first days of retirement - Decompression Zone

missile

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Well...that's my first year or so of retirement "under my belt" and I have now moved.


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Time for cup of coffee ....

Glad to hear that


& Sounds like an excellent idea. Think I shall do the same

moneyistooshorttomention

Going through the thread and writing down my aide-memoire of ideas here.

I have found there is a tendency to "slop round in a dressing gown" for the morning, but have resolved I must make sure I'm "presentable" by 9am (showered/dressed) and ready for the day even on the days that I have nothing planned. Have already been caught out a couple of times by early morning callers in a state of dishabille since moving here. People are more likely to call round on the off chance or something hereabouts than Back There, so mustn't get caught out again answering the door half-dressed.

Planning "something" everyday and thinking of a "project". Does it count that I have decided to start working on making literally everything possible from scratch? So foods, cosmetics, cleaning materials then in my case.

So today:

- I've got some yogurt dripping to make "curd cheese"

- have just made some toothpaste for the first time ("healthy" ones like I buy aren't cheap anyway, so might as well)

- am running out of washing-up liquid, so will have a go at making my own for the first time (my "green" ones are so expensive anyway and the recipe I am looking at is cheap even by "conventional" standards)

- will make some bread shortly (must use the whey dripped from that yogurt in it for extra "goodness")

- have made some standard pesto (ie basil pesto) for the first time. Didn't think I was too keen on that (judging by the shop ones I've bought). Surprise...I do like my own (must be the better-quality ingredients I've doubtless used).

I could do with a cookbook that's just got recipes in for making THE most basic things (ie pasta, tapenade, yogurt, cheeses, etc) and not "meal" type recipes iyswim. I haven't found one anywhere, so have had to accumulate a variety of odd recipes from odd sources on how-to.

Now if I could just find a recipe for shampoo using readily accessible ingredients....(at around £6 a smallish bottle for the "green" ones I buy it would be good to save money on that)....:cool:l

There's loads of "creative" type people round hereabouts...painting and clothes-making and cake-making etc. A "crafts" type person I am not...but I guess I can be creative in my own way.

Kill two birds with one stone...something of my own to be a bit "creative" with and I need to try living economically whilst I wait to reach my "Revised State Pension Age" and start being paid the rest of my pension at last...

cupcake4

I have a wonderful book by James Wong 'Grow Your Own Drugs'.
I am pretty sure he also published a book making his own soap/shampoo etc. Just google Amazon.

moneyistooshorttomention

Thanks. I've had a look at "Grow your own drugs" and a "Year with James Wong" (as I have both books), but couldn't find a shampoo recipe in either of them.

Back to the drawing board...

..and more of those making new year resolutions.

It will be good when I've got this house more finished, as I'm having to be so available for workmens comings and goings and cant get out and about too much until they've got the house as renovated as my money will allow for (no new kitchen for a while then darn it:() ...and have got my eye on a nascent community venture with thoughts of volunteering there possibly as a half-day a week meet-people slot. There is a community venture I like the look of and that I know needs volunteers going currently...but I'm too "cowardly" to work there (in view of how cold the building is:eek:). I've "done my days" of volunteering in all circumstances...regardless of how cold I am whilst doing so..so (even though I've still got the thermal undies and fingerless gloves for those circumstances.....errr...I'll pass on that).

moneyistooshorttomention

As in....I am a refusenik when it comes to postponing my retirement age just because the Government back when decided to help itself to a bit of my State Pension by doing the "Revised State Pension Age" thing on me and personally that left me with a gap between my retirement age (of 60) and that "Revised State Pension Age".

I'm a stubborn wotname...so I didn't amend my plans on retiring at 60 in accordance with that. I just decided "They ARE not going to alter my Life Plan courtesy of that" and went ahead and retired at 60 as I had always assumed I would anyway.

Right now...I'm between a Rock and a Hard Place courtesy of having lost approx. £15,000 of income at this point in time courtesy of said "Revised State Pension Age" and the vendor of my house has landed me with around £6,000 of unexpected bills = £21,000 shortfall between the two of them:eek::(:eek:

I've just decided "Blow it...I'll head further into my savings to deal with those Unexpected Bills on House and there will just have to NOT be any Third Thing cropping up to hit me over the head with".

