Post by: Monkeyleg on August 30, 2006, 12:13:08 AM
I've been re-reading old posts on THR, and I'm struck by the number of people who actually have some sort of plan for their lives: marriage, home, children, retirement, etc.
That concept is completely foreign to me. I guess I've always planned short-term.
In my early twenties, I was pretty much fixated on chasing skirts.
By my mid-twenties, I was trying to figure out what career I wanted to pursue.
By my early thirties, I was trying to best every other photographer in the area.
In my late thirties, I had my own studio, and was trying to figure out how to get more work than any other photographer.
In my early forties, I was trying to figure out how to make more profits than any photographers in the area.
By my late forties, I was just trying to figure out how to keep my hair.
Now? I'm just trying to figure out what the rest of my life and my wife's will be.
In 1992, I hired my second full-time assistant, Deen.
Deen didn't just have a plan for life: he had a blueprint. He told me that he was through with the dating game. He wanted to look for a potential wife. Qualifications: must be a virgin; must be employed in a field or studying in a field that will make good money; must want children (2 or 3, minimum); cannot be fat, or ever become fat; and must be quiet.
I told Deen he was nuts.
Well, he found a young woman who had never dated, was still living with her parents, was studying physical therapy at the medical college, wanted to have children, was slim (still is), and kept her mouth shut whenever he was around.
Once I joked with him that he, at age 32, probably already had bought burial plots.
He had.
I fully realize that the song lyric, "Live for Today," is pretty much branded on the foreheads of the members of my generation.
But is that so bad?
Pretty much everyone I report to is in their thirties or forties, and their kids don't have time to be kids. Soccer practice is at 6:45, dance lessons at 8:00.
One of my bosses is a basketball-junkie. And every family vacation is scheduled around the national championships for fifth-grade basketball players. Fifth grade? Honest-to-God, they travel from WI to NC for this, and spend an entire week there.
I have a lot of work to do tomorrow (later this morning, actually). I don't know which task I'll take on first.
I've no idea what I'm going to eat tomorrow night, although pizza is always tops on my list.
Next month? Next year? Next decade? I haven't a clue. I could be dead, or I could be working in Nebraska (not much difference).
Where do all these plans come from?
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 01:21:22 AM
Post by: ...has left the building. on August 30, 2006, 02:45:32 AM
Of course, along the way, many things don't go to plan and I've had to adapt, sometimes drastically. My income went from very high to very low in a matter of months when the mortgage industry really slowed down in the past year or two. I had to make some drastic changes and now I'm a commercial banker and about to go for my MBA...so I had to roll with some pretty hard punches to get stabilized.
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 04:12:46 AM
Yup, you adapt...
Post by: The Rabbi on August 30, 2006, 05:01:29 AM
Three weeks ago our second son was born. Oops.
Sometimes plans just don't work out like you want.
Post by: Iain on August 30, 2006, 05:19:37 AM
Post by: Art Eatman on August 30, 2006, 05:28:00 AM
A lot of things were taken for granted as to a future: College degree. Marriage and kid or kids. Decent job. These weren't plans; they were what "our" approximately-middle-class people did.
I made lots of short-term plans; drive race cars, set up multi-year deals for hunting, that sort of thing.
I guess you could maybe call it a plan, but being debt-free of anything other than house/car was part of my looking at finances. By developing mechanic's skills, cars got to be nearly-free. Thirteen years ago, doing the labor of building my own house meant no house-debt.
My overall plan, through life, was to somehow manage my affairs such that in my old age I didn't have to give a dam about much of anything beyond myself. I'd be free to enjoy a great wife and pretty doggoned good kid. (Kid? Okay, he's 43.) Did that.
I noticed that reality has a way of affecting "plans". Car wrecks, cancer, hurricanes, eminent domain, city growth.
Resiliency is a Good Thing.
Art
Post by: roo_ster on August 30, 2006, 05:29:53 AM
I also have the understanding that circumstances can change on a dime and to not be too enamored of a set path when opportunities and or roadblocks appear.
For instance, my plan in high school was:
1. Do well on the SAT & in school
2. Earn degree in a hefty, useful, employable major
3. Enter military & go for a career
#1 & #2 went as planned & I ended with a physics/history double major. #3 was going well...until Newton's Third Law & the Law of Universal Gravitation intruded upon my skeletal structure and my my military career.
