It's been 6 months

Nebulous2

MallyGirl said:

£1 for the washer - £9,999 for knowing where to put it!

I had an old motorhome which broke down at home. I called the AA to be told I didn't have cover at home, but I could add it for £70. £70 later the AA man arrived, said the starter motor was sticking, if I turned the key he would hit it with a hammer. We did and it duly started. 

My wife arrived home and was incredulous about the whole story.

"You paid £70, to be told to hit it with a hammer?"

Me:- "No I paid £70 to be told where to hit it!" 

MallyGirl

michaels said:

I need to stop reading this thread, I have about 10-12 months to go and it is dragging and hearing just how much greener the grass is on the other side is not making it go any quicker....

same here except I have 2 years to go. I spent time yesterday planning the optimum month to retire in order to get the annual bonus, sacrifice it in full into the pension, then give 3 months notice but pay minimal income tax. September as the last working month was the answer so I will buy the maximum extra holiday to ensure that I get plenty of time off in the summer - or I may just quit at a less than optimum time if I can't stick it any more.

handful

I bit the bullet at Easter so not 6 months yet but thought I would add my thoughts to this thread. Firstly, I rarely visit this site now whereas was on here every day when I was working! That probably says it all. I am having no trouble filling my time and am finding I'm not doing as much of the things I thought were the reason for my retirement. Things like long bike rides, games of golf and getting away in our motorhome. I do wonder how the winter will go though, fine I'm sure!

Albermarle

During my pre-retirement deliberations, like others have mentioned in this thread, I thought 'Ill get myself a little part time job or volunteer just to keep busy' but now I really don't think that will ever happen - why would I put myself in the position of having to be somewhere and possibly deal with people I don't like, with responsibility etc when I don't actually have to.

Plus the possibility of being ordered around by some spotty youth !

Sarahspangles

Nebulous2 said:

MallyGirl said:

£1 for the washer - £9,999 for knowing where to put it!

I had an old motorhome which broke down at home. I called the AA to be told I didn't have cover at home, but I could add it for £70. £70 later the AA man arrived, said the starter motor was sticking, if I turned the key he would hit it with a hammer. We did and it duly started. 

My wife arrived home and was incredulous about the whole story.

"You paid £70, to be told to hit it with a hammer?"

Me:- "No I paid £70 to be told where to hit it!" 

If you call it ‘percussive maintenance’ it would be £100

Sarahspangles

Secret2ndAccount said:

I went home that evening and said to myself "I've just looked at a binary data stream and understood it better than either of the computers connected to it. I've got to get out of this place." I was gone within two weeks. I reckon I narrowly escaped becoming part of the Matrix.

The timing of my dad’s retirement was determined by cutover from a mainframe to a distributed system. It was like he was being ‘powered down’ too! He was missed, and did some consultancy for them, but soon found other things to do, I don’t know why we were so surprised about it! He had a long and rewarding retirement.

I’m at the point where I am pretty sure there’s someone else who would love my job more than I now do.

sgx2000

I have been trawling this forum for a few years now.  Trying to gain as much knowledge on pensions, tax and investments as possible....

I dropped to 4 days in January.

Roll on a couple of months. The company announce redundancies....
At 64 it could not have come at a better time for me....
I get to go and in the process save the job of a younger guy who would have been made redundant......

So..... I retire next Friday....  woohooo.....

I will have (by this forums standards) a very modest income...
Hopefully enough to maintain my current lifestyle with a couple of extra holidays...... (already booked 3)

Like many who join this forum, I only wish I had got my 'financial head' on 10 years earlier....

My redundancy, and an already paying DB pension, will cover me until state pension ...at which point I may finally make my mind up what to do with my current workplace DC pension.......

But next Friday....woohooo.....

Green_hopeful

I planned to go in October 2024 when will be 55. However very unexpected I was dismissed in July 2023 because someone wanted me gone. I already knew how much money I needed so took the payment and stuck it in a SIPP. I had no plans but I have been really busy helping with family and grown up kids as well as gardening etc. I can’t imagine going back to work. I realise now how immensely stressful it was. My old employer has realised it needs three people to do my old job. I miss the people but not that stress. I think it’s crazy to carry on working when you don’t have to. I don’t have a big pot but I have enough and I can live on my savings until I need to do take my work pension.