Recently, a friend shared that she was astounded by her friend’s 50th birthday choice: a secret holiday. He took himself away from his family (wife and kids) for a 2 week holiday at a secret location that he didn’t share with, or talk to anyone about, before or after he went.* He wanted to travel… Continue reading The Secret Holiday
Tag: retired
A Checklist Of Retirement Experiences
Note: This article was first published 2023/03/24. Revised. Retirement websites often distill life after retiring to a list of things that you can check off one-by-one.* From a drained, working person’s perspective, it’s an enticing list of wonderful possibilities. I’ve found that the lists vastly over-simplify life after retiring. They make it look like an… Continue reading A Checklist Of Retirement Experiences
Recovering From Unplanned Naps
I hate taking a nap. It’s not the actual sleep part that bothers me. It’s that feeling that I get when I wake up. I will fight myself and resist falling asleep in the afternoon, even when I’m sleep deprived, to avoid the awful groggy consequences. It just doesn’t seem worth it. Napping was… Continue reading Recovering From Unplanned Naps
Life Is Different Now
Life will not be easier when you retire. There. I’ve said it. Despite what financial institutions might tell you in their ads about living a free and easy life, life isn’t easier. It’s different. The Good Stuff There are many, benefits. The flexibility to do things when you want to and not when your job… Continue reading Life Is Different Now
The On-Call Retiree
A person retired, is a person on-call. You have the flexibility to do things when you want to, and to be available when others are working. As a result, the world has a way of filling your time without you making a conscience choice. The Obligations Creep In I’ve seen this happen. At first you… Continue reading The On-Call Retiree
The Power Of Age
Getting older is a good thing. I know that can be difficult to believe at times when you look in the mirror and barely recognize the face looking back at you. People will say that they feel the same inside as they did when they were 30 or 40 years younger. But do they really?… Continue reading The Power Of Age
Why Do I Need Purpose?
Find something that you can do slow, that you can do forever and still love it, that still gives you meaning.” – Christina Koch, Artemis II astronaut Why do I need purpose after I retire? Can’t I spend the rest of my days enjoying my life – just living it? What’s wrong with that? I… Continue reading Why Do I Need Purpose?
Unlearning To Live With My Cup At Capacity
I know that it’s not healthy to live with my cup at capacity all the time, with my nervous system fully activated. There are good reasons why I’ve ignored the overwhelm and continued to push through, such as supporting someone through illness, or teaching through a pandemic. However, when the immediate crisis was over and… Continue reading Unlearning To Live With My Cup At Capacity
Cultivating Three Spaces For Your Wellbeing
A friendly smile as I walked down the hall, and sharing frustrations with a co-worker while un-jamming the photocopier, are two of the daily interactions that disappeared when I retired. At the time they seemed fairly insignificant to my overall wellbeing. How could venting to a colleague about the construction that delayed our commute, support… Continue reading Cultivating Three Spaces For Your Wellbeing
Reclaiming The Word Retire
It’s not a new idea. For more than a decade people have shunned using the word “retire.”* It creates a visceral gut-punch response from active, and engaged folks who find themselves at that point in their lives where they’re leaving full-time careers. We know that we’ve technically retired from our jobs, but don’t call us… Continue reading Reclaiming The Word Retire
Retired, And Now What? 