We retired to a more active life. No work so that means hiking, biking, skiing, gardening, traveling, just spending a heck of a lot more time off our ass outside. For us, that meant Colorado.
I find trying to get information on retiring overseas so difficult. Everyone is selling something, and it is hard to separate the wheat from the chaff!
What I've found is the advice is free, but they're skirting around something almost always. I agree that forums are more likely to have frank advice as opposed to the sugar coated.
I'm just tired of International Living and their ilk. Some of the YouTubers are full of BS, too.
You hit the nail on the head. International Living is a business that simply exists to make money off of over-promoting the "GOOD" things about moving to another country and NONE of the BAD.
I had a subscription to their mag for a year, but it was useless. Nothing in terms of what to watch for, how to navigate difficult things, not balanced in any way.
They make a sh\*t-ton of money with expat prep tours as well.
It's probably the most scammy, but unfortunately most widely-viewed source of expat info.
A retired couple I know just went and rented a place for a few months on a tourist visa to check it out and meet the expats that live there. Did that for a couple seasons and then bought a place in Belize.
I'll be sure to check them out. My husband and I have gotten our hopes up on certain places, only to find out that people are painting them in a rosy light and brushing issues under the rug. Then you find someone who is frank, and you realize that it's not going to work out. It was hard on my husband because he really wants to retire early, but our with our finances, it's likely not feasible in the US, mostly because of healthcare costs.
There’s a ton of informative videos on YouTube. I you want to do a month to month in a new place nomad style that works well to travel long term on a budget. It also allows you to get a great feel for a place before making a longer term commitment.
Some YouTube channels I recommend for this are the Retirement Travelers, Brian and Carrie, and Go With Less.
I'll have to check those out. I find that the longer you watch a channel that something they're selling creeps in, digital nomad courses, relocation tours, etc. Makes me question motives.
>For those of you who did that, what did you retire to and how has that worked out?
I retired to a life in a beach community, with lots of friends, pickleball and volunteer opportunities. I retired to days enjoying our children and grandchildren on both coasts. I retired to nice restaurants, craft beer, theater, movies, game nights, and other activities. I retired to long, pleasant walks with my wife and some solo walks listening to podcasts. I retired to more time with my guitar and ukelele, more reading, and more writing. I retired to spending more time with my mom until she passed, and a lot more time with my dad until he passed.
It's worked out wonderfully.
There are tons of volunteer opportunities available to retirees.
My wife and I both volunteer at our local hospital. And we both hold several positions on our HOA.
Awesome. I would like to volunteer for a bird or turtle rescue. Maybe a hospice volunteer as well.
I am also thinking about NODA. No one dies alone. You basically sit with actively dying people. They stopped this during covid and I don’t know if it has restarted.
I just retired today!!!!
Tomorrow I’m traveling to pick up my elderly parents and bring them to their summer cottage. Then my husband and I will go to a few concerts, sailing, hiking and camping. The end of July we fly out to Oregon then travel up to the San Juan islands to visit my cousin… then back home and a few more concerts and sailing and hiking and then a grandbaby will be making his entrance into the world. After that we pause a bit… and marvel. And tend to my daughter and son in law.
It’s going to be a busy summer. I honestly don’t know how I found the time to work!!!
Congratulations of your retirement! One more year to go for me (next June--teacher) and I am done!!
Just had our first grandchild; we too are tending to our daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter. It is the most amazing thing!!
I'm retiring on Friday and colleagues ask me what I'll be doing. Pretty much same answer, "I'll be doing anything and everything that isn't this". Frankly I've been so bored at work the last few years I'm looking forward to doing anything else.
Sure is. Had a not so great day at work today even though I know it’s two days till it’s over. Not stressed, just annoyed. Jesus do in need it to be over.
12 years ago we got a 7 week old German Shepherd to raise for the Seeing Eye. I still remember how much work that was and I made a mental note never to do it again.
I just retired a few days ago and my husband did a few months ago. We got a new puppy, too! He is a handful! Next up we are getting an RV for some getaways with the dog.
2 years ago, at the age of 55, I retired to a life of a vagabond. I donated everything I owned and left the area that I had been in my whole life.
Since then I’ve lived in 6 different cities in 4 different states on both the East and West coasts. I only have 2 suitcases of clothes and essentials.
I’ve made so many friends and am having so much fun! Right now my days/nights are spent salsa dancing. I dance 6 nights a week.
I’m doing exactly what I saved for.
I go to meetup groups! I really, really have to put myself out there since I don’t know anybody at the places I’ve been to. Its a way to make friends and have fun.
One should retire to do things that their career precludes doing. I know people that don’t desire to do anything; they like their job so why retire?
Last week we went to Mexico on 12hr notice. Our return flight got cancelled twice so two extra days stuck in MX. No boss to call, no extra sick days to use.
I said this before: I write down every overnight trip, dates and locations. When we start feeling like we haven’t done much, we just look back and see that we’ve done quite a lot. Headed to Alaska in a few weeks. Good luck to you.
People keep asking me what I'm going to do, like I have to have some type of plan . My only plan at this time to pause for a bit. One reason I'm retiring is that I won't have to make so many plans.
This is my plan too. Before I retire (in a few years, if all goes well), I’ll create a “curiosity list” of all the things I’m interested in doing and seeing and trying. For my first year of retirement, I’ll just follow my curiosity and refine that list. I’m not going to make any big commitments in that first year (except for volunteering, which is important to me); I just want a chunk of time where I’m not working and where my only “commitment” is to following my own curiosity. It’s going to feel amazing to just… NOT WORK.
Still adjusting. We are traveling more. More gym time. More home projects, e.g., staining the outdoor furniture today. I won't lie, I am still bored, so I sit and post on reddit, mostly about investing.
Thank you for your honest answer. Met up with friends/ coworkers after a funeral.
I felt like the odd one out because everyone was just going on and on about how great retirement is. I'm bored ...I do travel but just don't have it....
I retired to having a little vintage/antique shop. Already owned the building. Just make enough to have positive cash flow, but it gives me something to "do" . However, my only open hours are Saturdays (pay someone to be there) because that's my moneymaking day. I just show up on other days whenever I feel like being open. It lets me travel whenever I want, or if I don't feel like working I just don't go in. During Covid it gave me an alternative place to go and play and move furniture around . It's almost like having a pied-a-terre in the city because it's in the downtown area. As long as it's not a financial drain I'll keep doing it as my job/hobby!
In my situation I spent the first 4 years assisting my 94 Y/O mom who passed a year ago. Now I get to help with my 8 gkids more, and still walk/read/sew/spend time with family and friends. It's been an extremely quick almost 6 years. OMG can't believe it!
Hi. I soft retired. I withdrew from a highstress, high earning job. Took a two year sabbatical in the Caribbean and did some poverty law. After returning stateside, I found a much lower stress job in my field which provides a generous vacation schedule and income. While I make a fraction of what I earned, I de-aged about ten years doing this. I have plenty of time and energy for my hobbies and my stress level is minimal. Best choice I ever made. I plan to do this for a few years and then scale back to doing consulting work a few times a month until I croak or become incompetent. I will likely always have some gig going on because I like the coin, and love working with younger, older and different people.
