Introduce yourself here!

[Howard]

I retired (?) at 54, thanks to TYCO(Taking Your Company Over), and made the decision to move from a very large city to an area that, although close to large cities, is basically Rural but offfers the total range of Recreational Opportunities, from hiking to Fishing to Skiing to Golf, etc, or I can just watch the Birds.

Days are spent in long walks with my Dog, in Winter there is always the necessary snow removal before I take off Snow Shoeing or whatever.

We bought a small lot. built a Bungalow, the only downside is that We have been discovered and building has exploded, and quiet roads are now getting busy.

Winter is long, but 2 weeks of shopping in Florida is about as much a we can take, so we endure the snow, but Spring and Baseball is never far away.

 

[Zipper]

Welcome aboard Howard.

You'll soon find that this site is light years ahead of the the old (and soon extinct) TWB. This place has zero tolerance for trolls so our old nemesis AJ has never surfaced.

I can thank Norbert for steering me here a couple of years ago.

We finally got a killing frost in London this week. It does seem to be coming later every year.

Best wishes to Mrs. Howard. Is she still a nurse at the Hospital?

 

[Howard]

Thanks for the welcome Zipper, yes, she is still working but will cut back in the New Year(she says) and permanently call it quits at the end of '06.

The way the Hospital is structured there are times when she works over 15 hours straight and being almost 60, she no longer has the energy.

The problem is that there are no young Nurses, they have now made a 4 year degree Manadatory which shuts out most Foreign Trained, a major source before, plus todays young Females are opting for other opportunities.

We have bought a new dog , a Yorkie, and as much fun as he is, it is like having a kid move back home.

 

[lloyds]

Hello, Lloyd here. I am brand new to this site. I have spent 40 years in engineering/construction and have thought about retirement from day 1. But after ending a 36 year marriage I find myself starting over. I am 59. I will retire at 65, no matter what. I have social security, and will get a small pension from the state agency I work for, and some return from whatever I can put away in the next six years. Where I will retire also holds a lot of interest for me. I know I have to go somewhere tax friendly. I re-married four months ago to a great lady that is a teacher, but chooses to work part time as a substitute, and coaches youth programs in the summer. So she will help as well. Right now we are leaning toward purchasing a slightly larger boat at retirement and spending a few years trailering it around the country with a pickup and camper, living most of the time on the boat. The "great circle" cruise on the east coast sounds very interesting. I am looking forward to spending some more time on this site, getting to know some of you, and picking out whatever nuggets come my way.

 

[Martha]

Welcome to the board, Howard and Lloyd. Lloyd, when looking for tax friendly states you might not know that some states that have income taxes nevertheless don't tax social security and pension income. One place to look at tax burdens by state is http://www.retirementliving.com/RLtaxes.html.

 

[AltaRed]

Welcome Howard. I, like Zipper, have been here for awhile. You will enjoy this Forum.

 

[lloyds]

Martha, thanks for the link, it was very informative.

 

[bharden]

Hi All,

My name is Brian....been lurking here for about 2 years which got the creative juices flowing. Did a semi-retirement last May along with my wife and we both are enjoying our 3 day work week now. Its not retirement but its the best we can do for now and its not that bad. Still have insurance, still saving some and lifestyle has not digressed at all. No real debt and 100 Ac. farm to work and play on. The farm defines us as its an escape from any pressures and what we base our future on. Our assets are not sufficent for a full retirement at this point but at 53, we may have a few good years left in us. All of you guys are a wealth of knowledge and I want to thank everyone for sharing your experience and history which made me realize I could do this. Brian

 

[Nords]

All of you guys are a wealth of knowledge and I want to thank everyone for sharing your experience and history which made me realize I could do this.  Brian

Welcome back, Brian. Thanks & glad to hear it, but in two years of lurking you must have read it all!

 

[catrore]

Hello all! I am catrore and I am retired recently!

I have been retired for about 14 months. I am a victim of Hurricane Katrina and lost everything I had including a house and two cars! Formerly of Slidell, Louisiana and now transplanted in Ohio. My wife and I are trying to recover from the traumatic experiences of the hurricane. I am new to this bulletin board business, but hope to gain some insight from others about how to survive in retirement.Our lives were changed forever in a matter of hours and now we are trying to figure things out. I am wondering just how to "start over" after starting over in retirement? Any insight would be helpful.

catrore

 

[Billy]

Dear catrore,

Let me first say I'm sorry for all that you lost! What an emotional and unexpected ordeal to go through.

