Today was supposed to be my last day of full-time work. Instead, I am home writing this post.
By mid-afternoon yesterday, all my files had been reassigned to my replacement, and The Boss told me if I wanted to I could leave at the end of the day. Today is a short day for many businesses, as Veteran’s Day is tomorrow – and the weatherman was predicting our first overnight snow with slippery conditions in the morning. And let’s not forget that I really didn’t want to be there anyway, especially if I had nothing to do all day. I would be paid for the day whether I was there or not. It was an easy decision.
So, today is officially my first day of unemployment/retirement.
Am I happy to be looking out the window watching the first occasional snowflakes and knowing I don’t need to go anywhere if I don’t want to? Absolutely.
Am I relieved to know I no longer have to deal with a single one of the problem files? Need I even answer that?
But I still had a somewhat sleepless night. Periodically, I would get a panicky feeling that I had forgotten to do something at work, that I had forgotten to call a client, that I had failed to relay some vital piece of information to the new hire. I constantly had to remind myself that those issues were no longer my problem.
Such is life in the business world. Yes, I’m happy to be away from that, even if only for a few months.
The game plan, as I mentioned before, is to take a few months off while the household renovations are completed, and while I find a way to resolve the latent anxiety. Then I intend to file for Social Security and supplement that with a part-time job of some kind – but definitely not the same type of job I just left!
It’s scary.
And it’s going to be a rough ride. I’ll be living on what little savings I have, which means cutting back on the few pleasures I have. No new books, no wine purchases, no new videogames.
I have hundreds of videogames already downloaded, so that’s not an issue. I can get a library card and take out books whenever I need them – for free, so that’s not an issue.
But wine? That’s going to be a tough sacrifice. On the other hand, without the stress of The Job From Hell, I can forego that glass of wine at night. It will make my occasional sips that much more pleasurable.
Meanwhile, Puppy Cody and I are enjoying our time together, just sitting around and watching the outside world go by.
I can definitely get used to this.
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Images by Cordelia’s Mom
Cordelia's Mom, Still 
Ah. A smooth finish. Excellent choice.
You simply must start trying wines from your local Aldi supermarket. They’re not all winners, but some of them are QUITE nice! I’ve found a handful of Riesling and Malbec labels I truly enjoy. The rest can usually be cooked with 😉
But yes, for now, watch the snow fall and snuggle the pupper! 😀
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Hi, Joey. Actually, my favorite wine is from New York State, and is only $6.99 a bottle (Prejean “Tiger Lily”), but even that’s going to be out of my range for the next few months. Ah well, Christmas is coming, and my kids know what to get me.
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😀
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Enjoy your retirement and free time. You’ll be surprised how fast it goes as I still find it hard to believe I held down a full time job!
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That’s the other side of “scary” – what if I like retirement so much that I really don’t want to go back to work when the money runs out?
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Ah. Know how that feels. You never know, things might work out and you don’t have to go back to work, We’re going to find it tougher from December as our income will reduce by a third due to a change in government policy for disabled people. We don’t know if it will be for a transition period or permanent as surprise surprise, nobody’s telling, even though Hubby had the assessment some months ago where the doc said I needed to get him home as he was in so much pain.
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oh, how awful. I hate to see anyone in pain. And then having to deal with reduced income at the same time? Hopefully, it’s just a temporary reduction.
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We won’t know until the end of January., but have been planning for it anyway. That’s why it was important to get all the big stuff done in the house beforehand.
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Congratulations on the soft finish, CM. Your kiddos can now step in with a case of your favorite NY State vino to tide you over until the next stage kicks in. You’ve earned it, my friend.
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Ha! I’ll give you my kids’ addresses so you can write and remind them to do that.
Thanks, Mark.
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Expect the nightmares to continue for a few years. At least that was my experience. I would dream I was way behind on my work, and then something would happen that would make it impossible to catch up. Then I’d wake up and remember I was retired. But during the day retirement is nice and relaxing. Naps, reading, blogging, listening to music, etc. The good life. I hope you enjoy it fully.
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Naps, reading, blogging. Exactly what I did today! Guess I’m well suited for retirement. (But I do find the prospect of nightmares for a few years to be a wee bit unsettling. Ugh.)
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I know it is scary, but oh boy, I am so jealous. I bet you will find the cost of working is much more than just the stress. More gas, more food, more clothes to wash, more lunches. it will work out just fine. Watch how much your less stress load will have on your health issues. You are perfect for retirement. You won’t even miss the wine. But if you do, just remember a $7.00 bottle of wine will not kill your budget unless you go through it in one night…. but then you have a bigger issue 🙂
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Thanks, Jane. Only once in my life have I ever gone through an entire bottle of wine in one night by myself. I was sooo sick the next morning. I learned that lesson quickly!
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Those dreams of work will last a while, but not forever. I’m happy for your transition, CM. Make the best of those days of naps, books, blogs, and the pup. You may soon realize that wine is not as important as it once was. Ease into it, it’s a good phase of life.
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Thanks, Van. If nothing else, I’ll have lots of free time for writing and photography. I hope to make the most of it while I can.
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No wne? Sacrilege! But yes, priorities. Take care of you and enjoy the time.
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I started stocking up on wine before I made the final decision to quit. I’m ok with it for awhile so long as I’m frugal. It’s a new phase in my life which I’ll get through like all the other phases.
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You don’t have to wake up early to go to work for at least a few months. And I think it’s the most di-wine thing, CM. LOL! Christmas is coming and I hope you get many bottles of wine as gifts.
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I’m hoping that, too. Or at least gift cards for books or videogames.
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Enjoy the time off to figure out the next chapter.
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That’s the plan, Dan. About time I figured out what I want to be when I grow up.
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Congrats on retirement, and I hope the anxiety goes away soon.
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Thanks, Andy. If nothing else, at least I’m sleeping better.
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It takes a while to find your level, but you’ll find it. At first you’re sure you’ll never manage on that much less money — but you don’t need work clothing, you aren’t commuting. Your expenses go down more than you think they will. A lot of things you thought you needed, you discover you didn’t really need all that much. I’ve always found a way to fit books into my life. When you’ve got a kindle, they come up for very little money pretty often, both as Audible and as Kindle. It takes a while, but mostly, it works out. And NOT working really IS priceless.
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Thanks, Marilyn. I have to admit that when I saw all those computer kiosks at the library, my first thought was “Maybe I can stop paying for my own internet!” But I’m not sure I’m ready to do my blogging from a library computer with so little privacy.
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Shouldn’t you apply for Social Security immediately, or is there some kind of clawback? I applied for the Canadian equivalent in Sept., but worked until January. 😀
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“Full” retirement age here is 66, at which point I can collect Social Security while still working as much as I want or need to. If I took retirement now, I would not only lose about $70 a month in benefits, chances are they wouldn’t be able to pay me anything for this year as I’ve already earned beyond the minimum allowed. I just need to squeak by for a few months.
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