Why Wait For Retirement

[riddle]

Like a lot of people our age...late fifties to early sixties...we dream of retirement and the things we will be able to do without a full time job to hold us back.

 

However, I recently read an article I find interesting. It said that a way to hold off retirement a little longer and therefore increase pension/SS amounts is to "semi retire". That being said, it did not mean not working full time. It meant making the most of your time off work via vacation days, etc.

 

One of the problems with retirement it seems is that many people have difficulty making the adjustment from full time work to no work at all. This article says that you keep working full time but instead of saving quite so much for retirement that you spend some of that money in these last years of work to go on nice trips, etc.

 

It makes sense to me in that we all never know how long we will be on this earth. Nothing is sadder than to hear about someone who retires, then passes away shortly thereafter.

 

I know this post is rather sad/happy but I wondered what others think about this. My husband and I just finished a 7 day on the Pearl to the Caribbean and are planning an Alaska trip for July. We both think that our coworkers will think "how do they do it" and really do not care what others think but we have worked all our lives and we feel we have earned it.

 

We do not have grandchildren yet but expect our first one in September. That may change our outlook on things but as for now our kids are married, educated and we just have ourselves to worry about.:p

[Journey11]

100% Agreement. Life is short. We should make the best of it.

[TIBTEE]

I'm for the enjoy life now sentiment. I've seen several people that said they will travel after they retire and pass away within months of retirement. Not to mention, you may not be in the best shape to enjoy different places the way you want by that time.

[Nanny B]

Like a lot of people our age...late fifties to early sixties...we dream of retirement and the things we will be able to do without a full time job to hold us back.

 

However, I recently read an article I find interesting. It said that a way to hold off retirement a little longer and therefore increase pension/SS amounts is to "semi retire". That being said, it did not mean not working full time. It meant making the most of your time off work via vacation days, etc.

 

One of the problems with retirement it seems is that many people have difficulty making the adjustment from full time work to no work at all. This article says that you keep working full time but instead of saving quite so much for retirement that you spend some of that money in these last years of work to go on nice trips, etc.

 

It makes sense to me in that we all never know how long we will be on this earth. Nothing is sadder than to hear about someone who retires, then passes away shortly thereafter.

 

I know this post is rather sad/happy but I wondered what others think about this. My husband and I just finished a 7 day on the Pearl to the Caribbean and are planning an Alaska trip for July. We both think that our coworkers will think "how do they do it" and really do not care what others think but we have worked all our lives and we feel we have earned it.

 

We do not have grandchildren yet but expect our first one in September. That may change our outlook on things but as for now our kids are married, educated and we just have ourselves to worry about.:p

 

 

The way I look at it is - I have less in front of me then I do behind me.

Like you , we worked hard, raised & educated our kids and now feel it is our turn.

My DH is working full time but we vacation 3-4 times a year. Usually take 1 cruise, but sometimes 2, a year. We do a fall foliage trip every year and a friends reunion every year. Life is good!:)

[jaja]

100% Agreement. Life is short. We should make the best of it.

 

Ditto..;)

[janetz]

We have cruised for the last 10 years. I am 8 years away from retirement age. We have a daughter in college and we do not have a ton of money. However, my DH is 11 years older then me. The way I see it is by the time I can retire, he will be to tired. :p So we have been doing the traveling already, while we can.

[cruisinmama0]

I agree with you and that is why my dh, dd and myself are always going somewhere. A lot of our friends, co workers and neighbors question us and we've learned to ignore it. My closest friends and my relatives know that we lost three people in 2009 and early 2010 and realize how precious and short life can be. Carpe diem and hit the sea. We are getting ready to board the Spirit next week and returned about 6 weeks ago from the Pearl.

[LivingLifetotheFullest]

It's all about balance. Totally agree with everyone. Go for it when you can... now and later! We waited 25 years for our first cruise but now have done 3 in the last 3 years. We also finaly bought a long awaited cottage and even though we have a second mortgage it's totally worth all the memories we're making now with family and friends. Also looking forward to retirement (3-4 yrs) when we can spend even more time at the cottage and hopefullly cruise and travel without the time constraints we have now while working.

We're spending our kids inheritance!! LOL

[housepeepers]

I agree with all of the above!

[ricew001]

My husband's parents worked very hard. Saved every penny. In the summer of 2009, they both ended up with very different, but very severe, health problems - in two different, very expensive, nursing homes. One day after we left the nursing home after visiting his Mom, I looked at him and said let's go do every single thing we can right now. We had just booked our 7-day cruise to the Southern Carribean and I wanted to keep doing things like that as long as we can.

My husband is 10 years older than me and self-employed with a lot of flexibility. I have an excellent job with excellent benefits, including 6 weeks of vacation annually. Our modest home is almost paid for and all our vehicles will be paid for next year. My goal now that I am in my early 40s is to pay down debt and book more cruises! I will work as long as I can, especially if I am fortunate to stay where I am doing what I love withe wonderful people.

