I was planning on going in December 2019 but we recieved a huge grant and were able to begin a constuction project that has been a longtime dream for us. I heard the figurative door slam shut on that plan when this happened. I'm committed to getting the project started and finishing phase one (wraps in summer/Fall 2020) then exit stage door....

Time for a countdown clock:

Countdown to retirement

I had no problem adjusting - I was all in on day one. I had a great career that I loved but it was demanding and I sacrificed a lot of personal time/life for it. Very happy to have my life back while I'm still able to enjoy it.

3katz captures my thoughts and experience precisely. I retired about a year and a half ago and am thoroughly enjoying this new phase. How I wish I had this kind of time while raising my DD and caring for my mom during her Alzheimer's journey. I hope our workplaces continue to look for ways to provide more flexibility for employees in the future.

Most of the retirees I meet love being retired. Some find themselves a little bored but then look for ways to contribute, explore and learn to find the balance they need.

Good luck - you have a lot to look forward to!

I think you'll LOVE it, sistersunnie. 3katz and rubyclaire's retirement experience was similar to mine. I had been working since about age 13, as my Dad told me then that if I wanted something that I had to earn it. I picked strawberries at a friend's farm in the AM, and sold them in his farm stand in the afternoon, back in the late 60's. That was the being of steady work, and I am glad Dad had me starting early.

I retired eff. 9/1/2018, after 32 years at the same company. There had been lots of travel over that time, and my last trip to OH, to be trained on developing software that was in no way ready for prime time, was the clincher. I had a pension, a great 401k, and an RMSA. Spoke to my financial advisor who told me to go for it! I gave a month's notice. Several others also left shortly after I did, for the same reason.

The first month was 'different' and I was a bit lost, but I dug into my crafts, and proceeded to have a ball. I haven't looked back, and am so glad I retired with what I hope is plenty of time to enjoy it. I don't think I could have given a year's notice, and my last week was vacation time that I didn't want to lose.

I retired just before I turned 60, but have remained part-time at the same place.

Some days it’s great. Other days I am climbing-the-walls bored. I have kept working at my original job about 10 hours every week; I added another 10 hours a week job at a local greenhouse (winter months only); I’m an election judge (about 3 days a year); AND I am the recording secretary for a city department at their meetings once a month.

I still have climbing-the-walls bored days. I have had these 4 different part-time jobs for the past 4 years.

10 long years for me!

I keep buying the Powerball and MegaMillions. Even a "small" jackpot of a few millions would be enough, LOL. Yes, I know the odds, but someone has to win.

I haven't been bored for a minute. Books, sewing, gardening, cooking, traveling, babysitting grandkids, walks in the park, long lunches with my friends. My house was probably cleaner when we were still working because life is too much fun now. Relax and enjoy yourself.

I have been officially retired now for several years. But, having remained a co-owner of our medical clinic, and a radiology consult for it, which equals semi-retired. Do you remember in high school when you got out for summer and the first couple weeks of summer break you woke up (or flipped out) wondering, “Oh my gosh, do I have homework or a test to study for?!?” That’s kind of like what the first few months of retirement is like (LOL)! Give yourself time to develop your own groove, and then give yourself permission to adapt it as needed. BIG CONGRATULATIONS, though. You’ve worked hard for it and you darn well deserve it!!!

Congratulations! 40 years is a long time of service. Hope you enjoy every minute of your retirement. You’ve earned it.

If you're ready, the transition will be very easy. I was ready. That first Sunday p.m. I didn't have to set the alarm to get up for work Monday a.m. and I was adjusted!

My neighbor however was not. She retired, she was doing all kinds of things including a patchwork of volunteer activities to keep busy and finally she went back to work.

Me, I have no trouble keeping busy and can't believe where the time goes!

I retired almost five years ago. I still wake up every morning and thank my lucky stars that I was able to retire when I did.

Speaking of setting alarm clocks, I realized that for the first time since high school my bedside clock is set to the actual real time of day (I always had to fiddle with the time to fool myself into not hitting the snooze button when I was still working).

Now I'm qualified to respond since I've completed my first quarter of retirement from my longtime career, having left in late June.

I know now why most people are so happy about retiring--it's great LOL. I've come to appreciate the deep wisdom of the Thoreau quote: “I love a broad margin to my life.” Retirement has given my life margins, time to spread out handling both the fun and the dutiful things I need and want to do.

It's hard to overstate how wonderful it is to live free of the constant feeling of watching the clock, trying to balance work duties that take up every week day with all the other responsibilities of life. I always suspected that for most working women, especially working wives/mothers, life consisted of multiple full time jobs: the one you get paid to do and the rest of life you have to do. I figured retirement would mean giving up one full time job so I'd only need to handle one--managing life for myself and my family. Turns out that for me, my hunch was correct ;).

I have time now for going out diving on a Tuesday morning if the wind and seas are good. I have time to go to the grocery store or the fish market to leisurely decide what to make for dinner. I have time to try out recipes. I have time to go to the gym and Pilates regularly to work on all those exercise and health goals that were so hard to pursue around a FT job. I have time to take my aging father to his doctor appointments and to lead an effort to create a new service group in my community. I have time to enjoy my husband's company without my attention being constantly pulled in so many different directions. I have time to help my daughter plan a wedding. I have time to go visit her without fitting it into when work duties are lighter.

Of all the vaunted benefits of retirement, the feeling of finally reaching a point in life at which I have the time to do what I want to do, when I want to do it, is priceless and deeply satisfying. It's just as great as everyone says it is!

The only negative aspect I can think of about retiring is the occasional feeling of having stepped out of the great rushing river of life that most people are still navigating. I certainly have a sense of aging, of no longer being actively engaged in the calling I once had. I can't say I want to BE a worker any more but this is a new feeling for me. Having taken a lot of pride and self identity from my work, leaving it behind was something that has taken some getting used to, although again it's been surprisingly easy to give it up in return for what I've gained.

And of course it's not just the work itself, I'd been earning a paycheck since I was 16 YO so even though I've got a pension and financial security, it's a big change to no longer be earning my living. I was blessed to be able to choose to retire at 61 YO but there's the tug of thinking I left money on the table by not staying till full retirement age. However again the counterpoint is seeing people I know, and some I love, starting to suffer from illnesses and health scares, including terminal problems. I've gained the sharp awareness that our time here is not infinite and that being able to retire healthy and young enough to pursue life's joys is priceless.

Then too, for me my community service commitment allows the use a lot of skills and experience that I enjoyed while working, but in a much less fraught and stressed environment.

Overall my first quarterly report on retirement is that it's absolutely wonderful, I highly recommend it and I definitely hope you love your retired life when the day comes!

Thank you all for your insights and comments. Just reading them. Lost my 15 year old dog this week , been an emotional time.

For some, losing the "identity" associated with a job can be difficult. I loved my work, was good at it, but the office politics that came with corporate life were not fun. In retirement you now have the time to discover yourself again. It can be challenging but also very rewarding.

julie, I am so sorry for your loss.

Time marches on and it is SHOCKING me that I too have begun to consider retiring. It was never really anything I thought about--always thought I would work. LOL since I only work at schools I have PLENTY of time off already--but this turning 60 thing really has me seeing why people retire. When its time IT'S TIME!!

Arcy, that is what happened to me too--I never had a burning desire to be retired, but turning 60 seemed to bring some combination of internal and external forces of the universe into alignment. The whisper became a shout that it was soon going to be time for the next step. Luckily that step off the edge of the cliff wasn't a fall, more of an invitation to soar :).