Fifty Plus (50+) - What is retirement really like?

We're pretty close to not having to work. It's nothing I did. My wife has inherited some property which we can sell and buy a second home in the mountains of North Carolina, and some property which generates a little income, which combined with our savings and social security in a few years is enough. I'm 58, she's 53, and while we aren't going to be rich, we can be comfortable.

So what do you really do when you don't work? We both have very strong faith walks and can volunteer at church or at the local Christian school. I can probably ride the bike 150 or so miles a week, maybe 200, if I quit work, go to the gym a few times a week, etc.

But what do you really do if you don't have to work? I've been working a long time as a lawyer, and while I have lots of credentials and all that, I'm pretty much sick of the lawyers I deal with. I have partners that I don't want to leave in the lurch, but I don't want to deal with the daily grind anymore.

All this stuff should be finalized in the next few months. Both my wife and I talk about not working, but I'm not really sure what it will be like.

Anybody have any suggestions?

Well, What do YOU want to do? That's all that counts. Do that.

you're too young, you'll go bonkers......keep working and the day you're done working and ready to retire, you'll know!

I'm retired, and it's terrible! Six Saturdays every week, I get up in the morning with nothing to do, and go to bed with half of it not done. Up early every morning, so I'll have more time to loaf. Life now is a never-ending vacation.
you don't have anything that you haven't done for lack of time, you may as well keep working.

Wonderful! I don't know how I possibly had time to work.

Those that have problems retiring are those that define themselves by their job. "I am a chemical engineer." Then when they quit, they are nothing. I loved engineering, but that is not what I was.

Another trap. Some say, "With all that time, you must have the best looking yard in the neighborhood." Not. It looks worse now than when I was working. Why would I quit a job that I liked and that paid good money to do something I don't like that pays nothing. If yard work/house maintenance is your passion - fine, but otherwise...

TF

What area are you considering in Western NC if you don't me asking?

Yes, let me recommend Waynesville. We have a bungalow right downtown (three blocks from Main Street, City Hall, and so on). It is a great town!

I have retired from my career of software - now I grow trees in Costa Rica. I doubt you could consider us retired, though I don't have to work at much I don't want to.

We are very busy, we like that - but anytime I wish, I can take a powder and go do whatever.

If you don't like what you are doing - do something else. But unless you are ready to just relax, DO something else. It sounds like you want to leave being a lawyer - but you probably have other things that interest you - persue those, without the burden of having to make money.

I retired at 47. The first year is rough. 7 out of 10 people die within that first year. First thing to do is start an exercise program. If you lay around and don't keep yourself occupied you'll be one of the 7 of 10. I'm into my retirement 5 years now and never plan on working a paying job again. I was in the Navy on a Destroyer for 6 years and then went to work for the Army as a Gas Turbine systems tech so my services were always in high demand. Between travel and work I had almost no personal time so now I make up for all those years.

Doing the garden. Digging the weeds. Who could ask for more?

I retired at 47. The first year is rough. 7 out of 10 people die within that first year. First thing to do is start an exercise program. If you lay around and don't keep yourself occupied you'll be one of the 7 of 10. I'm into my retirement 5 years now and never plan on working a paying job again. I was in the Navy on a Destroyer for 6 years and then went to work for the Army as a Gas Turbine systems tech so my services were always in high demand. Between travel and work I had almost no personal time so now I make up for all those years.

I think this is an Urban Legend. There is an increase in risk of death in retiring early, but it is like 20 % - that would be 20% higher than your risk of dying the first year at your age anyway.

It isn't 70% of the people. The rest of what you are saying is correct though - you got to have something to do and excercise is key.

We sold our business and retired almost two years ago. I'll be 62 in September and haven't had the least bit of difficulty staying busy. I did a little part-time consulting work for the first year, but am now quite happy just doing church and volunteer work and managing the rental of our farms. I really feel sorry for those who have defined themselves by their careers. I held a 3 or 4 positions in 40 years...liked them all but loved none of them. We turned over the keys to our retail business, walked out and have never looked back. I have allowed myself to become too sedentary, which is why I'm back into cycling, but I've got at least 4 hobbies to amuse myself with when I'm unable to ride.

