Anyone interested

[thallygal]

In firing up this group again.  I am at retirement age....and am looking at options....is a scary proposition as I was a stay at home mom for many years....went back to school when I was forty two, started a career as drug alcohol counselor at forty four...then when that was going no where went back to school and gratduated at 53 with my masters in contemplative psychology....I have no house, little 401 K and huge school loan...which I think might be forgiven because I work in a community mental health center.... I do not want to work till I drop dead...wanna play like robbie and baia...:-)

with age for me comes some craziness as well....as I was cleaning out my file and organizing papers, I shredded my birth certificate...thinking it was my mothers   LOL...well it was by her death certificate...so if i wanna travel...have to get that birth certificate so i can get a passport....hahhaaha...then may try a month cruise next year....or maybe two months....

[WS]

Well I'd like to know what happens if we wait to retire and they defund Social security or make us push the date back. I almost think it would be better to retire before 55, because they will make it so disadvantageous to retire at the normal age if we wait until they change the legislation!! (Did any of that make sense?)

[lynn]

you need to get a replacement birth certificate anyhow, thalia.  it takes too long, to wait 'til you need it, and if you change jobs, nowadays you need it anyhow!

i vote retirement, for sure.  not knowing specifics, i can't say what you'd have to live on or anything else, but there oughta' be a way for you to scale back work and still survive.  you know that you can work and still receive social security, right?  after you earn more than 1180/mo for the first year and 14,400/yr thereafter, they'll dock you until you reach full retirement age (either 65 or 66, depending).  call or visit your SS folks and find out how much they'll give you, then adjust your work schedule accordingly, is my best guess!  but if you think of it as a supplement that lets you scale back work, it might help you reframe what you're doing.  

i'm guessing the counseling is something that you like, you'd just rather have more reliable clientele (yeah, that comes with the disease....)  

check out vacationstogo.com and their resort and escorted tour vacations too.  short notice, not too expensive...

please stay in touch!  i'm tickled that i went poking around in tbd today (after months of not) and found your post!  there are no coincidences.... love and hugs to you

[Baia]

Oops, Thally, I complimented Shannon on resurrecting this topic, when it was really you.  Sorry.

I would suggest cutting back on your hours as you start collecting full SS benefits and then look around to see what other opportunities there may be that interest you.  If you decide to move to the Oregon Coast, there may be some part time, seasonal jobs there that would keep you balanced.  My daughter, the under-employed landscape architect, is finding a lot of work teaching English to foreign professionals who have relocated to our area to work with large IT companies who have bought out their previous employers.  My daughter and her students are all benefitting from the shift in our economy from local to international. Of course, who knows how long that will last.

My other daughter and her husband have a home business that is taking off in a direction that they did not anticipate and I have volunteered my editing and training services as the need comes up.

My community is starting up a Senior Village (there is an article in AARP this month about this concept) and a lot of new positions are opening up to support the services that we will be offering in our community to help seniors age gracefully and healthily in their own homes or whatever other facility they choose.  When I was younger (in my 30's) I thought that a profession in the geriatric field would be ideal for someone to grow into.  I didn't do it myself, but I can see how it would be interesting and valuable to seniors interested in staying active and connected with their peers.

I will be interested in learning what others are doing to really LIVE during the rich years of our long lives.

 

 

[thallygal]

I wish that I was just 55,  I am truely of retirement age...will be 67 in September,

I got a late start in a career as I stayed home...

thanks for replying to this, and I am really thinking of options....I know I can make it work, somehow...will nto be for a year as my daughter and I have a deal, we are going to be roomates for one more year, so will renew our lease in June...am just burned out right now and had another young client die on Thursday...so has been tough, and yes, I love what I do

the pacific northwest a marvelous place to be...and i do know that things will be well, seems as if i am always taken care of and as my friend says "am sprinkled with fairie dust"  LOL

hope you all have a marvelous easter

filled with love and laughter

[lynn]

well then, you can draw social security NOW and still collect full salary, my friend -- start doing that, and save it up if you're gonna' keep working anyhow, that'll give you a nice nest egg!  go right on over to socialsecurity.gov and sign yourself up ASAP, please!

how sad, to have a client die.  there's no way to protect yourself from that pain, and still do what you do, well.  ((((Thalia))))

[CWO3ROBBIE]

Thallygal, I just found that this discussion had been revived. It's my bedtime now but I 'll try to give you some pointers later.

[thallygal]

I just ordered my birth certificate again..and am planning a trip to the SS office soon....

My b c is here...just wasn't home when it was delivered yesterday, they are coming again today and as luck would have it I have a few days off of work...so will be here

hope everyone has a very happy day filled with love and laughter

[CWO3ROBBIE]

Thally,

Good to hear from you. Retirement is a very tricky subject. There is no longer a one size fits all retirement plan.  It does require study and planning, or not. There are many books out there about how to do it.  I never found one that was a complete guide. That is because each person is different. I would advise reading as much about ways to make it in retirement as you have time for and inclination to do so. Pick and choose what you think you can use. Documents you will need in retirement are; Social Security Card, Birth Certificate, Passport, Drivers License, Medicare card, Health records, credit card, Visa or Mastercard are best. some places do not take Discover or American Express. Establish a Checking and savings account with a credit union and get a debit card so you can draw money out wherever you are. 

Learn as much as you can about the Tax laws and regulations as possible. there are many simple things that you can do to reduce the amount of taxes that you pay in retirement.  It is easy to fall into tax traps in retirement. For example: any money you draw out of your IRA is considered regular income. It will be added to any and all other income. Which means it will be taxed at the highest marginal rate you pay.

The amount that is charged for Medicare health insurance is dependent on the amount of income you have.  For example; In 2009 when I got divorced, I drew a sizable amount out of my IRA and used it to pay down the mortgage on the condo before turning it over to the wife as part of the agreement. In Nov of 2010 I was informed that my Medicare premiums would increase from $93 a month to $256 due to the amount of income I had on my 2009 tax return. My actual income this year will be about 1/2 what I reported in 2009 due to the IRA withdrawal. But I will be paying about $2000 more for Medicare.

Another example: As workkamper, i am required to live on site at the RV Park. Therefore the RV site that I live on is not considered income for tax purposes. If living on site was not required I would be paying taxes on whatever the rental of the site would equate too.

You can probably pick up some work as a consultant in retirement.

There are many ways to make it work.