Weekend 1 of Retirement

This morning I discovered several mindset changes that I think are a result of retirement.

The first happened when I selected my clothes for the day. I could wear anything I wanted! It was at that moment I realized that in the past I would bypass the shirts I wore to work for my home clothes. It’s not like there really is much difference. Except my work clothes are the nicer clothes. So now all my clothes are “home” clothes and will be nicer.

The second change was when my husband said he was going to the shop (he retires at the end of next week – he’s trying to finish mothballing the shop he works in as they have not hired a replacement machinist. He gave notice to them the same time I let Hygieia know around April of 2021) to work on a personal project and was taking a load of hazardous waste items to the recycle at the landfill. When he works in the shop, I like to go with him as it makes me feel better to know I am nearby should he get hurt and I can get him medical attention. Side note: In 50 years he’s only ever had one injury that required medical attention and the incident did not occur while machining.

The second change though was that I told him I’d go and didn’t give it another thought. Usually, I’ll have a conversation in my head about how tired I am feeling and how I wished he’d go in on a weeknight when I already am tired from the day instead of my weekend which is rest time. While I had those conversations with myself – I never had them with Joe and would of course go with him because his safety was the most important thing to me.

Much like my foray to the closet this morning. I wasn’t even aware that I had been having these mental conversations UNTIL I didn’t have them this morning.

The third discovery of my day is that  I notice a  marked increase in my energy level. This is a welcome sensation. In the past Saturday’s were my recoup day and Sunday was chore day. Now everyday can be a rest day and a chore day and I do not have to save energy to go back to work on Monday! 

I now have a deeper appreciation of why my retired friends on Facebook look healthier and happier than during their working life.

I had always planned to work until I was at least 70 years old. I sure am glad I didn’t wait.

 

 

Retired

I am now officially retired!

It's a little difficult to gauge how I am feeling as it is a Friday. It may take me until Tuesday, when we were to return to work, to understand that I no longer have an office and a job. During goodbyes today, my former staff were teasing me that they would not be surprised if I showed up to work on Tuesday. They joked (they were joking, right??) that I would get bored and would forget I was retired (obviously senility is setting in if I forget I'm retired). Mostly they thought I'd show up out of habit.

Habits are tough to break. I am committed though to giving it my absolute best shot. I have already started my post-retirement life this week by incorporating three self-care  I want to accomplish daily. One does not have to ease into retirement. I am doing this next phase with the same fervor and commitment I have put into my work over the past 50+ years. This retiree has plans!

My most immediate plans are to finish packing up most of our household, lots of self-care like daily hypnotherapy, my normal morning meditation, and moving my body (don't call it exercise!). I will also begin planning out our upcoming trip around the United States to see friends, family, and interesting sites. 

After talking with a friend in Crescent City, California, today it looks like we will head up to Northern California and then into Ashland and Bend Oregon on March 1st. Then it will be back to Woodland to  finish the rest of the packing for our BIG trip. We plan to leave for the Arizona area on March 29th (two days after the movers pick up our stuff) with our first stop being the Grand Canyon (unless I sneak in another destination on the trip). Our goal is to be in Gilbert, Arizona on April 1st to spend time in the area with our friends Elizabeth (Beth) Boyle-Roden and Dave Roden.

We also plan to see other friends in Arizona, including Susan Johnston who winters in Arizona (her other home is in Alaska) and Dee Dee Hoerner. I met Susan in an online weight management support program over 14 years ago. I can hardly wait to meet her face-to-face. Dee Dee and I were sister Mary Kay consultants in the Sacramento area. I am not sure when I first met her as I started my Mary Kay business in 2004 and I met her in the same year or within a few years of 2004.

I started looking for photos of Beth and Dave's backyard in Gilbert to add to this blog and I realized that in addition to removing my Hygieia email address from my phone this afternoon, I can now remove all the texts and photos about COVID-19 tests that I've accumulated over the past three years. Wow! That should be cleansing for the spirit. I like tidiness in all my workspaces as clutter tires me out.

Anyway, 

April 2019 Gilbert, AZ: looking out from the back patio at the Roden home.

 

Letting Go

1 Day left until retirement!

I am in the final stages of tying up loose ends at work. I have been diligently sharing everything I can with my successor, Edward, in the forty training days we worked together. Edward will be fine with or without my phone number. 

My goal is to take the leap of faith that I have successfully dumped everything from my brain on to paper and into systems that will make it work for Edward long after my last day.

I have made a pledge to myself to be hypervigilant about letting go of Hygieia things that pop into my brain in the middle of January and later. I am committed to not calling (or emailing or texting) him with comments such as, "Edward, I just remembered I forgot to tell you about..." I am going to trust the process. If Edward wants my input, Edward will contact me. End of story.

I am not the boss of the world. Even if I had been, I am now retiring. I did my best. I believe this will be very freeing for me to stop thinking about what other people may need or how I may have failed them in some way. 

On December 16th, co-workers had a 'low key' retirement reception for me and presented me with a video they had produced. I will treasure this video for years to come. Here is a link to the video if you are interested in watching it. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OZWCC3xKTB1Koh4qhteSoQFoJhPqR3oF/view?usp=sharing

If you have difficulty accessing it, feel free to send me an email at bethcoehlo@aol.com and I'll grant you access in another way.

