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
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