^^^That was a "roadblock," not an "opportunity."
Hokay, enter Plan B:
1. Recover from injuries, surgeries, & post-surgical infection (osteomyelitis).
2. Regain more leg function & walk again without a limp/shuffle/whatever.
3. Become gainfully employed in private sector (opportunity knocked)
4. Earn MBA.
5. Purchase house
6. Marry the right gal
7. Have children
No real roadblocks, yet, and an opportunity occurred for #s 5, 6, & 7 before completing #4, though all are now complete (except #7, which is currently in process with two successes).
The completion of Plan B has introduced other goals that will require planning to achieve:
1. Financial & familial security, especialy in case I am run over by a truck
2. A step upwards or sideways in career to put the MBA to use
3. A location more friendly to raising a family and allowing the kids to have fewer constraints on movement & activities
We (notice that after marriage it is a "we" thing, not a "me" thing) are currently in a holding pattern. There are good reasons for this, however, and I don't see it as stagnation. I am keeping my eyes open for any opportunities good enough to break us out of our holding pattern. If none occur, I will more actively search for or create my own in order to achive our goals.
Post by: Waitone on August 30, 2006, 06:24:25 AM
After a while you figger out you are not omnipotent nor are you the master of your destiny. You can not dodge what life throws your way. All you can do is shag the balls. Yeah, plans are great and I've done my share of planning. Reality is I spent far more time shagging balls and reacting. I'm a much better man having done so.
Post by: Felonious Monk/Fignozzle on August 30, 2006, 11:27:52 AM
Quote from: jfruser
I have had plans in the past & continue to plan.
We (notice that after marriage it is a "we" thing, not a "me" thing) are currently in a holding pattern. There are good reasons for this, however, and I don't see it as stagnation. I am keeping my eyes open for any opportunities good enough to break us out of our holding pattern. If none occur, I will more actively search for or create my own in order to achive our goals.
Ditto.We (notice that after marriage it is a "we" thing, not a "me" thing) are currently in a holding pattern. There are good reasons for this, however, and I don't see it as stagnation. I am keeping my eyes open for any opportunities good enough to break us out of our holding pattern. If none occur, I will more actively search for or create my own in order to achive our goals.
Quote from: Waitone
Yeah, lots of plans then reality intrudes then assess then replan ad naurseum.
After a while you figger out you are not omnipotent nor are you the master of your destiny. You can not dodge what life throws your way. All you can do is shag the balls. Yeah, plans are great and I've done my share of planning. Reality is I spent far more time shagging balls and reacting. I'm a much better man having done so.
I'll ditto that, too.After a while you figger out you are not omnipotent nor are you the master of your destiny. You can not dodge what life throws your way. All you can do is shag the balls. Yeah, plans are great and I've done my share of planning. Reality is I spent far more time shagging balls and reacting. I'm a much better man having done so.
I think it's part nature, and part nurture.
If your parents/family have taught you to plan every step, you'll tend toward that. Same if spontaneity has been modeled.
Lots of things my parents never instructed me.
Lots of things for which I wish I'd had more of what Steve calls Mentors & Elders.
Without getting into real deep psychoanalysis paralysis, I guess I never "woke up" and "clued in" that *I* was captain of my ship until a long way into my adulthood.
Partly from a desire to have been in on the spontaneity of the '60's, partly from lack of empowerment ("HEY, dammit -- children should be seen and not heard!!!"), I sort of had this Taoist, "go with the flow" mentality for a long time before really becoming more proactive and trying plan from here forward.
If you're not getting what you want from life, change your approach.
Maybe time to make/change some plans?
Or, not. YMMV.
Post by: Shalako on August 30, 2006, 12:26:11 PM
One problem I forgot to factor in: funding
So the plan went more like get into a great college, bumble along barely managing to stay off academic probation while working part time almost not affording life, leaving college without a degree, working in the pits of a tourist trade restaurant industry, transfering to a new college, gradutating with good grades (thanks student loans!), getting a job in a field I enjoy, finding a great wife, buying a modest house, and now hopefully having kids. (only 10 years behind schedule
)The rest of the 'new' plan is to enjoy what I've got and cherish any kids I am fortunate enough to get. Hopefully progress in my profession and work with good people along the way.