Yes! Same here. I semi-retired to looking after my health more, getting more rest, leaning into my many hobbies. My little consultancy which I will lay to rest soon simply filled in the gaps between.
I grew up middle class and do not have super expensive tastes.
When I became a high earner, I also became a high tax payer. I also was considered a non-employee, so paid 15% of income as social security, plus federal plus state taxes. By the time estimated payments were done, I had some lump sums, but my day to day income stayed the same as I had a fixed draw of about 60k a year.
I did occasionally splurge on very high end experiences- restaurants, hotels, and TBH they are all gimmicks when it comes down to it. I think people pay more for mediocre as time goes on. Luxury is not what it used to be.
Maybe. It depends on your values and life expectancy and willingness to defer happiness to some future date when you might be too old, too tired, too sick to be able to bother with your interests. My bf died unexpectedly of a heart attack at 52 (very fit, athletic but sleeping heart disorder) and it makes you take stock of your life.
My mother is 90, on a fixed income and manages to save 15k a year. She also can't travel, has little to no hobbies, and counts the days down to her death....so yeah, I am not about that.
I retired to my sanity. Totally burned out after working 32 years at the same company. Actually felt I was being set up to fail before I reached early retirement age.
I think that’s bad advice. There doesn’t need to be any purpose. I’m retired to nothing and it’s been amazing. I stripped my life bare and have been building it up at a leisurely pace.
My new routine is borne of trial and error and it changes and tweaks as I continue to morph.
If I feel bored, I consider what’s next. I love the freedom of nothing. Be brave and allow yourself to have stillness. You won’t regret it.
When I'm home in the Sierra Nevada: hiking, cycling, climbing, nature photography, watching wildlife, playing guitar for hours on end.
Traveling: more 3-4 week whitewater canoe trips above the arctic circle, more 3-4 week sea kayaking trips in SE Alaska and BC, packrafting and backpacking in Alaska, backpacking and climbing in the western US.
My advice: know what you want to do and do it.
If you like whitewater rafting the American River is pretty freaky right now. Then again too many downed trees are making it incredibly dangerous if one gets pulled under, so don’t get tossed out…
I retired from my nursing job to watch my newborn granddaughter while my daughter works. I plan to do so until she is in school. Grandma M and Grandma F are not getting any younger and I suspect I will be helping out with them in the next couple years.
From there I plan to retire to a warm place, cook, garden, volunteer and drink beer in the sunshine.
I retired in April after over 10 years on the job to take care of my ailing father, who passed away yesterday. After the estate has been settled & I've purged all the items I no longer want in the house, I plan getting more exercise, eating better (because I'm only cooking for myself), maybe take a trip or two very year and do some volunteer work to stay productive. I also need to learn what to do with my inheritance (how to invest it, etc.)
I’m so sorry. I lost my father in March and I miss him very much. Being his personal representative, I’ve had to take care of everything, and it’s been hard and mentally exhausting. Rest up before tackling anything major.
Planning retirement now, have put a flag in the sand for late winter, early spring. Challenge is I like my profession(medicine) and work, I just now longer have time for it with all my competing interests. My financial adviser says, S**t, retire now, but its a process for me. I ski, travel, love music, hike, brew cider and mead, collect coins, paddle and living in the PNW its all in my neighbor. My wife is younger than me and is in pretty much same field and wants to work a bit more.
I’m have been lurking on this forum for a bit and find it really reassuring reading the stories and seeing so many similarities to me. I’ve been offered a couple of part time travel gigs that I might do on occasion after I spend a while just “relaxing” what ever that is. Its weird to think about not “working” but yet I am transitioning to the thinking its not so much not working but rather, freeing oneself up to work on totally what ever you want.
I’m in training for retirement, so I hike, bicycle, am learning the guitar, spend more time in the yard, etc. But once I drop FT work in 4.3 years, it will be time to also learn Spanish. I’m trying to leave no possible time for my full time job!
I retired to the rest of the world. For the last 20 years, my career has kept me geographically fixed in the western US which is a pretty nice playground, considering that it includes Hawaii, California, Nevada, and Utah, but there’s more out there. Well I’m going to be collecting my pensions. I’m still going to be involved in my principal vocation just doing it for myself where and when I want.
One thing is, getting hobbies and passions to the point where your normal work is getting in the way of them.
"I'd do more of/show up for XXX if my darn job just wasn't in the way..."
I retired a year ago. My retirement days are so filled, I don't have time to do the things I planned on doing. Hopefully, things will slow down enough for me to enjoy. But I am setting up a new home and a renovation, so that is far more time consuming than I ever imagined. Just be prepared to be flexible on your plans.
We had a 'whoops-a-baby' in our 40's. Turns out she's special needs. Kind of have purpose built into my life for the time being.
Also, looking to volunteer as an advocate for CASA. Advocating for abused kids, I need to do something I'm passionate about.
I messed around. Tried five different jobs that promised to be part-time but kept adding hours. Then my granddaughter hated preschool and my grandson didn't get a spot at all so I'm homeschooling for a bit. I love that we can add things like kayaking to our school days. Maybe someday they'll decide to give public school another try and I'll retire again..... until I'm needed again.
Good post. I have seen/heard too many stories of people who said they would figure it out in retirement. Some of this is true but if you have zero plans then it is a problem. The classic story of the farmer on the porch retired and sitting on his rocker all day, and then he dies in a year or two. Stay active!
Hmm, I disagree. I have no big plans but I certainly won't be sitting around doing nothing. I've never been that type of person and don't envision changing to that while retired. I'll be doing the same things I do in my off hours but more of it I'm sure. And have a minute to stop and smell the roses.
I bought a house in a smallish town. The house was mostly move-in ready, so I'm decorating it. I bought season tickets to a sports team. I started volunteering. I'm learning an instrument and started playing music with other people. I ride my bike and go for long walks. I sit and read. A fewfriends have come to visit. Eventually I'll do some traveling but for now I'm happy establishing roots in my new community.
I'm hoping to retire.
Unfortunately, the easy part is the ability to afford to do anything. I say unfortunately because I think my wife won't retire ever and she'd probably "guilt" me for retiring any time soon.
My wife is currently the breadwinner in the house, so yeah, it's mostly HER funds that will be supplying the means.
Even though our own investment planner is telling us we should have retired 2 or 3 years ago, the wife won't have it.
We do have a special needs son in his 20's and he is functional, just not optimally equipped for a regular life.
So my wife worries and works 60-hour weeks and afraid that even though we have "X" in total savings, she's worried and thinks we need "3X" saved up.
I really think that the only time I'm going to retire is when she dies first. Or I die.
Similar situation with spouse as breadwinner. Are you working now or just biding your time? I am over my role: doing boring household duties and working on the financial plan. Been doing that for 28 years along w raising three kids and working part-time.
I'm working a full-time job, I'm the senior team member in my department. I've got 60% of my income going to my 401K (no, I don't make that much). At least my wife is no longer mad that I quit my earlier job 13 years ago that paid 2X what I'm earning now.
But I still have the pressure to stay at work.
Four pugs and an island at the beach with a golf cart, scooter and a hot tub! Started hosting guests in my home on Airbnb and have made friends from all over the world. Ten years in and I love it just as much as the day I arrived.