You did not mention if you have savings at all, if you are receiving a pension or income, and you do not mention your age, if you have children to support in any way, or if you expect to receive anything from your insurance or FEMA.... or if you are living hand to mouth, have outstanding loans and so on... 

I would suggest for you to first, clear your head, get things down on paper.

Listing any positives in any way would be helpful. -- sources of income are good, but if you don't have any of those, surely you have talents, interests and abilities. List those. List friends you have, and people you know. Know your strengths and abilities, and think about how they can translate from 'what you used to do' to where you are now.

Next, check out your public libraries, Multi-generational community centers, bookstores, college student centers, Intergenerational program venues, Municipal community meeting spaces, etc., and see what is going on in your area in which you can contribute in any positive fashion.  This will fortify your sense of self worth, and may lead to other opportunities. When people see you as willing to contribute, they will value you.

Is there any way you can tell your story in an engaging manner to anyone in order to help others? Sometimes bookstores have speakers, or retirement organizations, or local TV or radio.  Since you say you have nothing left, then there is nothing left to lose. Take a chance. Do something you never would have done before.


Go online and check places where you can trade part time work for rent - like RV parks, Campgrounds, or house sitting places all over the world. Take care of their pets, farm animals or plants. This will cut your infrastructure costs considerably and bring you into contact with the new.

Basically, get out of your fear, and into action.  Continuously build up your "Can Do/Positive List" and move forward.

Something has shaken you out of the 'old' and now it's up to you to make the most of it. Please do, and feel confident. You can do it!

The best of luck. Let us know how you are getting along.

Akaisha
Author, The Adventurer's Guide to Early Retirement
www.RetireEarlyLifestyle.com

 

[JPatrick]

Hey Catrove, welcome to the board.  I wish the circumstances were different and I'm sure you do too.
There's a great deal of knowledge here (including a fellow survivor in Unclemick) so just about anything you toss out will likely be met by ideas or solutions. 
I think for us to help you, you've got to figure out what your priorities are, whether it's food, red tape, employment, or anything else. Let us know what the specific issue/s are, what you would like to do about it, what your ideas are to fix it.  If you are out of ideas or need more someone here can likely help.
Let us hear from you with some specifics.

 

[tiredofwork]

Re: Hello all! I am catrore and I am retired recently!

I have been retired for about 14 months. I am a victim of Hurricane Katrina and lost everything I had including a house and two cars! Formerly of Slidell, Louisiana and now transplanted in Ohio. My wife and I are trying to recover from the traumatic experiences of the hurricane. I am new to this bulletin board business, but hope to gain some insight from others about how to survive in retirement.Our lives were changed forever in a matter of hours and now we are trying to figure things out. I am wondering just how to "start over" after starting over in retirement? Any insight would be helpful.

catrore

I've been in FL since 1988. Have been through Andrew, Irene, Frances, Jeanne, and this year Wilma. Have been fortunate not to have had significant loss, but each new hurricane season is a source of stress. Many retire to FL, I'm considering retiring out of FL -- perhaps to TN.

Hope between FEMA and insurance you didn't take too much of a hit on your finances.

 

[Retire Soon]

I've been lurking for about a year and must say that I've learned a lot from your board.  Your recommended books and FireCalc have also been extremely helpful.

I'll be retiring in June at the age of 55 and will be receiving by a pension with a COLA.  My wife will retire at the same time, and we'll both have health insurance coverage paid for by my school district until we're 65.

For the past six months, I've been keeping itemized records of what we're spending on the advice given in "Your Money or Your Life."  We've changed our portfolio allocation with help from "The Four Pillars of Investing."  Several of your other recommended books have been very helpful.

Based on calculations from both FireCalc and Financial Engines we will have a 95% success of being able to live on $58,000 a year.  We purchased a home in Oregon a year and a half ago and have it rented out.  We were able to pay cash for this home by refinancing our California home at my wife's credit union.  When we sell our house in June, our property manager will give our tenants a 30 day notice that we need our house.

By having our Oregon home paid for and no car payments,  a pension with a COLA and keeping a 4% withdawal rate on our taxable and tax deferred savings, we're confident  we'll be able to make it financially.

I'll have to admit that I'm a little apprehensive about the future. I could actually double my teachers' pension by working another 5 years. Moving from San Diego to Bend, Oregon will be a major climactic change. A large mortgage on our California home precludes us from going the rental route.  The negative cash flow would mean we would not have enough to live on.

I really appreciate  the insight from Early Retirement Forum.  You provide a valuable service to people who dream of FIRE. By the way,  I'll let you know when the day finally comes when I walk into our personnel office and sign their irrevocable resignation agreement.

