Am I semi-FIRED?

[aaronc879]

What about a job driving elderly/disabled people around, or running simple errands for them? Aren't there jobs like that? Seems to me there would be a market for it.

I applied for a job like that a couple months ago but I didn't even get an interview. The problem is there are so many people looking for work that employers can hand pick someone with direct experience and I don't have experience driving a van.

 

[aaronc879]

Aaron, I can tell by your writing that you are an intelligent fellow. Have you ever considered taking civil service tests for federal, state or county positions? They have all sorts of job classifications. Where I work, many people gain entry as case aides or accounting clerks. The pay is not bad and it comes with full medical benefits and a pension plan. We have all sorts of people in my office, from the gregarious to extreme introverts. If you can read and write, the tests are pretty easy from what I understand.

One of my co-workers was telling me the other day about a fellow he knows who recently got two job offers after being unemployed (in his fifties) for a couple of years. One job was as a file clerk for a state agency and another was working in the office of the housing authority processing applications. My boss told me that her daughter's boyfriend just got a pretty good job in maintenance at a county agency. He goes in to work after everyone leaves for the day at 4:30.

Don't give up! Almost everyone I know has had to redirect their lives at times. Best of luck to you.

Seems unlikely they'd take someone with no office experience when they have so many applicants but i'll look into it. Thanks

 

[Andre1969]

On the subject of fuel expenses, don't forget that you can write off your mileage. However, I'm unclear as to whether you have to itemize on your taxes to get the mileage writeoff or not. By the time I was delivering pizzas, I was itemizing, so it was a nice little bonus.

Back when I did it, the mileage writeoff usually covered most of my fuel costs. I remember it was something like 28.5 cents per mile, which in my tax bracket at the time saved me about 7 cents per mile on taxes. However, that was also back when gas was usually around $1-1.25 per gallon. I was driving a '68 Dodge Dart that got around 13 mpg in that type of driving. Those were the good old days...start off with a full tank, drive 200 miles on a busy Friday or Saturday nite. Walk out with at least $100 in cash. And the next day (don't want to hit the gas station late at nite with $100+ in cash on me!), I'd use $20 to fill up and get change back!
I dunno what the mileage writeoff is these days. Considering fuel is about 3x as much, in theory I'd think the mileage writeoff should be about 3x as much. But I wouldn't hold my breath! And hopefully you're doing it in something that gets better than 13 mpg, and has less than 300,000 miles on it!

 

[WhoDaresWins]

Seems unlikely they'd take someone with no office experience when they have so many applicants but i'll look into it. Thanks

A lot of jobs are gotten by being in the right place at the right time...willing and able to start work when they need you. Civil service jobs have to hire off a list so that might work to your advantage by limiting the pool of applicants when a job vacancy occurs.

I don't know the resumes of all our recent paraprofessional hires but I have overheard things like: stay-at-home Mom for thirty years, babysitter, substitute teacher, volunteer at Meals on Wheels, laid off glass factory worker, bookkeeper for consultant husband, etc.

Heck, I was a SAHM for 12 years when they hired me 18 years ago into a position for which I had no background or experience. And I did not have any political connections or know a soul at the agency. I was hired at the same time as a fellow a couple of years older than myself who had been laid off from a management job at a mega corp. He had retrained for a couple of years in a technical discipline, but his wife did not want to relocate for the jobs he could get in that field.

 

[aaronc879]

On the subject of fuel expenses, don't forget that you can write off your mileage. However, I'm unclear as to whether you have to itemize on your taxes to get the mileage writeoff or not. By the time I was delivering pizzas, I was itemizing, so it was a nice little bonus.

Back when I did it, the mileage writeoff usually covered most of my fuel costs. I remember it was something like 28.5 cents per mile, which in my tax bracket at the time saved me about 7 cents per mile on taxes. However, that was also back when gas was usually around $1-1.25 per gallon. I was driving a '68 Dodge Dart that got around 13 mpg in that type of driving. Those were the good old days...start off with a full tank, drive 200 miles on a busy Friday or Saturday nite. Walk out with at least $100 in cash. And the next day (don't want to hit the gas station late at nite with $100+ in cash on me!), I'd use $20 to fill up and get change back!
I dunno what the mileage writeoff is these days. Considering fuel is about 3x as much, in theory I'd think the mileage writeoff should be about 3x as much. But I wouldn't hold my breath! And hopefully you're doing it in something that gets better than 13 mpg, and has less than 300,000 miles on it!

