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Old 11-27-2019, 10:52 AM   #41
Dan Lockwood
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Originally Posted by sourdough View Post
Congrats on the retirement Dan! It IS all it's cracked up to be. When we retired (14 years ago) we thought the same thing about "Saturdays". It's hilarious but now we don't have a clue what day of the week it is unless we look at a calendar, AND, we detest "Saturdays" because that's when all of those that have to work (of the few left) are off and clogging the highways and stores. Naw, we like in the AM on a weekday now....just like being off and out of the crowds!! Have fun!
Danny, I have friends up in MI that worked at GM and I other places, that have been retired for 20 years now. Boy did I ever make some not so good decisions...

When my brother retired at 62 I suggested he keep working to make some extra fun money etc. He was in great health at the time and did retire at 62. Now almost 18 years later he's pretty much wheelchair bound and not going to be around much longer. He'll be 78 in March. He has MSA, Multiple System Atrophy. It's like Parkinson's but without medication and there is no remission as in Parkinson's from time to time. He'll probably just have a cardiac arrest and cease to exist. I'm not looking forward to that though at all... So I'm very happy that he didn't take my advice and keep working another three years. He had many productive years before he's been reduced to a walker and now the wheelchair. His wife has Stage 4 lung cancer and Stage 2 COPD. She has had 1/3 of one lung removed about 12 years ago and it finally is catching up to her again. Her younger sister died of the same thing probably 15 years ago and her mother just passed with the same thing two years ago. Not that it's the cause, but all three were heavy smokers. Yes, I know many people lots older that smoke and are just fine, but I do believe it's giving a person lesser odds of a long life.

Sorry to be Danny Downer the day before Thanksgiving, but I do have thanks for what I have, my wife and son and his family and our extended family back up in mid-MI area.

So Happy Thanksgiving and be thankful for all you have!
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Old 11-27-2019, 01:07 PM   #42
sourdough
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Originally Posted by Dan Lockwood View Post
Danny, I have friends up in MI that worked at GM and I other places, that have been retired for 20 years now. Boy did I ever make some not so good decisions...

When my brother retired at 62 I suggested he keep working to make some extra fun money etc. He was in great health at the time and did retire at 62. Now almost 18 years later he's pretty much wheelchair bound and not going to be around much longer. He'll be 78 in March. He has MSA, Multiple System Atrophy. It's like Parkinson's but without medication and there is no remission as in Parkinson's from time to time. He'll probably just have a cardiac arrest and cease to exist. I'm not looking forward to that though at all... So I'm very happy that he didn't take my advice and keep working another three years. He had many productive years before he's been reduced to a walker and now the wheelchair. His wife has Stage 4 lung cancer and Stage 2 COPD. She has had 1/3 of one lung removed about 12 years ago and it finally is catching up to her again. Her younger sister died of the same thing probably 15 years ago and her mother just passed with the same thing two years ago. Not that it's the cause, but all three were heavy smokers. Yes, I know many people lots older that smoke and are just fine, but I do believe it's giving a person lesser odds of a long life.

Sorry to be Danny Downer the day before Thanksgiving, but I do have thanks for what I have, my wife and son and his family and our extended family back up in mid-MI area.

So Happy Thanksgiving and be thankful for all you have!

Dan, Happy Thanksgiving as well. Your scenario is exactly why I chose to retire when I did. I watched far too many work that extra few years to get an extra few bucks then die before they even got to do anything. Some lost their spouse first. Not for us. We were lucky and we could do it and were financially set but my wife dodged cancer a mere 5 years after we retired. If it had been worse, that would have been the only 5 years we got to be "free" out of the work place. Again, congrats on the retirement, make those plans and hit the road to make new memories. You'll have a blast.
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Old 11-29-2019, 01:22 PM   #43
Phil Saran
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The electric plug inside that cabinet is for recharging phones and
flash lights.

Or modify it to be a gun cabinet.
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Old 11-29-2019, 01:24 PM   #44
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The electric plug inside that cabinet is for recharging phones and

flash lights.



