A little different slant on the sequence of: moving, retirement etc (weather, states)

[Sand&Salt]

Originally Posted by Mr5150

For some or many of us the healthcare factor is not something that will keep us from living their dream. Many of us would rather die in paradise than live next to a world class hospital in some big city.

Count me as one of those! Looking at the waves crashing, palm trees waving.


But good for you OP. Nice to hear a success story like this. However, I agree with the others who said a high income facilitated this.

[Montana Griz]

Thanks to the various questions, comments, opinions etc. I will try and explain, elaborate, answer and be more specific in some areas., taking each post in turn.....(Please forgive errors etc,...... I am typing this on my Smartphone

Health care etc: local doctors and a wonderful small hospital are 15 miles away in town of about 5000. (I had a severe gall stone attack 3 yrs ago in Dec......drove my self to local hosp at 6a.m., and had surgery within 24 hrs, all went well.) .
In April 2002 I was diagnosed with cancer ( prostate and bladder), had major surgery and follow up treatments in large and excellent Hospital in city of 65,000 , 50 miles away. All went well and I live with some inconvenient, but manageable aftereffects. Have had 2 other surgeries in same hospital and all went well. I also have received a great many (approx100) Physical therapy treatments over the years for problems associated with the aftermath of having survived as a front seat passenger an auto/tree accident (out of state and many,many yrs.ago) which killed the two people on my left. 17 fractures, almost 4 monthe in hosp & many other complications have been a factor in my life's journey and choices.....

Regarding winter: 1st five winters (after my wife died in 2005, after 51 YEARS of marriage!!!,, I went south for approx 3 to 4 months. Since then I have stayed here all yr.

Wildlife:Yes, I am a wildlife nut....grew up with a fishing rod in one hand and a rifle or shotgun in the other.....i grew up and lived on a small lake until age 19......my father died when I was 13......raised by a very strict mother who never remarried.......I started working part time jobs after school, Saturday's and summers when I started high school, and worked my way through college.

Over the last 40 years I have seen on my 14 acres: infrequently/ river otter, badger, marmot, wolf, moose, black bear...frequently: WT Deer, mule deer, elk, coyote, fox, quail, pheasant, bald and golden eagles, various raptor s, owls.

Somebody mentioned financial level:......... I
I never made more than 48,000 a year in 39.6 years, however the 6 large fabricated steel producers I worked for, provided a company car and an expense account....(I traveled approx 80 to 90 percent of the time, split between field job site locations and the Corporate Home Offices locations in many of the major cities across the U.S.) My wife worked after our only child(wife had 8 miscarriages) was 17, and for many years I had 4 small "side-business': tack and saddley, firearms, horse feed and down clothing and sleeping bags. Never bought a new car for my wife until our 15th year of marriage and that lasted her 11 years. We did not live a "high life style".


My typical clients were very large Engr/Const Firms and End-users, that needed a source for very, very, large engineered & fabricated street contracts and configuration s........Examples: Bechtel Corp(all divisions); Brown & Root; Davy/McKee Corp; any company involved in the Mining(all phases), Hydro, Timber, Petro Chem, Nuclear Power and Aero Space Industries(think underground missile silos)....

Yes, I 've had an interesting and rewarding life that I am proud of.

[BucFan]

Originally Posted by Mr5150

For some or many of us the healthcare factor is not something that will keep us from living their dream. Many of us would rather die in paradise than live next to a world class hospital in some big city.

that decision may cut 20-30 yrs off your life - being hundreds of miles away from the nearest ER during your middle to late years and needing a cardiac procedure - I know many folks in their 50-70s who've been in that situation - has nothing to do with world class and big cities.

[Mr5150]

Originally Posted by BucFan

that decision may cut 20-30 yrs off your life - being hundreds of miles away from the nearest ER during your middle to late years and needing a cardiac procedure - I know many folks in their 50-70s who've been in that situation - has nothing to do with world class and big cities.

I'd rather be happy than old. Being old and happy is fine, but I have no fear of death. When it's my time to die it's my time by God's will

And quite frankly, no one is "100s of miles" from the closest ER. Not for the Op or me. Not even in Africa.. And you must have a lot of unhealthy friends. I'm 67 and the only person I know who had a cardiac issue was Mrs5150. She is alive and well and we live in our version of paradise, miles from the nearest ER.

[ansible90]

Buying a retirement home some years before retirement is not new. As a child I remember a number of older relatives doing just that. They would buy a house or condo and rent it out until they were ready to retire. Being from NJ back in the 50s and 60s, the only retirement destination they knew was Florida.

[Montana Griz]

[quote=Retire in MB;49128308]I'm very happy for you. You planned things out and they have worked for you.

I think some of your ability to live out your dream can be connected to your high earning capability and the timing of when your dreams were implemented.
I can't imagine an employer today giving someone a year off to build their dream home and then hiring them back at the same position.
Most people would need to work that year to make ends meet and save for retirement.[/QUOTE,

