Congrats! Now what are you going to do with all your free time?
- oldman
Prolly drive yall bat-sht-crazy.
I have some projects in mind. Also have 80 acres of heavily wooded fishing and hunting land on a river. Usually spent too much time there, hardly been there in 15 yrs, got my fishing stuff ready to go tho.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: JimmyD3 on November 18, 2024, 10:29:02 AM
Congratulations Animl, I hope you enjoy your "kick back" time. I'm loving retirement. :salute
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Animl-AW on November 18, 2024, 10:55:40 AM
Congratulations Animl, I hope you enjoy your "kick back" time. I'm loving retirement. :salute
Yep. After 45 yrs of this biz I acquired several injuries. Feel like a retiring football player. Me and my 82 yr old steward friend going same time. I feel beat up, can’t imagine how many surgeries he’s had. This biz WILL kick your butt silly. Not for the weak hearted.
Its all over now. Going to fly a lot, head out west, find a few game projects, a lot of kicking back and healing. Fish every chance I can. I’d help HT if he wants it :)
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Eagler on November 18, 2024, 04:32:40 PM
Welcome to the club! :cheers:
Last month completed my 1st year in retirement...already days blur together
Hard to remember what it was like working everyday..sure don't miss any of it
Hope you enjoy it as much as we are!
Eagler
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: save on November 19, 2024, 04:10:30 PM
I'm half a year behind you, enjoy owning your own time !
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: AKIron on November 19, 2024, 04:18:48 PM
I'm 70 and work 12 hours a week from home. Back office IT stuff. They'll have fire me to be rid of me. I never want to retire fully. Gives me 12 hours free from honey do's. ;)
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Animl-AW on November 19, 2024, 05:59:15 PM
I have the option to work 600 hrs per yr, which we call semi-retirement.
50% of leaving is required age 50% of me pulling the plug is the dreaded commute. It cost me $50-$75 to work each day. Last yr cost me 10k to work.
Chicago highly dangerous congested traffic rates #5 in the world, #1 in the country. I was getting up 3 hrs before my call time, arrive 1.5 hrs before that start time just to avoid peak rush hr. I commit 12 hrs for a simple 8hr day.
My steward (82yrs old) says he’ll be calling me back. The money chokes a horse, but the commitment has gotten to be just too much. It’s life sucking. I doubt I’ll take all 600 hrs, if any. After 45 yrs I’m a burned out and jaded. Everyone says I’ll be back, I have doubts about that. Decompressing time away may tell a different story.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Dadtallica on November 19, 2024, 07:04:32 PM
Congrats. Find a hobby.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Animl-AW on November 19, 2024, 07:35:00 PM
I am 61 and don't understand why I still feel the same but allot easier. I have to work part time for another 5 years but not too much and work stops one getting too old or weird. Young people are a tonic x I am hoping not to drop below about 16 hours a week working ever.
BTW I respect your on line contributions :aok I am a bit of an A hole but am getting better :D
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Animl-AW on November 20, 2024, 09:39:53 AM
I am 61 and don't understand why I still feel the same but allot easier. I have to work part time for another 5 years but not too much and work stops one getting too old or weird. Young people are a tonic x I am hoping not to drop below about 16 hours a week working ever.
BTW I respect your on line contributions :aok I am a bit of an A hole but am getting better :D
Thanks. I’ll be 65 jan 30, officially retired feb1. I just stopped working early. I have several hobbies, some outdoors I missed the last 15 yrs with IATSE. AH is a hobby, whatever I can do surrounding it I’ll do.
Anyone who calls themselves an Ahole usually is not. You’re fine.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: CAV on November 20, 2024, 07:08:53 PM
October marked my first full year of real retirement.
Retired twice from the government...
23yrs US Army
21yrs Department of Homeland Security
CAVALRY
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Animl-AW on November 21, 2024, 09:42:28 AM
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Eagler on November 21, 2024, 09:48:37 AM
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Maverick on November 22, 2024, 10:41:25 AM
Congrats on pulling the pin and retiring.
I retired the first time in 94 at age 40, not by choice, but because of injury on the job. After a year I was told either retire medically (tax free) or be transferred to a civilian part of the city and work to age 55 for the same retirement. Either way the Dept was not going to keep me on with a bad right wrist (dominant hand). Funny thing, 6 months later my wrist got enough scar tissue to not be painful with raw bone on bone contact.
Retired from the Army Reserves in 2000. Couldn't justify leaving the wife alone for 6 weeks in the middle of chemo and radiation therapy. Had plenty of "good years" and enough to retire at my current rank (05). No pension until age 60 so a long time to wait.
I had been teaching part time from 95 then worked as a director for a non profit until 2000. Left the organization as the "owner" of the non profit was an Air Guard pilot who I out ranked. He got kinda pissy about it even though neither one of us served in any capacity with the other. It led to some significant personality clashes as I wasn't impressed with a Capt, later Major rank being touted in a position where it did not belong. He being an A-10 pilot was frustrated that I wasn't interested in being treated as a subordinate as in tote those bales lift that object.