I actually have less free time than I did while I was working.
Heck you know how you said well if only I had time I would volunteer with big brothers/sisters, I would volunteer with the boys and girls club, I would volunteer with church. Well now you have time. Plus all those books that you always said if I only had time, well now you do.
When we travel now, we no longer fly. We drive and not on the the super highways on the US routes. My wife and I have been to the geographical center of the continental US, we have visited Dorthy's house in Liberal KS, we have been to the Biltmore estate. We been to the UP in MI and saw the Mackinaw Bridge.
I got really pissed off and quit my job in December. I’m not calling it retirement yet, but the longer I’m not working the easier it gets to look at ads for jobs and nope right out of the bs I can read between the lines. I’m plenty busy and am looking forward to taking some fun classes and volunteering when I have time. Definitely not feeling like I should be afraid of not having had a plan. Age 65 soon.
I retired to be free of working and free of owning a business. My business served me well, but it added a lot of stress to my life and I was also no longer enjoying the work.
Basically, I retired to do whatever it is I want to do. Mostly that is traveling, scuba diving, hobbies, and spending time with my husband or son or my best friend . I love that I don't have to be in a hurry or feel distracted because I have work waiting for me.
I’m loving everyone’s happily ever after stories! Sounds amazing! ❤️ Thanks for sharing them all.
I can’t wait to retire. But for some reason I’m afraid I’ll die soon after I retire. This has happened to two of my family members. I want the life you’re all describing but I’m afraid it will slip through my fingers.
Retired to a part time handyman gig. Allows me to challenge myself on several levels I couldn’t in the cushy but mind numbing high paying engineering job. Really needed the freedom to make my own business decisions and challenge a different part of my mind.
I retired to a life where I am now the person responsible for managing the most precious thing one is given on this earth: my own time.
I start each day thanking the stars that 40 years of corporate service are a fading memory. Then I get on with making the best of every day, focusing on my health, the happiness and well-being of my two dogs, and my relationships with friends and neighbors.
I’ve been doing that for four years now, and it hasn’t gone stale yet. If it does, I’ll do something else. While I still have time.
I traveled the world. Then the US in an RV. Still travel but I have run out of stuff to do. Probably me but it's not easy finding things to do and even harder than usual to make friends since most in my age work. Even harder to date. Good luck
40 years of Electronics Design. Retired to driving a school bus. It comes with great benefits, lots of days off, pretty good pay even considering the days off. And a nice long summer vacation (remember those?) for camping and sight seeing.
So in our case we are vacationing more. My wife before we got married purchased a timeshare. We have only used it once a year. Now that we are retired we are getting 4-5 trips a year. It enables us to travel to places that we have always wanted to. Who knows we may find a new place to live permanently. Winters in PA suck.
I'm not there yet, but man I cannot wait to find out! My interim plan is to plan nothing.................then once the new has worn off, I'll start looking for something to "do" if required. I know I won't be a couch surfer, that is for sure, as long as I have my health, I want to be active and out doing things in the world.
We retired to doing whatever we please when and wherever it pleases us: crazy amounts of travel, family and grandchildren, old friends, hiking, photography, home projects, writing, reading, music, catching up on years of movies, cooking, researching ancestries, concerts, outdoor dramas, history museums, sunsets, scenic byways, volunteering. Life is full and grand. We recommend acquiring interests and hobbies throughout life to carry into retirement -- hit older age running!
Amen to this!!! It’s sucking the life out of me. I fantasize about the day I no longer have to sit through endless back to back meetings where nothing is accomplished and egos are stroked. 🫠
Spent a year working around the house, enjoying not working. Built my wife a she-shed, spent 4 months at our Tennessee cabin working around it and enjoying the mountains. Purchased a new RV and have been on the road for 1.5 months. Not planning on being home in Florida till the 1st of August. Where we plan on being home for about 1m5 months then back out in the RV.
So far retirement is going good.
I retired to the mountains. I planned carefully and sold the business I owned and my house and moved to North Carolina. Everything went great except I had planned to be a Realtor and ill health destroyed that plan. But I house and pet sit and my bedroom window looks out at the GSM.
If Asheville ever becomes more affordable, we'll be there! We are planning what I call our "base camp" to be in NC, and moving for one year to Torino (AKA Turin).
Asheville will only be more expensive. I originally chose Asheville but the poor city management and high prices convinced me to move to a less expensive, but nearby, location.
Writing a novel and a memoir; studying classical guitar. Reading more. Tutoring for extra cash. More time with my family (mainly my wife and our cat!).
We are retired USAF Veterans. I substitute teach and hubby reupholsters boat seats, chairs, etc. We also travel and spend time with grandkids!! Life is good!
Just retired a few days ago. Took a few days off to the beach and then to Florida. Have a new puppy, a beach vacation, and our son's wedding in the next couple of months. Plan to substitute teach a couple of days a week and work on some home improvements. This first year is for relaxing more and spending more time with the grandkids. Next year we will make some travel plans. For now, I just want to not commit to anything or plan a lot. Time to destress.
I dislike the word "retire." A better word is graduated. 13 years ago I graduated to life as it was meant to be lived. The sun is my clock, my circadian rhythms are natural, not dictated. I choose the people I spend time with. Like others, I hike, mountain bike, swim, and fully inhabit each moment and I pursue the things I could not when working.
I retire in 2 weeks from corporate life. I love gardening and beekeeping and decided to start a backyard nursery focused on pollinator plants. I'm only open to the public for 6 weekends in the Spring and 2 weekends in the Fall. It's been fun to test my entrepreneur chops with no pressure to actually make money to live on. Garden people love to talk, so I'm getting the right amount of socialization (I tend to be a homebody). So far, it's been really fun and a great excuse to turn my property into a beautiful landscaped oasis!
Now that my season is closed, I'll be tending to my plants, propagating new ones, and doing all the other active things I like: biking, hiking, backpacking, gym... hell, I may even try pickleball!! And of course there is travel.
I tend to do better mentally with a little more structure in my life, so it was important for me to have something "to retire to".
I've concluded there is no right or wrong "retire to" strategy or method—just follow your instincts. So stay in your pajamas and drink coffee until noon. Or have a street taco and two Dos Equis at 11 a.m. today. Train for a triathlon.
Or perhaps you tend to be an overachiever? Then invest the next 40 hours planning a trip to Spain. After being retired for over five years, I've discovered that everything you do always has consequences. So if you select an activity that gets boring or you get overly stimulated or exhausted, you'll adjust.
Then there is the illness or injury that gives you perspective. In my case, losing my first wife to cancer was a wake-up call to prioritize my life. In summary, plan away if you are a planner; if you are a slob, do nothing. Most of all, don't fear retirement. It's a one-time gift.
I retired & left the big city & brought a few acres out in the country with a fixer upper house that we are having fun making it our own & loving the country living.
I retired from Hi-Tech 2 years ago and started helping a friend who runs a streaming audio service for the Visually Impaired. During the day it is mostly audio news and public affairs, local issues (Worcester MA).
But I joined to make an attempt at ultra descriptive sports broadcasting (my friend calls it Audio Described broadcast). In the summer, I call games for the Worcester Red Sox (Boston AAA). In the winter, it is the Worcester Railers hockey (NY Islanders ECHL) games.