Retire Soon
   

 

[Nords]

Welcome to the board, RS. Sounds like you have a great plan and plenty of room to make it work.

If I couldn't live here then I'd live in San Diego. However I doubt you'll miss the "June Gloom". But Oregon must have its share of nice days, too, although they all probably come with humidity.

 

[Retire Soon]

Bend, Oregon is east of the Cascade Mountains, so most severe weather is blocked out.  There are nearly as many sunny days in Bend  as there are in San Diego.  The  elevation is around 3,600. The most common weather pattern includes low humidity with cool nights.  Located in the high desert, there is an average of a little more than 10 inches of precipitation a year.

 

[yakers]

RS,
sounds like you have a good plan. We are in a somewhat similar situation. My wife will retire at 58 in June 06 as a teacher. She only has 20 yrs with CALSTERS so only a small partially COLAd pension. I could retire now as I am 55 w/30+ years in the Federal Govt. We have no debt and saved a bit in various deffered compensation plans. But we still have one son at home i high school. So we hope to bail in 1 1/2 years when he goes to college. Fortunately I like my work. We had planned to sell our house in Pasadena CA and move to the Morro Bay area but our older son now has produced our first grandchild and my wife has changed all our well made plans to live closer to them.

Anyway, I hope you will keep posting on your retirement/life progress.

 

[Retire Soon]

Your family will have it made in the shade in a year and a half. Two government pensions will offer a ton of security. Pasedena is a beautiful area with lots of sun.

 

[starwarrior]

retired Aug 1/05. I had a darn good feeling that retirement was going to be good, but I never expected it to be sooo good.

Each day is a no-stress day. Time is slipping by like never before. The past 5 mths are just a blur.

Where do you find all the time to chat?

 

[yakers]

Where do you find all the time to chat?

Hey, some folks have made a full time occupation out of posting here

 

[Nords]

I will be on the retirement payroll Aug 1/05. At this point I am not sure if I am happy or sad.

retired Aug 1/05. I had a darn good feeling that retirement was going to be good, but I never expected it to be sooo good.

Congratulations, SW-- I guess you've answered that question!

Another ER who discovers that the best way to learn about it is hands-on practice...

 

[Boon Mee]

Hi All,

Boon Mee here preparing to retire soon after 30 years in the oil/gas industry and going over my company's Pension Manager forms.

There's a note about 'Qualified Domestic Relations Order' (QDRO) that I do not understand. They state my estimated projected benefits do not reflect any QDRO?

Thanks for any help.

Cheers,
BM

 

[REWahoo]

Hello Boon Mee. You might want to take a look at this US Govt Department of Labor website and see what it has to say about QDRO's.

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_qdro.html

Congratulations on your pending retirement.

 

[birdinhand]

Hi Folks

I just discovered this site and I have enjoyed reading some of the threads. Needless to say, I was intrigued enough to sign in and write this post.

I live in Ottawa, Canada. I retired about 15 months ago at age of 58. My retirement was not planned, it was sort of forced on me due to restructuring of my position at work. This, however, turned out to be lot more positive than I had initially imagined.

Like most people I had feared retireement. Would I have enough? How would I keep myself busy, so on and on.

At retirement, my pension was about 60 percent of my gross income. My standard of living has not changed and I seem to have less free time than before, thanks to travel (75 days and six countries last year), gym, investments, internet and volunteer work.

I have spent last thirty two years of my life here in Ottawa, Canada. I have two grown children, well educated and financially on their own and I am very proud of their achievements and the way they have grown. I also have some family and friends scattered across US.

I look forward to making new friends here and contribute my two bits, from a canadian perspective.

 

[Dawg52]

Hi Folks

I just discovered this site  and I have enjoyed reading some of the threads. Needless to say, I was intrigued enough to sign in and write this post.

I live in Ottawa, Canada. I retired about 15 months ago at age of 58. My retirement was not planned, it was sort of forced on me due to restructuring of my position at work.  This, however, turned out to be lot more positive than I had initially imagined.

Like most people I had feared retireement. Would I have enough? How would I keep myself busy, so on and on.

At retirement, my pension was about 60 percent of my gross income. My standard of living has not changed and I seem to have less free time than before, thanks to travel (75 days and six countries last year), gym, investments, internet and volunteer work. 

I have spent last thirty two years of my life here in Ottawa, Canada. I have two grown children, well educated and financially on their own and I am very proud of their achievements and the way they have grown. I also have some family and friends scattered across US.   

I look forward to making new friends here and contribute my two bits, from a canadian perspective.

Wecolme a board good buddy! I look forward to joining you in retirement. Canada is on my travel agenda.  8)