Interesting

I'm retired for just about 1 1/2 years now.  I made the adjustment from work life instantly.

it seems to me that when you retire, it's like unpacking a a very well packed box.  When you try to put the stuff back in, it doesn't fit.  In my mind, it was stress that compressed everything to fit.  I started my model railroad after I retired.  It was out of the question while i was still working.

John C

Retirement

For the first six months I was lost.  I felt like I had lost my identity.  I didn't know what to do with myself.  I cataloged my extensive music collection.  I cataloged my extensive video collection.  I watched WAY to many episodes of Bewitched and I dream of genie.  I even cleaned the oven.  I was so bored that I started a part time business which I ran for ten years.

Then I decided to build a little more real estate for the grandchildren's Thomas the Tank Engine.  Now I don't know how I found the time to go to work and the miniature empire fills my two car garage..

My wife, on the other hand, took about two weeks to adjust when she retired.

Retirement

Where do I begin. I was begging for 5 years for my employer to give me a package. Finally got it in August 2007. My adjustment was complete before I pulled out of the parking lot. I always thought of my job as a means to provide for my family; no more, no less. I haven't missed it for one minute. My wife and I have been so busy it sometimes gets to be too much. We live out of suitcases half the time and reach the point where we tell people we are staying home. In the first 3 months I bought a truck, and a boat to tow behind it. I fish when it's warm and model railroad when it's cold. There was an advertisement in a magazine showing a guy on his bass boat having the time of his life, as people are commuting to work. Now I'm the guy in the boat and life is beautiful. I always say that my worst day of fishing is better than the best day I ever had at work. My wife says retirement is twice as much husband with half as much money. If you don't enjoy retirement, you're not doing it right.

Glenn

Retirement

I took an early retirement at the end of June. Haven't missed work one bit! I seem to be really busy but nothing actually gets done! Projects around the house haven't been finished and all those Model Railroad projects not even started yet. I should really be going back to work part time to earn some extra money, I could use with a new car, but I have no desire to go back to working, maybe as the winter progress I might feel differently!

Like Peter said, I have trouble figuring out how I used to go to work and find time to do all these other things!

Brent

Busy busy, but enjoying every minute

Since I retired 2 1/2 years ago, I have been too busy.  The first 4 months were spent moving and selling the house.  Since then I seem to have stuff to do every day, I have trouble fitting model railroading in. 

But Iike others, I haven't missed work at all.  I was a software developer which I loved doing, but the last 4 years had become all meetings and paperwork with a lot of unreasonable deadline stress and a long commute.  I felt like a great weight was lifted the day I retired. 

Paul

Ready Now...

I'm ready now...though I reckon I have another 30 to go before I can even Think about doing it!!

There's no end to what I can do to keep myself busy...

Wishful thinking

I am fortunate to have a job that I absolutely LOVE.  Period.  Hands down.  I often tell my kids that if they find a job they love and are passionate about, they'll not have to work a day in their lives. I only work 3 nights a week (3x12) so I have a lot of time during the week to flight instruct, model, whatever.

That said, if I had all my ducks lined up financially (I don't) and more debt paid down (getting there)....I wouldn't balk for a second.  I have enough stuff to do away from work that I'm confident I will slip right into retirement.

A mere 15 years (barring winning the lotto) ought to do it.

One can dream though.....

It ain't easy

So far retirement hasn't been easy, day 5 now and I still have to attend at my farewell party tomorrow, then a short break in a nice small hotel just over the border.

Don't ask me how it's possible, but in these 5 days I've done way less work on the F&B RR than I'd put in during 5 'normal working' days ...

After the break a Major Clean Up is on top of the job list, I'm curious to see what I've dragged into the hobby room over the years ))

cheers, Leo.

BTW: Am I the only one that has to buy 3 times the usual amount of coffee now at the supermarket ???

Fuzzflyr: Can I infer what

Fuzzflyr:

Can I infer what your name seems to indicate about your career?

  I retired last Dec 31st,

I retired last Dec 31st, after 33 years with IBM.  I really loved my job, but I was at the point that I was financially secure - It was time to find something else in life.  Never regretted making the decision.

I still have occasional 'dreams' about work related stuff.  Nothing bad, but I wake up and after a few minute I thin 'I don't have to do that - I am Retired'!

I have gotten a lot more yard related stuff done, and ALL of my train stuff is organized.....

Jim

same here

I have a recurring...........

........dream about retirement, where I was retired but I kept going in to work anyway!  I would constantly tell people that I was retired and was not getting paid to be there and they kept asking me why don't you go home?  Each time I have this dream (nightmare?) it ends with me saying I'm not coming back tomorrow but the next time I dream it,  I'm back at work again!  What's with that??? 

Actually I think it has to do with the fact that I could have left 2 years sooner at age 60 and all my pals told me you're an idiot as you're working for free.  I didn't believe them but when I did finally go and my 2 pensions kicked in-they were right!!  I was getting paid within about $100/month as when I was working.  Saved that in gas! 

Obviously, I was underpaid.

Peter

Ways to retirement ...

Either you

• convince yourself you have enuf $$$ and leave voluntarily
• get laid off and can't find another job

If you can afford it (or don't have anything else to do) I highly recommend retirement to model railroaders or anyone with lots of other stuff to do. If your work was your life and you haven't developed any other interests, retirement can be hard.

