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Thread: Retirement

  1. #1
    Great Value Carrots
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    Retirement

    I've been thinking about starting a thread about retirement. So, here it is. I retired from my business 2 1/2 years ago and it's been a hell of an education. I figure there are a lot of folks on this forum who can not only relate but add some really fine additions to this thread.

    Should be a good ride.

    I miss working. Also, I do not miss working. I miss waking up early and having coffee and thinking about the day before me and how I will handle the various tasks. I still wake up early and have coffee and think about the day ahead but the various tasks are few in number now. One thing is true and that is that the only thing that really makes something precious is that there is a limit on it. So my time is no longer as precious as it once was. It is still very precious though and one aspect of that is that I realize as I am getting older and no longer chasing my tail so fast that I can't take time to ponder what is before me, that my time is running out. It won't be long in the scheme of things, that I take my last breath; that I go into that final retirement that all of us have coming.

    I miss lying in bed at night and thinking about the problems that I am confronted with and knowing that somewhere in sleepland my solutions will be found. It is profound you know, that phrase 'sleep on it', because in the morning I would find that somehow some higher power had imparted to me a solution. The solutions were not always perfect but never-the-less they usually were as elegant as I could wish for. I still lie in bed and think about problems and solutions but there is a difference between the intricacies of running a business and a crew and merely worrying about or considering the many aspects of living in general.

    I still have people who rely on me but it is a whole different game now.

    Yeah, I miss working but I don't miss the stress. The stress and anxiety were killing me. I am always reminded of that movie with Clint Eastwood 'The Outlaw Josey Whales', a really great movie, where he says to the bounty hunter that claims "A man's go to make a living." "Dyin' ain't much of a livin' boy." Isn't that the truth; Dying isn't much of a living. And it doesn't have to be that way.

    Here we are in the land of plenty, scratching and fighting for scraps and killing each other and for no good reason. It is true that adversity and striving can shape us and turn us into lean mean fighting machines, carving out a niche for ourselves and our progeny and creating goods and services that might not ever have been created had not we been urged by necessity to become more than just a simple gatherer of scattered, freely available and simple needs. However, there is a darker side to this example and that is that when we are forced to struggle so fiercely for that which should be easily available, it makes us more predatory; not that we are predatory by nature, for I don't believe that is a forgone conclusion, but there are uber-predators out there and they have hijacked our economy and sucked much of the joy out of life.

    So...here we are in the land of plenty, the land of milk and honey, worried about how we are going to make ends meet. The central banks and the over-reaching government have changed the landscape to one of scarcity and fighting for scraps.

    But I am over that now, aren't I? I am still worried about how I will navigate the troubled financial waters ahead of me. I retired at 60 and started taking Social Security at 62. I don't get much but it is enough to pay simple utility bills and provide food. I consider getting part time work but I really can't stand the thought of working hourly for a wage after having my own business for many years. I have been driving for the Amish lately but the money is really nothing and I just do it to feel useful to my fellow man. Also the Amish amuse me, so that is a plus. From what I can tell, I amuse the Amish also.

    So here I am, 62, retired and everyday is an amazing miracle. I am still a grouchy old fart and the grandkids test me and I test them. I sure would like to find a warm pasture in the south or anywhere warm for my bones in the wintertime. I also find it difficult to live in the Commie state of Michigan where people think our bitch Governor has the right to tell us how to live our lives and command us to shut down our livelihoods.

    I have much to add to this but this is all I can muster at the moment and I would love to hear wisdoms and stories from others here.
    Dictatorship naturally arises out of democracy, and the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery out of the most extreme liberty." – Socrates


    "Communism can be summed up in one sentence: The abolition of private property." ---Karl Marx

    "Either you have the right to own property, or you are property." Wayne Hage

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  3. #2
    Iridium
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    Re: Retirement

    i look at it as taking a break. a break that ends if/when i decide it ends

    two hobbies are key for me. one for the body, one for the brain - try to do both every day

    enjoying the break so far

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  5. #3
    Great Value Carrots hoarder's Avatar
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    Re: Retirement

    Some die, some go back to work and some stay busy.
    I'm 65 but I retired at age 44 on my own investments after working an average of 70 hours a week the last 15 years of my employment. My investments are pretty well spent now and I live off Social Security.
    I don't get bored, I built 3 more houses since I retired. I live out in the sticks so there's always something to do. Firewood to cut, varmints to shoot, driveway to maintain etc. Great opportunities for hunting and exploring where I live.

    Lots of men, at least men like us, hunger for intellectual stimulation when they retire. The internet provides a lot of that for me.
    Before I retired, I chased my tail quite a bit and drank, too. I wasn't self-employed because I lacked the people skills for it. I hated work but forged ahead with the resolve to get myself in a position where I didn't have to take orders from idiots.
    I didn't have internet access until I retired, so having the time to think and the information age upon me, my state of mind changed quickly and drastically from complacent to vigilant. My new found reality harnessed me the way work did before.

    Living at a slower speed helps us to see things, learn things and appreciate things we didn't see, learn or appreciate before. Sometimes I wonder if my current awareness would have helped me or hindered me if I had it 40 years earlier. Could be a little of both.
    I have the will to live and hope to live to be 90, but that's dubious option considering what is upon us.

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  7. #4
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    Re: Retirement

    You filed this in the finance and economics forum . This is a fitting place to discuss retirement.

