Wow... today marks 5 years since I retired from Corporate life. 36 years in Information Technology, the last 21 in various cyber security functions with AT&T. How fast this time has gone by!
Retirement gift from my husband.
The decision to retire came easy. I was the old, gay, white guy earning 4 times what the company was paying the newbie tech bros coming out of the likes of Georgia Tech. Though I kept on top of the industry evolution, by my mid/late 50's I had enough and took the voluntary retirement package. My last day was August 20, 2020, and at 2:00PM, I powered down the Virtual Desktop for the final time and deleted that app from my PC. I retired at 58 years old and I never looked back. I was in the last generation to see a sizable corporate pension, combined with a 401k, a Roth and good severance package, I was set.
I retired well.
Kitchen before and after
Husband and I hit a decision gate; do we want to move or make our home our "forever home"? We chose the later and began investing in substantial renovations and additions; a large 2 car garage, new kitchen, dining room and bathroom. A breezeway connecting the garage to the house, a comprehensive solar architecture, and to make the house as carbon neutral as possible - replaced our oil burning appliances with the latest heat-pump technology. After two years of construction, everything was done and we have settled into just a fabulous life together. My husband has a little over two years to go before he joins me in this... bliss.
New garage, breezeway and solar
It has been a GREAT retirement. We did a lot of traveling (as husbands work schedule permits), got to reconnect with old friends and looking forward to whatever the next years bring. My only lament is that... I could not get here sooner in life. Now to just look forward.
My parting words on that day to my colleagues at AT&T...
I have friends my age who can retire but won't because they are afraid of not having anything to do, or just never thought and planned to retire. For me; I have never been busier in my life, or not when I just feel like doing nothing. Or blogging. Debra (She Who Seeks) is also having a retirement anniversary on this date! Ya know... I knew there was a deeper kinship with her!
Retirement is everything it's cracked up to be, and I cannot think of any other time in my life I'd rather be.
Five years...
Onward!
Rade
Posts
4 comments:
It's a wonderful time of life. Or can be, anyway. Congratulations, though, and may you have many, many, many more happy years.
Yes, isn't retirement GREAT! Can't say I miss the rat race at all. I never give it a second thought anymore. My time and my life are my own now!
Congratulations on the retirement. After 36 years in the corporate shit-world, you've more than earned it. I hope there will be many more years yet, but yes, they will go by fast.
I've never understood that supposed fear of not having anything to do. I'd rather do nothing than spend eight hours every day sitting at a desk doing inane things to generate money for some already-rich emotionally-stunted C-suit trolls.
Thanks for sharing this. Yes, retirement can be busier than working.
Post a Comment