Is there anyone else in this Pension Gap situation and how is it impacting on you personally if so?

I am the only person I know of currently that was stubborn enough to carry on with my "Retire at 60" plans regardless...never mind landed with thousands of £s of unexpected bills subsequently. Everyone else I have ever heard of retired before Retirement Age on the one hand or waited until that Revised State Pension Age on the other hand.

Looks round for other people in this particular situation and scans horizon fruitlessly wondering if I am the only one in this particular situation? Come on gals....there has got to be others....swop notes time....:)

ibizafan_2

Having been born in February 1953, my state pension age is 62 years 10 months. I took voluntary redundancy from my local government job in April and immediately qualified for the occupational pension. However, despite having no mortgage, I knew that living on just the local government pension was going to be a bit tight, so I have carried on doing a part time job (16 hours) that I have been doing for 28 years in addition to my full time job. This has made all the difference to my overall income and I intend to carry on until the state pension kicks in, and maybe even longer (health permitting). I think that a lot of people will have to do something like this in order to make up the shortfall. Have you considered something similar? I love being semi-retired, as it has given me time to do other things such as volunteering at my local hospital and joining a gym. Also, I can go on holiday for as long as I like, as the part time job doesn't have any restrictions on how much leave I take.

PennyForThem_2

Quite a few people I know have decided to carry on working on a part time basis after 'retiring from their main employment'.

As ibizafan said they find it combines best of both worlds.

As I had moved around a fair bit following my husband's career, I have bits of occupational pensions, a gap where not worked, and like you, moneyistooshorttomention, revised state pension starting age from 60.

I decided to work full time to 65 and defer the state pension. That way (as I will decide to take income rather than lump sum, at the moment) I will get a boost.

I too then may decide to do some part time work but will definitely do voluntary work - probably in local hospital.

moneyistooshorttomention

I didn't really feel semi-retirement was an option to go through from Retirement Age to (revised) SPA. My job was basically crumbling round my ears/I hated it with a passion/anyway I was moving across country.

There basically is little in the way of paid jobs here. I knew that before I moved here, but that's not a problem to me personally.

So, I cant think of a way to get some extra income. I've been checking out what financial help I can get as a pensioner, but stymied by the fact that pretty much no-one "official" regards me as being one (despite being retirement age) until I reach that revised SPA. So, I've got my free buspass and my 10% off at a certain DIY shop on Wednesdays and will ask for the low-earner rate at any community-organised things where pensioners can get a discount and that's my lot there till SPA.:(

Time-wise I shall be checking out that potential voluntary work opportunity I spotted next time I'm "in town".

This is one of the things about retirement I am finding. The vast majority of people spend a lot of their time on work, being with partner/children/grandchildren/pets, being ill (not a choice thing...but time-consuming and restricting), being a carer (ditto). I think I may be in a bit of a minority with none of those things taking up any of my time. So some thought going into that at the moment...whilst remembering to be very thankful about not being ill and/or a carer (quite apart from the time demands those things impose on people in those positions).

PennyForThem_2

Have you got a skill that you might 'sell'? Cooking, gardening, knitting?

Just a thought....

moneyistooshorttomention

PennyForThem wrote: »

Have you got a skill that you might 'sell'? Cooking, gardening, knitting?

Just a thought....

Errrmm...notalot springs to mind:rotfl:unless you count the fact that I can chat away to a complete stranger for ages no problem...ask them enough questions about themselves in a chatty way and we're off:rotfl:.

I'm not a bad cook and one of my little thoughts (ie now that I have more time for cooking) is whether I can reach a standard for the type of foods I like (not everyone's taste...) that they would be saleable and whether official "rules and regulations" would prevent me from doing so (not that I'm in a part of the country where people pay great heed to "jobsworth rules and regs":rotfl:so it might not matter that much anyway...;)).

It's a thought I am bearing in mind, whilst I wait to have my house together enough that I can go in more for this and see whether I think my skills level will be up to it (it may or may not be).

I have absolutely no craft skills of any description or any aptitude for them either (be it knitting or otherwise):wall:.

I think all round my best bet is to follow up on whatever interests I have to see if I actually have any sellable skills in the first place.