FI now and RE in two months - yay!

[NotReady4Purple]

Hi Folks,

I found this board 4 months ago when I asked for your thoughts on when to give notice at work. I've been mostly lurking since then, but I've reached the point where my countdown seems much more real now, and I thought I'd post again.

I will be 55 in November and at that point I will be eligible for MegaCorp healthcare for both myself and my husband. That has been my trigger point to retire -as we are FI now. (A fact that I am only slowly convincing him of. Thanks to FireCalc for helping me make that more clear.)

We have one grown son, who is now off the family paycheck - college completed and well-set up. That plus healthcare and a diverse portfolio means that I am able to look forward to this without worrying. I've already got three fun trips planned!

I do appreciate all the information I've found here and I wanted to say thank you. I'll be around more in the future.

 

[W2R]

Congratulations! That is so exciting.

Lifetime healthcare is my trigger point for ER as well, although I still have about 14 months to go.

Welcome (or re-welcome?) to the ER Forum. I hope you continue to enjoy the forum, and then your upcoming retirement.

 

[mb]

Congratulations!

Are you having any doubts as a result of the recent market turbulence? Since you didn't mention any, it sounds like your AA is about right and you are in good shape to handle the emotional impacts of market ups and downs.

MB

 

[NotReady4Purple]

I'm not too worried about the recent news effecting my retirement income. (Although having written that, I feel like I need to knock-wood or do whatever activity is meant to prevent the gods from striking hubris.)

Anyhow, I was FI years ago - by my calculations, so a reset of a few years of portfolio growth while not fun to watch will not be a major issue. In fact, I am antcipating getting tighter with $ than I actually need to as a short-term reaction to not having a paycheck. I'm countering that by making travel plans now.

 

[Midpack]

I'm not too worried about the recent news effecting my retirement income. (Although having written that, I feel like I need to knock-wood or do whatever activity is meant to prevent the gods from striking hubris.)

Anyhow, I was FI years ago - by my calculations, so a reset of a few years of portfolio growth while not fun to watch will not be a major issue. In fact, I am antcipating getting tighter with $ than I actually need to as a short-term reaction to not having a paycheck. I'm countering that by making travel plans now.

Congratulations on your plans, health care insurance is a big factor for all of us but you have that covered. We hope you enjoy this next chapter in your journey and look forward to hearing from you on the other side. Good for you!

 

[CuppaJoe]

Cool, congratulations! And at 55 you probably are still not ready 4 purple, I think that starts at age 70.

My concern also was health insurance but more that I'm happy I will be able to continue on the same plan I had from work; even though I pay a lot for it, I wouldn't be insurable otherwise.

How much notice do you plan to give?

 

[NotReady4Purple]

How much notice do you plan to give?

My plan at 6 months pre-ER was to give 2 months notice. One month for them to find a replacement and one to train that person.

However at 4 months to ER, I was asked to take on an additional new assignment with a new team of folks added to my responsibilities. Since I wasn't comfortable accepting that without being open to the management team making the request, I revealed my plans then to my manager and his. At that time, I said it was likely but not definite that I would retire in late November. That took them by surprise. However, they stated that they still wanted me to take on the new task, even if just for that period of time, and we discussed the ways to minimize the impact on the new team of folks.


This week, I plan to spell out my departure schedule. In order to be effective at my job (R&D - working on things that are 2-4 years from fruition), I need to my plans from my peers and reports - for at least a month more.

It'll get interesting when we start interviewing for my replacement. (A task I will be participating in.)

Oh and my name comes from my reaction to this poem:


When I Am an Old Woman

When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn't go and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I am tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people's gardens
And learn to spit.
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and a pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We will have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old and start to wear purple.

By Jenny Joseph, Trenton NJ



So I'm not ready for purple yet.... but I'm thinking about it. .

 

[Nords]

Congratulations again, NR4P. It'll be interesting to see how management treats you now, and how quickly the word spreads among your co-workers.

