Way to young to be this damn old!

[Boz330]

Kinda bittersweet, but I applied for my SS retirement yesterday. Figured I better get it before the ******** spend the rest of it. I'm not really considering retirement since I can't afford it and other than some joints I still seem to be reasonably healthy. Besides I still like what I'm doing and the people that are my customers.

Bob

[gray wolf]

Good on you--Stay healthy--stay young---have a good Holiday.
SS ain't all it's cracked up to be.

Sam

[oneokie]

Maybe you will at least get back what you paid in. I am counting down the months until I can start drawing.

[Reg]

Started mine @62, early, for about the same reasons most of us do. Get whats left before they give the rest away. Poor answer , I guess, but true. You cannot be mislead from what you see on that green and white sheet you receive every year . What it shows is only part of what has been paid in for your name. You must remember that even if self employed, your employer had to match what you paid in and there should have been intrest as well. Had LBJ not raided the account for the first time in 1964, it would be hard to imagine just how much each each of us would have sitting there in our name. Also one has to take into consideration, how many have you know who passed on for whatever reason and never took a dime from the account. Of course this is countered by how many do you see that never put in a dime and , in some cases, are taking out more than we who put it in !!
Never the less, SS alone will not see you through. You must have other incomes. I know a few who are trying to make it on SS alone and it's not fun.
There is a lot of bitterness being expressed out there, mostly by younger people about the older generation taking SS and they have to pick up the tab. I think they have some rights in a few respects considering what they might get out of it. But just the same never be ashamed for any reason about taking SS. It's ours, we paid for it --- in full. It's our so called elected "public servents" that pi##*# it away.

:coffee:

[quilbilly]

Look at the bright side. When age and arthritis started slowing me down, I became a better hunter and enjoy it more. Who would have thought we would have lived this long?

[1Shirt]

Age is a state of mind, but then again so is confusion! Enjoy life every day, and be glad to be where you are!
1Shirt!:coffeecom

[high standard 40]

I've got a little more than 7 months before I can start drawing (also early at 62) I'm counting the days.

[Boz330]

Started mine @62, early, for about the same reasons most of us do. Get whats left before they give the rest away. Poor answer , I guess, but true. You cannot be mislead from what you see on that green and white sheet you receive every year . What it shows is only part of what has been paid in for your name. You must remember that even if self employed, your employer had to match what you paid in and there should have been intrest as well. Had LBJ not raided the account for the first time in 1964, it would be hard to imagine just how much each each of us would have sitting there in our name. Also one has to take into consideration, how many have you know who passed on for whatever reason and never took a dime from the account. Of course this is countered by how many do you see that never put in a dime and , in some cases, are taking out more than we who put it in !!
Never the less, SS alone will not see you through. You must have other incomes. I know a few who are trying to make it on SS alone and it's not fun.
There is a lot of bitterness being expressed out there, mostly by younger people about the older generation taking SS and they have to pick up the tab. I think they have some rights in a few respects considering what they might get out of it. But just the same never be ashamed for any reason about taking SS. It's ours, we paid for it --- in full. It's our so called elected "public servents" that pi##*# it away.

:coffee:

I have been self employed most of my life so there wasn't a lot that I didn't pay in. Of course they don't show you what it would be worth if invested even conservatively in CDs on those green and white sheets.

Bob

[Boz330]

Age is a state of mind, but then again so is confusion! Enjoy life every day, and be glad to be where you are!
1Shirt!:coffeecom

Top, tell that to my knees, they disagree every morning when I get up.

Quilbilly, the best part of hunting now is that I don't have to kill anything, but I get to spend quality time with a good friend and my Godson. Eating and drinking too much and telling lies of good times past, which are much better sometimes than the actual events.

Bob

[Reg]

Boz330,
How right you are.
I too was self employed for the last 30 years I worked and was one of those that did it by the book. No short cuts and made my employees do it that way too. Could have taken a lot under the table but never did.
We had to be careful and run a wise business. I always treated it like I was in charge of someone elses money. Save in the good times and be frugal in the bad. What investments we made were simple and careful and had nothing what ever to do with the stock market.
Glad we did it that way. We don't have a lot but with the same attitude we should get by.
Too bad Uncle Sugar never learned it like that. We would live in a different world.

[Reg]

PS
Yup, both my knees are gone but have learned how to make passable home made wine. Can't get out and chase pheasants like before but have found out you don't do much walking in a fishing boat and to tell the truth, walleye taste a whole lot better than a dry pheasant !!

Merry Christmas

[Stick_man]

Age is a state of mind, but then again so is confusion! Enjoy life every day, and be glad to be where you are!
1Shirt!:coffeecom

How true it is. Just remember though: Growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional.

[smilie=w:

[geargnasher]

Get it while you can, it's YOUR money. Too bad the guberment doesn't realize that, and has been running a Ponzi scheme with all of our SS money since way before I was born. Now they take the money I pay in to reimburse eligible (and LOTS of non-eligible) people, and it isn't enough. If our politicians did what they were supposed to with the money, you would all be poopin' in high cotton and putting the money back into the economy instead of starving to death or having to keep working.

Gear

[Blacksmith]

We were told and believed it was a TRUST Fund.