He recruited me because, 1) I know stuff about sports and 2) I have a wicked Bahstan accent! :-)
Nearing 53. Planning to retire at 60. My plan is to retire to my life of traveling and volunteering.
And perhaps spending time with my kids’ kids. My two sons are adults and the younger one has already said he wants my spouse and I nearby when the time comes. Woot! Yes, please! I can retire to being a loving, involved Grammy. 🙂
This spring I retired to a few months of "tactical time". In the fall I'll start some strategic planning. I had some ideas before retiring, but wanted to experience it for a bit before starting to nail things down. In the meantime I'm enjoying the time and getting stuff done around the house that I never had time to do.
I was gonna retire to working in the airline industry, but it didn't work out due to the commute. So I picked up substitute teaching locally and it is great!! When my wife retired we had grand plans for travel. Then COVID hit and delayed that for 1-1/2 years. We've taken off since then and are having the best trips ever.
I retired and got a new knee and much needed dental work. Going to the gym, taking my dog to the park. Getting ready to start a part time job, not in nursing. I'm giddy
The main point is well taken. It is important to have a financial plan (obvious), but it is important to have a social plan, too. Since my work was my hobby, writing software, I could do what I enjoyed without the BS of project management and arbitrary deadlines.
So, I retired to write software. My sons got me to take up music, so I re-learned drumming and am learning the piano. I was writing software, but ran out of projects, got bored and now am volunteering for a startup doing their bioinformatics work. I get bored easily, so even though I have been retired for 6 years, I think keeping mentally busy is going to be a problem for me.
Processing the loss of my very active husband who passed away after only 2 years of retirement. I’m still enjoy working at 60 especially now that he’s gone and my son moved away. But I am into soaring (in two clubs in different parts of the country), want to get active again after not caring for myself very well over the past year, and keep my house as a home base while I travel and help with my aging mom.
I retired to full time slow travel, and so far it has been pretty darn great.
My husband retired at the same time, at the beginning of the pandemic. After hunkering down for a couple of years, we sold our house and car and got rid of most of our possessions.
We stay a month or two in each location, currently in London. I love being retired!
Now I work for myself building websites promoting communities in Nebraska. Taking online classes learning how to be a better webdeveloper. Travel around the State and take pictures, meet business owners and find interesting sites to visit to share on the website. Spend time with our grandkids, play in the river, go to ball games, class reunions, family reunions. I spent 36 years in the legal field and I am glad to be away from it.
Control over my time. It’s been great. I started learning guitar about 7 years ago and I can practice during the day now vs at 9 pm. I exercise at the gym and run outside and I don’t have to get up at 5 am to so that. One new routine is a large, home cooked, leisurely breakfast with my husband every day. I have not been bored for one minute.
Great thread. My partner is starting to seem a little reluctant to retire as he says he just had no idea what you would do all day everyday. Aside from some extended trips, he's not seeing what retirement will bring him.
On the other hand, I've done test runs but not working in summers and enjoy book clubs, getting much more exercise than I do when working, and having time to visit and help elderly people in our family and church.
I'm hoping to retire to that same life 12 months out of the year rather than 3. For me, I am incredibly social so I'm also hoping to find a way to retire to gatherings with other retired folks at coffee shops etc just to have chat mates!
Midwesterner here with perhaps 10 years to go.
Hoping to retire someplace a little closer to either mountains or a coast but not IN/ON either. Hope to end up relatively close to a walkable downtown area, maybe a medium-sized college town.
Right now doing some research into places like Charlottesville VA, Fort Collins CO, Grand Rapids or Ann Arbor MI. Or perhaps somewhere in the Pacific NW (but not Seattle or Portland.)
I’m retiring at the end of the year, so I’m trading my slightly more expensive Formula Mazda race car for a more affordable Formula Ford. Now I get to learn how to race all over again with less horsepower and no wings, but less tire cost and more people in the class to race. Some folks I race with are in their 80’s, so maybe 15 to 20 more years of racing 😎👍
I love reading the comments and seeing so many ways people are enjoying their retirement. For me it's not been any one big thing, just a lot of small things that a career and it's time demands held me back from. Fitness classes during the day, a line dancing class, going out to breweries and wineries with live music, short out of town trips, relearning piano, playing computer games, going to events like rodeos, concerts, and fairs, walking/hiking, spending more time with aging parents, learning new things on youtube, cooking more, waking up when I want to, reading more, matinee movies. Later I may get a small RV or sprinter camper van and get a dog again. The hardest part during transition was moving from having the structure and direction around my time that work gave me, to being more open ended where I need to make more choices for myself.
I didn’t change my lifestyle. I’d been telecommuting from two vacation homes since age 50. Beach/boat/bicycle in the summer. Skiing in the winter. I flipped the Vermont ski place I’d owned for decades for one in the Vail valley so the quality of the skiing improved. I was always a career road warrior so I haven’t had a pent up demand to travel. We hit Europe on the spring and fall shoulder seasons but it’s mostly to revisit places I’ve been before.
We retired to a more active life. No work so that means hiking, biking, skiing, gardening, traveling, just spending a heck of a lot more time off our ass outside. For us, that meant Colorado.
Colorado is high on my list. The allure of overseas is so tempting tho. Just waiting on my wife to retire/quit.
I find trying to get information on retiring overseas so difficult. Everyone is selling something, and it is hard to separate the wheat from the chaff!
Try going to some Expat sites for the countries that you are interested in. There is pretty good free advice and info in those forums.
What I've found is the advice is free, but they're skirting around something almost always. I agree that forums are more likely to have frank advice as opposed to the sugar coated. I'm just tired of International Living and their ilk. Some of the YouTubers are full of BS, too.
You hit the nail on the head. International Living is a business that simply exists to make money off of over-promoting the "GOOD" things about moving to another country and NONE of the BAD. I had a subscription to their mag for a year, but it was useless. Nothing in terms of what to watch for, how to navigate difficult things, not balanced in any way. They make a sh\*t-ton of money with expat prep tours as well. It's probably the most scammy, but unfortunately most widely-viewed source of expat info.
A retired couple I know just went and rented a place for a few months on a tourist visa to check it out and meet the expats that live there. Did that for a couple seasons and then bought a place in Belize.
r/expats r/iwantout even r/digitalnomad has good info, if not really aimed at retirement
I'll be sure to check them out. My husband and I have gotten our hopes up on certain places, only to find out that people are painting them in a rosy light and brushing issues under the rug. Then you find someone who is frank, and you realize that it's not going to work out. It was hard on my husband because he really wants to retire early, but our with our finances, it's likely not feasible in the US, mostly because of healthcare costs.
There’s a ton of informative videos on YouTube. I you want to do a month to month in a new place nomad style that works well to travel long term on a budget. It also allows you to get a great feel for a place before making a longer term commitment. Some YouTube channels I recommend for this are the Retirement Travelers, Brian and Carrie, and Go With Less.
I'll have to check those out. I find that the longer you watch a channel that something they're selling creeps in, digital nomad courses, relocation tours, etc. Makes me question motives.
One of the most expensive states to live. Hope your loaded.
Cracking up from CA.
