500 days until retirement


 
ChuckO said:
You're doing pretty dang good if I don't say so myself. Live the dream because when the dream is over, most likely so's the living, LOL
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That’s the part you see today. I’m still writing my book, 50 Ways to Cook Hamburger Meat. The journey of being poor, starting a business, with a wife, 3 young children and two mortgages.

I joke that I became an overnight success after 16 years in business (current business) and was already 15 years into my professional career.

There were many, many lean times. I am grateful for every minute.
 
ChuckO said:
I had to add two years to my countdown because my son wasn't satisfied with a Bachelors, he wanted his Masters. Have to admit it wasn't a bad move on his part, my daughter is a BSN (Bachelors Registered Nurse) she started at a buck twenty five, he's a MSN (Masters Registered Nurse) he started at a buck seventy five
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Very worthwhile results here too. Definitely worth another 4 years of work. After earning 2 BAs, our youngest worked her way through her MPH (Master Int'l Public Health) and her Doctorate in Public Health, which she'll officially have in another couple of months, without student loans. Also, just accepted a generous 6 figure offer from a prestigious University in the Chicago area. Very proud papa here.
 
Brett-EDH said:
That’s the part you see today. I’m still writing my book, 50 Ways to Cook Hamburger Meat. The journey of being poor, starting a business, with a wife, 3 young children and two mortgages.

I joke that I became an overnight success after 16 years in business (current business) and was already 15 years into my professional career.

There were many, many lean times. I am grateful for every minute.
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When I figured I had 10 more years to work I found a financial planner and made sure I had no bills other than normal expenses When I pulled the plug.
 
Ed P said:
That's actually kind of funny!

EDIT: well, now I'm not so sure. Did you mean it to be funny? It has kind of a wry sense of humor about it. I meant no disrespect, but for the self-employed people I have known, it's a 24/7 gig.
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Good catch, I read it too but it’s meaning only caught on after you mentioned it. It’s true, I’ve worked small businesses all my life and it’s 24/7 for the Principles
 
Interesting retirement stories. Me & my dad owned a heavy dirt moving construction outfit in the four corners mtn states area for 25 years. During the great Bush crash of 2008 the bottom fell out of the industry. Sold all of our heavy equipment at top dollar, 30 days later it was not worth half that. I was 51 years old at that time. Walked off & never went back to work for a paying job again. I'm 65 now. You bet its called living the good life.
Cheers,
Russ
 
Ed P said:
That's actually kind of funny!

EDIT: well, now I'm not so sure. Did you mean it to be funny? It has kind of a wry sense of humor about it. I meant no disrespect, but for the self-employed people I have known, it's a 24/7 gig.
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it was funny, in a dry way. i do get to choose which Saturdays and Sundays I work. the good and bad is that it is a 24 hour job. I just try to create space between me, the phone and work. Otherwise, all i'd do is work. and that isn't fun.
 
ChuckO said:
and it’s 24/7 for the Principles
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the blessing and the curse, all wrapped into one. having a good team makes life much easier but it's hard to find good people. i am lucky on that front. but i've also gone through a lot of people over the years to find the good ones.
 
russ olin said:
I was 51 years old at that time. Walked off & never went back to work for a paying job again. I'm 65 now. You bet its called living the good life.
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That's awesome, congrats Russ. I knew you were retired, I didn't realize at such a young age and for so long
 
Jim Lampe said:
No more waking to alarms at 3:30am!
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Congrats Jim, that's awesome! Was yours a countdown, that now is counting up? I was thinking about letting mine keep going past 4PM 12/31/24

I wonder if I'll be able to sleep in? When I was 10 I got a morning paper route, I got up at 4AM and have been since. I'd say for the last 20 years, I've been working 4AM to 4PM, I just wonder if I can sleep past 4AM?
 
Chuck.... I'm fairly certain you'll really enjoy retirement when it F I N A L L Y arrives !!!
Just seem to take forever...
For me, it'll be 10 years February. After 45 years of working for others as well as for myself, it couldn't come too soon.

And that 4 am.... Easy to lose track. Keeping the day of the week correct can be a challenge ;)
 
ChuckO said:
I wonder if I'll be able to sleep in? When I was 10 I got a morning paper route, I got up at 4AM and have been since. I'd say for the last 20 years, I've been working 4AM to 4PM, I just wonder if I can sleep past 4AM?
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If you're anything like me, it will take a good while to reset the old body clock. A few years in and now I don't go to bed until 4am!
 
Hi there Chuck,
I started my countdown a little over 4 years before I retired.
It was fun to look at every now and then.
After I retired all was well for near a year and then I wanted to work again.
I didn’t really need the money, don’t get me wrong I’m not rich or allergic to money it just wasn’t my motivation.
I just missed being part of a work team and just wasn’t ready to stop.
I never thought I liked to work but I really do.

Soon after I figured that out I applied for a part time job with the State and then I started counting the days to go back to work.
I’m now on a team that does some pretty exciting work.

I also get to pick my hours as part of my deal.
I am currently picking Wednesdays and Thursdays 3 weeks a month and am digging that.
My family and friends think I might be nuts for taking this job.
 
Research says that people who have a sense of purpose may live healthier for longer. Way to go, Andy!

www.medicalnewstoday.com

Longevity: Having a purpose may help you live longer, healthier

A growing body of research shows that having a sense of purpose is associated with living longer. A new study finds this effect is true for older adults across race, ethnicity, and gender and is especially pronounced among women.
www.medicalnewstoday.com www.medicalnewstoday.com
 
ChuckO said:
Congrats Jim, that's awesome! Was yours a countdown, that now is counting up? I was thinking about letting mine keep going past 4PM 12/31/24

I wonder if I'll be able to sleep in? When I was 10 I got a morning paper route, I got up at 4AM and have been since. I'd say for the last 20 years, I've been working 4AM to 4PM, I just wonder if I can sleep past 4AM?
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it was a countdown to my last day that i never deleted.. so, yeah, it kinda reminds me how long i've been screwing around the house doing nothing!
i tend to stay up longer now, but i still am up and moving around by 6am the latest... never slept in as sleeping in goes.
and the first thing i did after retirement was unplug the alarm clock and tossed it in the donation box.
someone else can wake at 330 with that thing.
 
Jim Lampe said:
it was a countdown to my last day that i never deleted.. so, yeah, it kinda reminds me how long i've been screwing around the house doing nothing!
i tend to stay up longer now, but i still am up and moving around by 6am the latest... never slept in as sleeping in goes.
and the first thing i did after retirement was unplug the alarm clock and tossed it in the donation box.
someone else can wake at 330 with that thing.
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I hear you, Jim. I'm 75 and retired 23 years ago and I still get up at 5:30- 6 am. Told Barb if I'm still in bed at 7 am just call the coroner to come get me. The bad part is by 8 pm I'm done.
 
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