I'm 67 and plan to retire next year. We are many times FI and I'm not working for the money (obviously). I have this concern about shutting down and adjusting to retirement. I'm working through that now and plan to leave at the end of Sept 2025 due to some RSU vesting, while leaving a substantial amount on the table.
I have a major personal S/W project goal to achieve and I am also going to spend a lot of time on the air at all hours of the day and night as an amateur (ham) radio operator. I also have many big and small home improvement projects planned and I am also planning on restoring a car (advantage of having a project car with FI is budget is not a concern and if something is expensive it won't be constraining). It has been my dream all of my life to do a project car with many possibilities of a 1960s or 1970s car from my youth and formative years.
I titled this thread "Netflix Symbolism" because many (too many) of my retired friends seem to have become couch potatoes addicted to their TVs watching Netflix and other addictive entertainment. No criticism of Netflix, the content is obviously good and addictive and they should be rewarded for delighting their customers. I've had a strong work ethic my entire life since high school. When I was in high school I had a night job being a computer operator which was a plum job for an engineering student at the time (1970s). I continued that job throughout my university years until I graduated and started my career as an engineer. During that time I missed out on a lot of popular TV shows that my friends would always be raving about, like Charlie's Angels, a show that I never got to watch because I was working. As a night computer operator I was more addicted to radio and really liked local sports, Larry King and Bruce Williams.
How many of you know retirees who have degraded into unhealthy couch potatoes? It is a cringe-worthy fear of mine for myself as I approach shutting it down. I see too many friends who have become this without even worrying about the detrimental effects it can have on their brains and health. I'm not trying to judge as this is a personal choice just like smoking, drinking, drugs, overeating, gambling and philandering is. It is just not for me.
Funny thing is, many self-recognize this degeneration and laugh about it.
I have a major personal S/W project goal to achieve and I am also going to spend a lot of time on the air at all hours of the day and night as an amateur (ham) radio operator. I also have many big and small home improvement projects planned and I am also planning on restoring a car (advantage of having a project car with FI is budget is not a concern and if something is expensive it won't be constraining). It has been my dream all of my life to do a project car with many possibilities of a 1960s or 1970s car from my youth and formative years.
I titled this thread "Netflix Symbolism" because many (too many) of my retired friends seem to have become couch potatoes addicted to their TVs watching Netflix and other addictive entertainment. No criticism of Netflix, the content is obviously good and addictive and they should be rewarded for delighting their customers. I've had a strong work ethic my entire life since high school. When I was in high school I had a night job being a computer operator which was a plum job for an engineering student at the time (1970s). I continued that job throughout my university years until I graduated and started my career as an engineer. During that time I missed out on a lot of popular TV shows that my friends would always be raving about, like Charlie's Angels, a show that I never got to watch because I was working. As a night computer operator I was more addicted to radio and really liked local sports, Larry King and Bruce Williams.
How many of you know retirees who have degraded into unhealthy couch potatoes? It is a cringe-worthy fear of mine for myself as I approach shutting it down. I see too many friends who have become this without even worrying about the detrimental effects it can have on their brains and health. I'm not trying to judge as this is a personal choice just like smoking, drinking, drugs, overeating, gambling and philandering is. It is just not for me.
Funny thing is, many self-recognize this degeneration and laugh about it.