[SuzieQ123]

I agree with you and that is why my dh, dd and myself are always going somewhere. A lot of our friends, co workers and neighbors question us and we've learned to ignore it. My closest friends and my relatives know that we lost three people in 2009 and early 2010 and realize how precious and short life can be. Carpe diem and hit the sea. We are getting ready to board the Spirit next week and returned about 6 weeks ago from the Pearl.

 

This is us totally. And I know tomorrow when I return to work I'll hear "you went on another cruise??" from a co-worker returning from disability leave who is just a miserable unhappy person.

 

I totally agree, life is short, my husband is 47 I am 43 and my stepson will be 22 next week. Why not go now? I have another 20 years until retirement and there are no guarantees on health and old age. We can afford to do it and we choose to enjoy life now.

[ColinIllinois]

Good thread. I think so many of us seem to get caught up in the daily grind and tend to think of everyone else except ourselves. I'm 51 and have been working in some form or another since I was a young teen.

 

I had a bad habit of saving as much vacation time as possible. I got up to 10 weeks on the books and then one day I thought to myself.....what are you saving it up for? So you can take some vacation time to attend your own funeral?

 

I've taken two cruises in the past year. Now.......where to next? :D

[spirit rev]

I fully agree with the premise of this article and what many of you have already posted. We have been dealing with DH's heriditary chronic health issues. He is still working full time and doing well but will we even have a joint retirement - like others, who knows.

 

What we decided many years ago was to live life to the fullest in the present. Make the memories that will carry you through the tough parts. Do what you can today rather than putting it off - this includes travelling to places you've always wanted to see.

[DKAL]

My husband and I are still far from retirement, but we never postpone anything.

 

Life really is too short for regret. We travel where and when we want, and enjoy our lives now instead of hoping to enjoy ourselves only later in life.

 

If you can travel, then do it. You never know what's around the corner.

[Ms belp]

Excellent thread. I'm 13 years older than Chris and we cruise as much as we can. Make your memories now, health issues do come up the older you get. We love seeing new places. No promises for tomorrow.

[jvsnana]

It's all about balance. Totally agree with everyone. Go for it when you can... now and later! We waited 25 years for our first cruise but now have done 3 in the last 3 years. We also finaly bought a long awaited cottage and even though we have a second mortgage it's totally worth all the memories we're making now with family and friends. Also looking forward to retirement (3-4 yrs) when we can spend even more time at the cottage and hopefullly cruise and travel without the time constraints we have now while working.

We're spending our kids inheritance!! LOL

We, too, waited 25 years for our first cruise and now we try to cruise 2 times a year. My DH will retire this June and as he is only 55, we hope to have many years of cruising ahead of us, but you never know. When we were building our home 10 years ago, he fell off the roof and we thought that would be the end of his life, however he has fully recovered and we decided then and there to enjoy every minute!

We like to cruise to see new places and relax, however we have also introduced our adult kids and grandkids to the world of cruising. :)

[MzzGriz]

Amen to living now!! We spent all our vacation time for years doing home improvements, working even when we weren't "working", 52 weeks a year, year after year. Then I was diagnosed with breast cancer almost five years ago. That was our wake-up call that we needed to be living our lives NOW!! We truly dont know how long we will be here, so we try to walk a fine line between living for the present, and saving for the future. Next month will be our first ever cruise, and we can't wait! We have been doing one to two nice vacations each year for the last four years.. and we have had more fun than we did in the last 20 years all put together! People I work with don't understand, and sometimes are even resentful.. heck with them, this is MY life and I intend to LIVE it! ;)

[Medtech2]

Several years ago I had "maxed" out my leave time because I was never allowed to take it, so I ended up losing it (I work in a hospital). I fought that all the way to the top and was turned down. Since then I watch my account and would take off to see my children. Recently we needed to take off or lose a week of timeshare. I asked my boss when would be a good time and was told the same old, gosh we're short, blah, blah, blah. Then I found out SHE was going to South America! HELLOOOO! So I took a trip to Orlando the same week, lol!

My husband works for the Post Office and works six days a week. They also try to deny him leave. Well, I booked us on a cruise in April 2012 and have already put in for my leave. I told my husband to tell the Post Office that he will be gone that week, lol! I am 50 and he is 52. With my retirement account tanking like it did, I doubt I will be able to retire, or will be at the poverty line. So the only logical solution is to travel now, when we have a few dollars to spend. (Still saving, but no longer shop for clothes etc--so I will be the one on the cruise with old clothes on, loving every minute of it!)

[Aldeya]

This is us totally. And I know tomorrow when I return to work I'll hear "you went on another cruise??" from a co-worker returning from disability leave who is just a miserable unhappy person.

 

I totally agree, life is short, my husband is 47 I am 43 and my stepson will be 22 next week. Why not go now? I have another 20 years until retirement and there are no guarantees on health and old age. We can afford to do it and we choose to enjoy life now.