And that mercedes of my old dreams dreams can't touch my '95 Silverado of my reality. Life has a way of resculpting your value system I guess.
Post by: crt360 on August 30, 2006, 12:28:09 PM
Post by: K Frame on August 30, 2006, 12:39:25 PM
When the initial line collapsed, I simply fell back 20 yards and made up a new play.
Have to say that while life isn't where I had thought it would be, I'm not really unhappy with my life as it is right now.
Post by: Gewehr98 on August 30, 2006, 12:43:32 PM
I have plans, too, but Divine Intervention seems intent on mangling them.
Marriage #1 was 6 years of learning to duck somebody with anger management issues.
Divorce #1 followed shortly afterwards.
I just retired from career #1, and the pension is nice, but not enough to live on. At age 40, I'm entering career #2 as a deputy sheriff. It should break up the monotony that's become my life. Maybe I'll have a few LawDog moments I can chuckle at.
In the meantime, I haven't figured out how to get two stepsons aged 24 and 27 out of my house and out into the job market. They play World of Warcraft online, 24/7, and chain smoke inthe garage next to my reloading bench. Spouse #2 insists I'm being an ass in my motivational techniques, and I shouldn't make waves. She was also a single mom for 17 years prior to my bumping into her, so of course she gave them everything they wanted, and then some, otherwise their father would've been successful in his custody battles. For all she cares, they can live here forever. One doesn't meddle with that, unless they're looking forward to Divorce #2. We've already progressed to the "hallway sex" portion of our marriage.
I live life day by day now. I don't keep my expectations high, that way, if something good happens, I'm pleasantly surprised. If the Foo Bird drops a present on me, it's nothing new. Not the best strategy, given, but it's working at present.
Post by: Monkeyleg on August 30, 2006, 01:44:48 PM
I hope you were joking when you remarked that you Deen irks you. He's a great guy. His obsession with planning and, in particular, money has given him a comfortable lifestyle. But his fixation with his life plan is a bit quirky.
I guess planning isn't something that I'm good at. When I did the ground-up restoration on my XKE, my initial intent was to just pull the cylinder head to replace some worn valve guides, and do some other minor motor work. The project snowballed into a four-year epic.
I had dreamed of starting my own photo studio, but didn't plan on it. When I got canned in February of 1987, I had to formulate a plan quickly.
When I actually did plan something--my website--I did not anticipate the fact that calling gun store owners would be as time-consuming as it is. And, so, I've had to adapt.
My wife and I have had something of an informal plan to move down south. That plan changed after we had an unusually hot summer here in WI, and she realized that she couldn't tolerate lengthy periods of hot, humid weather. So, now what? Don't know. Maybe just more trips to New Orleans.
Post by: Felonious Monk/Fignozzle on August 30, 2006, 01:53:54 PM
Since I was among the ignorant, explanation follows:
The 1st kind of sex is Smurf Sex. This kind of sex happens when you
first meet someone and you both have sex until you are blue in the face.
The 2nd kind of sex is Kitchen Sex. This is when you have been with
your partner for a short time and you are so horny you will have sex
anywhere, even in the kitchen.
The 3rd kind of sex is Bedroom Sex. This is when you have been with
your partner for a long time. Your sex has gotten routine and you
usually have sex in your bedroom.
The 4th kind of sex is Hallway Sex. This is when you have been with
your partner for too long. When you pass each other in the hallway you
both say...."Screw You".
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 01:55:32 PM
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 02:06:42 PM
Post by: Lee on August 30, 2006, 04:47:12 PM
Post by: Gewehr98 on August 30, 2006, 04:58:41 PM
There is also a fifth kind of sex: Courtroom Sex. This is when you get divorced and your wife screws you in front of everyone in the courtroom.
280Plus, I considered the sheriff's flight program. But I'm also a fixed-wing guy, airspeed=lift, think B-52H and KC/RC/WC-135. To me, helicopters, even the sheriff's versions, are like Texas trailer park moms - no visible means of support.