Unfortunetly my car with probably only get about 15 mpg in that type of driving. You do have to itemize to writeoff the mileage. Since my income will only be about $10K/yr and the standard deduction and exemption is around $9500 it wouldn't pay to keep a detailed daily log of miles. On the plus side i'll be paying almost nothing in taxes, just SS and medicare. Since I have such a low budget I can get by on only slightly more than that. Plasma donations, the occasional side job, as well as some internet suveys will make up the difference. I shouldn't even have to touch my retirement savings except for large purchases which I don't make as often as the average person.

 

[aaronc879]

A lot of jobs are gotten by being in the right place at the right time...willing and able to start work when they need you. Civil service jobs have to hire off a list so that might work to your advantage by limiting the pool of applicants when a job vacancy occurs.

I don't know the resumes of all our recent paraprofessional hires but I have overheard things like: stay-at-home Mom for thirty years, babysitter, substitute teacher, volunteer at Meals on Wheels, laid off glass factory worker, bookkeeper for consultant husband, etc.

Heck, I was a SAHM for 12 years when they hired me 18 years ago into a position for which I had no background or experience. And I did not have any political connections or know a soul at the agency. I was hired at the same time as a fellow a couple of years older than myself who had been laid off from a management job at a mega corp. He had retrained for a couple of years in a technical discipline, but his wife did not want to relocate for the jobs he could get in that field.

I just looked at the Wisconsin civil service job postings and the only job that i'd qualify for(maybe) is Custodian. That is not an office job and would be too physical for me. I bookmarked the page and will go back every week or 2 to see if there's anything I may qualify for.

 

[martyp]

You are not semi-FIRED. You, like millions of others in this economy, are underemployed. It sounds like the root of your problem is your physical condition. I realize you aren't in the position to afford much access to health care but getting healthy should be a top priority.

 

[WhoDaresWins]

I just looked at the Wisconsin civil service job postings and the only job that i'd qualify for(maybe) is Custodian. That is not an office job and would be too physical for me. I bookmarked the page and will go back every week or 2 to see if there's anything I may qualify for.

Find out where your state office building is located and make a trip in to see job announcement postings in person. They test all the time for positions whether there are posted vacancies or not. Sign up for and take lots of tests for which you might even be remotely suitable and get on those lists. You might also get a part-time or casual position that leads to a full-time position in time. Take anything that gets your foot in the door.

 

[photoguy]

Have you looked at freelancing sites (maybe something like freelancer.com?)

I think there's a lot of jobs available for people without college degrees that don't require standing for long periods. For example, what about pet sitting? when we travel, we pay a sitter to walk the dog in the morning/evening and stay in the house overnight. I think all you would need to be is reliable/bonded.

According to some sources there has been a barbell type recovery in jobs: growth in low and high wage sectors but a thinning of the middle. Have you done any research to see what low-wage jobs are growing in your local area?

 

[brewer12345]

aaron, I would tale a slightly different philosophical tact. How about looking at your current situation as a transition period which will last for an uncertain period of time? You could do it for a period of years if need be, so you aren't in a house on fire. That being the case, keep doing what you are doing, but keep your eyes open for alternatives. There are a ton of side hustles out there that could substitute for what you are doing now. How about doing taxes for H&R Block or a local CPA firm? Working back office in a financial planning firm (if you saved up a big enough portfolio to make it with what you are doing, you must know something about all of this)? Local gubmint isn't a bad idea either (DMV clerk?).

How about something entrepreneurial? I have a friend who has lots of little side hustles going. He figured out that there was a specific part that collectors always want for a specific brand of rifle and that a majotr parts vendor had a limited supply that was misclassified on their website. So he bought their entire stock, send back the ones that were rusty or otherwise damaged, and now has a simple website set up that retails these things for 5 to 15X what he paid for them. He gets an order, cashes the check and drops them in the mail.

