Retirement and life after several bourbons...

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Realized today that retirement life is like being in a time out. Nice surroundings, good things to eat, people who care about you but not much going on until the time out is over........

In November of this year, I will of been retired for 18 years from the military after 26 years in uniform.  Retired at the age of 48 and will turn 66 later this month.  I have read this thread and enjoyed it!  I agree with almost everything that has been said and do recommend retirement at the earliest you can afford to do it.  Do not wait, JUST DO IT! (If financially possible) I do not know how I use to do everything that I did while still working as now my days seem to fly by. The first 11 years I was retired my wife was still working and those were the best years I experienced.  As long as the laundry was done, the house clean and dinner on the table at 5PM when she got home, I could do anything I wanted to!!! (Within reason LOL) I golfed, fished, hunted and shot all I wanted.  Now that she is retired, I quit golfing, only fish when it it is nice weather (Wife loves to fish but only in fair weather), only hunt for whitetails in north Missouri.  As for shooting I have picked up the ball there and shoot at least 3-4 days a week year-round. So, life is still good!!!!

mhayford45 wrote:Realized today that retirement life is like being in a time out. Nice surroundings, good things to eat, people who care about you but not much going on until the time out is over........

11 years and counting, no complaints.

Great thread and some terrific contributions, many of which give pause to think.  Officially I retired from law enforcement in 2010 with a total time of 30 years, 26 of which were spent as a trooper and then sergeant with a state agency.  I loved my job as a trooper, but hated it as a sergeant.  I didn't know when I had it good I guess.  I liked only having my own problems to worry about instead of 12 other persons problems to worry about.  It dawned on me one day when I was still working my "real" job that I had 15 years in and about another 10 years to go to retirement.  Well, those 10 years literally flew by and before I knew it I realized I could retire which I did.  I told myself early on that I wasn't going to stay until I became an ill-mannered old grump like so many others, so I pulled the plug.  I still remember my last day at work and the strange feeling when I walked out of my district HQ for the last time and realized for the first time in 26 years I couldn't get back in the employee entrance.  No more worrying about anyone but me and the wife, but for a while I felt lost because I still enjoyed being an LEO.

I took a supposedly part time job teaching police officers how to safely ride a police motorcycle and that job took me away from home 3 weeks at a time for over half the year.  I enjoyed that position and it kept me in touch with the profession and people.  Much has changed since I retired and I don't know if I would want to be working on the street today.  I have to take my hat off to those that still work in law enforcement or want to go into it.  Yeah there are some bad apples, but our world would be much different if we didn't have people that want to volunteer to put a police or military uniform on and fight the fight for us.  If these people ever take off those uniforms and walk away we are in deep, deep trouble, but I digress.  

I have a few hobbies, one is shooting and the other motorcycles.  I have restored a few old bikes, my latest being a 1977 Kawasaki KZ-1000.  I also work on firearms as a result of my time as an armorer.  I especially like working on old mil-surp stuff.  It can be quite enjoyable bringing an old relic back from the dead and shooting good.  My latest craze is .22 cal benchrest shooting which I have jumped into with both feet.  Even though I know I will never get really good at this sport I have enormous fun taking part in it.  Buying the right equipment is a killer though and dedication to using that equipment properly is a lot of work.  Still I hang on trying my best to do well.  I only wish I had started this a long time ago as it hard catching up especially at 69 years old, but at least I have the time for it now as Covid put an end to my police motorcycle instruction for the most part.

Another change will soon take place when my wife of 44 years will soon retire from her job as a nurse practitioner in a pediatric ER.  Somehow I think my free time is going to be limited once again and we will see if we can really exist together on a daily basis.  The good news is she wants to work part time at the local ballpark in the team store so it won't be too bad.  As for me I am happy putzing in the garage, or basement or going to the range a couple of times per week when it warms up.  I would love to move to a somewhat warmer climate, but that isn't going to happen as the wife refuses to move away now that we have grandkids.  Oh well, at least now I can sleep as long as I want to and stay up watching old movies on TCM whenever I want.  Life is pretty good for now.  I don't drink and I unfortunately have put on some weight watching TCM this winter.

Rick H.

I'm 67, been retired since 2016, so 6 years. I have health issues but who doesn't. My nephew is 40 and drives a trash truck for a living. He's doing 70 hours a week. The carrot they're teasing him with is substantial. I have stressed to him to get out of there as he has just enough time to put 25 years in with a job that has real retirement. I asked him, do you remember when you were 15? Does it seem all that long ago? Now that's how long you got.

I moved to Florida. Ride my bicycle. Shake a pistol or 2 at the paper once a week. I talk to my cats. They leave my bourbon alone. Life is gooder here.

I retired @ 48. Shot quite a lot of pistol, especially after moving to FL when 59. Before the move, I hunted/ shot woodchucks during the season in Ohio. I also hunted antelope in WY. In FL, spare time was devoted to Assistent RO (volunteer). We live(d) in retirement villages which helped keeping up wth adult beverage usage, Budweiser, Vodka Martiniis,and Canadion being the preferred drinks. A brief description of retired life might be "woke up with nothing to, worked at it all day and was only half done at day's end".  The Lord called my wife home 2 yrs ago which ended my enjoyment of retirement.
Ron Habegger

Sorry for your loss.  I lost my husband in 2011.  I miss him every day. But life goes on.

I couldn’t take to the transition.  I tried fly fishing, a pool membership, and logic puzzles.  Nothing filled the gap. This is my third week back at work with a brand new company. Hell, I was still doodling engineering problems at the kitchen table anyway.  I may as well get paid for it.  I just can no longer have a glass of Buffalo Trace next to me while doing it. The other upside is that I was driving thirteen miles to the range almost every day. I just joined a new club three miles from my new employer so I am basically getting the gas to go shoot after work, for free. Small win. I’ll take it.

Yeah, I can see me going back to work when winter gets here.

It's hard (for me) to value my free time when I have every day off.

Plus, I didn't realize that the price of everything was going to double right around the time that I retired.

On the positive side, I've already put a couple thousand miles on the motorcycle so far, and have been able to attend every match with our league.

I keep trying to retire - but I'm a mercenary bastard and they keep offering me money to stay and I keep accepting it. Plus we really need the medical cover for family issues. I don't see being occupied as an issue when I do get around to it though. The project list is already long enough for me to stay busy well into 100+.