I'm done flying for a while, unless somebody chooses to buy me, or I score enough cash to get, one of these beauties:
Post by: Moondoggie on August 30, 2006, 06:39:10 PM
I can't say that I had "a plan" in my younger days so much as I had 3 clearly defined goals:
1. Be a U. S. Marine (I retired in '99 as an E-9, so I'd say that went well).
2. Know God (I'm completely comfortable with my understanding of/position relative to God...I know as much as I'm going to know for the time being).
3. Be in a mutually rewarding relationship with a woman. (2nd marriage has been going on for 26 yrs now, I'm very comfortable that things are working well...get positive feedback from her frequently).
I took a detour from the Marines 78-86 (stayed in the Reserves) where I earned a BA and had a couple of really good jobs....except that I despised the backstabbing politicos that I had to put up with. Going back on active duty and finishing out my 20 yrs of active duty was the best thing I ever did.
I never really had a goal to make X amount of money, of own X amount of stuff. I inherited a mega hyperactive work ethic from both of my parents. This is the primary factor that has put me in the comfortable financial position that I enjoy.
I'm 53, empty nest, couple of grandkids, self-employed (18 wheeler independent O/O S-corp) at something that I really LOVE doing 3 whole days every week (Topeka to Chicago & back) and am financially waay ahead of where I ever thought I'd be. Zero debt, no mortgage. When my 83 yr old MIL passes on, wife and I will inherit a bunch of cash, in the neighborhood of $300K.
My primary concern is maintining my health so that I can stick around long enough to enjoy prosperity that I never thought I'd see.
Post by: Northwoods on August 30, 2006, 06:43:50 PM
Quote
Actually, the only thing I ever planned was going in the Navy and then college. Other than that things pretty much took their own course. Especially the kids part. Kids'll change your plans quick. Especially if you weren't planning on them quite yet.
Ain't' that the truth. My wife and had planned on starting to think about having kids about three-six years from now. Our daughter turned 2 back in April, and our son was born in May.Except for the kids part, my life is pretty much going to the plan layed out in HS. Only thing is, I'm getting increasingly disillusioned with my plan. I'm working as a structural analyst, but every time I really think about it I get less and less happy with my choice of career. I can't complain about the pay and bennies, nor really the hours. It's more like I just don't have a passion for it. I chose that track because it has good security (few are good enough, fewer like it enough to stick with it, plus being on the defense side means the job can't be exported) and pays better than a lot of other mechanical engineering type jobs. My biggest problem with changing, though, is that with a wife still in school (the kids kinda wrecked her schedule for graduation) and 2 kids to support it's tough to leave a job like that for some unknown. I dunno, maybe I just need to get more involved in some other aspect of the job. That or chuck engineering entirely. One of these days I'll figure that out.
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 10:19:13 PM
Post by: Maser on August 30, 2006, 10:27:12 PM
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 10:31:15 PM
Gewehr- nice plane BTW...
Post by: Maser on August 30, 2006, 10:37:55 PM
Quote from: 280plus
Hey maser, can't sleep again? Sometimes I get up around this time and stay up about an hour.
LOL!!! Yeah another restless night for me. I figure my tiny laptop screen will tire my eyes out eventually.
Post by: 280plus on August 30, 2006, 10:54:16 PM
Post by: Maser on August 30, 2006, 11:02:41 PM
Quote from: 280plus
For some reason my body has decided 3 am is the perfect time to take care of certain functions, if you know what I mean.
Well if were like my little brother you could take care of that function without even getting out of bed. LOL!!! Sorry Ryan if you are reading this from my bookmarked list I am just bored.
Post by: Sindawe on August 30, 2006, 11:14:29 PM
Later plans are progressing nicely, and while IT is lucrative and interesting, the siren song of the spiders web singing in the morning sun is growing stronger. The question there is which forest canopy to explore. The Tropical or Coniferous rainforests?
Post by: 280plus on August 31, 2006, 01:48:09 AM
Quote
Well if were like my little brother you could take care of that function without even getting out of bed.
Hmmmm, I'm thinking the wife might not appreciate that idea. It's a thought though... 
Post by: lupinus on August 31, 2006, 06:40:12 AM
Cause it sure aint gone how I planned. By now I planned to have won the lotto and be sitting on a beach somewhere with no gun laws rifle ranges instead of golf courses and lots of drinks with little umbrellas and Anna Kournikova or Jamie-Lynn DiScala (Meadow Soprano) in bikini on the beach with me.....hasn't panned out thus far but there is always misplaced hope.
