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Childless I have been worried about this since the time we decided not to have kids. We won't be able to afford care givers and have little interest in moving to a facility although that may be where I end up. Why anyone would move there in their 50's as posted earlier is beyond me.
Because some of them are great places to live. There's one 55+ community near me that has many different types of living situations: patio homes with garages, condominium apartments with balconies, smaller apartment for people who are ill or disabled and nurses visit, and a care facility for the "memory impaired." All of them are beautiful and a variety of dining facilities are there for people who can sign up for custom meal plans (or strictly cook for themselves if they wish). Residents have access to indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a huge fitness facility, tennis and pickleball courts, yoga classes, a meditation garden, an arts and crafts center with an exhibition space, a meeting hall where they have programs and entertainment, a coffee shop that has live music on weekends, and a resale shop open to the public where residents can sell things they don't want anymore (usually furniture they brought from other residents that don't fit their new digs). Of course they also provide transportation to shopping and events for residents who no longer drive.
I know someone who works there and he says people always tell him, "I wish I had moved here years ago." Part of his job is coordinating volunteer opportunities on site as well as in the greater community for residents. They have a big and positive impact on the suburb in which this place is located. The community is so popular that the national company that runs it is breaking ground on another one this year on the opposite side of my city.
Because some of them are great places to live. There's one 55+ community near me that has many different types of living situations: patio homes with garages, condominium apartments with balconies, smaller apartment for people who are ill or disabled and nurses visit, and a care facility for the "memory impaired." All of them are beautiful and a variety of dining facilities are there for people who can sign up for custom meal plans (or strictly cook for themselves if they wish). Residents have access to indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a huge fitness facility, tennis and pickleball courts, yoga classes, a meditation garden, an arts and crafts center with an exhibition space, a meeting hall where they have programs and entertainment, a coffee shop that has live music on weekends, and a resale shop open to the public where residents can sell things they don't want anymore (usually furniture they brought from other residents that don't fit their new digs). Of course they also provide transportation to shopping and events for residents who no longer drive.
I know someone who works there and he says people always tell him, "I wish I had moved here years ago." Part of his job is coordinating volunteer opportunities on site as well as in the greater community for residents. They have a big and positive impact on the suburb in which this place is located. The community is so popular that the national company that runs it is breaking ground on another one this year on the opposite side of my city.
wow, so what is the cost to get all this. Does it have daily housecleaning service
Childless I have been worried about this since the time we decided not to have kids. We won't be able to afford care givers and have little interest in moving to a facility although that may be where I end up. Why anyone would move there in their 50's as posted earlier is beyond me.
Lifestyle. They are retired and on the go and out of town very frequently often for extended trips. It is a recreational lifestyle and facility is there home base near doctors and other core needs. They are there between trips and schedule local events around being there. Many facilities that have great dining opportunities only provide for about 25 meals a month with the option to buy more. That is for folks who are out of town and out and about during the day and don't need meals. Many of the places have upscale kitchens and some with the option for semi pro appliances for cooking and entertaining. It is a life style with a finite number of interested clients and facilities competing for them. Many of the folks interested in come out of the DC area and head to destination locations to retire.
I'm counting one of those kids who need to beef up their resumes for college application to help me if I'm childless. But seriously, you can have kids and they will not be there to help you for whatever reason. My sister just told me someone we knew had their only son died at age 33.
When my ex-wife and I decided forty-five years ago not to have kids I realized I could end up very alone in extreme old age. Everything has advantages and disadvantages. I am quite satisfied that I made the correct decision 45 years ago, but I have no plan. I may get lucky; many people just die of a heart attack or other causes without ever having to be dependent on others for their care.
At 72 I can't imagine not being able to get up on a ladder to change a light bulb, although I acknowledge that it does happen to some people, which means it could happen to me too. Use it or lose it. My townhouse is on four levels so I use the stairs dozens of times a day, plus I normally take the stairs instead of elevators or escalators when in public buildings. It is possible, of course, that I am just delaying the inevitable, but that is an unknown.
By the way, can someone explain to me how it is people can no longer change light bulbs? Is it their balance? Did they not go to yoga to practice their balance over the years? Did they not practice balance in the shower everyday by standing on one foot to scrub the other foot?