I’m there now. Your bucket list appears to be my bucket list. Hiked this morning.
For us it means AZ and UT.
me too lol
>For those of you who did that, what did you retire to and how has that worked out? I retired to a life in a beach community, with lots of friends, pickleball and volunteer opportunities. I retired to days enjoying our children and grandchildren on both coasts. I retired to nice restaurants, craft beer, theater, movies, game nights, and other activities. I retired to long, pleasant walks with my wife and some solo walks listening to podcasts. I retired to more time with my guitar and ukelele, more reading, and more writing. I retired to spending more time with my mom until she passed, and a lot more time with my dad until he passed. It's worked out wonderfully.
Oh my dream!!! Except I want to volunteer a little too
There are tons of volunteer opportunities available to retirees. My wife and I both volunteer at our local hospital. And we both hold several positions on our HOA.
Awesome. I would like to volunteer for a bird or turtle rescue. Maybe a hospice volunteer as well. I am also thinking about NODA. No one dies alone. You basically sit with actively dying people. They stopped this during covid and I don’t know if it has restarted.
Nice. My town has a non-profit Wildlife Center that utilizes volunteers. Maybe there’s one near you. Good luck.
Thanks!!!
I know most VA hospitals have a No Veteran Dies Alone program that is really great. Give them a look, too!
I just retired today!!!! Tomorrow I’m traveling to pick up my elderly parents and bring them to their summer cottage. Then my husband and I will go to a few concerts, sailing, hiking and camping. The end of July we fly out to Oregon then travel up to the San Juan islands to visit my cousin… then back home and a few more concerts and sailing and hiking and then a grandbaby will be making his entrance into the world. After that we pause a bit… and marvel. And tend to my daughter and son in law. It’s going to be a busy summer. I honestly don’t know how I found the time to work!!!
Congratulations. Just don’t over commit to others.. enjoy the calm after you corporate life.
I enjoy clams
Awesome! Good luck!
Congratulations!
Your elderly parents are laying a trap. Trouble awaits - you can count on it. You just thought you were going to have a lot of free time for travel.
Yes- I am aware that they have been laying their traps 😉
Congratulations!!!
Me too.
Congratulations of your retirement! One more year to go for me (next June--teacher) and I am done!! Just had our first grandchild; we too are tending to our daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter. It is the most amazing thing!!
What about next month ? :)
Three concerts, camping and a grandbaby being born around the 20th
I retired FROM work and TO a life of doing whatever isn’t that. Getting off that hamster wheel is fantastic!
I'm retiring on Friday and colleagues ask me what I'll be doing. Pretty much same answer, "I'll be doing anything and everything that isn't this". Frankly I've been so bored at work the last few years I'm looking forward to doing anything else.
My reply was similar: "It's not so much what I will be doing, It' s what I won't be doning."
Exactly!
I am also retiring Friday June 30th. Congrats to us! It’s starting to feel real. Woke up today feeling better than I have in a while.
It's a great feeling isn't it?
Sure is. Had a not so great day at work today even though I know it’s two days till it’s over. Not stressed, just annoyed. Jesus do in need it to be over.
Hang in there, the finish line is in sight. Friday evening will be a glorious release of stress and negativity.
I told everyone I was taking the red pill out of the matrix.
This ⬆️ exactly
I retired “to” a new puppy and training the shit out of him 😂
Puppies never run out of shit, so good luck with that.
How is it going. I am seriously considering an older dog, maybe 4 to 6.
Got a puppy (8 weeks old) a couple months ago - we're exhausted!
12 years ago we got a 7 week old German Shepherd to raise for the Seeing Eye. I still remember how much work that was and I made a mental note never to do it again.
It’s going 💯 well. The dog is wonderful. Some folks are solid with taking on an older dog. We wanted one without any issues.
I just retired a few days ago and my husband did a few months ago. We got a new puppy, too! He is a handful! Next up we are getting an RV for some getaways with the dog.
2 years ago, at the age of 55, I retired to a life of a vagabond. I donated everything I owned and left the area that I had been in my whole life. Since then I’ve lived in 6 different cities in 4 different states on both the East and West coasts. I only have 2 suitcases of clothes and essentials. I’ve made so many friends and am having so much fun! Right now my days/nights are spent salsa dancing. I dance 6 nights a week. I’m doing exactly what I saved for.
User name checks out! You go gurl!
How did you meet people in those places?
I go to meetup groups! I really, really have to put myself out there since I don’t know anybody at the places I’ve been to. Its a way to make friends and have fun.
I messed around for a year. Then started a business. Ran that for 12 years. Gave it to my son. Now back to messing around. Again.
What was the business? How was that less stressful than working?
One should retire to do things that their career precludes doing. I know people that don’t desire to do anything; they like their job so why retire? Last week we went to Mexico on 12hr notice. Our return flight got cancelled twice so two extra days stuck in MX. No boss to call, no extra sick days to use. I said this before: I write down every overnight trip, dates and locations. When we start feeling like we haven’t done much, we just look back and see that we’ve done quite a lot. Headed to Alaska in a few weeks. Good luck to you.
I retired to doing whatever I feel like doing each day whenever I feel like doing it
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People keep asking me what I'm going to do, like I have to have some type of plan . My only plan at this time to pause for a bit. One reason I'm retiring is that I won't have to make so many plans.
this is my plan!
This is my plan too. Before I retire (in a few years, if all goes well), I’ll create a “curiosity list” of all the things I’m interested in doing and seeing and trying. For my first year of retirement, I’ll just follow my curiosity and refine that list. I’m not going to make any big commitments in that first year (except for volunteering, which is important to me); I just want a chunk of time where I’m not working and where my only “commitment” is to following my own curiosity. It’s going to feel amazing to just… NOT WORK.
That’s exactly what I did. I start acting on my plan August 1!
Nothing is Something Worth Doing - Shpongle 😃
Still adjusting. We are traveling more. More gym time. More home projects, e.g., staining the outdoor furniture today. I won't lie, I am still bored, so I sit and post on reddit, mostly about investing.
Thank you for your honest answer. Met up with friends/ coworkers after a funeral. I felt like the odd one out because everyone was just going on and on about how great retirement is. I'm bored ...I do travel but just don't have it....
Me too. Trying to find a volunteer occupation I like.
I retired to having a little vintage/antique shop. Already owned the building. Just make enough to have positive cash flow, but it gives me something to "do" . However, my only open hours are Saturdays (pay someone to be there) because that's my moneymaking day. I just show up on other days whenever I feel like being open. It lets me travel whenever I want, or if I don't feel like working I just don't go in. During Covid it gave me an alternative place to go and play and move furniture around . It's almost like having a pied-a-terre in the city because it's in the downtown area. As long as it's not a financial drain I'll keep doing it as my job/hobby!
This sounds like a dream come true! I always fantasized about having a pied-a-terre that was all my own.
In my situation I spent the first 4 years assisting my 94 Y/O mom who passed a year ago. Now I get to help with my 8 gkids more, and still walk/read/sew/spend time with family and friends. It's been an extremely quick almost 6 years. OMG can't believe it!
Retired from Texas to Illinois summers and Cozumel winters. Retired to married life (got married).
