peace of mind

[Ozz]

When we retire, we are concerned that we will remain healthy, and our expenses will not exceed our income to a great degree. We are also concerned that any savings and retirement funds we are lucky enough to have, will last as long as we do….
The quality of life we lead, should be at least as good as we have dreamed about, while working and preparing for retirement.
Of course, each of us, has a different desire and want, for that retirement lifestyle.
The stories about the cat food in the can, we have all heard. I would imagine it would not be tasty, and hope to stay with the beans and Spam that I am comfortable with.
Today, as I was bicycling around the Island, all of these things went through my mind. I felt a little uneasy, the feeling you get sometimes when things go too smoothly, looking for the ‘other shoe to drop’ .
I left our site, on Isla Blanca, took my usual route along the beach. Passing by the two shelter buildings, with all the families that come on the weekend, they were crowded with groups of all sizes, young children playing in the froth of the waves, close to the shore, young couples, laying next to each other laughing and flirting. The older couples sitting in beach chairs, content on observing all they came to see on this beautiful day.
I pedaled up Gulf Boulevard, this time with the wind, happy for that, but mindful that I would pay a price for it, on the way back to our home here on the Island. I don’t mind paying the price, as I have never felt better, with the heart pounding rides against the wind.
I love to see the small things that I would have missed, when running my hectic Hearting and Cooling business.
I was sipping a cold one at Boomerang Billy’s, watching 4 middle aged volleyball players at their game, pretty darn good, they were. The beach goers were coming and going past my perch on the railing. A family of four came up by me, the water faucet for the beach goers was nearby.
I watched mom and dad as they washed their feet efficiently, their young daughter walked past. The Brown smiling young boy was last to the water. He stuck his thonged feet under the faucet, one by one, then walked away. He walked stiff legged, as the soft white sand was like powder, it covered his wet skin quickly.
He returned just a few minutes later, thongs in hand, he had a plan.
Still smiling, and as happy as can be, he washed the thongs, then his feet and legs. He had perfected his stiff legged walk, he marched back to the parking lot smiling and looking back at me, confident that he had the least amount of sand possible clinging to his skin.
I couldn’t have got the smile off my face if my life depended on it.
I did pinch myself, just to insure I was not having the most pleasant dream of my life.
I think my retirement time is passing just fine.

[gpats]

If you get in a retirement bind I think you could supplement your income writing short stories !!!!!!

[mrosser]

OZZ, IF THINGS GET TO BAD WE COULD USE SOME "OZZ MODS" ON OUR RIG

[Dustytuu]

I keep saying....you should write a book. And I want an autographed copy!

You could start with keeping an every day journal.

[scductman]

Ozz I to am about one year from retirement. I think alot about if I will be able to make it work. Lord I hope so. You sound sssssoooo good. makes me know I have to try. You are a lucky man and I love to hear about it. Keep up the good words please. bobby

[Ozz]

You folks are mighty nice.

[tom41]

Ozz, you doing great!, Bobby you will never regret retirement. I really didnt think I could make it work. I retired at 58 yrs old in 2000. And its great! Sometimes I feel and act like a teenager again. I can thank God for mine and Nancys health. Like Ozz said, its the simple things that are so precious, the things we miss while we were working. Its about the new friends we meet in our travels, and the old friends we meet again somewhere. So what makes fulltiming so great is...we been here in fla for a month, tomorrow we traveling toward Gulf state park in ala., just to see who is there! From there, who knows?

[Ozz]

Well put, Tom

[Wayne and Carolyn Mathews]

Oh, Ozz, you said it all--retirement should be full of hope and possibilities, not waking up one day and realizing that eating cat food might be preferable to not eating at all! As I look out where our new home is staked, ready for the foundation excavation, I'm asking myself again WHY didn't we take the plunge and live the life we've been talking about and dreaming of for the last 5 years, the life where we hitch up and go instead of building a small retirement home (which, as you know, usually never ends up being either small or for retirement)?

I want to stay busy, but on my own schedule, not someone else's. It's time to finish a writing project I started over 10 years ago, time to catch up on my reading, time to take more photos, time to spend day after day fishing, time to kayak from dawn to dusk, time to travel . . . and that's just the beginning of time-to-do list. So, as our money is funneling into the new house, our hearts and minds are going into "How long do we have to live in it before we can sell it and hit the road?"

I probably do need to teach another year or so, but we surely want to start our "Life, Part II--Fulltiming" before something happens that makes doing so difficult or impossible. We had a wake-up call about 2 years when Wayne had a massive heart attack, followed by a terrible staph infection in his sternum, an infection that required several hospitalizations and a year of treatment. He survived, obviously. Funny how something like that can get your attention, make you finally lose the 75 pounds you've needed to lose for years, get you off your backside and walking 3 or more miles a day, learn that you can survive without getting a Blizzard every time you pass a Dairy Queen, and look at life from an entirely different angle.

Your post regarding your retirement lifestyle is pure poetry. I think you said it all and said it beautifully.

Carolyn

[Ozz]

Thank you Carolyn, let's see some before and after pictures of the dream house. Keep us up to date on your next year or two. We will see you on the road, remember to keep planning for that transition into retirement. You need an 'exit plan', now is the time to start that.
Take care of Wayne, keep him away from that indoor 'Blizzard'.

[Wayne and Carolyn Mathews]

You're right, Ozz, we do need an exit plan. I'm sure no matter how well we think we've covered all bases, we'll forget something. As for keeping Wayne away from indoor Blizzards, I think we have that problem solved for another month or two; our local DQ closes in October and doesn't reopen until April (people don't eat ice cream in the winter?)!

Carolyn

[Ozz]

Carolyn, they probably come down here...
That is a wonderful picture of you two and the mountains behind you.
Take care.