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Retiring early for us meant getting out from behind our desks and onto the golf course or walking trails. We eat better, we move around and enjoy nature, and we've both lost considerate weight. We're now in our early to mid 60s and neither one of us is on medication. Retirement works for us!
It's really very simple. Assuming you have a pc and not an Apple product, just move your cursor up to the url and click to highlight. Then press Ctrl + C simultaneously. You have now copied the link.
Now go to whereever you want to insert the link in the message you are composing. Place the cursor at that point and then press Ctrl + V simultaneously. Voila! You now have the link.
We retired almost 3 years ago and we are very happy. We keep busy doing fun things and spending lots of our time volunteering doing service for others.....for us happiness is keeping busy doing things we love - we don't get paid for it - we have free choice to do what we want to with our time.
In today's Los Angeles Times (latimes.com/opinion) there is an article entitled (in the online edition) "Early retirement may be hazardous to your health" (in the print edition "Work longer, live happier") by Katherine Schlaerth, M.D., who is a geriatrician. (Sorry I don't know how to do those links; I'm probably the most retarded person vis à vis computers who ever lived.)
I don't know about living longer but I will live happier, and wealthier, if I work.
My dream, 6 1/2 years down the road, is to be getting $4,000 from social security and work part time 3 days a week for another $3,000/month. Heck, my wife and I could go on a cruise every month of the year.
Do you mean receiving that on your own, or combining the monthly social security checks from you and your wife?
The average monthly social security check for an individual is around $1100 or $1200.
If you wait until your full age of retirment, your individual social secuiity check might be around $1700 or $1800.
No, the maximum is higher than that. It all depends on your earnings history (amount and number of years). They take an average of your 35 highest years of earnings, indexed for inflation. Sorry I don't remember what the maximum SS retirement benefits check is, but you can find on their website (www.socialsecurity.gov). I do know it is higher than what you are saying in the bolded sentence above. Don't forget that the average benefit, which you quoted correctly, includes some people like me; I receive $138 per month. That is not a typo: one hundred thirty-eight dollars per month.
Maximum Social Security benefit is $2,366. And that is if you've been a top earner. I worked over 52 years and my benefit before Medicare is $1,847.50. Never was a super high earner, but was always well above average. My 62 year-old sister who is a nurse and has worked her entire life says her projected benefit is over $2,000. My brother-in-law in MI who was an engineer with GM for 40 years collects the max.
I don't know about living longer but I will live happier, and wealthier, if I work.
Retired now, but I can attest to this. I really want to get back to work part-time. I am single, very healthy and would like the outlet and the money. For me, working would be beneficial physically and mentally. I also can use the money to more easily maintain my house and travel a bit. Have tried volunteer work, but not lately. Didn't enjoy it years ago. If I don't find a job, I may pursue volunteer work more aggressively.
Last edited by Ariadne22; 04-25-2011 at 08:40 PM..
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