No...its shaped up more as my Ex's father saw it.....the bastard.
Post by: Lennyjoe on August 31, 2006, 07:50:52 AM
I've always wanted to join the military, have kids and grow old with them.
So far, I've spent 21 years in the Air Force, have been married for 21 years and have 3 children. My son is 22, daughters are 19 and 18 (on sunday).
Both daughters are in college and my son is a TSA employee. I have stuck with a wife that isn't exactly who she was 20 years ago but is a good woman and a great mother. Guess you need to look at my life as a kid to understand why I've stayed in this marriage so long.
Anyway, I'm about to retire from the Air Force in 2008. By then all of the kids will be on their own and I'll have to finally decide on the next step in my life.
Post by: The Rabbi on August 31, 2006, 08:11:26 AM
Post by: Trisha on August 31, 2006, 08:40:06 AM
Um, we seem to be on the "Favorites" short-list for the "Practical Joke Department" (the lowly G6 staffer and the intern got the boot after getting caught deliberately kinking simple miracles with Faustian clauses and fine print the likes of which Machaivelli would envy)
The most I can say is that we've managed to continue "Thataway!" Sometimes it's been two steps forward and then the slipface of the slope gives way, but there's been continuous progress. We have a very modest retirement sequence getting gradually funded for Kathryn
Keeping a sense of perspective, and keeping some degree of sequenced goals? Yes. We have endured, survived and overcome everything to date. The specifics of my disability trips up many personal possible scenarios, but I continue to write, learning by the doing of a thing.
We do know of a few who have, with megalomaniacal ego-contrenciscism, strategized and planned their life as a campaign. They have achieved it, to the degree of being on the Forbes register.
The object of money, is money. The object of power, is power. The two are not necessarily inter-dependent.
The object of joy, is joy. Some hope, others vigorously claim either, or both of the above are absolute necessities to know the latter.
To know the truth of it, I suppose does require some planning.
Post by: trapperready on August 31, 2006, 11:47:05 AM
When shooting, if you make the gun fire when the sights are lined up on the target, you get a good hit. In life, things work out if you make the right choices at the right time. See, its easy. As always, the devil is in the details and hindsight is 20/20.
When I look at my siblings, life hasn't exactly worked out the way they would like. They have had hardships and difficulty which I've not had to face. Often, when I talk with my sisters, they'll comment on how blessed/fortunate/lucky my wife and I are. I just smile and nod... gritting my teeth all the while.
It is true that my wife and I are doing quite well, both personally and financially. We've got a couple of kids who are smart, funny and well-behaved. We're living comfortably and are saving for a decent retirement. My sisters (who are a lot closer to retirement age than I am) have virtually no savings and seem to live in a state of constant chaos. Both are "locked in"* to jobs which they do not enjoy and which do not pay very well.
What's the difference?
When I look at my wife and I in comparison to my sisters, at each major fork in the road, we've chosen the correct path... my sisters (for the most part) have not. One of the biggest issues has been that we've had the foresight to recognize potential problems and make adjustments along the way. For example, my BA is in Economics... which is almost as useful as a History degree. When I got out of college, I got a low-paying job at a local bank and worked my butt off. In the process, I rapidly gained a promotion and some decent resume-filler. During nearly ALL of my non-work hours, I took some additional classes at a local community college and learned a ton about programming languages and system administration. I spent nearly two years doing this, but finally landed a job with a software company. It was an entry-level position for not much pay, but it was a beginning. Again, I worked my butt off and learned as much as I could.
Eventually, that job turned into similar one in another state (for better pay), and that one turned into another one for very good pay. All the while, my wife was working even harder towards her career goals. When I would talk to my sisters, they would complain about not liking their jobs or not having enough money. I'd mention taking some classes and changing careers, or even working another job. *GASP* they couldn't do that, as they were working full time already... where would they find the time? One was hourly and working EXACTLY 40 hours a week, and the other worked no more than 50. I was working steadily at 65-75 hours a week and my wife thought that 90 hours a week was an easy stretch .
