Keep calm and carry on w*rking
Welcome to the forum, and thank you for presenting a more challenging situation than some of the Easy Happy Endings we often encounter. I'll try to offer words of both encouragement and caution.
.. in regard to not providing real numbers...
that's because I am still putting together the data. Case in point: I found out last night that my ss would bring on $1300 a month, the max I could earn is $17.6 if I chose to work part time for health coverage. Remember, my mortgage (just under 1K a month) for a 1700 sq foot home (in a decent part of town) is covered since the tenant up stairs pays rent and that covers our mortgage. my full retirement age is 66 (3 years and change away)
If you're planning on earning (up to 17.6k) only for health coverage, is it accurate to interpret that as "Once I hit Medicare, I'll dump the part time w*rk and just live on SS"? You better be absolutely, positively, 100% sure that the $1300 will cover your needs.
There are some amazingly efficient folks on this board for whom that much would be ample. But karma has been known to throw curveballs. Imagine that tomorrow your tenant dies or inherits a fortune; either way he "goes to a better place". Suppose another tenant doesn't come in right away, you lose the rent on your upstairs just as you discover a termite infestation in the walls and your refrigerator wears out. How long would your savings last if your expenses doubled for a year or two?
Yesterday I decided I might play the "worst case scenario" card and see about continuing to work full time. If I plan that and find out after research that I can make it if I retire early, yippee! If not, then I will not have set myself up for failure and disappointment.
Please don't beat yourself up for facing facts when they're hard. I suspect you have a few more years to w*rk even in the
best-case-scenario. But any disappointment which accompanies that prospect should be no more than the disappointment which accompanies learning that your lottery ticket didn't win you a billion dollars.
I'm going to have to whisper this next bit (note the softer font!).
Seeing how we're on a website dedicated to the marvels of retiring early, it may sound like heresy to note that w*rking for just a few more years can be the difference between success and failure. In the long run, "early" isn't as important as "successful".
I have already heard from two employers: Direct TV (customer retention) and Ford Motor Credit (collections) and I am still over a month away from my last day at WOW internet. With regard to the second employer, I have already been in collections for 13 years...what's 3 more years? "time flies when you are having fun"..
So you've heard from them. What did they say? If it's something like "We have an immediate opening for you. 50 grand plus performance bonus and full benefits", then jump on it.
If it's "We have received your information. Thank you for your interest in our company", then send out more feelers.
We will be paying off credit card debt shortly and then it will be living expenses and eating out, splurging will be managed more tightly
Uh oh, another warning bell. You should NOT retire until you have retired the credit card debt AND made some provision to prevent racking it up again in the future. "Making provision" can mean anything from becoming fierce about budgeting to physically cutting up the cards. Whatever path works best for you is fine, but it's going to be VITAL that you avoid high-interest debt such as credit card balances (or, even worse, payday loans). Collecting interest is sublime; paying it is anathema.
as far as Photography goes, I have learned a lot from shark tank and can tell the difference between a hobby and a business but I am also grateful to others here regarding their input on that.
I read somewhere that most businesses - even the ones that end up profitable - lose money in their first two years. If you aren't already in the black on your photo business, don't count on it for your daily bread. Find a new steady paycheck and run the rat race for a few more years.
But keep posting updates here! I look forward with lively anticipation to reading about your progress.