We have one grown son, who is now off the family paycheck - college completed and well-set up.

As a parent of a high-school junior, I'm curious-- what do you feel are the biggest factors leading to your son's successful launch from the nest? Any concerns about boomerangs?

 

[NotReady4Purple]

As a parent of a high-school junior, I'm curious-- what do you feel are the biggest factors leading to your son's successful launch from the nest? Any concerns about boomerangs?

My son graduated without debt from college. We had provided him a fund adequate for the four years and he actually supplemented that with multiple merit scholarships. He had an outstanding undergraduate record and is now attending graduate school on 2 US government fellowships (NSF, NDSEG) which will fund him for the 5 years it is expected to take. By the end of the 5 years the residuals of his college fund will be a fine financial cushion for him. As much as it makes me sad to say, I don't think we'll ever have him living at home again - maybe not even in the state.

So, the biggest factors I see are early funding of his college account (we started when he was born) and and his own intelligence and work ethic.

 

[Finance Dave]

Sounds like you've managed the notification well. As far as my beliefs, I think I have an obligation to allow them time to replace me, but at the same time realizing I'm not irreplaceable (I know some people who do a routine job and think the company can't function without them ).

Hope things go well the next few months!

 

[Nords]

By the end of the 5 years the residuals of his college fund will be a fine financial cushion for him. As much as it makes me sad to say, I don't think we'll ever have him living at home again - maybe not even in the state.
So, the biggest factors I see are early funding of his college account (we started when he was born) and and his own intelligence and work ethic.

Thanks... it's nice to see good parenting rewarded for a change...

 

[NotReady4Purple]

I'm not too worried about the recent news effecting my retirement income. (Although having written that, I feel like I need to knock-wood or do whatever activity is meant to prevent the gods from striking hubris.)

OK - I clearly shouldn't have mentioned the gods or hubris! Things really tanked after I wrote that.

Anyhow - after hunkering down through the past days, we reviewed our portfoio status this weekend and I am still on track for retirement - in 6 weeks.

I'll try not to antagonize the market gods again.

 

[BluesWannabe]

OK - I clearly shouldn't have mentioned the gods or hubris! Things really tanked after I wrote that.

Finally! A clear explanation for events in the market the last few weeks!!

 

[deaneditor]

Hello, NotReady4Purple,
Come on in, the water's fine. I became a Red Hatter and wear purple with a huge garden-party outrageous hat and love every minute of it. Their idea is to have all the fun they missed when they were too busy earlier in life. My group has run out of new places to go, so when we move I will start a new group.

Since the men don't have a similar group, I learned of a retired group of men calling themselves The Pink Shirts. Same idea, and they do wear pink shirts. It started because two of the men in the retirement community liked to wear pink shirts, and the other men ribbed them. Retired people can wear what they jolly well please!

Now all we need is a similar group for couples. Orange and green? Black and yellow?
What kind of outfits would be glaringly outstanding?

Keep that retirement goal at the front of your mind. It's the best feeling you can feel as you wind down (as if they will let you wind down) at the salt mine. And do smash your alarm clock in a ceremony when you are no longer a slave to it.

I have a voodoo doll I stick pins in when the market displeases me. Makes me feel powerful. Hope it works for all of us. You knock on wood, I'll stick pins. Who else on here is coping with the roller coaster?

 

[NotReady4Purple]

Four weeks out now.

Today, I signed the official letter of resignation. Boy that felt significant!

Word is now out -and I've gotten a variety of re-actions from my co-workers. First, everyone has been surprised (I look younger than my age, apparently).

In addition to "I'm jealous", I've also been hearing a lot of "Congratulations". I don't know why - but that took me by surprise. Another interesting reaction was "I'm glad to know that retirement is still possible."

Several folks have asked "Even now, with the stock market tanking?" kind of questions.

