Retiring - Page 9

QueenDanceALot · ‎04-18-2013

@RoughDraft wrote:
@Noel7 wrote:
@occasionalrain wrote:
I'm a realist. I see the retired, most are no longer current or vital. I have no desire to join them. Volunteers are not decision makers, not taken seriously, I have no desire to join them.

I reduced my hours some back when there were massive layoffs so as to allow another to remain employed which gives me more free time. Other than that, I have no plans or desire to retire.
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How sad that all some people see as worthwhile in life is work.
Well possibly if one were a world-renowned scientist with a cure for all the horrible diseases of the world, an ace surgeon who traveled the world to save lives, or someone who knew the answer for world peace, but those are not jobs, they're callings for the great minds of the world. Bit I suspect these are not the "jobs" we are discussing, if you get my drift.

I think even those people have other things in their lives that they feel are as worthwhile, or more so, in their lives.

jlkz · ‎12-02-2013

@Kalli

@mstyrion 1

@Moonchild

Friendships that start in a workplace may or may not endure after retirement. Some lie dormant for a while and then come back to life.

Over my long and varied careers, I have had several friendships that remain strong as ever even though with one of them we are geographically far apart. One of these friends went to introduce me to someone and in a moment of surprise to herself said " Oh my goodness, she and I have been friends for over 45 years ! ".

Retirement means a definite change in one's life and needs to be mourned as a loss....even if you hated some part of the job. No longer do you have a fixed routine that requires little thought, your daily attire changes, your expectations change, you are no longer part of a team, your work goals cease to exist, and the surroundings ( people, office, building, lunch spots, commutes, etc. ) are gone. Your daily life is now your own and it's up to you to create this next chapter. This is your new job. How well you do it can determine your satisfaction with self and life.

Time for you to focus on what you want and how to spend the rest of your life. Best wishes for your success: all the posters !!!!

We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.
Sir Winston Churchill

DoneTryin · ‎03-09-2010

Congratulations on your retirement! I hope you will soon be able to come to terms with it & just relax.

I really understand your qualms. I kind of got forced into retiring a couple of years earlier than I wanted to because my job was eliminated. I was re-hired back on a part-time, temporary basis, without any benefits. So right now I have one foot in retirement & the other still in the work force. Yes, it has been harder than I thought it was going to be, so I'm trying to find ways to be useful by way of some volunteer work.

Take care & best of luck to you!

DoneTryin · ‎03-09-2010

@occasionalrain wrote:
The thing about retiring is that the future is nothing but death. One can find rewarding busywork or entertain themselves with travel, crafts, grandchildren...to distract themselves from the closing in inevitable. What's to look forward to but decline? Where is the joy in that?

Now there's a little ray of sunshine in the day We all face eventual death, whether we retire or not.

QueenDanceALot · ‎04-18-2013

Many people have many years left to live after retirement.

I can't imagine seeing nothing but the Grim Reaper approaching for 20 or 30 years.

lulu2 · ‎03-09-2010

I loved teaching but in 2003 a medical situation forced me into early retirement. I can honestly say, I have not missed it for a minute. It took over a year before I was able to participate in life again. So many doors opened and I have enjoyed each and every day.

My husband is 67 and we've discussed his retirement more times than I can count. He has cut back but still finds his career rewarding. Retirement just isn't for him.

Everyone is different. Do not count on having X number of years to enjoy retirement. No one knows what lies ahead. My father had 20+ good years after he retired. 3 of his brothers died within a year of retirement.

occasionalrain · ‎03-10-2010

@QueenDanceALot wrote:
Many people have many years left to live after retirement.

I can't imagine seeing nothing but the Grim Reaper approaching for 20 or 30 years.

Neither can I.

I was a SAHM because, to me, a child deserves to have his own mother caring for him. Now I have a job that I enjoy, I contribute. Retirement means marking time, filling it with non essential activity or becoming an unpaid nanny to grandchildren, a nursemaid to aging parents. Those of retirement age who remain in the workforce statistically live longer than those who retire.

lulu2 · ‎03-09-2010

@occasionalrain wrote:
The thing about retiring is that the future is nothing but death. One can find rewarding busywork or entertain themselves with travel, crafts, grandchildren...to distract themselves from the closing in inevitable. What's to look forward to but decline? Where is the joy in that?

Death is inevitable whether you are part of the work force or retired.

QueenDanceALot · ‎04-18-2013

@occasionalrain wrote:

@QueenDanceALot wrote:
Many people have many years left to live after retirement.

I can't imagine seeing nothing but the Grim Reaper approaching for 20 or 30 years.

Neither can I.
I was a SAHM because, to me, a child deserves to have his own mother caring for him. Now I have a job that I enjoy, I contribute. Retirement means marking time, filling it with non essential activity or becoming an unpaid nanny to grandchildren, a nursemaid to aging parents. Those of retirement age who remain in the workforce statistically live longer than those who retire.

I understand that many people feel lost after retirement. I find that to be very sad. I would guess that those people don't really consider what it is they would like to do after retirement. Or, sadly, as you do point out, their lives are taken up with obligations that do not fulfill them and perhaps stress them in much worse ways than being in the workforce ever did. I feel for those people.

When I do retire (if I am fortunate enough to be able to!) I won't feel that I need to fill my life with "essential" activity. I would just love to fill it with those things I love to do. So those things would be "essential" to ME.

We all have our stories. We're not just statistics.

QueenDanceALot · ‎04-18-2013

@lulu2 wrote:
I loved teaching but in 2003 a medical situation forced me into early retirement. I can honestly say, I have not missed it for a minute. It took over a year before I was able to participate in life again. So many doors opened and I have enjoyed each and every day.

My husband is 67 and we've discussed his retirement more times than I can count. He has cut back but still finds his career rewarding. Retirement just isn't for him.

Everyone is different. Do not count on having X number of years to enjoy retirement. No one knows what lies ahead. My father had 20+ good years after he retired. 3 of his brothers died within a year of retirement.

Of course, none of us can "count on" any good years, in retirement or otherwise.

But to see retirement as the end of life is just very sad.