I was going to retire but the guy who laid me off 4 years ago called two weeks later with an offer I wasn't able to refuse.

Funny thing though, After another 4 months in the hi-tech pressure cooker retirement is looking pretty darn attractive again.

Charlie

Way to Retirement

Parting Gift

Nice gift made by the young uns  at work;

Wonder who recognizes what it is

And it works as well, even when coated in about 20 lbs of milk chocolate !

cheers, Leo

Looks like.....

a cake fashioned into a telegraph thingy.

John C

No cake

but a LOT of fine chocolate and a working telegraph key John  

The good ol' key, just as essential as the steam locomotive to get and keep things moving before the diesels and trucks took over ...

cheers, Leo

Like some others here have said...

I took a package last February and retired after 37 years in my industry. I'm in my 50's. Have never looked back from the day I packed up my office. I always considered myself a professional businessman but now I consider myself a "professional modeler" with one demanding client...me!  Instead of, maybe if lucky, working 6 to 8 hours a week on my layout prior to "pulling the pin" I now spend 3 to 4 times that during an average week (when I'm not doing chores for my wife!). Model railroading has been a life long hobby for me, thanks to my father getting me involved at a very young age. I can't imagine being retired without a great hobby like ours. As one guy who had been retired for a while and had no real hobbies once told me: "You can only play so much golf!" 

retirement

The comments being made here are encouraging. As I have mentioned before I received involuntary retirement after 37 years with the company. It has been really difficult to deal with and no employment prospects. We weren't really financially ready but we have been careful and are doing ok. I really hated that job but it was really good pay.

You all have made me realize that I am doing what I want. If I was able to do whatever I wanted when I was working I would have quit and spent all my time on the layout. Well that's what I am doing. I don't know what people do who have no interests. I am always busy and making progress. The 421ft mainline is done and scenery is moving forward. Our 34 th op session is this Friday. I go to bed when I want and get up when I want and my health has never been better.

If you can think about retirement since life is about living.

Retirement

To All: I retired in 2008 at 62 years of age. I was a carpenter/painter for 43 years doing mostly remodeling, roofing, additions, etc. I really loved the work and am proud of my accomplishments (over 500 jobs in those years) and I can point to some premium work I have done. But I DO NOT miss it and have not looked back! I have not picked up a hammer in four years! I am now a full time modeler for myself and others and do part time work in warehousing. I tell you what, I am never bored. Yours, Elvin Howlan/E.St.Louis Rail Group Layout

Semi-retired... sort of...

Five years ago we sold our house, I sold my truck and went back to driving a company truck - 18 wheel tanker. The wife closed out her home health care business and went back to being a nursing supervisor. I'm 66 she's 50-something... Getting out of "business" was like retiring. I still drive a truck because I enjoy it, it pays well, and I have enough seniority - #1 on the list - I can sort of pick and choose what I want to do. I do mostly Texas and Louisiana, but sometimes I like to hit the road for a week or so. I got my cataracts fixed earlier this year so now I don't have to stop and go back to see what I ran over... now I can see what I'm fixin' to run over... Doc said I'm good for another 10 years or so... 

Seriously, I'm looking at getting out of the truck next June. I do have an academic background in history - I was teaching history before I went to driving a truck many years ago - so I may do some volunteer work at one of the local museums  or maybe teach an adult education class or two. I can only work on the layout so much...

My respect and congratulations to those of you who can just "pull the plug."

Retirement

The day I turned 65 I was outta there. As a matter of fact it wasn't too much after midnight that I had shared the retirement pizzas with my crew and had made the rounds of the control rooms I thought "What am I doing here?" I filled out my timecard, packed up my things and headed out the gate.

It took a time of dreaming I was still working but upon awaking I knew it wasn't true. Since then I have thought about going back to work somewhere, but if I sit down, have a cup of coffee, the feeling goes away! A little over a year ago we were given a 14'  X 70' used mobile home. I used up some time gutting it, rewiring, removing windows, replacing others and am now ready to sheetrock it. Part of it is going to the CEO's sewing and e-bay business and the remainder is for our layout. You see she likes railroads also. I mentioned using a portion of her changing room for a larger staging room and she said a enthusiastic YES!  Now I have to revise one end of the layout for the expansion. Everybody say "AWWww". lol

Once the sheetrock goes up and some other necessary details are taken care of, the bench work will start. 

Oh yeah, work? Ain't a'gonna happen!  The dreams? They are of small trains now. 

Don't pass up retirement if you can!

Happy rails to you!

It took me 2 seconds

Retirement

I'm planning on retiring next April or May. I'll be 63 in June. I've been working for the airline for 35 years and seen a major strike, 3 mergers/name changes and an unbelievable amount of chicken sh** and stress. I can hardly wait to be gone and I'm pretty certain I won't miss airplanes at all. Hopefully between being close to the grandkids, building the new house and my dream version of the Western Maryland Ry. Thomas Sub I won't have time to even think of all the crap I've had to endure to get to this point in my life. Best of all though................I'll FINALLY be able to leave the Houston area and live in the good old USA again! LOL

Roger Huber