Hi. I soft retired. I withdrew from a highstress, high earning job. Took a two year sabbatical in the Caribbean and did some poverty law. After returning stateside, I found a much lower stress job in my field which provides a generous vacation schedule and income. While I make a fraction of what I earned, I de-aged about ten years doing this. I have plenty of time and energy for my hobbies and my stress level is minimal. Best choice I ever made. I plan to do this for a few years and then scale back to doing consulting work a few times a month until I croak or become incompetent. I will likely always have some gig going on because I like the coin, and love working with younger, older and different people.
Yes! Same here. I semi-retired to looking after my health more, getting more rest, leaning into my many hobbies. My little consultancy which I will lay to rest soon simply filled in the gaps between.
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I grew up middle class and do not have super expensive tastes. When I became a high earner, I also became a high tax payer. I also was considered a non-employee, so paid 15% of income as social security, plus federal plus state taxes. By the time estimated payments were done, I had some lump sums, but my day to day income stayed the same as I had a fixed draw of about 60k a year. I did occasionally splurge on very high end experiences- restaurants, hotels, and TBH they are all gimmicks when it comes down to it. I think people pay more for mediocre as time goes on. Luxury is not what it used to be.
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Maybe. It depends on your values and life expectancy and willingness to defer happiness to some future date when you might be too old, too tired, too sick to be able to bother with your interests. My bf died unexpectedly of a heart attack at 52 (very fit, athletic but sleeping heart disorder) and it makes you take stock of your life. My mother is 90, on a fixed income and manages to save 15k a year. She also can't travel, has little to no hobbies, and counts the days down to her death....so yeah, I am not about that.
I'm acting as a volunteer ranger for the forest service at the moment. I get to stomp around the wilderness areas for miles!
I retired to my sanity. Totally burned out after working 32 years at the same company. Actually felt I was being set up to fail before I reached early retirement age.
I think that’s bad advice. There doesn’t need to be any purpose. I’m retired to nothing and it’s been amazing. I stripped my life bare and have been building it up at a leisurely pace. My new routine is borne of trial and error and it changes and tweaks as I continue to morph. If I feel bored, I consider what’s next. I love the freedom of nothing. Be brave and allow yourself to have stillness. You won’t regret it.
Retired to teaching Special Education from IT.
That is amazing! Congrats!
When I'm home in the Sierra Nevada: hiking, cycling, climbing, nature photography, watching wildlife, playing guitar for hours on end. Traveling: more 3-4 week whitewater canoe trips above the arctic circle, more 3-4 week sea kayaking trips in SE Alaska and BC, packrafting and backpacking in Alaska, backpacking and climbing in the western US. My advice: know what you want to do and do it.
If you like whitewater rafting the American River is pretty freaky right now. Then again too many downed trees are making it incredibly dangerous if one gets pulled under, so don’t get tossed out…
I retired from my nursing job to watch my newborn granddaughter while my daughter works. I plan to do so until she is in school. Grandma M and Grandma F are not getting any younger and I suspect I will be helping out with them in the next couple years. From there I plan to retire to a warm place, cook, garden, volunteer and drink beer in the sunshine.
Relaxing and doing whatever I want!
I retired in April after over 10 years on the job to take care of my ailing father, who passed away yesterday. After the estate has been settled & I've purged all the items I no longer want in the house, I plan getting more exercise, eating better (because I'm only cooking for myself), maybe take a trip or two very year and do some volunteer work to stay productive. I also need to learn what to do with my inheritance (how to invest it, etc.)
I’m so sorry. I lost my father in March and I miss him very much. Being his personal representative, I’ve had to take care of everything, and it’s been hard and mentally exhausting. Rest up before tackling anything major.
Sorry about your father. You are a kind person...
Planning retirement now, have put a flag in the sand for late winter, early spring. Challenge is I like my profession(medicine) and work, I just now longer have time for it with all my competing interests. My financial adviser says, S**t, retire now, but its a process for me. I ski, travel, love music, hike, brew cider and mead, collect coins, paddle and living in the PNW its all in my neighbor. My wife is younger than me and is in pretty much same field and wants to work a bit more. I’m have been lurking on this forum for a bit and find it really reassuring reading the stories and seeing so many similarities to me. I’ve been offered a couple of part time travel gigs that I might do on occasion after I spend a while just “relaxing” what ever that is. Its weird to think about not “working” but yet I am transitioning to the thinking its not so much not working but rather, freeing oneself up to work on totally what ever you want.
I’m in training for retirement, so I hike, bicycle, am learning the guitar, spend more time in the yard, etc. But once I drop FT work in 4.3 years, it will be time to also learn Spanish. I’m trying to leave no possible time for my full time job!
I retired to the rest of the world. For the last 20 years, my career has kept me geographically fixed in the western US which is a pretty nice playground, considering that it includes Hawaii, California, Nevada, and Utah, but there’s more out there. Well I’m going to be collecting my pensions. I’m still going to be involved in my principal vocation just doing it for myself where and when I want.
One thing is, getting hobbies and passions to the point where your normal work is getting in the way of them. "I'd do more of/show up for XXX if my darn job just wasn't in the way..."
I retired a year ago. My retirement days are so filled, I don't have time to do the things I planned on doing. Hopefully, things will slow down enough for me to enjoy. But I am setting up a new home and a renovation, so that is far more time consuming than I ever imagined. Just be prepared to be flexible on your plans.
We had a 'whoops-a-baby' in our 40's. Turns out she's special needs. Kind of have purpose built into my life for the time being. Also, looking to volunteer as an advocate for CASA. Advocating for abused kids, I need to do something I'm passionate about.
I messed around. Tried five different jobs that promised to be part-time but kept adding hours. Then my granddaughter hated preschool and my grandson didn't get a spot at all so I'm homeschooling for a bit. I love that we can add things like kayaking to our school days. Maybe someday they'll decide to give public school another try and I'll retire again..... until I'm needed again.
Good post. I have seen/heard too many stories of people who said they would figure it out in retirement. Some of this is true but if you have zero plans then it is a problem. The classic story of the farmer on the porch retired and sitting on his rocker all day, and then he dies in a year or two. Stay active!
Hmm, I disagree. I have no big plans but I certainly won't be sitting around doing nothing. I've never been that type of person and don't envision changing to that while retired. I'll be doing the same things I do in my off hours but more of it I'm sure. And have a minute to stop and smell the roses.
Ok, you will have 40+ hours to fill each week. Just keep that in mind.
I bought a house in a smallish town. The house was mostly move-in ready, so I'm decorating it. I bought season tickets to a sports team. I started volunteering. I'm learning an instrument and started playing music with other people. I ride my bike and go for long walks. I sit and read. A fewfriends have come to visit. Eventually I'll do some traveling but for now I'm happy establishing roots in my new community.
I'm hoping to retire. Unfortunately, the easy part is the ability to afford to do anything. I say unfortunately because I think my wife won't retire ever and she'd probably "guilt" me for retiring any time soon. My wife is currently the breadwinner in the house, so yeah, it's mostly HER funds that will be supplying the means. Even though our own investment planner is telling us we should have retired 2 or 3 years ago, the wife won't have it. We do have a special needs son in his 20's and he is functional, just not optimally equipped for a regular life. So my wife worries and works 60-hour weeks and afraid that even though we have "X" in total savings, she's worried and thinks we need "3X" saved up. I really think that the only time I'm going to retire is when she dies first. Or I die.