I retired at 47. The first year is rough. 7 out of 10 people die within that first year.

This is false. A group with a financial motivation published those false numbers a few years back. They included people who retire because they are terminally ill and then exaggerated the numbers from there.

If you are healthy, then retiring has essentially no impact upon your life expectancy ... in fact there is some data that suggests that it lengthens your life. Over 50% of people who retire at 47 live 30+ more years. Very few die in the first year.

Tom, I have heard a few old geezers were threatened with death or dismemberment when they puttered around in the house too much... :rolleyes:

I took a buy-out a few weeks ago and don't need to work again if I don't want to. I am about to turn 60 in a few days. I find that I am still very tightly scheduled albeit now with personal activities (and minor business activities). In my case I will take six months to think of what to do with the next phase of my life. I have been checking off long-distance cycling goals but I still have other unfulfilled ambitions. Things/events/ideas I passed in my daily life that I made note of and now would like to make an impact on. I spent thirty years getting a formal education, thirty years with career and family raising, now thirty years of... Well, I ain't gonna waste 'em.

Being able to retire securely gives one the luxury of decoupling the driving need to earn a living from the passing of time. But it doesn't stop the inevitability of time passing and for me the desire to optimize it. So I am going to think hard about what my highest priorities are. And the hardest thing I am finding is the time for this (see third sentence) since keeping busy is not the problem.

So being a beginner at retirement and only slightly ahead of the OP, my advice is to set aside some time shortly after the big day to really think about what you want to accomplish in this next phase of your life. My time for this has not yet come but it will shortly.

Hope this helps.

I have been in an all consuming management position for many years. Things changed and it was time for me to retire at age 66.
I replaced the intensity of that job with managing our finances plus health improvement. My wife and I are exercising various forms of physical activities plus mental activities every day. We set high goals of achievement which are doable but challenging. We travel and combine it with physical activities. Money is very important for this lifestyle.

Wonderful! I don't know how I possibly had time to work.

Those that have problems retiring are those that define themselves by their job. "I am a chemical engineer." Then when they quit, they are nothing. I loved engineering, but that is not what I was.

Another trap. Some say, "With all that time, you must have the best looking yard in the neighborhood." Not. It looks worse now than when I was working. Why would I quit a job that I liked and that paid good money to do something I don't like that pays nothing. If yard work/house maintenance is your passion - fine, but otherwise...

TF
This sounds a lot like me. I retired at age 52 in 1994 from a high tech job that definitely wasn't me. After 30 years service I was eligible for full pension + benefits. I knew the money would be a little tight but neither the wife or I care much about material things, the house was paid off, we had two decent cars, and I knew the rat race was going to kill me, so I bailed. Best move I ever made.

I hate yard work and house maintenance and feel sorry for some of my friends who bust their asses to compete with their neighbors at this. My house and yard look OK (if you're on a fast horse), that's good enough for me. When something really needs attention I call in a professional to do the work while I'm off riding my bike, reading a book, making smart-ass remarks on BF 50+, or taking a nap.

The biggest decision I have every day is where I'm going to ride and what bike to use. That is my life.

I hate yard work and house maintenance and feel sorry for some of my friends who bust their asses to compete with their neighbors at this. My house and yard look OK (if you're on a fast horse), that's good enough for me. When something really needs attention I call in a professional to do the work while I'm off riding my bike, reading a book, making smart-ass remarks on BF 50+, or taking a nap.

I'll have what he's having . . .

W_O_R_K is a 4-letter word!
Been retired 13 years. Never been bored. Do what we like to do . . . ride, write (free lance), travel and spending the kidz inheritance!
You go around once as far as we know . . . do what you've always wanted to do . . . NOW! Tomorrow you may be dead as a doornail!
Pedal on TWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

I have chance to make contact with about 15 of my ex-co-workers who have retired. All of them are loving it. Rare is the person who says that they have enough time to do all that they desire to do. I have never heard one of them say that they regret having retired.

