire the president of company was a real jerk and ms was starting to have bad effects on mrs 730 i'm glad i got to be home with her. i would have liked to be able to do more away from home with her but the ms made that very hard to do.
now she is in hospice care not much outlook for long term.
i have a small herd of highland cows bale some hay every summer which helps me sane
 
I definitely feel for you. Someone else said, you never know. And we do what we can. Strength to you and Mrs 730
 
I retired at 55 from an management/engineering position at a manufacturing firm. Have a shop behind the house with a variety of machines and tools. I also have 3 acres that the house is on.

Always plenty of things to do and play around with. Just bought a mini excavator at the auction today. Doesn't have a thumb on it. Guess what I'll be working on next....
 
So who is forcing you to retire? If you're not ready to retire, don't. No law says you have to.
 
I quit my regular job at age 48 went from part time farming to full time farming,glad I did and as for something to do I have always found lots of projects and jobs to do
since I was a small child.Been a lot of things but being bored hasn't been one of them.
 
I'm glad I retired however I have lots I want to do.

There is certainly nothing wrong with working if you are enjoying it. When you have specialized skills you can really miss that when you're retired and working on small projects at home may not replace the satisfaction you get from having the company resources at hand to do stuff with. Just don't get in a big hurry, you'll know when it is time to retire.

You asked what retired guys do all day: I'm doing sheet metal work on a 50 Studebaker pickup to make a street rod for my granddaughter. Also have a wood shop, blacksmith shop and a home foundry. I'm learning pattern making. I've got more interests than I have time to pursue them. But each person is different. I used to manage multi million dollar projects. I miss that a little but I don't miss unreasonable management so when I get to thinking about what I used to do I just remember some of the buttholes I had to work with.
 
I've told this story many times, so here goes. The first guys I worked with turned out to be long time friends and co workers. (Working construction one changes jobs and co workers all the time, but still a friend is a friend). I lost track of Jeff but from time to time we found ourselves on the same jobs.
Years went by and one day Jeff's obit was in the paper! I found out Jeff had retired, went into the hospital for elective surgery before his insurance ran out. He never got one retirement check!!
I made a promise to myself that I would retire as soon and as young as I could. So far I made it 11 years, get a little lazier every year. Also beat cancer 6 years ago (bad couple years), but I am still sucking air!
Go with your gut feeling, my advice. joe
 
I am not retired , but I have not had a job with a pay cheque since I was 20 years old. Been farming full
time shipping milk for 37 years now. While I am wearing out , I still enjoy the farm.My oldest son is home
with me now, and that is nice. I don't intend to ever retire, just do less and less and less, till I am
just watching from a seat on a 5 gal.pail.
I always loved being home every day, and being my own boss.
 
Bruce can you open your e mail or send me one and I have something I want to share with YOU. Thanks jm.
 
At 58 1/2 years of age, I had lost all desire to continue getting up at 5:30 am and not enjoy a career I had loved for 39.75 years.

Now at 64, I check my e-mails,accept the challenges that make me Think, and only those that are an Adventure. With the skill sets I obtained,it is a great surprise, to see who, where and the amount of Cash companies will gladly pay for an individual who can Produce,Unsupervised with in a Specific Time Frame.

The definition of retirement is different for each and everyone of us. I would never push or try to sell retirement.

I'm sure glad I retired..........:)

Bob...A bit red neck...Retired Power engineer...Gas Turbine Tech:
 
You said you enjoy what you do, you are
truly blessed.

Best advice I got when I "retired" at 52
was don't turn the tv on in the morning.
So when you do retire at 72 remember that.

When a person retires they have to develop
a complete new set of habits.

My cows keep me busy.
 
Retired on June 30 this year. Was an account specialist for a car dealership. Glad to be out of there. Was
ask to go back. Would rather sack grocery's than go back. In the mean time I got at least 1/4 mile of fence
to rebuild, up to 100 bee hives to go thru clean up and repair, a house to shingle, a porch to enclose, a
greenhouse to build, a cord of wood to cut, a patio to put a roof over. And my table saw shot craps this
week. Gotta new one being shipped in next week. Will be doing 2 farmers markets a week starting in Aprial +
quite a few other shows. Don't know when I had time to work, will be 70 in Dec and hope to have this all done
before me birthday. Good luck with your decision.
 
I just turned 69 and have no interest in retiring. Besides enjoying my work (electronic controls design & repair), I am self employed, so
I have a lot of freedom and independence. I think the flexible schedule is what appeals to most of the retirees I know. Some of them work
part time jobs on their own terms.
 
I retired at 75 and now 80. Last 5 years have been enjoyable but challenging with various health issues including cancer. I have not been
able to do nearly as much as I had planned. Finally sold all our miniature horses so in process of taking down fences so will be easier to
mow. Have some tractor projects I want to do but again been hindered. Figure on being busy either here or in Heaven.
 