A few details for clarification:
We sold our home in Colorado; we moved our house hold belongings into long term storage in MT.; I rented a 40 foot long park model house trailer and had it set up on our property (next to the well I had previously drilled and set up to service the trailer) to live in for the next 12 months; my wife found a job as a medical receptionist in the town 12 miles away; 30 days after we arrived in MT, I was starting to work on the house. I hired a seasoned and very skilled carpenter , subed out the excavation, plumbing , electrical, all dry wall ceilings and walls In the bedrooms and utility room, concrete work and blown-In attic insulation...........the carpenter and I did ALL the rest, which included hundreds of pieces of random length/random width Aspen and Walnut paneling throughout virtually the rest of the house; he and I did the Shake roof; the complete Septic System exceeding the county's requirements by 20%, installation of all Windows and doors; all the Cedar Siding and all other categories of wood work. Also installed all the cabinetry and most importantly, I bought ALL the other lraw materials needed to build the house and garage, scheduled ALL deliveries and was in effect, The Logistics Manager, and the general construction manager.
11 months later, I had my (2150 sq ft dream home and 780 sq foot garage completed)... (I designed it with in-put from my wife), i had an open-end construction loan from the local bank to augment the funds that resulted from the sale of our Colorado home, what debt remained I handled by converting the construction loan into a relatively short term mortgage.
In round figures I saved approx $51,000 ( I had gone out to bid to 3 local home builders), also got a finished home EXACTLY the way I wanted it done with numerous extras.
So the end result was my plan worked out for me.........for someone else, it may not. I was back to my former job within a week, and I also had gone from 189 pounds to 161 !!!!!! And my wife liked her job so much, she worked for the 3 doctors for 13 years.
And you are correct: the timing of the R.E. market in Boulder, Colo when we sold our home was by dumb luck, was perfect!!!!!!and the savings in acting as my own general contractor and putting in approx 2800 to 3000 hours in actual labor time my self , was well worth the effort, planning certainly my loss of 28 pounds

[Lodestar 77]

Originally Posted by Montana Griz

Thanks to the various questions, comments, opinions etc. I will try and explain, elaborate, answer and be more specific in some areas., taking each post in turn.....(Please forgive errors etc,...... I am typing this on my Smartphone

Health care etc: local doctors and a wonderful small hospital are 15 miles away in town of about 5000. (I had a severe gall stone attack 3 yrs ago in Dec......drove my self to local hosp at 6a.m., and had surgery within 24 hrs, all went well.) .
In April 2002 I was diagnosed with cancer ( prostate and bladder), had major surgery and follow up treatments in large and excellent Hospital in city of 65,000 , 50 miles away. All went well and I live with some inconvenient, but manageable aftereffects. Have had 2 other surgeries in same hospital and all went well. I also have received a great many (approx100) Physical therapy treatments over the years for problems associated with the aftermath of having survived as a front seat passenger an auto/tree accident (out of state and many,many yrs.ago) which killed the two people on my left. 17 fractures, almost 4 monthe in hosp & many other complications have been a factor in my life's journey and choices.....

Regarding winter: 1st five winters (after my wife died in 2005, after 51 YEARS of marriage!!!,, I went south for approx 3 to 4 months. Since then I have stayed here all yr.

Wildlife:Yes, I am a wildlife nut....grew up with a fishing rod in one hand and a rifle or shotgun in the other.....i grew up and lived on a small lake until age 19......my father died when I was 13......raised by a very strict mother who never remarried.......I started working part time jobs after school, Saturday's and summers when I started high school, and worked my way through college.

Over the last 40 years I have seen on my 14 acres: infrequently/ river otter, badger, marmot, wolf, moose, black bear...frequently: WT Deer, mule deer, elk, coyote, fox, quail, pheasant, bald and golden eagles, various raptor s, owls.

Somebody mentioned financial level:......... I
I never made more than 48,000 a year in 39.6 years, however the 6 large fabricated steel producers I worked for, provided a company car and an expense account....(I traveled approx 80 to 90 percent of the time, split between field job site locations and the Corporate Home Offices locations in many of the major cities across the U.S.) My wife worked after our only child(wife had 8 miscarriages) was 17, and for many years I had 4 small "side-business': tack and saddley, firearms, horse feed and down clothing and sleeping bags. Never bought a new car for my wife until our 15th year of marriage and that lasted her 11 years. We did not live a "high life style".


My typical clients were very large Engr/Const Firms and End-users, that needed a source for very, very, large engineered & fabricated street contracts and configuration s........Examples: Bechtel Corp(all divisions); Brown & Root; Davy/McKee Corp; any company involved in the Mining(all phases), Hydro, Timber, Petro Chem, Nuclear Power and Aero Space Industries(think underground missile silos)....

Yes, I 've had an interesting and rewarding life that I am proud of.

I too have just one child. Are you close with yours? Any grandchildren?

[Montana Griz]

Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant

I too have just one child. Are you close with yours? Any grandchildren?

Interesting that you would ask that question!
In April of 2002, my daughter and I were both diagnosed with cancer. Daughter's cancer was stage 3 Malignant Melanoma in her Lymph Node System, and mine was in the Prostate gland and a portion of the Bladder. Within 4 weeks, daughter had the first of two surgeries (removal of 10 Lymph Nodes) at the John Wayne Cancer Facility in Santa Monica,Ca and I had surgery here in Montana.
My daughater had to have a 2nd surgery 4 weeks later to have 5 more lymph nodes removed.
My surgery was successful with minimal treatment afterward.
After her 2nd surgery she had to return once a month, for 17 months to Santa Monica for injectable chemo that could only be administered at the John Wayne Cancer facility.
At the present time we both are in remission.
So, yes, we are VERY CLOSE, and she has no children, thus I have no grand children.

[Lodestar 77]

Best of health wishes go out to both of you. And not having children/grandchildren is not the end of the world, so I hope you and she have made peace with this.

[Montana Griz]

Originally Posted by Michigan Transplant

Best of health wishes go out to both of you. And not having children/grandchildren is not the end of the world, so I hope you and she have made peace with this.

Thank you..................
Having this type of cancer background and not getting married till age 40, she reluctantly decided to not have any children.............However, she had 28 years of teaching school to 4th grade students, so her love of kids was manifested in a different way over the years to hundreds of 4th graders.
I could not have been blessed with a finer daughter............since the death of my wife over 12 yrs ago,, she calls me every day at dinner time just to "check in"!!!!!!!