It's not changing light bulbs for me. It's climbing on a ladder when you can't lift up your legs very high and have no strength in them and you need two hands to hold on (so what do you do with the light bulb?). It's even worse when you are short, too. I'm 5'2". I would have trouble getting on a train or bus or getting in a truck or van, these days, so I stay out of them. Lamps aren't an issue, just ceiling lights. In my apartment complex, the maintenance guys change your ceiling light bulbs whether you are 25 or 75 years old.
I had to move from my second floor apartment to a ground floor apartment so I didn't have to deal with stairs. I can't climb or go down stairs unless there is a railing. I have to think about going up and down curbs. Will my legs buckle when I step down? Luckily, I can park perpendicular to a curb and use the hood of my car to step up and down. I have a small lightweight cart with 4 wheels I take with me to bring things to and from my car to home and vice versa.
I can't sit on the floor to assemble anything because I can't stand up unless I pull myself up. I have a reacher in case I drop something under my desk.
You mentioned the shower. I don't stand in the shower. I sit. I cannot stand for any length of time nor can I lift my leg over the side of the tub while standing. I had to have physical therapy at home to learn how to do it while sitting on a bench.
I need to sit in chairs with arm rests or have a table in front of me so I can use my arms to stand up (push off). I have learned to take photos from the car. You can't tell from the photos but it does limit the places you can go to.
I vote early so I don't have to stand in line. I have to assess whether I can do everything based on how long I might have to wait while standing. Can't go to concerts or rallies. Can't go on tours where you walk. Couldn't sing in a choir. Couldn't stand up at a party to socialize. I don't go to the mall because I hate shopping and have done it online for a long time but if I liked it, that would be an issue.
I have a rollater but I leave it in the car just in case I need it. I used it on my road trip earlier this month to go from my car to an overlook and to walk on uneven ground (pebbles) and to go to a Visitors Center. I can put my heavy camera on the seat and the rollater folds up to put in my car. My arms are strong. I sleep in a chair so when I stay in a motel/hotel I have to make sure there is a comfortable chair/couch in the room when I make reservations. I'm probably one of the few hotel guests who requests a room near the elevator.
But, I won't take a handicapped tag for the car. It's good for me to walk. I just have to do it with a little planning. And, I pay people to do some things for me or with me, like packing or cleaning.
Except for kneeling, my legs were perfectly fine until this thing happened to me two years ago. It was not a matter of falling/tripping balancing like you see on TV. With me it was a matter of my legs turning to jelly. I live by myself so I'm very careful.
You would be surprised to know what you don't pay attention to when you don't have mobility issues. I never did. Now everything I do is a calculation to make sure I don't go down. Point is, it can happen to anyone. Even you, yoga man.
Depending on your age and the age of your children there are mutually beneficial facilities available. There are senior or 55 plus living facilities that are designed for for multiple non husband wife folks to live together. They could be siblings or they could be parent child. The child could be in independent living with the parent or in independent living with parent in another part of the facility receiving a higher level of service. Even Del Webb communities have homes with multiple bedrooms each having their own dedicated master bath and in some cases a sitting room
Lifestyle. They are retired and on the go and out of town very frequently often for extended trips. It is a recreational lifestyle and facility is there home base near doctors and other core needs.
An active lifestyle and traveling is great,... as long as they are putting money aside for their elderly years and don't expect their kids to drop everything to help them physically and financially. Sure, kids will help but they shouldn't be expected to give up their lives to do so.
I have always made an effort to have enough money to hire people.
Some people have also made such an effort but were still unable to save enough to hire people in their old age. Sometimes some tragedy has dragged them down financially. You must be aware that the middle class has been shrinking dramatically here in the USA. Not everyone was as fortunate as you.
I have a friend who is estranged from her adult children through no fault of her own. They are involved with drugs and she has reached the end of her rope as far as trying to help them. She is just now beginning to realize at age 70 that she is entirely alone and beginning to panic about who will care for her if she gets sick and infirm. She isn't poor but what money she does have must be stretched out for who-knows-how long.
What do people like this do? No family or church or actual people to depend on to help with paying bills, making decisions, physical things like changing light bulbs, packing up boxes, etc?
I have a small caliber .22... if that time comes, I go as I choose.
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