As odds have it, three of my ex-co-workers did die in their first year of retirement (out of about 50-60 whom I have known to retire). However all three retired because they had serious forms of cancer. Otherwise all of them would have worked for another 3-5 years. I really felt sorry for all of them, as they all had put 30+ years in and could have retired a couple of years earlier. Instead they didn't have a single carefree day in retirement.

Outside of those three, of everyone else who retired in reasonably good health, I don't know of any who died in their first 3-4 years, and nearly all of them are still ticking.

But what do you really do if you don't have to work? I've been working a long time as a lawyer, and while I have lots of credentials and all that, I'm pretty much sick of the lawyers I deal with. I have partners that I don't want to leave in the lurch, but I don't want to deal with the daily grind anymore.



Anybody have any suggestions?

You say you don't enjoy working with your law partners...do you associate your 'daily grind' with
your partners?

If you still enjoy law, why not look into pro-bono work.

Just make sure you get in some miles on your bike(s) regularly.

Remember that n4zou's view of the numbers of folks who die quickly after retirement may be influenced by a life of military service . Although I would hope things are getting better, there are environmental considerations involved.

I spent the latter half of the 60's and the first half of the 70's in the U.S. Submarine service. It was our opiniohn then (sorry Tom, not substantiatd by hard stats) that the life expectancy of a retiring sailor was poor. Too many cigaretes, too much drinking, too much fatty food, too many long days with high stress and little sleep and far too much airborne oil and other contaminants had the inevitable bad results. Our pipes were layered with asbestos. I've had friends come in from a patrol on a diesel powered submarine who needed 3 to 4 changes of water in the bath tub before they stopped leaving an oil ring...:eek:

I have been highly involved with using my talents in leading and organizing extremely valuable charitable work; organizing and leading "senior" singing groups and bicycling groups; and supporting in various ways one of my sons with a disability.

As an attorney, if you so desire, you have the opportunity to make wonderful gains for others in social progress. For example, individuals with disabilities need tremendous legal support in negotiating the rules and bureaucracies of school systems and adult delivery systems.

Here are a couple of web sites that may be of interest to you to give you some ideas:

The first is a state-wide coalition of individuals with disabilities which has had a major impact on Colorado laws and policies, the Colorado Cross Disabilities Coalition:

http://www.ccdconline.org/legal/legal.htm

This one is my son's web page. He and his attorney wife have made tremendous gains for others, and maintained a career and income for themselves, representing and gaining appropriate services for individuals with disabilities, including using class action as a tool:

http://www.foxrob.com

Here is a legal program for individuals with disabilities sponsored by the Arc of Denver

http://www.arcofdenver.org/legalrepresentation.html

Here are a couple of web sites for organizations I have started and in which I am heavily invested.

http://www.noewait.net

http://members.aol.com/padcoweb

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NOEWAIT/

I am very involved in a state-wide ballot initiative to "End the Wait List" for adults with disabilities, and speak to groups and clubs in this capacity.

I am suggesting that it may be worthwhile and fulfilling for you to use your law expertise in volunteering to assist others - something you may not have been able to do much of when working for a living. It is very fulfilling and satisfying.

I am busy (on purpose) from first light until evening.

Yesterday (Saturday), I supported my wife's singing group by being their "Roadie" as they sang before a group of 150 50+ folks. I operated the sound system, etc.

Very much fun.

Of course, additionally, I bicycle, swim, lift weights, walk, take singing lessons and perform. Our men's gospel singing group will be performing at a regional 3-day event with groups from all across the US of A in June.

However, I hate yard work!:D

You have the energy and time now to use your skills for the benefit of others and to improve society. Perhaps your area of interest is not disabilities, but is the environment, or the poor or some other significant issue. Or perhaps it is using your abilities to advocate for bicycling. In any event, retirement provides you with the opportunity to use your God-given talents in ways which you can't while in business or employed by others.