Finally, you are relatively young and mobile. How about achange of location, either to elsewhere in the US or elsewhere in the world? There are plces in the US with a more vibrant economy and places in the world with a much lower cost of living. Change your location and you could be well employed or permanently retired.

 

[aaronc879]

Find out where your state office building is located and make a trip in to see job announcement postings in person. They test all the time for positions whether there are posted vacancies or not. Sign up for and take lots of tests for which you might even be remotely suitable and get on those lists. You might also get a part-time or casual position that leads to a full-time position in time. Take anything that gets your foot in the door.

Apparently the state of Wisconsin has done away with "walk-in" testing. You now have to pre-register for testing and the testing isn't as frequent. There is testing today but I would've had to register at least 10 days ago. The next testing isn't until November 10th. Damn budget cuts

 

[aaronc879]

aaron, I would tale a slightly different philosophical tact. How about looking at your current situation as a transition period which will last for an uncertain period of time? You could do it for a period of years if need be, so you aren't in a house on fire. That being the case, keep doing what you are doing, but keep your eyes open for alternatives. There are a ton of side hustles out there that could substitute for what you are doing now. How about doing taxes for H&R Block or a local CPA firm? Working back office in a financial planning firm (if you saved up a big enough portfolio to make it with what you are doing, you must know something about all of this)? Local gubmint isn't a bad idea either (DMV clerk?).
Change your location and you could be well employed or permanently retired.

I'm already in a low cost of living area with a paid off mortgage so I think i'm in a good position as far as that goes. I don't have a large portfolio but I have a low budget. I think people would look differently at my situation if my portfolio was 4X as high even if my spending was also 4X as high but it's the same thing. I don't need as much because I spend far less and am reasonably happy doing so. If I make $12000/yr and spend $12000/yr being semi-retired how is that different than someone who spends $40,000/yr and does part-time consulting work for $40,000 while semi-retired? I've seen people in that position get much more favorable comments even though it's the same situation having an income equal to expenses while working part-time and having a reserve of more than 10 years expenses.

I'm not saying I won't keep my eye open for a better paying job but I don't think I NEED to.

 

[Katsmeow]

Not everyone is suited to academic college. I have 3 kids. One is taking the more traditional college route.My daughter is not. She is in high school so we discuss alternatives quite a bit. In the modern world there are options for training that aren't traditional college. Around here, the community colleges are mostly open admission. Financial aid is available and there are a lot of things to train for and the training is specific to the particular field. Just some examples:

Culinary arts
Auto repair
Veterinary assistant
Floral design
Cosmetology
Interior design
Fashion merchandising
Nurse's Aid
EKG technician
Personal trainer
Medical billing clerk <--- if you like accounting tasks this might work
Massage therapy
Phlebotomy technician
Air conditional technician
Commercial truck driving
Bookkeeping <--- again if you like accounting tasks
Dental hygiene
Hotel and restaurant management
Payroll clerk


All of these courses of study can be taken part time and can be taken at the public community colleges where the cost is low (there are for profit schools that cost a lot of money but at least around here there is no need for them as they can be done very low cost at community college and any student loan debt would be low). For most of them you take courses only in the area you are training for. if you want to learn floral design you don't take history courses, etc.

These could be taken while you do the work delivering pizzas. Obviously not all of these would appeal to you but maybe something would appeal.

Another point if you really don't want to do any more schooling. My older son felt the same way. He worked as a shift manager in a fast food restaurant and makes in the range you are talking about for pizzas. No tips, but indoors and doesn't have the wear and tear on cars. Started out at minimum wage but a bright person can work his way up pretty quickly.

 

[photoguy]

If I make $12000/yr and spend $12000/yr being semi-retired how is that different than someone who spends $40,000/yr and does part-time consulting work for $40,000 while semi-retired? I've seen people in that position get much more favorable comments even though it's the same situation having an income equal to expenses while working part-time and having a reserve of more than 10 years expenses.

The problem is when s*** happens. E.g., lets say you have a medical issue and need to payout an additional $4k that year. Or your car breaks down and you need to get a replacement, home repair, special assessment, etc. $4k/$12k = 33% of your yearly budget whereas $4k/$40k = 10%.