They acted like it was just another tax funding the political slush fund.

Blacksmith (getting mine while I can)

[454PB]

I turned 62 in May, and got my first SS payment in July. It felt really weird......mostly because I never believed there would be anything left by the time I was old enough to collect it.

Crunching the numbers, I have to live to the age of 77 before I start losing money by taking it early.

[DLCTEX]

I had to wait until full retirement age as I was self employed and would have had to get totally out of business to draw it. I'm still in business and SS is paying enough to make a car payment and cover my Medicare costs. That helps as I still have a 20 yr. old in college and he doesn't count for child tax credit. Like you don't need it if he's over 17? Thousands of reasons we need a tax overhaul.

[Bad Water Bill]

And after I and my employers paid into the fund for over half a century it sure is disgusting that the folks that never worked a day in their life are better off than we are.

And why are we tossed into the entitlement group. I WORKED all of my life and paid for my home and food and the taxes to feed those that are to lazy to turn off the TV and get a job.

I like all of you would like our money back with compound interest just as we were told when we started. We had a contract with our government.

We did NOT mark it null and void.

[Charlie Two Tracks]

Just a little over a year and I will be retiring. I'm doing it at 62 also. For the last year we have been living on what we will get once retired. It should work. Nothing fancy but neither Cindy or I worry about keeping up with the neighbors. I would stay longer but my back is shot from too many years of being a carpenter. Ten years ago I sold out my carpentry business and went to work for a paycheck........... Dang but I hate to be told to do stupid stuff that makes no sense but it is much easier on my knees and back. January 1st 2013 will be it.

You young guys out there: Don't jump off of stuff. Climb down easily. Don't lift with your back, lift with your legs. I was told that for many years and didn't listen. Now I know the the old crippled up guys who told me that were right................ and now I are one!

[kbstenberg]

Charlie TT you will beat me by a month. Good luck
Kevin

[C.F.Plinker]

If you get on the Social Security website you can find out what the interest rates that your Social Security contributions "earned"

http://www.ssa.gov/oact/ProgData/interestrates1937-99.html
http://www.ssa.gov/oact/ProgData/newIssueRates.html

The average interest rate for the last 20 years was 6.67%. When I applied that rate to the contrubutions as shown on the printout you used to get yearly the total (contribution plus interest) was 3 times what the total of my contributions is. Then double it to account for what my employer put in. Since I don't want to get upset and stressed out I look at Social Security as a very conservative investment that will pay me a dividend for the rest of my life.

When the General Fund borrowed the money from SS they left they deposited demand notes with Social Security. These are U.S. Government notes the same as Mutual Funds, individual investors, and foreign govenrments buy. (Well the Social Security noted differ in that they have no fixed date of maturity.) The General Fund is responsible for paying interest and the return of principal on them. By using the proceeds from the sale of these bonds all taxpayers, through their 1040 returns are on the hook for them. The problem the politicians are having is that they haven't figured out a way to tell the taxpayers that their taxes will have to go up in order to redeem these notes.

Yes, Social Security has a long term problem in that the trust fund will have had all the notes redeemed in about 25 years or so. At that point they will only be able to pay about 75% of the benefits due because they will have to pay it out using cash flow only. One day the President will have to get the accountants and actuaries together (doesn't that sound like an exciting meeting) to figure out what the contributions will have to go up to for the nest 25-50 years so the trust fund doesn't expire. This is what Reagan did when the withholding rates were adjusted last time.

[bobthenailer]

I also retired at 62 , 15 mounths ago , I was laid off from my job after almost 6 years service 3 days before my 62ed birthday , ive done the same type of work my whole working life . I did not fee like looking for another job at this point in my life , so im retired and happy i did it , i had some animosity towards my former employer but in short time i relized he did me a BIG favor laying me off. I still on occasion work for a friends shop but strictly very part time.

[bbs70]

I'm almost 64, body is still in good condition, so I'm going to work as long as I'm able to.
I had decided that when I was 20.

My job supplies the insurance for wife & I, she is a nurse.
Both are nice to have when I go to the garage to make something that requires the use of a saw.:groner:

[EDK]

Thursday the 22d was my last day at work...officially retired on 1-1-12. It would have been 42 years at the electric company, working in power plants, on 30 March 2012. They offered a "buy out" for employees over 58...I took the money and ran. Now to go to the social security office, get the wife signed up fo medicare and get her paperwork done to draw off my social security for more $$$. I'm kinda apprehensive, but it would be happening in 18 months and I got the yankee dollars, so....

One of the female welders at work suffered a fatal fall on Tuesday. The company pretty much slowed everything to a crawl and got in professional grief counselors to talk to us. She was 32; married, 3 step kids and a year old baby of her own. She was a cheerful friendly girl and will be missed by all. There is a story about her you would like. With all the political correctness.sexual harassment BS going on, Kathy got counseled for hugging friends at work that she hadn't seen for months.

:Fire::cbpour::redneck:

[Mike in TX]

I am 64 and intend to work until 68 1/2 or later. April 2013 I will be starting off on a new adventure and it it works out I may not retire until 70. I am thankful that I have decent health and can control the chronic problems.