Originally I had hoped to retire at age 62. But, 62 came and went and I was not financially ready. Then, 65 was my plan. I turned 65 this past August. I would be eligible for full retirement at 2 months past my birthday and had planned for the past 3 years to retire on October 31 of this year. It isn't going to happen. I have paid off all of my credit cards but one and I only owe $200 on it. But, my main plan for my retirement income was to sell a piece of property that I have in another state that has been in our family since 1936. I had received on average of 6 to 8 letters a year from realtors and individials wanting to buy or sell my property. Now I have it up for sale and have run into a very big snag. Due to construction around my property, 9 acres, it is now considered too wet to build on without a lot of work and now, no one seems interested. So, I figure I may be working for at least another year. I didn't plan very well for my retirement and was depending on the sale of this property and now it looks like that might not happen. I hope this can be a learning experience for those who still have a few years before their retirement. Take a lot of time and thought to plan your retirement and be aware that things might not go as planned.

I heard on the radio this morning that in a recent survey, 7 out of 10 people pland to work beyond age 65 and many of those plan to work into their 70s and even their 80s. The reason stated was because of financial problems. I signed up for Social Security anyway and that amount will help with my current financial problems. In my opinion, people aren't as "old" anymore at 65 as they used to be. I know that I am not as old as my mother was at my age. Just this past Saturday I first loaded (at the supplier's barn) and then unloaded my pickup truck of several bales of hay and four 50 pound bags of feed, then mowed my yard and trimmed some trees and shrubs and only quit then because it was getting dark. Judith