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BucFan: We were out RV shopping today. Finally decided on one, but will have to order. Then, once I retire, its on the road, some boondocking, some RV parks, travel and visit some old friends and family. The great thing, is if we don't like the neighborhood or the neighbors, we hit the road.
BucFan: We were out RV shopping today. Finally decided on one, but will have to order. Then, once I retire, its on the road, some boondocking, some RV parks, travel and visit some old friends and family. The great thing, is if we don't like the neighborhood or the neighbors, we hit the road.
I was a full time RVer for my first two years of retirement. Due to family issues my wife was only with me about half of that time. There were many days when my only conversations were with the cat.
"Liking" self-checkout lines does not make one a hermit. But seeking them out as a means of avoiding the face-to-face encounter with a cashier is something else entirely. I often use self-checkout at Home Depot because there is usually no wait for it, whereas the cashier positions normally have a line. I don't see the use of self-checkout per se as some sort of litmus test.
I'm very sociable and generally like meeting new people, but I do love the self-checkout lines, I use them whenever I can. When shopping I want to get in and out - especially in low-income areas where many of the other customers tend to be loud and wild.
So grocery checker jobs are only taken by desperate people?
Good to know.
Of course not. But it does happen and despite what was posted earlier the fact is many need their checker job and it's heartless to claim they are better off if the stores takes away their job.
I'd like to get back on point now. No more checker talk from me.
Same with me. Moving to a 55+ was a big part of it. Always something to do. Meet new people all the time with people moving in. Very sociable neighbors.
I've thought about that but was wondering if people feel pressured, even intruded on, to participate when they just want to go home and read a book.
I've thought about that but was wondering if people feel pressured, even intruded on, to participate when they just want to go home and read a book.
It will certainy vary but I don't think most have pressure. My circle of friends has really dwindled over the years and I am considering active communities. I have had others warn me that there are plenty of hermits in those places and it will be as much or more about me being more outgoing again (I was when I was younger) than living where there are lots of opportunities. I read newsletters and look at calendars of some of those places and there are activities at the clubhouse, pool, pier or going to some venue as a group but you have to go to them; they don't drag people there. I would think if you were reading that book poolside you might have people introduce themselves and probe for interest in the activities they enjoy (see if you are another sucker for the poker game ) but would likely take social cues to leave you alone if that's what you want.
The word "hermit" itself implies something quite extreme. My dictionary defines hermit as "a person who has withdrawn from society and lives a solitary existence; recluse".
While I have been surprised at the large number of posters who say they tend in that direction, pretty much none of the self-descriptions really reach the level of "hermit" as defined above. If on some days one's only conversation is with the cat, that does not make one a hermit. To me, that would have to be almost all days to qualify as a hermit.
In 2006 I made a six-week road trip covering 10,000 miles from Los Angeles to Emondton (Alberta), Canada to Washington D.C. and back by a southern route. I was alone, which means I spent a lot of time alone in the car, and many nights alone in a motel. I loved that trip. But I am not a hermit. Along the way, in addition to museums and that type of thing, I visited people. I was invited to stay with the people several times - an old graduate school friend, a cousin, two different former friends from L.A. who now live in the east, a former neighbor in St. Louis whom I hadn't seen since he was 11 years old, and my sister. Other people I visited but did not stay overnight with. So I am not a hermit despite my high tolerance for (and enjoyment of) being alone. The people visits were as interesting and as meaningful to me as the museums and the sights, maybe even more so. I will never forget that trip.
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) but would likely take social cues to leave you alone if that's what you want.
General reflections
