Thats it I ate the cake !

[facetious]

Thats it I ate the cake !

40 years 19 days. I started in79' did my apprentiship on large web printing presses at one paper and finished in a plant printing every bodys papers. Thy changed the name on my pay check three times but I kept the same locker. It's hard to think that I did the same job over and over and over......... for that long. Must be why thy had to keep repaveing the high way, thy were trying to fill the ruts I was wearing in to the road.

So lets hear some retirement story's. How long did it take to sink that it was over for good. A guy I worked with said it was two years before his dad stoped wakeing up thinking he was late for work. I have worked nights most of the time so I could sleep till I woke up. Now it will be trying to go to sleep before 2:00am and this getting up before 9:00am is just weird.

A writer for the WSJ asked readers to send in storys about the thing thy never expected when thy retired. For some thy found thy couldn't live with out the structure of the job , for others it was life events that took them in directions and to places thy never thought of.

So lets hear some storys.

[Wheelguns 1961]

Congratulations! I still have 1 1/2 yrs to go.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

Congrats to you I'm going on 30 years 2 different names on my check same locker i hope that i can get 12 more years

[Finster101]

Six years to go for me. Too early to be counting, but I'm counting. Enjoy your time my friend.

[sonoransixgun]

Congrats! Enjoy that retirement...you deserve it. Must have been a decent outfit to work for...

[Isaac]

Congratulations! Enjoy the increased reloading and range time!

[MrWolf]

Went out on a disability retirement about two years ago. I don't miss the bull involved with working but do miss being able to do things in general. If you have everything in order financially then retirement can be really nice. Good luck

[Parson]

78 and still working, but I don’t punch a time clock, hate those things, not sure how much longer I can last but like the old timer back home said “ this squirrel didn’t put enough nuts away”

[gordie]

i spend to much time at wally world & h. depot... you'll start to notice all the "old people" out there.
later you'll be so busy w/ life you'll wonder how did i get anything done & work.
let your mind relax.... dream, plan & set goals. your gonna love it.

[375supermag]

Hi...
I retired in July 2016.
Best decision I could have possibly have made.
Don't miss being in the work force one bit. Occassionally I miss some of the people I worked with but not enough to make the drive to my former employer and visit.

I spend a lot of time reloading and shooting with my son with a few hunting trips now and then.
I do a lot of reading...military history and paleontology.
I spend a lot of time raising two Labrador Retrievers. I like that job much more than I ever enjoyed working for a living.
I just turned 65 the beginning of November and am enjoying my retirement immensely.

Not exactly wealthy but I have enough disposable income to fund my interests. I do a gun shop tour a couple of times a month with my son, go to gun shows and gun auctions.

[daloper]

Congratulations. I will be done on March 9, 2020. Looking forward to spending more time at the range. Got to do something with my days.

[richhodg66]

I retired from the Army a few years ago. Had I been careful, having a payed for house at the time, I probably could have stopped working a real job then at age 46, but guys who do that tend to die young, so opted for another busy job.

That was almost eight years ago. I cannot sleep past the sun coming up no matter what is going on that day. I doubt I'll ever be able to. I'm just wired that way now.

I have found myself more and more lately really looking forward to retiring for good. I hear people talk about fighting boredom being a problem in retirement, but I really think I have enough little projects and activities right here to keep me happy for a very long time.

[lightman]

Congratulations on a well earned retirement!

I retired in 2015 due to being diagnosed with MS. I hooked poles for an electric utility for 35 years. The other night a storm rolled through and I just rolled over, pulled up the covers a little more, said a prayer for those out working in it and went back to sleep! I miss the work and my customers but I quickly adjusted to retirement.

I got bored the first winter that I was retired. After hunting season closed I got cabin fever pretty bad. I learned to save up some stuff to do. I save most of my brass prep, casting and bullet sizing, some reloading, ect for the winter months now. The Wife and I usually take a short trip to someplace thats warmer. I started learning how to Duck hunt, Turkey hunt and Crappi fish.

We're also free to go watch the Grandkids participate in whatever form of sports that they may be involved in. I help a farmer friend a little in the spring and again at harvest time in the fall. I worked a lot of overtime. I averaged 600 hours a year but I had more than 1 year with 1000 hours. Its really good to be able to enjoy my family now.

And some afternoons I just sit in the shop door and drink a beer. Sometimes as many as 3 or 4 guys will stop by. When I walked out of the door after my retirement party the news on the tv was showing a tropical storm brewing. My Boss ask me what I thought about that. I replied, " thats not going to mess up anymore deer seasons for me".

[koehn,jim]

I retired in 2000 after 26 years at the same company. Develop as many outside hobbies as you can and stay active. I am not your age yet but will reach it soon, hope you have a long and active retirement, you earned it.

[bandsmoyer]

You'll soon wonder how you had time to work

[skeettx]

I retired in 2011 and I am now 71.

Financially, it will take two income tax returns to validate it is OK.

I took me over 6 months to pay back the sleep debt to my body,
and I now wake up without alarm about 06:30 unless I am going hunting/fishing.

Socially, find people to mix with.

Work/Time, I keep a Yahoo calendar and keep it full of church/shooting/hunting/fishing stuff
What fun.

Stay busy and enjoy, YOU EARNED IT !

[lefty o]

40 years on a web is a long time, congrats on surviving.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I retired in 2016. I have always had a lot of hobbies...since I was a kid and all through adulthood. Some of my hobbies brought in some income over the years. If you don't have hobbies, or 'enough hobbies' ...well you are here at CB, so you have at least one, be sure to keep an eye out looking for hobbies or projects.
BECAUSE, without a job, if you just sit around doing nothing, you'll go crazy...or at least get depressed.
We have all heard of the guy who dies 6 months after retirement...if your life is solely centered around your job, and you retire, life can quickly become meaningless.

I visit with my Mom a lot more, now that I am retired (she is 89). She worked a long full career. One thing she tells me, when I get a little depressed because I have sat around doing nothing for a few days in a row...is to make an effort and try to accomplish one thing each day, even if it is a small thing, that will pull you out of a lazy rut.

[dangitgriff]

Congrats on your well-deserved retirement.
A colleague and friend retired in the summer of 2016 after some 42 years working, he saw the company change names several times as well. One day, during an all-hands meeting about a year before he left, the site manager was presenting a 30-year anniversary award to another co-worker when Floyd abruptly stood up and yelled out, “30 years?! You call that a CAREER?!”
I only wish I knew how to properly manage my personal finances from the time I entered the work force, as I could have retired early. My wife and I are teaching our two teenage sons about the importance of managing their wealth as soon as they start working and bringing in a regular income.
Again, congrats and keep busy, I see a lot of good advice has already been proffered here.
R/Griff

[blackthorn]

I retired at age 65 in 2004. 6 months later I went back to work on contract for about 18 months. One week after the second retirement I got a call from the agency that provides assistance to workers in conflict with our provincial Worker's Compensation system. I did two short (4) month contracts with them and then the woman overseeing that program told me I needed to but a Blackberry. When I asked why she said she needed to be able to contact me and I told her I was in the office every day for the required hours of work. She said she might need to contact me on weekends and I said I did not work weekends. I finished that contract and was never offered another one! GOOD FOR ME! That was the last time I retired. I have helped a guy with his claim, doing appeals on his behalf a few times, but it is just for fun (no charge) and he got a raw deal from the get-go years ago. We have 1.8 acres, I have a 30x40 foot shop, it's all paid for and our pensions allow us to be financially comfortable. Retirement is GREAT!