Went to work for the mechanic (IA) who supervised me doing the annuals and maintenance on my plane. I had been doing the work for several years and he needed help with other customers. Then 9/11 happened and the business stalled because no one was flying. I went to Cochise College for their full time school for A&P on a 15 month program. I came in at the top of the class, worked on the schools planes the last 6 months for extra credit and some money for tuition. Ended up doing a little teaching myself for some minor stuff the school didn't really cover, like how to change tires on a light aircraft.
Went back to work for my mechanic buddy until 04 when the wife was finally able to retire, then retired myself finally and permanently. We then went on the road as full time RVers for more than a decade.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: sparky127 on December 08, 2024, 08:37:32 AM
How's your wrist now mav? I've recently suffered a fall. Compacted my right radius at the elbow and tore a bunch of cartilage in my wrist. Elbow is fine but the wrist seems long-term.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Animl-AW on December 08, 2024, 09:21:56 AM
I retired the first time in 94 at age 40, not by choice, but because of injury on the job. After a year I was told either retire medically (tax free) or be transferred to a civilian part of the city and work to age 55 for the same retirement. Either way the Dept was not going to keep me on with a bad right wrist (dominant hand). Funny thing, 6 months later my wrist got enough scar tissue to not be painful with raw bone on bone contact.
Retired from the Army Reserves in 2000. Couldn't justify leaving the wife alone for 6 weeks in the middle of chemo and radiation therapy. Had plenty of "good years" and enough to retire at my current rank (05). No pension until age 60 so a long time to wait.
I had been teaching part time from 95 then worked as a director for a non profit until 2000. Left the organization as the "owner" of the non profit was an Air Guard pilot who I out ranked. He got kinda pissy about it even though neither one of us served in any capacity with the other. It led to some significant personality clashes as I wasn't impressed with a Capt, later Major rank being touted in a position where it did not belong. He being an A-10 pilot was frustrated that I wasn't interested in being treated as a subordinate as in tote those bales lift that object.
Went to work for the mechanic (IA) who supervised me doing the annuals and maintenance on my plane. I had been doing the work for several years and he needed help with other customers. Then 9/11 happened and the business stalled because no one was flying. I went to Cochise College for their full time school for A&P on a 15 month program. I came in at the top of the class, worked on the schools planes the last 6 months for extra credit and some money for tuition. Ended up doing a little teaching myself for some minor stuff the school didn't really cover, like how to change tires on a light aircraft.
Went back to work for my mechanic buddy until 04 when the wife was finally able to retire, then retired myself finally and permanently. We then went on the road as full time RVers for more than a decade.
Sounds like most things worked out for you.
As anyone can imagine in my field there’s a lot of ego and embellishment for the top job. I never fit in the competition crap. If my resume and reputation didn’t speak for itself I don’t want to work for that company.
I’ve been in 36 states, but haven’t taken a vacation since 98. You can bet I’ll be burning that road up.
Ya I leaving like a beat up football player. Working at the biggest convention center in the country, walking an average of 9 miles on concrete per day on setup mass productions my hips and legs need some healing time. Torn rotator cuff, torn cartilage in my hand. Pretty beat up.
But I lucked out. 15 guys on my crews had knee replacements. Being how I was born with a leg pitched in I wore leg braces to fix it like Forest Gump. Pain in that knee most my life. Flipped my motorcycle, engine landing on the same knee cap you’d think I’d be first in line fir knee replacements. Nope :)
When I was 23 and green I had a severe heat stroke, and ambulance people laying me in ice because they said my insides were cooking, sent me into shock and heart attack.
So I guess I made it out OK. Said part, average life expectancy in my field after retirement is 6 mos-1 yr. Since we move so much fir decades, many will sit around and do nothing, stroke or heart attack tends to happen. So fir us, keep moving or die. lol
Even our oldest guys are in prime physical shape, just don’t sit down when we’re done.
After 45 yrs on the run its quite the change for the phone not to ring and blow out the door. I also get to sleep more than 2-4 hrs.
Title: Re: My last 10 days, great way to end career
Post by: Maverick on December 08, 2024, 10:03:35 AM
When I was in the academy at age 22 the instructor mentioned that the average length of life after retirement was 3 to 6 years. Unless you stayed in shape. That was the case for my best friend in the PD. He was gone before I actually retired. His funeral was the last time I was in Uniform before retiring myself.
In my case the Army was still requiring I do a PT test every year and I was still in the Reserves for 6 years after the PD. I stayed exercising until we hit the road but still had to walk the dog and maintain the vehicles / trailer so wasn't a total couch potato.
After my last cancer surgery in 19 I wasn't happy about how long it took to bounce back so went back to a modified exercise program. Heel spurs, wrist surgery and general arthritis made it so I was only able to walk and do "standing" pushups. Now at 71 at 3 times a week I walk 1.5 miles in 26 minutes and do 2 sets of 75 pushups. One before the walk, one after. Gets the heart rate up over 105 so cardio is taken care of.
I keep seeing the growing list of folks I used to work with that have already passed away. Quite frankly I didn't expect to live this long but I ain't done yet as there are plenty of grand kids and now great grand kids to see.