Health insurance is the snag. Many people could retire early if it wasnt for that and it sucks.
(Topic ID: 223399)
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Quoted from o-din:Bonanza's on now. [quoted image]
Gunsmoke and Bonanza rule dude!! How about a pinball machine made after one of these shows??
Quoted from TheLaw:Find a nice union job with a pension, and you might be able to retire in 25 years.
I have a union job and theres no way we can even consider retiring until age 62 and then you better have a good chunk of change saved up. I think the days of the good union jobs are long over.
Quoted from NeilMcRae:Retiring from pinside!? say it aint so!
Not gonna happen Neil. O-din will be here for about 30-40 more years at least!
Quoted from Rondogg:49 and also looking at 55 for retirement. Hopefully there are some better healthcare options than there are today in 2024 but either way I have a game plan. I know a lot of people who retire at 62+ who have had serious medical issues once they retired. I still have a lot of stuff I want to do and I want to be young/healthy enough to enjoy them.
A lot of my goals rely on the US economy continuing its long boom. A recession/depression and all bets are off.
What’s your plan?
1 year later
O-din did you retire yet? I am going out at the first of the year if I can last that long. I cant keep working this shift work and I've just decided that I am done.
I may do some side work for cash for people to stay a little active possibly. I cant wait to get the hell out of here though, that's all that I know. It's going to be nice to not have to take anyone's shit anymore and to not have to live my life at work on every weekend and holiday while switching shifts every week.
I will be able to play a lot more pinball so maybe I will become a professional pinball player. Does that pay well? 
Quoted from FrankJ:It will be a year next week. Getting bored. Accepted a part-time position on “my terms”. I’ll be working 20 hours per week. My choice of Mon-Thurs 8am-1pm or Tues/Wed 7 hours and Thurs 6 hours. I chose 3 days a week.
I spent a lifetime working long hours, including nights, weekends, and holidays - sometimes several weeks between days off. I’m looking forward to going back to work under these terms.
That's what I will do. I'm only 55 so I'm really going out too early but i just cant do this switching shifts and 12 hours anymore. I'm going to take my small pension and go. They wont hire any people to give us some relief so the hell with them. I think 37 years of swing shift is enough and i think it's time for the next chapter in my life.
I'm going to take a very well deserved long break after 40 years of working and then i may consider something part time "on my terms" as you said. I am the one holding all of the cards now and I am the boss. That is a great feeling to have! If anyone needs their grass mowed next year just give me a call.
Quoted from yzfguy:I went out at 48
Back working part time.
That is awesome! I just cant wait to see what it feels like to not have to go to work anymore after 40 straight years of working. I have never been laid off or had any kind of a break ever, just go to work every single day, swing shift, weekends, holidays, 12-16 hours many days, quick comebacks you name it and ive done it. My old work partner has been retired for a year now and he said that it still doesn't seem real. He said he still mentally feels like he works at the mill and that he isn't really retired. That sounds crazy but I understand it. When you give that much of your life to a place its hard to believe that you aren’t a slave to it anymore. They are going to shit when i drop the bomb on them that im retiring because they are really short on help and they’re not expecting me to leave at all. I cant wait to see that look on their face! 
Quoted from Nickrc3:Ditto...Uninterrupted work pattern for 40+ years. Never fired or laid-off. Retired at 56. Three years into it, I still have 'work dreams' a couple nights each week. Guess I miss the diversity of people/job assignments, responsibilities, and to some extent, control.
Finally starting to enjoy a schedule of daily activities mostly centered around R/C model airplanes, cars, motorcycles, and pinball. May take up golf, but just can't wrap my head around chasing a ball around a course.
I havent golfed in a long time but its great fun once you get decent at it.
Quoted from Gunnut40:You ain’t retiring. The man has you!
Haha be at my house at 11:30pm the night of January 3rd and see. Theres going to be a party going on! Heck it might even be sooner than that. It might be tonight if they piss me off. I am holding all of the cards right now.
Quoted from littlecammi:Lucky bastards!
Many years ago a big industrial company started up a consumer products division that hired me a year in. Eight and a half years later there were almost a hundred consumer products employees nearing their ten year employment anniversaries, at which time they would be vested for retirement pensions. So big industrial quickly sold off consumer products division to a another big company that wanted the product lines but didn't need any of the office staff and we all lost our jobs. I returned from my honeymoon to find this out. My boss knew before I went, but didn't tell me because he didn't want to ruin my honeymoon or cause me to cancel the wedding.
Then I got a job with another consumer products company and worked there for almost ten years while saving money to buy a house. Two months after my wife and I moved in, the owner sold the company to an out-of-state company that wanted the product lines but didn't need any of the office staff. If you stayed until they let you go you would get one week's severance pay for each year of service. If you quit to look for or take another job, then you got nothing. Because I was considered a key employee they wanted me to stay through the transition until the end, so I got ten week's severance pay, but then I was out of work again.
I've always been recognized by management and coworkers as being extremely competent and knowledgeable. But I got married and lost my job. Then I bought a house and lost my job. So now I'm afraid of major life changes. I might retire and lose my job.
Sometimes I think this job was a good thing and sometimes I think it was the worst thing that ever happened to me so I'm not so sure if I'm lucky or not. I definitely have mixed feelings about it. I'm just glad to be getting the hell out of there that's all I know. I will probably still find some sort of part time work here and there or do something on my own to keep me busy.
Quoted from cottonm4:How do all of you who retired early account for health care costs into your budget?
I retired early. Health care insurance is not cheap.
Turning 65 and getting Medicare was a welcome, life-enhancing event.
I have no bills and my health insurance will be paid for from my pension, rental property income and my 401k if needed. I hate to spend my retirement savings on health insurance but health insurance is part of retirement if you retire early and the reason I put money back into my 401k was............to retire, so that's what I'm going to use it for.
My situation is also a little different than most peoples. I don't have any kids to leave my money to so I'm going to use it on myself. I also live a pretty modest lifestyle. I don't drive fancy cars or take 5,000 dollar cruises etc.
The #1 thing that I want more than anything right now in my life is to get the hell out of where I work at and to not have to work swing shift anymore so that's what I am going to do. That is much better than driving a new car or living in a new 250-300K home to me. Everyone is different though so to each their own.
Quoted from cottonm4:you will pay a penalty for early withdrawal.
Thankfully I will qualify for what they call the 55 plus rule and I wont have to pay a penalty. The way I have everyth8figured up I also wont have to dip into my 401K but I think that I will a little bit anyways just to live a little better. Remember I also get social security at age 62 so that's going to be a nice raise also.
Quoted from cottonm4:I retired at 62 and started SS at that time. I have SS and two pensions live on. I make less than $30K per year. But 85% of SS income is not taxable income. Only 15% counts as taxable income. I can make up to $36,000 per year before I have to pay Federal Tax. I figure that little tax benefit makes < $30K per year feel like I am making $50K and paying tax.
So, I can only make about $8,000.00 per year before I have to start paying taxes. This is one reason I have never bothered to look for a part time job.
And with the new 1040 tax rates, I can take $8,000.00 from my IRA and not have to pay any taxes. So I am busy drawing it down by $8K per year in an effort to have the IRA stripped clean a few years down the road without having to ever pay any taxes on withdrawals.
That's the way to do it sounds like Cotton. Not sure what kinds of things you can do but cash jobs are certainly nice also.
Quoted from o-din:But does my life suck if I am reporting this to you at 1:28 AM?
Not at all. Your life only sucks if YOU think it sucks. You seem to be doing quite well to me and you seem happy.
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