 

[WhoDaresWins]

Apparently the state of Wisconsin has done away with "walk-in" testing. You now have to pre-register for testing and the testing isn't as frequent. There is testing today but I would've had to register at least 10 days ago. The next testing isn't until November 10th. Damn budget cuts

Most definitely register for Nov. 10th then! And take tests for EVERYTHING you possibly can and get on those lists.

To paraphrase a line used several times by a character (Henslowe) in one of my favorite movies, Shakespeare in Love...."I don't know. It's a mystery to me." This is how I think about civil service lists and how they work and how jobs on them seem to materialize out of the blue, not necessarily posted where you would think they would be. You just have to be on those lists, and one day (could take a long time) you will get a letter in the mail inquiring into your availability for interview (probably several at one time, the way life is). You are a very smart guy and will do well on those tests!

Keep working all the angles in the meantime but stay positive and active and be good to yourself.

 

[sunsnow]

Sounds like you want to be happy with the financially limited and risky future you have projected for yourself. If you are content, then I guess you don't need any advice. But maybe you're not completely satisfied,and that is why you decided to post here. I think there are at least three areas where you could make improvements, which would help you to do better financially. First off, you have to decide that you want, deserve, and have the potential to do better financially. I know that sounds kinda cheesy, but without that step, you won't have sufficient motivation to do the rest of the steps . If you're having trouble with this step, keep talking to people and try to see where your mental blocks are, and work on them. Second, you need to expand your friend network. With the exception perhaps of government, most of the good jobs go to people with connections. Sounds like you have free time, so you could volunteer in places where you will be likely to meet a diverse group of people. That would be good for you even apart from employment considerations. Third, consider how you could offer your services directly to the public. You'd need to do the research on insurance, but once you had that in place, you could offer the service of driving elderly people around and/or assisting them with various tasks. I know a couple who started a business doing exactly that, and built it into a 100+ employee corporation, and just sold it for many millions. What other jobs that you've applied for could be offered by you directly to the public? Preparing tax returns? Bookkeeping? And what other kinds of services might you be able to offer? Dog walking? Babysitting? Craigslist provides countless examples of services that people will pay for. You can offer some of them, without having to convince a manager to hire you, or going to school. If you do a good job at providing a high-demand service at a fair price, people will hire you and your business will grow. Best of luck to you. Things can change quickly, so be prepared for life to amaze you.

 

[brewer12345]

I'm already in a low cost of living area with a paid off mortgage so I think i'm in a good position as far as that goes. I don't have a large portfolio but I have a low budget. I think people would look differently at my situation if my portfolio was 4X as high even if my spending was also 4X as high but it's the same thing. I don't need as much because I spend far less and am reasonably happy doing so. If I make $12000/yr and spend $12000/yr being semi-retired how is that different than someone who spends $40,000/yr and does part-time consulting work for $40,000 while semi-retired? I've seen people in that position get much more favorable comments even though it's the same situation having an income equal to expenses while working part-time and having a reserve of more than 10 years expenses.

I'm not saying I won't keep my eye open for a better paying job but I don't think I NEED to.

If you are happy ding what you are doing, then great. I have delivered pizza in the past and it is OK, but I think it would get old after a few years. I have a huge needle phobia, so plasma donation would not be an option.

 

[aaronc879]

If you are happy ding what you are doing, then great. I have delivered pizza in the past and it is OK, but I think it would get old after a few years. I have a huge needle phobia, so plasma donation would not be an option.

I don't like needles either but I just look away and it's no big deal. Barely feel anything at all but I have good veins. People who don't have good veins, usually overweight people, can have much more pain involved because they need to move the needle around to get it in the right place(ouch). If I go twice a week every week, which is the max allowed, then it averages $27.50/session. Each session takes 1 hour, 45 minutes of which is spent just laying in a chair pumping your fist when needed. Easiest money i've ever made. Wish I could do it more often. The negative is that you have your arm wrapped up for 2 hours after you leave. Then some people bruise so I put ice on a couple times after the bandage comes off because if your arm is bruised they won't let you give. Or you can use the other arm if it's good.