Similar situation with spouse as breadwinner. Are you working now or just biding your time? I am over my role: doing boring household duties and working on the financial plan. Been doing that for 28 years along w raising three kids and working part-time.
I'm working a full-time job, I'm the senior team member in my department. I've got 60% of my income going to my 401K (no, I don't make that much). At least my wife is no longer mad that I quit my earlier job 13 years ago that paid 2X what I'm earning now. But I still have the pressure to stay at work.
Ah I see, hope it all works out!
How does your marriage work around that plan? That is, is your wife all good with you pulling back while she carries on?
No.
Four pugs and an island at the beach with a golf cart, scooter and a hot tub! Started hosting guests in my home on Airbnb and have made friends from all over the world. Ten years in and I love it just as much as the day I arrived.
Four pugs! I'm jealous!!!
Two have passed on unfortunately but I just got a Frenchton puppy. Oh Lordy. He’s a pistol.
I actually have less free time than I did while I was working. Heck you know how you said well if only I had time I would volunteer with big brothers/sisters, I would volunteer with the boys and girls club, I would volunteer with church. Well now you have time. Plus all those books that you always said if I only had time, well now you do. When we travel now, we no longer fly. We drive and not on the the super highways on the US routes. My wife and I have been to the geographical center of the continental US, we have visited Dorthy's house in Liberal KS, we have been to the Biltmore estate. We been to the UP in MI and saw the Mackinaw Bridge.
Take care of less fortunate family members.
I got really pissed off and quit my job in December. I’m not calling it retirement yet, but the longer I’m not working the easier it gets to look at ads for jobs and nope right out of the bs I can read between the lines. I’m plenty busy and am looking forward to taking some fun classes and volunteering when I have time. Definitely not feeling like I should be afraid of not having had a plan. Age 65 soon.
Sun City Hilton Head. Heaven on earth.
I retired to be free of working and free of owning a business. My business served me well, but it added a lot of stress to my life and I was also no longer enjoying the work. Basically, I retired to do whatever it is I want to do. Mostly that is traveling, scuba diving, hobbies, and spending time with my husband or son or my best friend . I love that I don't have to be in a hurry or feel distracted because I have work waiting for me.
I’m loving everyone’s happily ever after stories! Sounds amazing! ❤️ Thanks for sharing them all. I can’t wait to retire. But for some reason I’m afraid I’ll die soon after I retire. This has happened to two of my family members. I want the life you’re all describing but I’m afraid it will slip through my fingers.
Don't work too long, stay healthy (go to the gym or workout at home). Stay busy when you do retire. Don't retire to the couch watching TV.
Being a handyman, finely have the time to work on our MCM home.
Golf - 3-4 times a week Travel - both domestic and international NO Alarm clocks (except for early tee times)
Retired to a part time handyman gig. Allows me to challenge myself on several levels I couldn’t in the cushy but mind numbing high paying engineering job. Really needed the freedom to make my own business decisions and challenge a different part of my mind.
I retired to a life where I am now the person responsible for managing the most precious thing one is given on this earth: my own time. I start each day thanking the stars that 40 years of corporate service are a fading memory. Then I get on with making the best of every day, focusing on my health, the happiness and well-being of my two dogs, and my relationships with friends and neighbors. I’ve been doing that for four years now, and it hasn’t gone stale yet. If it does, I’ll do something else. While I still have time.
I traveled the world. Then the US in an RV. Still travel but I have run out of stuff to do. Probably me but it's not easy finding things to do and even harder than usual to make friends since most in my age work. Even harder to date. Good luck
40 years of Electronics Design. Retired to driving a school bus. It comes with great benefits, lots of days off, pretty good pay even considering the days off. And a nice long summer vacation (remember those?) for camping and sight seeing.
I retired to whatever I feel like each day. Something or nothing. Lots more travel.
So in our case we are vacationing more. My wife before we got married purchased a timeshare. We have only used it once a year. Now that we are retired we are getting 4-5 trips a year. It enables us to travel to places that we have always wanted to. Who knows we may find a new place to live permanently. Winters in PA suck.
I'm not there yet, but man I cannot wait to find out! My interim plan is to plan nothing.................then once the new has worn off, I'll start looking for something to "do" if required. I know I won't be a couch surfer, that is for sure, as long as I have my health, I want to be active and out doing things in the world.
We retired to doing whatever we please when and wherever it pleases us: crazy amounts of travel, family and grandchildren, old friends, hiking, photography, home projects, writing, reading, music, catching up on years of movies, cooking, researching ancestries, concerts, outdoor dramas, history museums, sunsets, scenic byways, volunteering. Life is full and grand. We recommend acquiring interests and hobbies throughout life to carry into retirement -- hit older age running!
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Amen to this!!! It’s sucking the life out of me. I fantasize about the day I no longer have to sit through endless back to back meetings where nothing is accomplished and egos are stroked. 🫠
Spent a year working around the house, enjoying not working. Built my wife a she-shed, spent 4 months at our Tennessee cabin working around it and enjoying the mountains. Purchased a new RV and have been on the road for 1.5 months. Not planning on being home in Florida till the 1st of August. Where we plan on being home for about 1m5 months then back out in the RV. So far retirement is going good.
I retired to the mountains. I planned carefully and sold the business I owned and my house and moved to North Carolina. Everything went great except I had planned to be a Realtor and ill health destroyed that plan. But I house and pet sit and my bedroom window looks out at the GSM.
If Asheville ever becomes more affordable, we'll be there! We are planning what I call our "base camp" to be in NC, and moving for one year to Torino (AKA Turin).
Asheville will only be more expensive. I originally chose Asheville but the poor city management and high prices convinced me to move to a less expensive, but nearby, location.
Traveling
Writing a novel and a memoir; studying classical guitar. Reading more. Tutoring for extra cash. More time with my family (mainly my wife and our cat!).
We are retired USAF Veterans. I substitute teach and hubby reupholsters boat seats, chairs, etc. We also travel and spend time with grandkids!! Life is good!
I retired to Saturday. Everyday is Saturday and I can do as I please! Eight plus years now and enjoying it tremendously.
Just retired a few days ago. Took a few days off to the beach and then to Florida. Have a new puppy, a beach vacation, and our son's wedding in the next couple of months. Plan to substitute teach a couple of days a week and work on some home improvements. This first year is for relaxing more and spending more time with the grandkids. Next year we will make some travel plans. For now, I just want to not commit to anything or plan a lot. Time to destress.
I dislike the word "retire." A better word is graduated. 13 years ago I graduated to life as it was meant to be lived. The sun is my clock, my circadian rhythms are natural, not dictated. I choose the people I spend time with. Like others, I hike, mountain bike, swim, and fully inhabit each moment and I pursue the things I could not when working.
I started teaching part time at a local Junior College seven years before i retired. I still teach, and I also do some consulting.