Or modify it to be a gun cabinet.

But the outlet is on the ceiling. I like to think it's for a drone recharging dock.
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Old 12-01-2019, 12:45 PM   #45
jimborokz
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Dan, congrats on retirement. We prefer to have two days in the week, 6 Saturdays and a Sunday. That way it's easier to keep track.
As to the outlet I'm quite sure it's for a very mini waterless washer/dryer combo.
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Old 12-01-2019, 01:09 PM   #46
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A couple of big negatives regarding retirement is if you retire and go on social security at 62, the government caps the amount of money you can make till 67. Why? I paid into my SS account and when they make payments to me, it isn't an entitlement or some sort of charity. The other negative about retirement is trying to figure out Medicare. By the time folks hit the age to go on Medicare they will need some expensive drugs and such and the folks screaming TV ads for their "advantage" plans with free everything fail to mention only in-network doctors, the need for referrals for any doc beyond their primary care doc and the DOUGHNUT HOLE. Figuring out the best Medicare options is about as confusing as this ol' boy can stand.
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Old 12-02-2019, 12:45 PM   #47
Dan Lockwood
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A couple of big negatives regarding retirement is if you retire and go on social security at 62, the government caps the amount of money you can make till 67. Why? I paid into my SS account and when they make payments to me, it isn't an entitlement or some sort of charity. The other negative about retirement is trying to figure out Medicare. By the time folks hit the age to go on Medicare they will need some expensive drugs and such and the folks screaming TV ads for their "advantage" plans with free everything fail to mention only in-network doctors, the need for referrals for any doc beyond their primary care doc and the DOUGHNUT HOLE. Figuring out the best Medicare options is about as confusing as this ol' boy can stand.
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Originally Posted by wiredgeorge View Post
A couple of big negatives regarding retirement is if you retire and go on social security at 62, the government caps the amount of money you can make till 67. Why? I paid into my SS account and when they make payments to me, it isn't an entitlement or some sort of charity. The other negative about retirement is trying to figure out Medicare. By the time folks hit the age to go on Medicare they will need some expensive drugs and such and the folks screaming TV ads for their "advantage" plans with free everything fail to mention only in-network doctors, the need for referrals for any doc beyond their primary care doc and the DOUGHNUT HOLE. Figuring out the best Medicare options is about as confusing as this ol' boy can stand.
George,

Well I turned 66 (FRA) four years ago and at that time started drawing my SS. At that time we still had a mortgage of sorts and I figured if I compared my trade off of working until 70 without drawing my SS, I may be dead before I made up the difference. So I took it a FRA and used it to pay down our debt so we're debt free at 70 when I retire. The interest $$$'s saved in the mortgage alone was more than if I had waited to draw at 70.

My wife took early at 62 and we were both covered under my work insurance policy. When I turned 65 and "could" go on Medicare, the company paid my Part B and Plan F supplemental for the health insurance and also Part D for drugs, although I only take one pill for cholesterol. They did the same thing for my wife when she turned 65.

So at 70 I'm getting a bit nervous about retirement. I'm sure that I can find one of my many vehicle projects will keep me busy. But at work I had the run of the shop after hours with their water jet and all of their welding and metal fabbing equipment etc. So I'll have to use my home equipment now and make do with a bit less convenience in a few places. They say I can come back and use the stuff, but it won't be as convenient.

Thanks for the encouraging words. I'm sure traveling for the next couple years will help take my mind off of work...
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Old 12-02-2019, 01:36 PM   #48
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George,

Well I turned 66 (FRA) four years ago and at that time started drawing my SS. At that time we still had a mortgage of sorts and I figured if I compared my trade off of working until 70 without drawing my SS, I may be dead before I made up the difference. So I took it a FRA and used it to pay down our debt so we're debt free at 70 when I retire. The interest $$$'s saved in the mortgage alone was more than if I had waited to draw at 70.

My wife took early at 62 and we were both covered under my work insurance policy. When I turned 65 and "could" go on Medicare, the company paid my Part B and Plan F supplemental for the health insurance and also Part D for drugs, although I only take one pill for cholesterol. They did the same thing for my wife when she turned 65.

