I'm deeply sympathetic to your concerns, as I'm in a very similar situation, only about 5 years older than you - ~$340k, spending about $32k/yr, but could cut it to $25k, and very eager to get off the treadmill of work.
I don't think that either one of us can afford it yet, not without working at all, and possibly not at the jobs we want to take. For me, I can work on boats and enjoy myself, but i don't want to have to work year-round and worry if I don't have a boat for a season. I'm also wedded to a condo due to some worthwhile but restrictive financing (basically a sunsetting grant repayment - if I don't sell, after a certain time I'll never have to pay it back, so I'm attached to making the mortgage rather than downgrading).
The things that I'd look at for you are: the current job, saving $20k/yr - are you reasonably happy at this one? can you stay content for 2-3 years in it? adding $60k and getting 7% on your $340 leaves you with about $480 after 3 years. In 3 years you've dropped your withdrawal rate from 7.4% to 5.3%. If you work even part-time after than in something that you like, I think that you can make it, even if there is a tight year or two in there.
Careers are like a treadmill - once you get off, you really can't get back on without slowing it way down from where you were, and the faster/higher earning you were, the greater the difference.
6 months or a year off might be a great idea, especially if you can justify it to the job that you are coming back to in a way they appreciate - working for a volunteer organization, sailing across the ocean on someone's one-time only invitation, family estate management, long honeymoon, etc. But don't forget that putting off the last 3 years of work that you may need to do won't speed things up, even if it will help you get through them sane.
Other option would be 2 years full time and try to switch to 2 years half-time. If you're saving $20k/year, you can work half-time, live on your $25k/yr budget to practice, and not tap any of your investments. it's good practice on the high-wire while leaving yourself a safety net of income, and letting your investments grow undamaged for another 2 years. After 2 years, they should be (at 7%) growing about $30k/year. That working part-time is buying you a lot of flexibility down the road, and it hurts a lot less coming from full-time than it would coming out of retirement, and will probably pay a lot better.
Congratulations on where you've managed to get to. You're ahead in the race, you don't have to sprint to get a good finishing time, and you can see the final leg, but you're not there yet, and it's worth finishing the race.
I don't think that either one of us can afford it yet, not without working at all, and possibly not at the jobs we want to take. For me, I can work on boats and enjoy myself, but i don't want to have to work year-round and worry if I don't have a boat for a season. I'm also wedded to a condo due to some worthwhile but restrictive financing (basically a sunsetting grant repayment - if I don't sell, after a certain time I'll never have to pay it back, so I'm attached to making the mortgage rather than downgrading).
The things that I'd look at for you are: the current job, saving $20k/yr - are you reasonably happy at this one? can you stay content for 2-3 years in it? adding $60k and getting 7% on your $340 leaves you with about $480 after 3 years. In 3 years you've dropped your withdrawal rate from 7.4% to 5.3%. If you work even part-time after than in something that you like, I think that you can make it, even if there is a tight year or two in there.
Careers are like a treadmill - once you get off, you really can't get back on without slowing it way down from where you were, and the faster/higher earning you were, the greater the difference.
6 months or a year off might be a great idea, especially if you can justify it to the job that you are coming back to in a way they appreciate - working for a volunteer organization, sailing across the ocean on someone's one-time only invitation, family estate management, long honeymoon, etc. But don't forget that putting off the last 3 years of work that you may need to do won't speed things up, even if it will help you get through them sane.
Other option would be 2 years full time and try to switch to 2 years half-time. If you're saving $20k/year, you can work half-time, live on your $25k/yr budget to practice, and not tap any of your investments. it's good practice on the high-wire while leaving yourself a safety net of income, and letting your investments grow undamaged for another 2 years. After 2 years, they should be (at 7%) growing about $30k/year. That working part-time is buying you a lot of flexibility down the road, and it hurts a lot less coming from full-time than it would coming out of retirement, and will probably pay a lot better.
Congratulations on where you've managed to get to. You're ahead in the race, you don't have to sprint to get a good finishing time, and you can see the final leg, but you're not there yet, and it's worth finishing the race.