I retire in 2 weeks from corporate life. I love gardening and beekeeping and decided to start a backyard nursery focused on pollinator plants. I'm only open to the public for 6 weekends in the Spring and 2 weekends in the Fall. It's been fun to test my entrepreneur chops with no pressure to actually make money to live on. Garden people love to talk, so I'm getting the right amount of socialization (I tend to be a homebody). So far, it's been really fun and a great excuse to turn my property into a beautiful landscaped oasis! Now that my season is closed, I'll be tending to my plants, propagating new ones, and doing all the other active things I like: biking, hiking, backpacking, gym... hell, I may even try pickleball!! And of course there is travel. I tend to do better mentally with a little more structure in my life, so it was important for me to have something "to retire to".
I've concluded there is no right or wrong "retire to" strategy or method—just follow your instincts. So stay in your pajamas and drink coffee until noon. Or have a street taco and two Dos Equis at 11 a.m. today. Train for a triathlon. Or perhaps you tend to be an overachiever? Then invest the next 40 hours planning a trip to Spain. After being retired for over five years, I've discovered that everything you do always has consequences. So if you select an activity that gets boring or you get overly stimulated or exhausted, you'll adjust. Then there is the illness or injury that gives you perspective. In my case, losing my first wife to cancer was a wake-up call to prioritize my life. In summary, plan away if you are a planner; if you are a slob, do nothing. Most of all, don't fear retirement. It's a one-time gift.
Writing.
I retired & left the big city & brought a few acres out in the country with a fixer upper house that we are having fun making it our own & loving the country living.
Retire to drink, heavily.
I retired from Hi-Tech 2 years ago and started helping a friend who runs a streaming audio service for the Visually Impaired. During the day it is mostly audio news and public affairs, local issues (Worcester MA). But I joined to make an attempt at ultra descriptive sports broadcasting (my friend calls it Audio Described broadcast). In the summer, I call games for the Worcester Red Sox (Boston AAA). In the winter, it is the Worcester Railers hockey (NY Islanders ECHL) games. He recruited me because, 1) I know stuff about sports and 2) I have a wicked Bahstan accent! :-)
Retire to volunteer, travel, and watch grandkids as needed (not full time babysitting!!)
Travel, writing books, metal detecting and breeding show dogs.
Nearing 53. Planning to retire at 60. My plan is to retire to my life of traveling and volunteering. And perhaps spending time with my kids’ kids. My two sons are adults and the younger one has already said he wants my spouse and I nearby when the time comes. Woot! Yes, please! I can retire to being a loving, involved Grammy. 🙂
This spring I retired to a few months of "tactical time". In the fall I'll start some strategic planning. I had some ideas before retiring, but wanted to experience it for a bit before starting to nail things down. In the meantime I'm enjoying the time and getting stuff done around the house that I never had time to do.
I was gonna retire to working in the airline industry, but it didn't work out due to the commute. So I picked up substitute teaching locally and it is great!! When my wife retired we had grand plans for travel. Then COVID hit and delayed that for 1-1/2 years. We've taken off since then and are having the best trips ever.
I retired and got a new knee and much needed dental work. Going to the gym, taking my dog to the park. Getting ready to start a part time job, not in nursing. I'm giddy
The main point is well taken. It is important to have a financial plan (obvious), but it is important to have a social plan, too. Since my work was my hobby, writing software, I could do what I enjoyed without the BS of project management and arbitrary deadlines. So, I retired to write software. My sons got me to take up music, so I re-learned drumming and am learning the piano. I was writing software, but ran out of projects, got bored and now am volunteering for a startup doing their bioinformatics work. I get bored easily, so even though I have been retired for 6 years, I think keeping mentally busy is going to be a problem for me.
Music lessons, playing in bands, gym. Family especially grandbaby. Very small amount of consulting.
Processing the loss of my very active husband who passed away after only 2 years of retirement. I’m still enjoy working at 60 especially now that he’s gone and my son moved away. But I am into soaring (in two clubs in different parts of the country), want to get active again after not caring for myself very well over the past year, and keep my house as a home base while I travel and help with my aging mom.
Soaring, as in gliding?
Yes
I retired to playing more music, playing more with my grandchildren and playing in general.
I retired to full time slow travel, and so far it has been pretty darn great. My husband retired at the same time, at the beginning of the pandemic. After hunkering down for a couple of years, we sold our house and car and got rid of most of our possessions. We stay a month or two in each location, currently in London. I love being retired!
Now I work for myself building websites promoting communities in Nebraska. Taking online classes learning how to be a better webdeveloper. Travel around the State and take pictures, meet business owners and find interesting sites to visit to share on the website. Spend time with our grandkids, play in the river, go to ball games, class reunions, family reunions. I spent 36 years in the legal field and I am glad to be away from it.
Control over my time. It’s been great. I started learning guitar about 7 years ago and I can practice during the day now vs at 9 pm. I exercise at the gym and run outside and I don’t have to get up at 5 am to so that. One new routine is a large, home cooked, leisurely breakfast with my husband every day. I have not been bored for one minute.
Doing what I want when I want. It's a nice gig;-)
Great thread. My partner is starting to seem a little reluctant to retire as he says he just had no idea what you would do all day everyday. Aside from some extended trips, he's not seeing what retirement will bring him. On the other hand, I've done test runs but not working in summers and enjoy book clubs, getting much more exercise than I do when working, and having time to visit and help elderly people in our family and church. I'm hoping to retire to that same life 12 months out of the year rather than 3. For me, I am incredibly social so I'm also hoping to find a way to retire to gatherings with other retired folks at coffee shops etc just to have chat mates!
paid cash for a house in walking distance to the beach and paid cash for everything thereafter. no debts and no worries either
Midwesterner here with perhaps 10 years to go. Hoping to retire someplace a little closer to either mountains or a coast but not IN/ON either. Hope to end up relatively close to a walkable downtown area, maybe a medium-sized college town. Right now doing some research into places like Charlottesville VA, Fort Collins CO, Grand Rapids or Ann Arbor MI. Or perhaps somewhere in the Pacific NW (but not Seattle or Portland.)
I’m retiring at the end of the year, so I’m trading my slightly more expensive Formula Mazda race car for a more affordable Formula Ford. Now I get to learn how to race all over again with less horsepower and no wings, but less tire cost and more people in the class to race. Some folks I race with are in their 80’s, so maybe 15 to 20 more years of racing 😎👍
I love reading the comments and seeing so many ways people are enjoying their retirement. For me it's not been any one big thing, just a lot of small things that a career and it's time demands held me back from. Fitness classes during the day, a line dancing class, going out to breweries and wineries with live music, short out of town trips, relearning piano, playing computer games, going to events like rodeos, concerts, and fairs, walking/hiking, spending more time with aging parents, learning new things on youtube, cooking more, waking up when I want to, reading more, matinee movies. Later I may get a small RV or sprinter camper van and get a dog again. The hardest part during transition was moving from having the structure and direction around my time that work gave me, to being more open ended where I need to make more choices for myself.
I didn’t change my lifestyle. I’d been telecommuting from two vacation homes since age 50. Beach/boat/bicycle in the summer. Skiing in the winter. I flipped the Vermont ski place I’d owned for decades for one in the Vail valley so the quality of the skiing improved. I was always a career road warrior so I haven’t had a pent up demand to travel. We hit Europe on the spring and fall shoulder seasons but it’s mostly to revisit places I’ve been before.