I'm also getting a lot of questions from folks in their early 50's who haven't been keeping up with corporate benefit changes. They have much more specific questions, and I've been able to tell them positive things that they didn't know.

As it becomes more real, I have found myself having to beat back brief moments of doubt. I come here for reassurance. And then I start grinning again.

 

[deaneditor]

Wild congratulations and huzzahs! Tarradiddles and rooty-toots. Brass bands and more brass bands. You made it happen! Thanks for helping educate your co-workers too. I remember that once I left Social Security and people cried. They cried because they wanted to leave so badly, and they couldn't. It still bothers me.

If we only live once, we should be able to be happy at least part of our lives. Keep us posted on your progress, your celebrations, how you are helping the workers left behind.... and again, CONGRATULATIONS.

 

[SarahW]

Congrats, NotReady!

 

[NotReady4Purple]

Two weeks and the countdown continues!

The transition at work is continuing. I've multiple people identified to pick up the work I've been doing, so I'm training them while continuing to work at some of the tasks and handing off others. It's interesting to watch myself and others trying to navigate during this time -as each day changes how much I am responsible for things and how much I am just a consultant.

The individual days are going very slowly - and I really wanted yesterday to be Friday, but overall these last 2 weeks have gone by very quickly. I think the next two will fly by too.

I've been spending a little time each day cleaning through my office - and trying to take personal things home a bit at a time - without turing my cube into an impersonal space too soon. (Now I have to figure out what to do with that stuff at home. )

 

[harley]

I've been spending a little time each day cleaning through my office - and trying to take personal things home a bit at a time - without turing my cube into an impersonal space too soon. (Now I have to figure out what to do with that stuff at home. )

Congratulations! Good luck with the last few weeks.

Just fyi, I retired a litle over 2 years ago. All that personal stuff, important manuals, books, and desk junk is still in boxes in the garage. Hasn't been touched. I'm planning on getting rid of 90% of it when we work on the garage this winter. My advice - be ruthless! Throw stuff away.

 

[Khan]

Congratulations! Good luck with the last few weeks.

Just fyi, I retired a litle over 2 years ago. All that personal stuff, important manuals, books, and desk junk is still in boxes in the garage. Hasn't been touched. I'm planning on getting rid of 90% of it when we work on the garage this winter. My advice - be ruthless! Throw stuff away.

I retired almost 4 years ago; 2 unopened boxes from work sitting in the spare bedroom.

 

[Achiever51]

I retired almost 4 years ago; 2 unopened boxes from work sitting in the spare bedroom.

It's been almost two years for me...and just last week, I finally opened my two boxes in the spare bedroom closet and tossed about 90% of the contents of those boxes!

Congratulations on your upcoming retirement. In the current economic environment, I think we all are a little wary about the next shoe to drop, but it sounds like you have a good plan in place. Welcome to the forum!

 

[NotReady4Purple]

That's good advice on not bringing much home. It's hard, though, as they are memorabilia as well as in someway a measure of my accomplishments.

 

[NotReady4Purple]

This is it - my last day! I'm currently cleaning my desk (literally - it's dusty). They are throwing me a party this afternoon and then I will be done.

Whoo hoo! I will post again after a few weeks and let you know if this has sunk in yet.

Thanks for all the information and encouragement from this site. I've had some doubtful moments when I needed to see that others are happy doing what I've envisioned.

I feel like I'm back in grade school at the last day before summer vacation.

Grinning uncontrollably.

 

[WB52]

NRFP,
Let me add my congratulations as well. It is so encouraging for those of us that are still working toward FIRE to read about your success and almost feel the excitement in a near real-time manor.
I'd love to read of your impressions about ER during your first few weeks and months. Please keep those posts comming.
Regards, W-B.

 

[REWahoo]

Grinning uncontrollably.

Yeah, the only bad thing about retiring is you have lot of trouble with uncontrollable facial expressions at the most inappropriate times. But not to worry, after a few months the problem will begin to gradually improve.