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My husband and I moved to an over 55 community, I am 58 and he is 61. I retired from a government job, took two years off, and now work part-time in a job I really like, working 25 hours a week. The community and the people are very nice. What I find interesting is many of the people tell me how lucky I am that I am still working and how much they miss working. I am talking about people in their 80's and 90's. They tell me things like "never quit working". Tonight at a community BBQ a 90 year old couple, married 66 years were telling me they wish they were still working. They are bored. Another 88 year old neighbor tells me how bored she is and they tell me of all the great jobs they had and how much they miss it. They tell me "never retire!"
It is sort of like the twilight zone. When I worked at a high stress government job, all the stressed out zombies (I was one of them) were counting down to retirement, how soon could we retire and enjoy life. It was like a prison term, how many years do you have to put in until you escape? We were all obsessed with retirement planning.
Now I feel like I have a good balance, happy working part-time, money comes in handy. Having so many seniors tell me how much they miss working makes me wonder. Is this just a human thing, if you are working hard you dream of retiring, and now my elderly neighbors are bored and dream of still working.
Maybe they are actually bored and dreaming of when they were young, had more energy, and felt productive. That is why it is good to have hobbies or at least develop some after you retire. In my 55+ community there are some who watch TV all day. But there are also many like me who paint, play instruments, & garden (either by joining our clubs or not). Some swim daily, do yoga, golf, or any of the other activities we have here.
I don't miss working at all. I have other hobbies and interests that take up my time, and I have a lot of relaxing time like taking my dog to a park and reading a book. I do a lot of cooking and canning, some gardening, etc. I don't miss office politics one iota.
I would guess the problem is they haven't found other hobbies or interests to fill their time. Or some people just like to complain - whether it's about the job they have, or the one they wished they had, etc., etc.
What I've found in 55+ senior buildings is that the people with a lot of interests are the ones you never see. They are off doing things. The ones hanging around complaining are the ones I run into who want to talk - the ones always in the lobby or community room. So, my guess is you just aren't meeting the people who are happy with their hobbies or volunteer jobs or outside interests, because they're off enjoying them.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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...wish they were still working. They are bored. Another 88 year old neighbor tells me how bored she is and they tell me of all the great jobs they had and how much they miss it. They tell me "never retire!"
I would like to figure out how to tap the wealth of information, ingenuity and creative ideas, of our very talented seniors... and plug them in on their own terms. (PT, FT, occasional, seasonal, traveling, ...).
There must be ways to implement this, from mentoring... to partnering in profitable corporations and start ups.
I am confident seniors have been and can solve the answers to many social and technical challenges.
Now to implement this. I'm sure some societies and cultures do this far better than the USA. And seniors can be a quirky bunch (Freedom to walk away at anytime and not interested in 'climbing-the-corp ladder').
Not ALL (seniors or employers / communities) will want to participate, and that is fine.
Let me know some communities / cultures / societies I can research!
I am part of a couple of communities that have a wealth of great seniors (and more everyday).
As I have mentioned before, I have found communities near USA National labs as 'great, engaged, senior communities'. Now to find a way to engage these resources at will.
I was so lucky to work for on very innovative company who encouraged employees to invent their own projects, work flexible hours, and engage in community services. Many start-ups were birthed, and coworkers were terrific.
Good times (working and retired). Very fortunate.
If one is bored in retirement it's usually their own fault. You have so much more time to do things! Depending on the retirement community there should be plenty to keep one occupied.
There are so many things to do here that we have turn down offers just to have some alone time.
Some people were easily bored when they young, and easily bored when they are older. They either need the distractions of work or some passive entertainment.,There is nothing stopping someone doing something to stop being bored. Like other posters said the ones that aren’t bored are too busy getting on with life so you are stuck meeting with those who like to complain.
What I find interesting is many of the people tell me how lucky I am that I am still working and how much they miss working. I am talking about people in their 80's and 90's. They tell me things like "never quit working". Tonight at a community BBQ a 90 year old couple, married 66 years were telling me they wish they were still working. They are bored. Another 88 year old neighbor tells me how bored she is and they tell me of all the great jobs they had and how much they miss it. They tell me "never retire!"
I loved my job and the people I worked with. But you're living in some kind of an alternate universe, one that's diametrically opposed to mine and every retiree I know.
I'm in an over-55 and know many others outside the community who are retired, and I've never heard one person say they're bored and miss working! Most people say they don't know how they ever fit working into their busy lives. I agree with the above poster who said you must be living in an alternate universe! Maybe there aren't enough activities in your community, or maybe these folks are just missing the days when they were able to be more physically active.
My observation: Most people had jobs similar to the OP's; too much stress, counting down the days of their prison term. For them, Retirement is their release date.
But a few of us had jobs where we were fulfilled. We engaged in interesting careers that were actually enjoyable. I can understand missing that time.
What I've found in 55+ senior buildings is that the people with a lot of interests are the ones you never see. They are off doing things. The ones hanging around complaining are the ones I run into who want to talk - the ones always in the lobby or community room.
This is so true! Chronic complainers usually have to find new people willing to listen to them, so they are always the easiest people to meet.
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Maybe there aren't enough activities in your community, or maybe these folks are just missing the days when they were able to be more physically active.
