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I'm coming up on five years into retirement now and am mostly adjusted and content; retirement is great. But I've been thinking lately about the things I thought I would be doing once I retired, had no constraints on my free time. For example, I would be absolutely free to
Organize my photos--scattered thru albums, digital photos, those in boxes, etc.
Get back into yoga. I used to be seriously into yoga.
Brush up on my Spanish. I took years and years of it, years ago.
Go into a Christian Science Reading Room! They seem so interesting and inviting from the outside. What goes on in there? [No offense to anyone]
Learn to Moonwalk. It always looked fun!
But, I haven't done any of those things. What do I do? Basically, the same things I've always done: 1) Read a great deal. A book a week, plus magazines, newspapers, etc. 2) Exercise (mostly run) just about as regular as clockwork.
Bottom line? I don't know . . . lazy, I guess. Apparently, I don't really want to Moonwalk, etc. (?)
Anyway, what about others? Do you experience the same phenomenon in retirement?
..............
Do you experience the same phenomenon in retirement?
No.
I have been doing pretty much what I intended plus I have added a lot of things I had not thought about.
I traveled in the National Parks full time for a couple of years and several months at a time since then. I have done a lot of photography and progressed to become a skilled photographer. I continue to take courses on photography, arts, and other related topics. I have gotten to the point where I am teaching instead of just learning. I have developed and continue to work on my artistic vision and style.
My wife and I have resettled with a new house and new lifestyle. I started archery again this past year and am progressing way beyond my level of year's ago. I started pastel painting recently and have my first work accepted for an art museum exhibition.
I watch very little TV and read few books outside of technical learning. I consider both a substitute for having an engaged life.
I set goals and pursue my interests to the best of my abilities.
Retirement can include the time you always wanted to spend on things that we didn't have time for when working. Learning, that's the thing that keeps the mind and body focused on the anticipation, that feeling of "I can't wait to get home and do--" whatever.. Work takes a lot out of us and when not working many of us have a kind of hangover from it all that lulls us back into those days when we worked and rested. Now the new and exciting stuff is our job, and for that we can be considered fortunate, many never reach this point in life. Take full advantage of it, keep moving..
I've been sort of ''semi-retired'' for a few years and now don't have even a part-time job. I have some interests and activities that I enjoy already and I think about doing other things now with more free time.
Will I do them? I don't know. Will I be disappointed in myself if I don't? Not sure of that either.
I just know I had many years of being forced to do things I hated at times and had to be on somebody else's schedule and got oh so sick of that too.
So really, I don't care. For me retirement is about doing what I want, when I want, or not.
No more, ''Oh I need to get up now and do such and such. I shouldn't be lounging around all morning, cuddling with my dogs, reading a book..'' ETC. Pfooey on that thinking! Had a wonderful morning doing just that.
For me, being spontaneous is a novelty right now and I am really enjoying having no plan each day beyond the minimal ''have tos'' like grocery shop, walk dogs, laundry, fix food, etc.
So I'm not worrying, just enjoying! Yet. LOL
I'm coming up on five years into retirement now and am mostly adjusted and content; retirement is great. But I've been thinking lately about the things I thought I would be doing once I retired, had no constraints on my free time. For example, I would be absolutely free to
Organize my photos--scattered thru albums, digital photos, those in boxes, etc.
Get back into yoga. I used to be seriously into yoga.
Brush up on my Spanish. I took years and years of it, years ago.
Go into a Christian Science Reading Room! They seem so interesting and inviting from the outside. What goes on in there? [No offense to anyone]
Learn to Moonwalk. It always looked fun!
But, I haven't done any of those things. What do I do? Basically, the same things I've always done: 1) Read a great deal. A book a week, plus magazines, newspapers, etc. 2) Exercise (mostly run) just about as regular as clockwork.
Bottom line? I don't know . . . lazy, I guess. Apparently, I don't really want to Moonwalk, etc. (?)
Anyway, what about others? Do you experience the same phenomenon in retirement?
Yes, absolutely.
I have not reorganized my garage yet. The last move was year 2004. I'm lazy as well.
But I found new passion in my painting class. It brings a smile to my face when I think of what I need to do there. I guess we are gravitated to fun instead of what we should do.
I used to have a list and check them off. Now I guess I don't care. But so glad I got back to gardening this month. I almost feel sad that I lost interest in my favorite hobby.
I have been doing pretty much what I intended plus I have added a lot of things I had not thought about.
I traveled in the National Parks full time for a couple of years and several months at a time since then. I have done a lot of photography and progressed to become a skilled photographer. I continue to take courses on photography, arts, and other related topics. I have gotten to the point where I am teaching instead of just learning. I have developed and continue to work on my artistic vision and style.
My wife and I have resettled with a new house and new lifestyle. I started archery again this past year and am progressing way beyond my level of year's ago. I started pastel painting recently and have my first work accepted for an art museum exhibition.
I watch very little TV and read few books outside of technical learning. I consider both a substitute for having an engaged life.
I set goals and pursue my interests to the best of my abilities.
Congrats to you! I feel like a slug after reading all that.
Well, Darth Vespa, meet a fellow procrastinator. I've been retired almost 12 years. I did finally organize my photos, but I think I was more than five years into retirement at the time. Other things happened a bit more promptly, like my big road trip - gone two months, headed up into western Canada, then as far east as Buffalo, New York, then down through the south and back, visiting museums, a childhood home town, sights, cousins, and old friends all over the place. I was a year late getting started, but the delay was the death of my mother and the need to handle her affairs.
Congrats to you! I feel like a slug after reading all that.
You shouldn't. We can all decide what is important and act accordingly. I have always felt retirement was the time to rethink goals and I wanted experiences that were way different than in my working life.
[quote=jrkliny;47435684] and read few books outside of technical learning. [/quote/]
This is not meant to be snarky or insulting. I think this explains something I did not understand before.
To me, reading lets me know how other people think about things, how they reach conclusions totally different from mine using the same set of facts, is the basis for empathy. Why one man's glass is half empty and one half full.
To answer the OP's question: I find myself back sliding. I call it "living the same life in a different place" and I can get pretty far dug in and begin to lose the joy of being retired before I realize what's happening. These spells are often accompanied by gaining a few pounds.
Luckily, so far, I've been able to climb back out of my hole and get on with enjoying my retirement. My goals are small and few: enjoy the day! be as spontaneous as two small dogs allow me to be. appreciate where I have ended up and how I got here.
I mastered the mashed potatoes. Moonwalking is not on my list, but I am dancing in my kitchen again
I tried painting.
In one class we were supposed to paint lilies
on Lilly pads.
Mine looked more like a field of meteorite
explosions.
I explained the stunted lillies by saying
that there was a Eurasian millfoil infestation
that caused the lilllies to wither and appear
sickly.
It was impressionistic after all!
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