We are now reaping the benefits of the hard work and good decisions we made many years ago& yet my sisters seem to think we are lucky . Yeah, right.
Monkeyleg Please dont construe any of this as a criticism of you, your work ethic or your decision-making over the years. This is more of a general rant about planning . Im particularly sensitive to it right now, because Im currently watching my nephew (who just graduated from college a few months ago), make some pretty fundamental mistakes. Hes has no clue about what to do, and worse, is unable/unwilling to accept any advice from people whove got relevant experience.
* I put parentheses around locked in , because they could both leave the jobs they have and either make more money, enjoy their work more, or both; however, neither is able to overcome their own inertia. They seem immobilized by a wretched combination of laziness and a lack of confidence.
Post by: Ex-MA Hole on August 31, 2006, 12:04:45 PM
Somehow my life changed, for the better.
Then I stopped drinking, and, depending on the day, it's better, but much harder.
Since meeting my wife I have tried not to make plans. Every time I do, I get kicked in the nuts, and plans get broken. Usually in a BAD way.
These days, I'm just trying to stay afloat!!!
Fortunately, my Wife and I have been through so much bad *expletive deleted*it, we can sit back and laugh. Life has been kind in certain aspects, but downright nasty in most ways.
At least I have a loving Wife, a goofy 22 month old Daughter, and (for now) two of the best dogs in the world.
Everything else is subject to change (ie go in the shitter) at any given moment.
And it usually does.
Boy, that is a depressing answer. Sorry.
M
Post by: The Rabbi on August 31, 2006, 12:37:59 PM
Quote from: ex-ma hole
Since meeting my wife I have tried not to make plans. Every time I do, I get kicked in the nuts, and plans get broken. Usually in a BAD way.
Is there a GOOD way to get kicked in the nuts? Just asking.
Post by: Monkeyleg on August 31, 2006, 12:54:56 PM
Trapperready, no need to qualify your comments.
Some folks apparently perceived my initial post as some sort of complaint. It wasn't at all.
Through hard work, and lots of hours of that work, my wife and I have done pretty well for ourselves. For the past couple of years I've been struggling a bit, but career changes usually involve some struggle, just as starting out in a career when you're young.
I was simply trying to draw a distinction between me--the type of person who just rolls with whatever happens--and someone like my ex-assistant, who has every aspect of his life laid out (probably even on paper).
Let me illustrate the difference between my ex-assistant Deen and me.
He went to Brooks Academy in California to learn photography, as he planned to become a photographer. Brooks is one of the most expensive photo schools in the country. He was paying off his student loans for years after graduation.
In 1975, I decided that I might be interested in photography, and took a couple of night courses at the county vocational school. When I realized that I had some ability, I went to that same school full-time, while also working 32 hours a week to support myself.
I didn't plan to become a professional photographer as Deen did; I just thought I'd see what happened.
And which one of us became the better photographer, got the best reputation, and made the most money? The guy who just kind of rolled with things and went to the cheap school.
Post by: Ex-MA Hole on August 31, 2006, 02:08:45 PM
Quote from: The Rabbi
Quote from: ex-ma hole
Since meeting my wife I have tried not to make plans. Every time I do, I get kicked in the nuts, and plans get broken. Usually in a BAD way.
Is there a GOOD way to get kicked in the nuts? Just asking.Kicked in nuts = bad
Post by: 280plus on August 31, 2006, 03:00:23 PM
Quote
Kicked in nuts = bad
Here's proof... http://www.glumbert.com/media/tonguetwister.html
Post by: Jamisjockey on August 31, 2006, 03:29:39 PM
As a Teenager, I had no plans. The obvious answer became the Military.
In the Marine Corps, I thought retirement made sense. Then I got married. After living in the military my entire life, I knew that it's not compatible with married life. I got out.
Then, the obvious choice was to follow my profession, ATC, in the civilian world.
Now I'm a gubmn't drone. I'm working my way up the food chain, but still as a drone, just to busier and busier facilities. I'll be eligible to retire at 50, and would probably take another less stressful job to fill the pay gaps.