    Economics is the science of managing shortages. Retirement is a mode where the entire remainder of your life is one shortage after another. Government manages their shortages and give you a monthly check so you also may have a shortage to manage.

    Finance is a government regulated activity as well. You pay interest to someone and government is there to share the usury. This is as it should be because the bible warns against paying usury at all. As in all government sanctioned and licensed criminal activities government is going to figure out a way to charge for the benefit.

    So who benefits from retirement? You agree to no longer do the things you had to do to survive for 62 years in exchange for enough money to pay for food and heat. Doesn't seem like a fair exchange.

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    Militant Wing of the Salvation Army midnight rambler's Avatar
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    Re: Retirement

    Here we are in the land of plenty, scratching and fighting for scraps and killing each other and for no good reason. It is true that adversity and striving can shape us and turn us into lean mean fighting machines, carving out a niche for ourselves and our progeny and creating goods and services that might not ever have been created had not we been urged by necessity to become more than just a simple gatherer of scattered, freely available and simple needs. However, there is a darker side to this example and that is that when we are forced to struggle so fiercely for that which should be easily available, it makes us more predatory; not that we are predatory by nature, for I don't believe that is a forgone conclusion, but there are uber-predators out there and they have hijacked our economy and sucked much of the joy out of life.

    So...here we are in the land of plenty, the land of milk and honey, worried about how we are going to make ends meet. The central banks and the over-reaching government have changed the landscape to one of scarcity and fighting for scraps.
    Astute observation. These days everyone intensely has their noses to the grindstone so busily pedaling away they're unable to look up and see the big picture. I've a relatively successful business associate who's acquired land and assets over the years however while concerned about where we're headed he's unable to look up from pedaling away on the grindstone enough to see a way out.
    "A man is to be held accountable for the thoughts he chooses to entertain." --Richard Alan Miller

    "If both the past and the external world exist only in the mind, and if the mind itself is controllable-what then?" --George Orwell

    "It's not a matter of what is true (reality) that counts but a matter of what is perceived to be true (reality)." --Henry Kissinger

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    Iridium
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    Re: Retirement

    This is a good thread to discuss. I enjoy reading, and learning, from you guys who've retired.

    I've been thinking a lot about retirement over the past several years, and trying to prepare the best I can. So far I'm on track. I'm 47, happy and healthy, and will most likely work until 62. If I can though, I hope to retire earlier than that. My plans are to pretty much live the lifestyle I'm living now, but free from work, and have more time to pursue hobbies.

    2 hobbies are in the plan. Own my own commercial salmon fishing boat, and work hard during the fishing season. Secondly, gold prospecting. If I get good at both, I can make some extra money. Other than that, be debt fee, and have the time to take a lot of RV/boat trips visiting people I wish I had more time to see.
    life is good.

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    Re: Retirement

    I have been looking for property. I have decided on Texas and somewhere north of there like South Dakota or Montana. I believe I will keep the homestead here in Michigan for the time being but Michigan does not look like a decent place to live in the long run because we are controlled by the liberal shit-holes of Detroit and Lansing.

    Texas because it is warm in the winter, full of freedom-minded people (except Austin) and I have some family there. Northern states will be a good place to spend summers if things don't get so bad that travel is interrupted. I can still drive nails and haul lumber. Has anyone looked at the price of a 2 x 4 lately? Holy shit! I have an alaskan chain saw mill, so I guess I could down some trees and turn them into lumber.
    Dictatorship naturally arises out of democracy, and the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery out of the most extreme liberty." – Socrates


    "Communism can be summed up in one sentence: The abolition of private property." ---Karl Marx

    "Either you have the right to own property, or you are property." Wayne Hage

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    Iridium monty's Avatar
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    Re: Retirement

    Quote Originally Posted by woodman View Post
    I have been looking for property. I have decided on Texas and somewhere north of there like South Dakota or Montana. I believe I will keep the homestead here in Michigan for the time being but Michigan does not look like a decent place to live in the long run because we are controlled by the liberal shit-holes of Detroit and Lansing.

    Texas because it is warm in the winter, full of freedom-minded people (except Austin) and I have some family there. Northern states will be a good place to spend summers if things don't get so bad that travel is interrupted. I can still drive nails and haul lumber. Has anyone looked at the price of a 2 x 4 lately? Holy shit! I have an alaskan chain saw mill, so I guess I could down some trees and turn them into lumber.
    I think Wyoming might be worth looking at also. Nevada used to be ok but since LasVegas has grown to the point they control the government like you describe in Michigan.
    The only thing declared necessary in the Constitution & Bill of Rights is the #2A Militia of the several States.
    “A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a freeState”
    https://ConstitutionalMilitia.org


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  17. #9
    Great Value Carrots hoarder's Avatar
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    Re: Retirement

    Quote Originally Posted by woodman View Post
    I have been looking for property. I have decided on Texas and somewhere north of there like South Dakota or Montana. I believe I will keep the homestead here in Michigan for the time being but Michigan does not look like a decent place to live in the long run because we are controlled by the liberal shit-holes of Detroit and Lansing.

    Texas because it is warm in the winter, full of freedom-minded people (except Austin) and I have some family there. Northern states will be a good place to spend summers if things don't get so bad that travel is interrupted. I can still drive nails and haul lumber. Has anyone looked at the price of a 2 x 4 lately? Holy shit! I have an alaskan chain saw mill, so I guess I could down some trees and turn them into lumber.
    If you ever get serious about Montana, send me a PM. I have bought and sold several tracts of land here and can give you some advice.

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