Tag: Retirement

Retirement Paradise

Pismo Beach retired-and-the-livings-easy

As I review the options I am horrified.  The reason is that most of us do not have the funds needed to live the same lives we lived when we were employed.  Social Security in the United States provides an average of $1,230 per month.  The Maximum Social Security Benefit for a Worker Retiring at Full Retirement Age is $2,513 per month.  So even if both spouses are eligible for the maximum benefit, an unlikely occurrence, the benefit would be $5,026 per month.  You have to save significant amounts to impact your retirement income.  I knew about the need to save a long time ago.  Feeding the family, paying the mortgage, and all the other bills just made this a difficult assignment to fulfill.

Then I read “Baby boomers’ mobile-home paradise” in The Week magazine.  I found this article depressing.  Most of these people are poor.  They have little to do to occupy their time.  How many times can you walk on the beach?  Pismo Beach is in a particularly bad spot in terms of warm days.  Every time we stop there on the way to San   Francisco the sky is overcast or it’s a sunny but very windy day.

Laguna Woods home

When my parents moved into Leisure World in Orange County, California (now called Laguna Woods) they at least had the money to enjoy their retired years.  That community has literally dozens of clubs and groups for a variety of interests.  The sad reality is that most people are not as fortunate as they were.  They accumulated the money by living in poor working class neighborhoods all of their working years.  When I grew up we shopped at Sears and JC Penney’s. Cars were driven until their next destination was the junk yard.

All retirement communities have two things in common – 1) you are surrounded by people at least your age and 2) your next move is to the grave yard.

As long as I am able to drive my car I believe I would be better off remaining in my home.  Mostly, it’s paid for.  I know the neighborhood.  I have easy access to shopping, doctors, and educational opportunities.  When I can’t drive a car I might consider Leisure World.  It’s expensive but I can’t take my money with me.

Life After Retirement

Huell Howser passed away last night. He was the homespun host of public television’s popular California’s Gold travelogues.   He obviously enjoyed producing the programs he presented.  I actually found his presentations irritating because of the corny dialog he used.  He wrote it and he enjoyed presenting it.  He retired in November 2012.

Howser is not the first well known and widely loved personality to die shortly after retiring.  Andy Rooney was the ever loved curmudgeon who ended every 60 Minutes program with some silly but interesting observations. He died within a few weeks of his retirement.  Remember Edgar Bergen the ventriloquist?  He was the father of Candice Bergen.  He too died within weeks of his retirement.  I am sure there are other well known people who died shortly after retirement.

Still, I know some veterans of WWII that are alive and well who drive cars, play cards,  argue about everything, watch television, and are living happily ever after.

So my question is: does being in the lime light impact your life after retirement or is it that those who really love their jobs face an early death upon retirement?

I believe it’s the latter.  My own father worked until the age of 70.  He would have worked even longer if his employer had not said “We think it’s time you retired.”  He was not a happily retired man.  He struggled finding things to do.  He lived 16 years after he retired.

I on the other hand never loved any of my work.  It was work not fun.  I do not miss getting up at 5:30am.  I do not miss angry bosses.  Actually my son was 18 when he said, “You have hated every job you ever had.”  Wow! That hurt but it was true.

So since I have no regrets about not working maybe I will live to 100.  I hope so!