Do you get the right amount of "alone time" in your life?
No, but I've learned to adapt to a tolerable arrangement. Doing it all over, I would have done it differently. Having said that, it's taken a long time to "know" myself and my own needs for space/time.
Would you like more time alone, or less? How much do you have right now?
If anything, it would be more alone time, not less. I have very little truly alone time - see below. Our actual "interaction" time is relatively limited and has led to conflict (on her part).
Do you live alone?
Nope. DW and I married for 40 years. Raised 3 kids (long story, very short, not our own.)
And if you live with a spouse or SO, have you made any special arrangements to allow for enough alone time for both?
We've had several iterations of the "yours" "mine" and "our" space and time.
When we had the kids, I had a cave with a door/lock. With a firearm in the house (at that time) it was mandatory for safety (and, as it turns out, all of our sanity). Now that we have downsized to 2 BR/LR/Lanai, I have a "Les Nessman" office area.
Do you have a large house?
Over 40 years stretch -
House 1 - 1500 SF 3BR no kids
House 2 - 1000 SF 1BR no kids
House 3 - 2750 SF 4BR/w cave 3 kids
House 4 - 1300 SF 1BR/w cave no kids
House 5 - 1300 SF 3BR no kids
House 6 - 1100 SF 2BR no kids
Do you have separate parts of the house that provide areas where you can be alone, like a workshop or sewing room, or even separate living areas?
Or is your house just so large that you could get lost in it so alone time just isn't an issue?
Current place is set up so that we could have a den, but I'm getting vibes that she doesn't want me in a cave anymore. I could insist, but our compromise has been the "Les Nessman" office in the middle of the LR. I don't consider this ideal and it may change, but we're working on our marriage (hey, with 40 years, we've gotten some of it right!) and this is a compromise I'm making right now.
Are you newly retired and virtually tripping over one another?
Retired almost 5 years (she about 8) and we've rarely tripped over each other, but we've had to learn the hard way what works and what doesn't, space/time wise.
Or do you prefer to be together a lot, always, or even nearly joined at the hip?
She would prefer more time together (as in doing mutual activities together, talking more, interacting more). That has been her half of the compromise. She gives me "space" to be "alone" even though we are 10 feet apart and in sight of each other.
Tell me all about your thoughts on your "alone time". Are you lonely at the present moment in your life, or do you feel more like Garbo:
I miss the days when I w*rked and my company sent me off to someplace for a week or two on assignment. I could be so alone that I might actually get lonely, eventually. I loved it. I had a couple of assignments in NYC which were perhaps the most enjoyable times of my life. I got utterly caught up in the "aloneness" of being alone in a throng of people. It recharged my batteries and I was actually glad to get back home - after 2 weeks of being alone. Crazy? You tell me. I've missed that more than any other thing about my old j*b. I miss the folks I worked with, but not as much as the few times a year I could actually get lonely. I've considered suggesting some separate vacations, but I know that would be hurtful, so I'm looking toward 50 years of marriage instead.