 

Agree 100%. Friends, family and coworkers question us all the time, sometimes laughing at us when we book our next cruise. You know.."you could save these money instead of taking another cruise!".

 

Well, we are not rich by any means but we decided that the memories we create as a family worth much more than fancy cars or big house. Life is short, we will not wait until retirement.

 

So in May we are going on our 17th cruise as a family. And will enjoy every minute of it!:D

[Crusin6]

agree100%. We were both in our 30's when we married..first time for both of us...and we quickly proceeded to have 3 kids in 5 years.....but the real blessing is that when I was 43 and dh was 52 our DD#4 came along out of thin air!!!:D

 

so..of course she is the one that keeps all of us here stable and grounded and her 3 teenage sisters adore her and are like 2nd, 3rd and 4th mothers to her...she is 10yo now...and is very very pleasant and unspoiled, btw.

 

to cut to the chase...DH just retired from a 38 year fairly big career...has his pension and early social security...and all the free time in the world to chauffeur the girls around.......

 

but the best part is that we will cruise and vacation more often (not that we didn't before) with the girls..well, at least the 3 that are not away at college.....and will continue to take them along with us..on each and every trip we take.........from now until the youngest is no longer available to travel with us!!!:)

 

also, you should see the looks we get from folks and you know that they are thinking how do we pay tuitions and travel.....well, the one thing I do tell them is don't even bother keeping up with the "Joneses"..do what you want...give your kids a sense of fiscal responsibility (ours all pay for their own laptops among other things, apply for academic scholarships and have jobs once they are old enough) and to top it all off...I even allow them:rolleyes: to kick in a few dollars each for the the cruises....like the tip money for example...believe me, they do not complain.;):D

[Crusin6]

Agree 100%. Friends, family and coworkers question us all the time, sometimes laughing at us when we book our next cruise. You know.."you could save these money instead of taking another cruise!".

 

Well, we are not rich by any means but we decided that the memories we create as a family worth much more than fancy cars or big house. Life is short, we will not wait until retirement.

 

So in May we are going on our 17th cruise as a family. And will enjoy every minute of it!:D

I couldn't have said it better...and I did try to in my above post:D...but so true...no big house or fancy car here...just a good sized house and a minivan in the driveway....they can keep the $800 per month huge SUV lease

[VideoTech]

I read the same article, and agree with it entirely. So many people put off the things they really want to do in life, only to find, for one reason or another, that they cannot do them once they reach retirement age.

 

Another benefit of doing some "retirement" things before you retire is that you get to try them out. You may have dreamed of doing something all your life, only to find that it's not really right for you when you actually get to do it. Instead, try different things that interest you, and you might be surprised at what and where you end up when you do retire.

[cruiser12]

My last day of work was April 1 2011 (no joke) After 27 years it was time -- I did get a little help from the new administration. They will get theirs.

any who -- Yes I agree with most of what has been said so far -- this statements is number one -- less in front -- then behind--

 

My first cruise was in 1991 -- and now ready to book numbers 34, 35, and 36. Yes I got to do eveyrthing I set out to do -- married, children -- now grandchildren - traveled -- and did make a mark in the town I live in and the district I worked in ---

 

Yes it has been full --- and yes there were ups and downs--health issues-- but not a thing could stop me from smelling the flowers -- Cruiesd every chance I got --

 

Do not put anything off, just do it --

 

Cruising with friends and family -- make memories even if they only last a short while-- make them anyway--

 

I love retirement -- just not enough time to get in all in --- cruise till the end -- the flowers smell better then before --

[4774Papa]

Your comments show a lot of wisdom. I just retired last July and took my first sea cruise (previously had taken a Nile cruise).

 

Retirement is great. However, it is a double-edged sword. Immediately after the cruise, I found myself after over fifty years (school and work) of have the daily responsibility for life as vanishing. It is a hole to fill, and you need to think about what you are going to do seriously.

 

My old office called me back to work part-time after three months, since my replacement was called up for reserve duty in Afghanistan. I have been working for six months now and I appreciate the work that I did. Still, I don't want to go back to the stresses of my old job permanently, so after another couple of months, when my part-time work goes away, I will find something else to do, here and there.

 

I am planning about three cruises a year. I lived overseas from 81-85 in Saudi Arabia and Germany 87-91 and traveled a lot, but during the 90s my Wife and I put three kids through college, and after that focused on saving for our current home. As it turned out we saved a lot, and now are able to travel when we feel like it.

 

We do a lot of biking, which is good for our health, and read a lot. My Wife is in a little theatre group. This keeps us from being idle, but I may need to find some part-time activity.

 

Everyone has a different motor that drives them, and one size doesn't fit all.

[bean24]

I couldn't agree more. My in-laws worked really long and hard for a very long time. When they retired they still didn't travel due to family things, finally when that got settled they started travelling more and cruised a few times a year. We lost my f-i-l a few weeks ago and I am so glad they got the trips they did, my m-i-l now has some great memories.