As for the pizza, i'll give it thru the end of the year and see how it's going.

 

[wildcat]

Sounds like a short-term plan and that's fine. I'm not being harsh but do you really think about how you would feel doing this after say 5 years even? I'd come up with a long-term plan & start taking steps in that direction.

For some office jobs, exposure could be the key. Get w/a temp firm and get some temp office work. A lot of people have gone this route - my brother for one went from being a safety coordinator (temp) to HR (hired FT by company) to HR regional president (what he has been to do once he got his chance). You may run into a company that likes you and will offer something permanent. You won't get that chance delvering pizzas at night.

Personally, I wouldn't want to just get by. I like having some resources to do things I enjoy + as others have mentioned your budget would be very tight & one big, unexpected expense could wipe you out. You're still young so it's probably hard to imagine that right now.

 

[teejayevans]

Factory work is too painful so I quit my fulltime job and am now going to work 15-20 hours/week delivering pizzas. I will also give plasma a few times per month for an extra couple hundred dollars. I figure I should be able to earn within $100-200 of my low monthly expenses. The rest will be covered by savings which should last at least 35 years at which time i'll be 68 and eligible for SS.

Lets see, if you made $20K/year then your SS at retirement age will be about $1500/month, or $18K/year, so yea, if you can live on that much then your plan will work. But at $12K/year, then your SS drops to about $12K/year. Seems to me that just doesn't leave much room for error.
TJ

 

[aaronc879]

Lets see, if you made $20K/year then your SS at retirement age will be about $1500/month, or $18K/year, so yea, if you can live on that much then your plan will work. But at $12K/year, then your SS drops to about $12K/year. Seems to me that just doesn't leave much room for error.
TJ

SS is still calculated by your 35 best years, right?

I have 11 years with an average of ~$40K/yr which equals $440K
Add another 24 years at $12k/yr:288k +440K=728K/35 years=$20,800/yr.

That should put me just over $1500/mo which should be just right. After age 65 I could do a reverse mortgage if needed.

 

[teejayevans]

SS is still calculated by your 35 best years, right?

I have 11 years with an average of ~$40K/yr which equals $440K
Add another 24 years at $12k/yr:288k +440K=728K/35 years=$20,800/yr.

That should put me just over $1500/mo which should be just right. After age 65 I could do a reverse mortgage if needed.

Your full retirement age is currently 67, not 65, and that is subject to change. But yes, given the above numbers, your full retirement at 67 will be more than $1500/mo.
TJ

 

[Bestwifeever]

You seem to want to do just what you're doing--a little pizza delivery, a little plasma donation. I agree with those who suggest you use your free hours to prepare for plan B. What happens if you fall ill with some benign illness and the plasma banks can't use you any more (or they start cloning plasma and blood and don't need any human donors any more, ever), or the pizza restaurant closes and the others don't need any more delivery folks? You have a lot of years ahead of you and imagining what SS will be when you're 67, planning on reverse mortgages even being available then, etc., is difficult.

 

[Meadbh]

Aaron, you have received multiple suggestions and for one reason or another none of them seem to be what you are looking for. So I am not sure we can help you. As others have said, it's important to be open to new opportunities during this transition period, because that's what it is. I would suggest taking some of your spare time to explore a volunteer opportunity that appeals to you, whether it be reading to blind people, doing grocery shopping for elderly folks, helping out at the local library, or whatever. If you do it well, you will have a network of contacts and a source of references.

Best of luck!

 

[haha]

This plan seems very similar to that guy who made wooden rakes and lived in a trailer park. We all applauded him.

You seem to not want to try to do other things, and it seems to you that you can get along with this minimalist plan. It might work fine, but that other guy had a PhD in physics, so when he (or perhaps his woman) got tired of the program, he could jump into an attractive other lifestyle. Also, he was a promoter, whereas you seem to be an anti-promoter.

Your greatest strength seems to be that you know you can live very cheaply, and you don't mind that. But as others have pointed out, if it doesn't work for any reason (including that you get really tired of it), you can't bail into some lucrative job. You best chances to climb up a few rungs on the ladder are likely right now.

Ha