Retired at 66 and a half after 40 years on the same job. Job was
good enjoyed myself lots of Unforgettable experiences was ready to
retire and glad that I was able to. Now I wonder how I ever had
time to work I have restored five tractors finally got the porch
built on my house finished it the summer. Get up early in the
morning 5 or 6, have my coffee, read my email, read a little bit of
paper and go to work always plenty to do. Have a couple small jobs
that I do for other people mostly during the summer months. Do a
lot of volunteer work life is good but I am slowing down. I
get tired much quicker than I used to. First five years of
retiremenb I generally work till 8 or 9 in the yard this last year
I have had to scale back a bit cuz I just am tired by 6. And I
figure what the heck I'm retired I'll go in and rest. Do you like your job? Then nothing wrong with working. Whatever you do make sure that you have something to do I have
lost a few friends that retired and didn't know what to do with
themselves. Best of luck in the future.
 
Semiretired here since 2005 or so ,from Home improvement ,,.My Son snatched the
business out from under me , and renamed with our same last name . i was not a
corporation . i was 49 ,There was nothing MORE I could do,.. I saw it coming
And had some very intense conversations with my son , in that respect he is
like my EX WIFE ..But Yet He Is my son,. And, the only REAL security one ever
really HAS,IS THEIR ABILITY TO PERFORM , And There Just were not enuf hours in
the day ,..He loves me and I Love Him , Even when he did what he did , But i
be damd if i will let him have power of attorney , ,. Anyway, I was finally
able to devote more time to my longsuffering neglected farm and equipment ,
However , I was in my 3rd yr as County Commissioner and that took some time s 40
hours a week . after my term i served another 8 yrs on County Council and am
now off the board.. this fall , Retirement is available option , at
61,.recovering from cancer and now with challenging neurothapy,. my Farm Still
appears neglected ,, My Son Help as much as He Can , And Never Complains, He is
Doing great driving nails .I Am running For County Council this Yr. and If the
Folks still LIKE ME, i Should Get on the Board ..We All hope to enroll one
farm into CRP later this Yr. and i will continue to Rent land from others And
God Willing still be farming another 15 yrs or more because ,."I LOVE IT ". and"
i belong to the land and the land speaks to me",..LOL ...//// I feel sorry for
some of You guys that are 67 or so and Love Their job ,.and retire with minor
health issues and Worse Old Age ,Just Enuf ,TO,.Keeps them from Being able to
fulfill a lifelong dream and take the risks and buy good equipment so they
could Farm Their OWN place rite .. They worked so hard to pay for the farm
all those yrs .Now They Dont have the wisdom and courage and strength to take
command from their good renter..
 
Tomorrow is promised to no one. So as long as you are content with the thought that you may never draw SS , never have that 40-45 hrs a week to yourself and for whatever you want, or just basically OK with the fact that you may well end life while working for the "man"....well I'd say stay doing what you obviously enjoy doing. I've never had a job that wasn't stressful and/or exhausting. I retired 5 yrs ago at 62 and it's the best decision I've made. More to do than hours to do it. Plans can change on a dime and from one day to the next. And I don't get up at 4:30 am for nothing or nobody. Life is good here...you do whatever makes your good.
 
I never wanted to retire TILL I got down a little too far with COPD and just flat had to quit for a little while at 68. Then something clicked in my head and I have absolutely no desire to go back to work. I buy & sell a little farm equipment, work in my shop on tractors and equipment when I feel like it. The bills (except for the Kubota) are all paid off, and more importantly, I get to spend some time with my bride of 46 years now. I was always no the road at a Power house away from home, so I was just homer maybe on the week ends. The money isn't nearly as good as it was, but the self satisfaction is sooooo much greater. The decision HAS to be yours to retire or I would think you would go stir crazy worrying about not working. Just my thoughts, Keith
 
I'll retire when my health forces me too,but I'm not going to sit around and hasten my death before that.
 
I would like to ask the posters that retired early, did you have insurance from work that ended when you left work? Did it continue on untill medicare? Did you have private pay insurance? Did you go without insurance? How did you handle that problem? Are you on a wifes insurance from work? If so what would happen if she no longer had the job with insurance for you? I was on my late wifes insurance untill medicare but she never lived long enough to get medicare and if it would have happened before I reached medicare time I would have been without any insurance. So just how do you guys handle that dission?
 


You really thin retirement means "nothing to do"? Good Lord!!! What retirement means in catching up on allt he stuff that you've been putting off for years because work takes up so much time. Plus it's all the new projects that crop up.

