Retirement Talk for Boomers, Seniors, and Retirees

If we knew how long we were going to live we plan a bit better financially for our retirement. But we don't. And that is probably a good thing. We will just need to make some good decisions - and be lucky.

When should I retire? Or can I afford to retire? We find these questions first and foremost as we age. Does work just become accepted as a way of life that can't be changed? We might want to give these questions some thought - serious thought.

Friends give value to each day. The problem is hanging on to them. They tend to come and go over a lifetime. We face a new challenge when we retire or they retire. Friendship requires duration and that is sometimes hard to find in today's world.

Stumbling on a secret to living well is one of life's pure pleasures. Here is the story of an experience I had with K. Eileen Allen that certainly made me take notice. She was ninety when we met and she had learned a lot in her long life.

How many choices do we have? It is sometimes hard to know which of the many options would be best. We pause to think. The important thing is to not stop. We need to make a choice and then move on it.

It is easy to fall into a life of doing very little when we retire. It is easy to do the same old thing everyday. Risk is something that may take us into a new stage. We need to keep in mind the joy of doing something different, learning something new or seeing something we have never seen.

Sliding into a world of silence is a danger of retirement and old age. No one seems to want to listen to us or we find our hearing starting to fail. We are difficult to talk to. Is there a solution? It would seem to be that there is, or soon will be.

Some of us tend to look ahead in our daily lives and some tend to look back. It seems like one or the other dominate. Do we want to spend our time anticipating or reflecting? Or is there a happy place right in between? Or do we just sort of drift along?

Weather is one of the elements we talk about all our life. It takes on a bit of different meaning when we retire. Sometimes this is the only factor that seems to matter. People are sure they want to live in the sun.

We have expectations placed on us all of our life. Some are placed on us by others and some are assumed by our own desires. We plan and work towards fulfillment of these expectations. Retirement is a phase of our life where expectations are need as much as any time.

Some of us plan for retirement and the plan works. Not always but sometimes. This week we hear from a listener who did plan and has been very happy with the results. It required some thought and effort. Surely we could all give it a go.

We like to think we can always change. Some of us do. And some of us don't. What makes for the difference? Two old friends of mine faced that challenge a few years ago and had very different results. Maybe we can learn something from their stories.

We retired people are part of the population who have lived longest. We have experienced much. We can use our experience to share stories with others. We have an opportunity to become the true Elders of our society.

Just when we thought we had enough problems screen apnea appears. It seems looking at an electronic screen can result in hours of sleeplessness. I have enough problems sleeping without adding something else.

One can sit in a rocking chair only so long. Rocking or drifting all day can satisfy only so long. Then a strange force seems to take over and propel us back into life. We have to get up and get going.

One reason we can retire is because we have been around for a while. We have had lots of experiences. We have learned much on our path through life. We have earned the right to question - everyone and everything. We might want to enjoy this right - while we still can.

How we look at the world and how we arrive our own truth changes over the years. As children we look at the world the way it is taught to us by our parents and local customs. As we grow to be adults our sources of information broadens and become more universal. At least we hope that is the way it works.

Politics can be a divisive topic. We sometimes are wise to steer clear. On the other hand it might be wise to talk things out in a civil manner. We could use more clarification and understanding on almost all issues. We retired folks should have learned that by now.

Holidays are suppose to be days to celebrate. Sometimes it just doesn't work out that way. They can be very depressing. We may be able to limit the bad moments and thoughts with a bit of foresight. We need to make plans.

Do we have enough money to retire? How to respond? Luck will play an important role. Wise decisions must be made. Are we looking in the right direction?

Retiring brings with it many changes in our life. Some we must accept. Others we can reject and refuse. Tenting and biking are two activities that I have seen lasting well past entering retirement. We might want to give them a try.

Technological change covers us like an avalanche. We may feel buried at times. What to do? Climb into a shell or try to stay on top and ride it out. Choices have to be made.

Many of us face the task of down-sizing. We may even face it more than once. What are some of the factors we may be missing when we give it consideration? We would be well advised to think carefully on this one.

Reunions are a fact of life. We get invited. Some of us enjoy them and other avoid them like Ebola. Perhaps our own attitude is the deciding factor in whether we enjoy them or not. We might want to give it some thought.

This is the second in the series concerning reflecting on past experiences and our recent road trip. For the first part of the series listen to Episode 399.