The only reason I am not a total emotional wreck is that I know I am not saying goodbye to people at Hygieia. People are welcome to stay in touch if they wish. I want to hear all about their successes and skinned knees and messy lives. I want them to know I still care about them as the caring, kind people they are as they figure out their own careers and personal lives. It was never about the money for me. It was always about how we can help each other to be our very best selves.

Hygieia people will always be a part of my circle.

My work at Hygieia is one day away from finished. My work at learning to be retired from business and a relaxed human being is just beginning.

Signing up for Medicare

Two Days left until I retire!

A big step in preparing for retirement, for those of us over 65, is lining up Medicare.

Today, let's talk about my experience with Medicare..

...and all the possibilities and parts offered by Medicare.. 

...and after having secured all of the necessary parts, how grateful I am that I have a background in procuring medical benefits for others over the past 41 years.

When you reach the time to sign up for Medicare, and all of the parts, make sure to find someone you trust to walk you through it.  My head spun with all of the choices.

The process sucked. I was instructed by the Medicare site to wait until December 1, 2022, to apply for benefits to start on January 1st. I sent my packet in on November 23rd asking for a start date of January 1st. I was told that it would take 60 days to process. So, wait, I can't submit earlier than 30 days before I need it but it takes up to 60 days to process? That's crazy making. And even though I'm healthy today, WHAT IF I'M SUDDENLY SICK BEFORE THE COVERAGE KICKS IN???

The good news is that by December 16th our coverage was actually approved effective January 1st. Which frankly means my worrying window of November 23rd until January 31st was totally cut short.

I am grateful that Joe and I are healthy. 

I do know that Medicare and our supplemental package will be costing us 1/5th of what my employer has paid to cover us over the past eight years.

A shout out to those of you already on Medicare:  I admire you. You are a warrior! Signing up for Medicare is not for the faint of heart.

Weathered

Three days until retirement! 

In case you are curious - I chose Weathered for the title of my blog because it seems a simple word for where I feel I am in my life today.

The definition of weathered intended for this blog: come safely through (a storm). As in "the sturdy boat had weathered the storm well.

Weathered is also a synonym for the words seasoned, expert, versed in. I am seasoned. I am well versed in human resources because I have read (and plan to stop!!) extensively to keep abreast of what is happening legally and culturally in the working world to keep people safe in the workplace (emotionally and physically).

Reaching the point, at 66 years young, to retire feels like I've safely come through the storm of working for others for a living. Now, I look forward to making different choices each day - driven by my own desires instead of by an employers’ or employees’ needs. No regrets. I have enjoyed serving others through my work.

I have mostly loved working. COVID-19 depleted my reserves. The pandemic also reminded me that life is short, and I've devoted my life to carrying for others. I know there is no magic wand that will stop me from caring for others. Now, I’ll do it without a paycheck. I'll do it because it continues to bring me a sense of satisfaction.

When I began fantasizing about retirement in early 2021, I thought how luxurious it would feel to wake up each morning and decide what my day or week would look like without the need to go to an office to take care of other people's needs. 

Overall, I’ve weathered life well in the workplace and with most of my faculties intact. I look forward to more weathering.

Retirement (Pending)

Friday, December 30, 2022, will be my very last day in a position I have worked at for the past 7 years and 11 months. Apart from the year (July 2002 - July 2003) we lived in Egypt; I have worked since I was 14 years old. Fifty-two years of working. Mostly for other people. Sometimes multiple jobs at a time. 

I made the decision to retire in early 2021 and began sharing the decision with people. Multiple members of my inner circle (and some outer circle folk) repeatedly asked what I planned to do in my retirement. My initial reaction was, "I have to have a plan?" In my mind the act of retirement meant NO MORE PLANS. Almost every single person responded along the lines of "You have to have a plan." Their reasons for why I needed a plan included:

• People without a plan die younger.
• You will get bored.
• You are still young and could be productive.

    Cheery bunch of people, I know.

    So, this is my plan:

• January through February is packing up our home for our move to Minnesota.
• Joe and I will begin our travels around the United States in March 2023 to visit friends and family.
• Our last stop on the trip around the US will be in Rockford, Minnesota. We will live in our daughter's beautiful basement while we look for a new home.
• We will spend time with our daughter, her significant other, and the grandchildren (both human and fur).
• I will find volunteer opportunities in our new community.
• I will spend time with Joe Coehlo
• Writing this blog about retirement, our travels, and settling in Minnesota.
• Anyone who knows me knows this blog will at times be emotional and messy.
• I will write stories about people I visit and care about.
• I will include photos of our trip.
• For now, my blog will be private - invitation only.
• I imagine sometimes it may be boring as it is all about my perspective of the post-retirement me and my world.
• Mostly, I want this to be a safe space for people I have grown to care about to have an inobtrusive way to stay connected if they choose.
• A few of them will send me unsolicited recommendations for edits... I will try to honor them. They love me and know words are important so I will want to put my best foot forward.

Today, I leave you with the above meme. One of my fears about retirement is that I will try to 'manage' Joe Coehlo. He has been doing simply fine without me 'managing' him over our almost 29 years of marriage. If you do decide to check on this blog, occasionally, you'll get to experience my struggle with reigning in my bossy tendencies...