But then, my wife, a stay at home mom, gets bored. She takes on a Direct Sales job, Lia Sophia. Next thing we know, she's making as much or more money than me. She's running a team of almost 200. And now....we are having to come up with a plan. It's changing from a side business and extra income for us, into a full blown small business, with pretty much unlimited income potential. The best way to make the business grow will likely be leaving my 6 figure job to work for my wife from home. The benefits are high....better money, more indepence, less stress, decent hours.....but I'm pretty much scared out of my mind. I've always succled off the government teat. Now, I'm going to have to be self-sufficient.
PS,
Right now the plan is Christmas, next year. Possibly sooner, but we're being conservative....
Post by: grampster on August 31, 2006, 04:47:20 PM
A year later I received a notice that I had been selected to work for the post office and the police department on the same day. I had applied to the PO 'cause dad worked there and the PD as dad's best friend worked there. Opted for the PD cadet program as it was the first of its kind in the nation, free college, and get paid for 20hrs of work per week in the PD. Moved up the ladder and stuck with that for 7 good years that I wouldn't trade for the world.
Then had an opportunity to go with the largest insurance company in the state, in sales. Good money, great hours. Swmbo and I (got married in 5th year of the PD) cruised along without a thought in the world except reaping all the benefits of great money and unstructured time till I was 40. I guess the 1st plan I ever had was to start saving for retirement at age 40. Locked into a 401k at the yearly max at age 40 and began to daydream about retirement at 62.
The robber barons of the 90's drove up the value of the various stocks in the 401k during that time, and about a year before the big crash, my upbringing reminded me that tanstaafl and I shifted my $ to a guaranteed insured account at a lower return and avoided the crash and made money while most lost. I rolled the dice with my account when the millenium panic was at its height and rolled the $ back into stocks. Sold them when the market bounced and cleaned up. Back to the guaranteed account. Did the same thing during Bush/Gore presidential election controversy opportunity and cleaned up again. Back to the guaranteed stuff. I guesss that was a plan, too. It worked, though. The Market operates more on emotion than common sense.
Putzed along until this past March when I pulled the trigger on work and retired.
This was as a result of my 3rd plan that I began to formulate a year before. I noticed that our company went on a hiring binge of insurance agents and made them a lot of false promises. They discovered they couldn't keep the promises (ain't management bright? (grin) ). So I planted some subliminal suggestions over the year in the minds of some top management people that it would be wise to buy out senior agents and free up a customer base to be able to fulfill promises. Showed them how the numbers would be positive and save them from getting their arses sued off as well. (37 years experience makes one a wolf in a flock of magagement lambs)
So they got the bright idea to suggest agents with over 25 years and age 55, could early out with full accrued benefits and a sum = to a years pay on March 1st this year. Gosh, was that a surprise. (evil grin) I was gonna retire on March 1st anyway as I had hit age 62 the August before and could now feed at the public trough, my company pension was fully accrued at age 62, had my 401k money, and got a years pay to boot. (another evil grin) So I guess my plans, such as they were, worked just fine and I had the benefit of mindless maundering for a number of years as well.
In exchange for all that, I've had some health issues to struggle with over the last year. Prostate cancer, gall bladder meltdown and a gut/colon problem that seems to defy medicine so far. That is a work in progress. Those issues tend to remind one how much the mundane things of life are truly simple pleasures that are mostly free. I have been blessed.
So, I guess at the end of the day, one needs to use the brains one has been given to plot for good times and for a rainy day. It is good to go along with the flow at times. Sometimes it's good to take a risk or two. On the other hand, recognize blind ass luck for what it is and don't try and take credit for it. If your health gives you some trouble, it's better to grin and bear it than to feel sorry for yourself and cloak yourself in woe. If you opt for woe, you'll come to not like yourself and neither will most everyone around you. (No woe for me. I saw my dad do this before he died at age 92.)
It is good to commune with God. He will provide answers to some questions that need His council. The rest you can figure out for yourself. Mostly those answers are fairly obvious, but we don't necessarily like to admit that. Don't forget to pick yourself up and dust yourself off when you tumble. Set your cap, put a smile on your face and move ahead. Live for today using the yesterday as an aid. there might not be a tomorrow, but it's nice to dream and plan about it though. Look forward and, in the words of Walter Hagen; "Don't hurry, don't worry, and don't forget to smell the flowers along the way."
Post by: Antibubba on August 31, 2006, 05:53:09 PM