So at 70 I'm getting a bit nervous about retirement. I'm sure that I can find one of my many vehicle projects will keep me busy. But at work I had the run of the shop after hours with their water jet and all of their welding and metal fabbing equipment etc. So I'll have to use my home equipment now and make do with a bit less convenience in a few places. They say I can come back and use the stuff, but it won't be as convenient.

Thanks for the encouraging words. I'm sure traveling for the next couple years will help take my mind off of work...


Dan,

If you are retiring at 70 it may be different than my story because I retired at 55, but, you do need to have those backup "hobbies" to give you something to do. When I retired I thought I was set and couldn't possibly be bored; we had multiple houses, one on a lake, one in the mountains, a new bass boat, a new deck boat plus a fully equipped shop including all kinds of wood working machinery. I thought there was no way I could get bored with so many interests. Wrong.

The day I retired was a little surreal and then the next 2 weeks it was sort of like being on vacation - "retirement" hadn't sunk in. As the weeks rolled on I lost any motivation, wouldn't eat, wanted sleep all day. This went on for TWO YEARS then DW told me to get it together; that I was suffering from depression....and she was right. I didn't know how much I would miss the pressure, taking off in the dark and coming back the same way, traveling all over the state on a whim....the people. I never saw it coming and had no idea until Susan jerked my chain. Just a heads up in the event you encounter something similar. I will say that I came out of that funk almost 13 years ago and we've been blowing and going ever since. I will say your plan of taking off and traveling for a couple of years could very well prevent that "boredom" from becoming front and center and really help you adjust to the lifestyle change. Wishing you the best.
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Old 12-02-2019, 01:59 PM   #49
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Had a co-worker about 10 years my senior that passed up early retirement a couple times and finally retired at age 62. Bought property in SC and built a beach house there. He was in town and I had lunch with him a year later and he told me to take the first opportunity I get and don't look back and that we wished he had gone sooner.
Shortly after that I got a silver bullet offer and the numbers worked so I took it and retired at age 53. Being too young to do nothing I went to work for a friend in a completely different business double dipping with a salary and pension coming in. Did that for 5 years and then decided with a new grand son in the south it was time to do some traveling. Four years later DW retired and we bought our first 5er and became full fledged snowbirds.
72 now, my friend has long since passed on but his words stuck. Never looked back and no regrets. Are there days when I miss my work, yup. But not that many and with four grands now all at a distance with 3 in the south we are busier than ever and truly in golden years.
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Old 12-02-2019, 03:45 PM   #50
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I worked for the Fed mostly overseas for 27 years counting my time in a pickle suit. I retired at 48 due spending time in unfriendly places gave me more actual time towards retirement. Got a pension for life. Went to work in the civilian world and my last job after about 8 years was with IBM as an IT contractor in San Antonio. We lost the contract and all got canned (the contractors at least). I knew it was coming about a year and a half prior to the end so opened a vintage carburetor sales and rebuilding business to keep busy and make a few bucks. Still at it after 14 years and work most every day. My business keeps me real busy. I can't imagine what I would do if I didn't work; can only read the Bible, shoot and work on my clunky truck and RV and trike so much. I have never advertised but get all the business I can handle. I have hired helpers in the past but it is hardly worth the trouble so I plug along solo. My missus does all the brain work and books and such. One kiddo in San Antonio (she is a manager at a financial institution and the other two kiddos are married with hubbies and grandbabies up in rural MD and VA. Oldest grandbaby is on college. They are all real smart kids and sure they didn't get it from me. bwahahahaha
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Old 12-04-2019, 05:01 PM   #51
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I retired at 55 and my wife 3 years later. I got a real estate brokers license in 2 states and worked part time for a while. I bought a new truck and my wife said we should start camping again. Between the boat and 5er I quit working as no time. Took ss at 66 and started my 401k at 70 1/2. Just bought a new Montana and dually at 71. I don’t know how I had time for a job. I have more income now than ever before.
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