Two Years Retired

The term retirement historically applied to “Old” people, like our grandparents. It seemed like a time when they stopped working, increased a few hobbies or time with grandchildren, and sat in the recliner watching gameshows. However, retirement is taking on a new life, and people are embarking upon this phase of life at a younger age. So, when we retired early (ages 61, 52) by stopping the daily grind of work, we had to define what this stage of life would look like because it would NOT be constant game shows, video games, or golf courses.

CALENDARS & CLOCKS: When we were in work mode, these items ruled our world. Greg hasn’t worn a watch in years. I continue to wear my watch daily out of habit, but now, hours will pass without monitoring it. The date function on the watch reminds me where we are in the week since “Decisions: Every Day Is Saturday, Right”. In this retirement life we are thankful that we never again will suffer from the “Sunday Stress” in preparation of the new work week. However, we do suffer from that same type of emotional stress in the days before a travel-day. Leaping to a new destination produces the same kind of anxiety for us. Will you have a set schedule in retirement, or let calendars and clocks disappear?

HEALTH: Considering the significant changes to our daily routines and schedules, maintaining healthy habits has been harder than we thought. After leaving work in the education and medical fields, we find that the common cold is easier to catch because our exposure and resistance shifted. Along with that we somehow get hurt doing nothing and take way too long to heal. The best part of our health shift in retirement was the near elimination of extreme stress and mental fatigue in those career fields. Gone are the 50-hour work weeks and on-call requirements. However, traveling without access to a gym means our activity levels are lower overall, which has contributed to some muscle loss and weight gain. Or perhaps we are just enjoying a bit more wine and amazing food. Which health components do you worry about in retirement?

HOUSING: We began our retirement days by combining our lives. After 4 years of dating, I sold my house and moved in with Greg. This home of ours is a good “base” for our Go-Go years right now, but with multiple levels and stairs it is NOT a forever home. When we began traveling together, “home” became anywhere we laid our head, from hotels and short-term apartments to guest beds with family and friends. We’ve been successfully adapting to each new location in travel and know we want a smaller house when we age, yet we haven’t been able to decide what a future home should look like. What kind of house will meet our needs in our Slow-Go and No-Go years? In what state or country should it be located? This thinking stresses us out sometimes. Where do you want to live in your retirement?

FINANCES: We have always been conscientious about money and that is how we earned enough savings to retire early. Did We Win the Lottery? Kind-of. After 24 months of retirement, which included 16 months of traveling abroad, we can tell you that we’ve become more diligent, but not thriftier, about tracking where our money is spent vs. where our money is earned. We made a few mistakes with money since we retired too including purchasing a hotel room in the wrong month and not reading the fine print for travel insurance when we had to cancel Rome in 2026. These were costly mistakes that we view as wasteful. Shifting from the “saving brain” we had in work mode to the “spending brain” we are supposed to have in retirement has not been easy for us, though we created a few tricks to help.

• We pay ourselves from saving to checking each month to see an income.

• We record our purchases in an excel spreadsheet document.

• At the end of the month, we review the spreadsheet to see how much money was spent compared to our income.

• At the end of the month, we review our utility usage to remind us to turn off unused lights or waste less water doing dishes.

• At the end of the month, we analyze bank statements for missed items.

Initially, we worried about our income/expense ratio since we were eliminating two monthly paychecks. But after two years of traveling in retirement, we can report that our monthly expenses are reasonably predictable, even with travel. By tracking our travel expenses, we can budget for higher-cost destinations and lower-cost destinations. With great surprise, we can share that our savings are not slipping away too quickly (except for inflation). Will you worry about expenses or running out of money in retirement?

Motivators & Purpose: When in the work mode, we worked our butts off. Earning that paycheck and getting recognition from others gave us the forward momentum up the career ladders. We accepted responsibility and helped everyone we could along the way. Some people struggled with the concept of purpose in retirement because work defined their whole being. They may even fall into depression with the loss of purpose or relationships. We really don’t miss work, but there are days when we couldn’t get motivated no matter which country we slept in. Having some routine tasks, even while traveling, helps us with motivation and purpose. Planning and organizing each new trip, while fully experiencing the current trip, keeps our former work skills engaged while progressing us forward in a relaxed, retirement lifestyle. Writing this BLOG helps too and shares our adventures with friends. What activities will you choose to motivate you and give your life purpose?

Entertainment: There is no shortage of entertainment these days. We have more time and energy to spend time on things that bring us joy. Because we have reduced our stress so significantly, we even have the emotional capacity to be entertained by simple things like a good storm, children playing in the park, or a musician in the square. Making and eating home-cooked meals are hugely entertaining especially if we can share them with loved ones in the USA. Additionally, we find plenty of entertainment in each of the new cities we visit while traveling. Living this slower version of life in retirement helps us find gratitude for the tiny things that bring us joy. How will you entertain yourself in retirement?

RELATIONSHIPS: Together we make a fabulous team even though we began Dating after 50. We communicate well most of the time. We balance each other in our times of need. Most importantly, we laugh a little bit each day.

Outside our dyad, we have the time and energy to give to our children, siblings, or parents each week. This includes in person visits, phone calls, and text messages. We’ve even had a chance to visit out-of-state families. Spending time with loved ones can be difficult in retirement because most of them still work. There are only 52 weekends in a year and traveling reduces the availability.

We found that friendships require more work than the other relationships because schedules are tighter and our common interests just shifted significantly. However, we will continue to stay connected to those we love. How might your relationships change or grow when you retire?

Overall, our retirement is agreeing with us. We have stumbling blocks like anyone. For example, health will continue to be a problem as our bodies change, we made a few mistakes with money which hurt a bit, some of our relationships became rocky, and we have some big decisions to make on where to live in our Slow-Go and No-Go years. We are grateful for the lives we built and our loved ones who hold us tight. With a little bit of planning, you, too, can retire happily.