RETIREMENT IS AN OPPORTUNITY

This is a good start: "We both have very strong faith walks and can volunteer at church or at the local Christian school." Volunteering can fill up a lot of time, often with a time requirement that motivates you.
I'm studying to become a wilderness EMT when I retire - I volunteer with a local fire dept (they will pay for the training!) and later I can volunteer with forest service, interior dept, etc. at parks and such, and not be confined to taking nature walks around the visitor center or worse, staffing the trinket shop selling post cards to geezers wearing funny shorts...

I have been retired for six years, and I (and my friends who have retired) find that we have full calendars. There is volunteer work, odd jobs to finance entry fees and equipment purchases, pursuing one's passions (cycling, cross country skiing, running, reading, travel, opera,...). As always, it's as good as you make it.

I heard a guy who used to lead hikes for the Colorado Mountain Club say, "Retirement is great, but I miss the vacations!"

Leland in NH

We sat with a very nice retired couple at a rubber chicken charity dinner last night. I asked the gentleman what he did? His reply, "Nothing, and I am very good at it!"

I retired November , 06 after spending the last 35 years Managing auto racing teams, building race cars and traveling all over this country ! It was a great adventure that's for sure. The last 15 years i carried a "travel bike" with me on the road and was able to ride in some wonderful places!
Now retired in the Phoenix area, building and riding bikes, doing things with the grand kids, doing whatever the wife and i want to do........Don't know how i ever found time to work (another quote) ....... Blissfully Retired ! ....... its better than i ever thought possable !

I find this Thread very interesting. So many different lifestyles. Assuming we are among friends I like to relate my experience since my retirement September 2007.
I left a very stressful job. It could have made me ill but for (some people say) excessive biking.
Upon retirement I dived into biking as a method to deal with frustration. It worked in a sense I will now describe.
I had to restructure our savings so they produce a steady flow of income. I decided that I was ill equipped to do that on my own. A smart decision it turned out.
We had to select financial advisers in the jungle out there. Dear me what we ran into. We made a decision and followed their advise. These advisers got us out of the stock market just before the DJ dived down from 14,000. Our savings from that action exceeded any income I could have made by working and leaving our finances unattended.
What I am saying is that retirement and a healthy lifestyle freed me up to think efficiently. Under job stress I would have not been able to do that. This was not just luck.

I'm retired and the biggest problem I have is finding tht there are not enough hours in the day or days in the week or weeks in the year to get all my hobbies and activities done. No, my yard is pasable but not spectacular, but I get it done between all my multitude of activities. My wife sometimes says I need to get a job so maybe I can find time for all my other activities!
Drat it, now with summer finally around the corner, that darned 3 - 4000 miles a year on the bike will take me away from projects that will have to be put on the back burner till our next North Dakota winter.!

Drat it, now with summer finally around the corner, that darned 3 - 4000 miles a year on the bike will take me away from projects that will have to be put on the back burner till our next North Dakota winter.!

Yeah, life is tough!:D

Good to have you back posting, bobkat

you're too young, you'll go bonkers......keep working and the day you're done working and ready to retire, you'll know!


This is a possibility--it was one of my worries--but it hasn't worked out that way for me.
I took a buyout last year at age 62, though I liked my job and hadn't even begun to think of retiring. The deal was fairly generous, and where they'd made the same offer at other newspapers (I was a reporter), they've come back in several months with another that was less generous and less "voluntary."
I spent about a month at home, mostly promising to get to some jobs I'd been putting off, then a local TV station asked me to do commentary on the news occasionally. That lasted a couple of months, then the money ran out and they took a "hiatus," promising to resume it later.
Soon after that, a talk radio station offered me a daily show, which I'm doing now, and some charitable and volunteer organizations asked me to serve on their boards (voluntary) or steering committees. There's always plenty of volunteer work to keep you occupied, and at least at MY house, an unending supply of things to be painted, braced, patched or otherwise fiddled with. I'm thinking of playing in an over-60 volleyball league (I grew up playing beach volleyball, but haven't played in 10 years or so), and I honestly don't know if I have the time. My wife is a novelist, 57, and not ready to quit doing that (check her out at www.phantomstallion.com), and I've traveled with her on some signing trips etc. I also do a column for a national car magazine (I used to be editor) and write for a local "alternative" paper for a few bucks a week, mostly because they did such a good job competing against the corporate behemoth I used to work for.
Probably I've slowed my pace a little, so I don't get as much done in a given period as when I was working, but my problem isn't finding things to do--it's finding time to do the things I WANT to do.