Nothing to do? HAR! :lol:
 
If you like what you are doing don't retire. Have your health checked ..at 64 you don't yet qualify for medicare .. but look into using your medical insurance. Medicare saved my life.. I'm now 76 and still working full time on my farm raising organic grass fed beef... selling to a private market which I've developed. I retired at 62 from the business world as an engineer/businessman.... couldn't stand the rampant dishonesty any longer. I like what i do.. and the daily exercise of taking care of 50 head of Hereford cattle and 250 acres .... keeps me limber, strong and hopeful...I see too many of my friends of an earlier era.. either dead or existing rather than living... don't quit!!! My father who lived to the ripe old age of 98 told me that there is nothing golden about the golden years,...
 
I could go with full pension and benefits next month but the drop in income would hurt .
Maybe in a couple of years when MCR starts at the Bruce. Work the outages for 4-6 months of the year, draw the pension and make more than now. Pay off the last of the debt. Could have retired now if I had not listened to the experts and invested in the stock market.
 
I am retired and have been for about 8 years.I was laid off from a fertilizer company where I was full time. I drew unemployment but went back every spring and fall as an applicator through the busy seasons. That only left about 3 months of the year where I didn't have to go to work.I started a long time ago "planning" my retirement. Bought a new 5th wheel, got all the woodworking equipment a guy would ever need. I remodeled a garage for a workshop, got the hunting and fishing equipment I wanted and was all set... Except, I had noticed a"weakness" in my arms and legs for a long time. Dr kept telling me I was getting old. Then, last year I was diagnosed with a genetic nerve disorder. It is slow acting disorder that works on the arms and legs. No treatment-no cure. Eventually I'll end up in a wheelchair, if I live that long. I first noticed my symtoms about 20 years ago. My point, if you think you want to retire, slow down, or work- do it. We have no guarantee in the future.
 
Life is no rehearsal. You only get one shot at it. And in 100 years what will it matter? Unless you did something spectacular it won't matter. One of my brother in laws destroyed his health working too much. 18-20 hour days. His heart is working at about 60%. And he got told not to work so many hours by a doctor. More than once. But every time work said "we really need you"...... and for what? Who'd gonna care in 100 years, or even 50? He had a real need to feel he was important. Now he feels worthless.

What are you going to do? I can name a lot of things. Hunting, fishing, play with old tractors? Live in town? Gardening, old car/truck, model building, scale trains, wood working? Visit far flung family! You can find a lot to keep busy. Nothing says you have to sit in front the TV. Heck take up cooking or needle point for that matter! For most of us there are plenty of younger people waiting and willing to take over from us at work. All in all we just are not that important except to our loved ones.

Rick
 
......My point, if you think you want to retire, slow down, or work- do it. We have no guarantee in the future.

Amen!

My dad always was saying something like "when I retire your mom and I are gonna do....". He passed at 55 and never got to do any of the stuff they dreamed of doing after he retired.
 

Retired at 60
Been retired one year next week
Best decision I ever made
Busy as I want but I like to keep busy

Nobody lives forever

Everyone's circumstances determine when they can retire
Good health is a big factor
I am fortunate and grateful for my circumstances
 
(quoted from post at 15:43:24 01/27/18) I would like to ask the posters that retired early, did you have insurance from work that ended when you left work? Did it continue on untill medicare? Did you have private pay insurance? Did you go without insurance? How did you handle that problem? Are you on a wifes insurance from work? If so what would happen if she no longer had the job with insurance for you? I was on my late wifes insurance untill medicare but she never lived long enough to get medicare and if it would have happened before I reached medicare time I would have been without any insurance. So just how do you guys handle that dission?

Planning to retire later this year, along with my wife. I'll be almost 63, wife will be 62. We are at the same company and work in the same line of business. With management changes and changes in our jobs it's just not fun as it used to be. The getting up at 4:30 and the hour long commute are getting old, the city traffic is getting worse as the economy gets better (but that is a good thing!). There are things we would like to do around our place we just don't have time to do and want spend more time working with the llama herd.

My company has a pension plan, 401k and will extend the health insurance to retirees (same plan as working employees), but costs more, of course. We can continue that plan until Medicare kicks in and they offer a company sponsored Medicare supplement too through the medical plan carrier.

A guy I worked with, he retired last year, had to work until 66 because his wife, who never worked a lick, wouldn't have any health insurance if he had retired the year before. He kept going even with failing health and interest in his job to keep the company plan until she turned 65 late in '17. He drug himself in for all of '17 hating every day. Don't want to be that way, but get out while I have some health left.
 

Co-worker of mine retired. Neighbour noticed no dog tracks in the snow outside his house, where they were normally let out on a regular basis. Neighbour looked in the window and the house was a mess with Bob sitting at the kitchen table dead for two days. Bob got his first and only pension cheque in the mail a week later.
Doctor nearly killed me after a biopsy site hemorrhaged in 2007. Then in 2014 Viral Myocarditis nearly got me.
Yup I am retiring asap.
 
You are lucky to have the health coverage, a lot like the second are not. And if something could be done to help it should be because too many people cannot get health care at any cost.
 

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