retirement is great if you're prepared fiscally, physically, and most important, mentally...

i first retired at 41, then retired again at 51... made a half-hearted stab at applying for some jobs, but since i no longer need to drive anywhere, don't need fancy clothes, and have simplified my lifestyle, i have found that life is much more rewarding...

the previous stress of deadlines, contractual obligations, and answering to others has been replaced with a healthier stress of facing inner challenges, such as pursuit of a healthier lifestyle (i.e., cycling, eating right, personal education, etc.)

i hope your retirement is as rewarding as mine has been!

Can you just ratchet back, work a couple of days a week and allow more free time for the second home, gym, riding etc?? That way you can find out if you are really ready to retire. From the sounds of some of your questions, you may not be.

Wow! Lots of wisdom here.

I didn't mean to say I don't like my partners--I like them a lot. But, I don't like most of the other lawyers I have to deal with. And, partly I'm more than a tad bored after 34 years of doing civil trials over business or property disputes. It used to be you would look at the documents, take a few depositions and go to trial. The other people doing the same thing dealt with each over and over, so everyone was pretty cordial. Now, because there is a glut of lawyers, you get a lot of opponents who really don't know what they are doing and feel their main function is to make things difficult for other lawyers, judges and the system.

But, to happier thoughts, I didn't mention that I had a life threatening condition last year that required open heart surgery. I was born with a deformed aortic valve, but it worked fine. I ran some marathons, played competitive basketball (and still sort of claim to, if you can make that claim at 58), and had no problems. In May, 2008, they were telling to start exploring who I wanted to do my valve surgery. A very smart surgeon asked if anyone had checked on whether I had an aortic aneurism, which is apparently common with that kind of valve. He checked, I had it and it was at a very dangerous size. They opened me up and fixed it all. The good news is that my coronary arteries are like a baby's, probably because of the activity level. I'm back to riding 100+ miles a week, only 9 months after open heart surgery.

Having that kind of surgery really affects what is important in your life. And working with jerks (outside of my firm, not inside) isn't in the top 4 or 5. Or 100.

I'm really thinking more right now about going to semi-part time, maybe 75%, and making less money. Maybe every year for a few years, I'll cut it back. I really don't want to just abruptly leave as it would hurt the people I've worked with most of my adult life. So, I'll hopefully do it gradually. Unless I like the extra time off so much that I have to really quit!

Thanks for all the good words.!

Several of the senior engineers at my workplace have done just that. They have reduced their workweek to 32 hours. The company cannot replace them because of their experience level and is happy to be able to get 4 days a week. They maintain their work related health insurance at 32 hours a week and all of them seem to be feeling a lot less stress.

I recently cut back to a 90% assignment, working 40 hours one week and 32 the next. I find that knowing I never have to work 40 hours again on back to back weeks gives me a psychological boost. And whereas histoically I frequently worked 10 or more consecutive 40 hour weeks, knowing that over any upcoming 10 week period that I will have at least 5 days off, is also a boost.

"geezers wearing funny shorts" "taking nature walks around the visitor center"

Well, you'll be a 'recovering attorney' for quite a while. It took me six years to get back to being a nice guy. It really helps to have a hobby that keeps you in shape, like, thing of all things, bicycling. If you weren't a total workaholic, and kept outside interests, you'll do just fine. bk

Well, you'll be a 'recovering attorney' for quite a while. It took me six years to get back to being a nice guy. It really helps to have a hobby that keeps you in shape, like, thing of all things, bicycling. If you weren't a total workaholic, and kept outside interests, you'll do just fine. bk

Well, if he needs to wean himself off it slowly, there is always P & R... :rolleyes:

I retired from the Army at 60. My wife thought I would get bored so she talked me into being a consultant. While it brought in some spending money I got real tired of having to please clients. Last week I said, "Enough. I quit." So I have retired again at 62. :D

I retired from the Army at 60. My wife thought I would get bored so she talked me into being a consultant. While it brought in some spending money I got real tired of having to please clients. Last week I said, "Enough. I quit." So I have retired again at 62. :D

My last day of work will be December 23 of this year. May do a little consulting, but if it gets in the way of the things I want to do, I will say "enough". Want to set my own schedule, which will not be rigid. Can't wait.

...so she talked me into being a consultant.

Consultant humor (from someone who used to be one)

Once upon a time there was a shepherd looking after his sheep on the edge of a deserted road. Suddenly a brand new Jeep Cherokee screeches to a halt next to him. The driver, a young man dressed in a Brioni suit, Cerrutti shoes, Ray-Ban glasses, and a YSL tie gets out and says to the shepherd "If I can guess how many sheep you have, will you give me one of them?"

The shepherd looks at the young man, then looks at the grazing sheep "All right." The young man parks his car, connects his notebook and mobile, enters a NASA site, scans the ground using his GPS, opens a data base and 60 Excel tables filled with algorithms, then prints a 150-page report on his high-tech mini-printer. He then turns to the shepherd and says "You have exactly 1586 sheep here."

The shepherd answers "That's correct, you may have your sheep." The young man picks one and puts in the back of his jeep.

The shepherd looks at him and says "If I guess your profession, will you return my sheep to me?"

The young man replies "Yes, why not."

The shepherd says "You're a consultant!" "How on earth did you know?" asks the young man. "Very simple", answers the shepherd.

"First, you came here uninvited; then, you charged me a sheep to tell me something I already knew; and, worse, you obviously don't understand anything about what I do, because you took my dog!"

I've been retired 3 years now (I'm 56) and it's wonderful. My secret is that I've put a little structure into my day - not too much - just enough.

I work out, pursue my hobbies, write, do volunteer work , make myself available to family and friends and day trip and play with my wife.

Regarding the volunteer work - find something that you're passionate about and enjoy doing, then find a way to help someone else with that talent/interest.

Every day can be as full - and fulfilling, or as easy as you want it to be.

Consultant humor (from someone who used to be one)

Once upon a time there was a shepherd looking after his sheep on the edge of a deserted road. Suddenly a brand new Jeep Cherokee screeches to a halt next to him. The driver, a young man dressed in a Brioni suit, Cerrutti shoes, Ray-Ban glasses, and a YSL tie gets out and says to the shepherd "If I can guess how many sheep you have, will you give me one of them?"

The shepherd looks at the young man, then looks at the grazing sheep "All right." The young man parks his car, connects his notebook and mobile, enters a NASA site, scans the ground using his GPS, opens a data base and 60 Excel tables filled with algorithms, then prints a 150-page report on his high-tech mini-printer. He then turns to the shepherd and says "You have exactly 1586 sheep here."

The shepherd answers "That's correct, you may have your sheep." The young man picks one and puts in the back of his jeep.

The shepherd looks at him and says "If I guess your profession, will you return my sheep to me?"

The young man replies "Yes, why not."

The shepherd says "You're a consultant!" "How on earth did you know?" asks the young man. "Very simple", answers the shepherd.

"First, you came here uninvited; then, you charged me a sheep to tell me something I already knew; and, worse, you obviously don't understand anything about what I do, because you took my dog!"
Finally - a sheep joke we can tell in mixed company. Yaaaay!!:beer:

What's retirement like? It's like every week consisting entirely of Saturdays.

Like TurboTurtle, my father claims that retiring is what you are forced to do when you have become too busy to go to work.

I was going to post about my retirement, but decided to go for a 66 mile ride instead. :D

I've said many times "if I had known retirement was going to be so good, I would have have retired at age 21".

you do whatever you want to do, believe me the days fly by and soon you are wondering how you ever found time to work.