When I retire I'm going to...

gettingonabit we're kindred spirits! I too bought a house in a state of semi dereliction and spent 9 months and every penny I had renovating it. I did as much of the work myself as possible and only had help with the plumbing, plastering and electrics. I've never been so exhausted or dirty in my life but I loved every last second of it! When I look at the photos of what it was, and what it is now, I feel really proud of myself! I did that!

I'm going to learn to play the guitar. Grannyanna12345, I had plans to learn the violin. Of course I'm too tight hard up to pay for lessons, so tried to follow a free online course for children. It ended abruptly and left me stranded when the 6 year old show off was playing Twinkle, twinkle, Little Star with great aplomb. Sadly, I wasn't (well, not so that anyone would recognise it). Perhaps I'd do better if I filched DH's guitar?

Marianne1953, if you are moving to Scotland did you know that your free bus pass in Scotland allows you to travel free not only on local buses but on the Inter city routes too. Eg you can travel from Glasgow to Aberdeen for free and that includes the free tea, sandwich and scone! Enjoy!

I think that they should have phased in the change of retirement age more gradually. As Chewbacca says she and her friends retirement ages differ such a lot. I still think they should let you retire earlier at a reduced rate if you want to. If they got some of the long term unemployed moving of their bums their benefits could fund earlier retirement for women and they could get them doing our jobs which we would no longer need!

Rub it in, Niobe, why don't you? Most of us in England don't even get our free bus pass till we're of the new retirement age (66 in my case).

I said when I retired that I'd need to live a long time to use my wool stash. I'm 69 now, and I've only scratched the surface. I don't seem to sit long enough to do much knitting!

Niobe, I'm also intrigued by the freebies on your intercity buses! I wonder if I could persuade the whole family to move up North? ?

Develope dementia or die

For the first couple of years I didn't do any of the things I always said I'd do.I was exhausted mentally and physically.Ive now done most of the jobs at home and joined different interest groups.Ive also tried some and given them up as I wasn't enjoying them! I'm much better at saying no! And I'm better at giving up things I don't like and don't have to do.
It's all been a revelation! And a good one!

I was going to clear out all the cupboards but I haven't. I have done quite a bit in the garden though.

We did actually clear out the loft - had to, since Dh was re-insulating it. Took a stack of stuff to charity shops. Just the Oxfam shop told us later that they'd sold it all for £200, and the Oxfam shop was just one!

Haven't done much else in the way of clearing - and I still haven't got to the bottom of my ironing basket, but that situation hasn't changed in decades.

One thing I did do was take up the piano again after so many decades - only ever passed grade 2 - and I'm still at it about 5 years later. Playing grade 5 pieces now, but whether I'll ever get around to the exam - and have the nerve - is another matter.

However when we retired there were no grandchildren, but within the past 2 years we have acquired two lovely ones, so they occupy a lot of time that just might have otherwise been taken up with clearing out cupboards. But since I've always been the type to put off tedious, horrible jobs for ever, probably not! (Had better not go into the state of my oven...).

My bucket list for retirement starting this year:
Dance at a carnival in Rio
Jazz festival in New Orleans
South Seas Island Cruise
Salsa Dancing at the Tropicana in Havana
I have already ticked off white water rafting, par-ascending on the back of a speed boat, Lake Como trip and the Amalfi Drive.
Once this list is ticked off I shall start anew !

Like Anniebach said earlier When I eventually get to retire If I ever get to retire, I will probably drop dead.

Well, when I thought I was retiring with my pension at 60, I started a bucket list of 60 things to do before then. When it was obvious I was never going to get through the list in time, I changed it to 66 things to do before I'm 66 (my new state pension age). It's so long since I looked at that document, I had trouble finding it, and there are still 30 items outstanding . Few of them require oodles of cash, just a bit of motivation. But even "going without TV for a week" and "reading 10 classic novels" have been put on the back burner.

When DH retired, we had a long list of destinations, also DH has a list of golf.

Bhutan
Vietnam
Tracing the Roman Lines
Grand Escalade Staircase and the Arches
Mesa Verde
Chichen Itza and Mexica and Panama
The South Pole
The Railway across Canada

Several locations are done or the list would be much longer.

I used to say, "when I'm old and rich I shall pay someone else to clean the bathroom/ do the dusting/ decorate/ drive me around"
I retired 5 years ago and, surprise surprise, am still doing it all myself.

I'm 63 and working, Reading posts, retiring sound so positive, ..I'm on 2 weeks school hols but know I feel a relief that I return to work..not working seems seems like endless days to fill...I've researched all the usual Wi, U3a.. work just seems easier....I don't have to plan it!! keep posting positives please!..

When I retired I had a dream of buying a small motor caravan and travelling round Europe, picking up work teaching English. All came to naught when the GC arrived and then my hip and other joints packed up. I've learnt to be contented with what I have, see the GC as often as I can, but would like to live closer to both families in the not-too-distant future.

Well Gransnetters, as they say where I come from .."I hope it keeps fine for you then". The best laid plans of mice and grandmas! I too imagined a life of unending travel to places like India and New York. Perhaps fit another trek into Cambodia or Nepal (they were challenging!) Timw do do what I wanted to do after 49 full time working years with three sons and mainly absent husband (he was a shift worker with an all "free" time consuming interest - local politics). Six before I retired grandchild number three arrives (tricky situation) and I offer to "help out" nursery drop offs and pickups and weekend babysitting. Six years on I am still no.1 childminder (love him very dearly as I do) but school runs/endless school holidays and occasional weekend care is a lot. Sleepovers, daytime tv when my crafting and entertainment ideas temporarily run out put paid to any crazy ideas about trekking and travel. I now have to fit in with parents shift patterns if I want to plan some time for "me/us". Getting even a week away is very difficult without lots of pre planning. It is a taken that "this is what I am here for". I am happy to do it (for the most part) but retirement is "not as we know it Jim!".

Great to hear all the plans, and even from some people who have achieved them! Two lessons I am learning from this thread, don't get ill or infirm and don't move nearer the GC!!!

Man plans, God laughs.
This seems very appropriate for many of us.

I suppose I have retired though I haven't quite got my head around not working for a salary yet. I partly feel guilty about OH still working but I don't think he's ever going to stop!

Early parental deaths taught me never to take anything for granted and to take each day as it comes. I don't think I'd dare make a bucket list. I'm not missing work though, we've downsized and moved house to a wonderful area, I've made new friends, taken up previous hobbies, I cycle, horse ride, walk, read, draw, garden, am getting involved in local environmental groups and volunteer for a disabled charity. I'm lucky to be still healthy enough to enjoy myself.

I used to want to travel a lot but the hassle of it all now, the security and the crowds, means I would almost rather stay at home!

The first thing I did was to take A level psychology with a distance learning course, after those 3 years I took na online course in writing and a short story course. I didn't earn much with writing but managed a few articles and at least earned what I'd spent on postage.
As to decorating I've been wallpapering and painting since I was 18 when I did the house for my widowed mother who was hopeless at practical things. When we were both retired we had a few major improvements, but we did the loft when when we bought the house in 1980,
I became a grandmother as soon as I retired so that was a major bonus having all the freedom to see the babies and to help out.

Get myself a king Charles spaniel do my own garden and shop at MnS and have my hair done every week

I was lucky to retire very very early and the best thing about it and which i enjoy the most is that we dont have to plan the day to day plans,we get up, look at the weather, ask each other if there is anything we want to do that day. If yes we get going, if not we potter. We i am very frugal and take great delight in find things to do or places to visit for free which allows us to do a wide range of activities and visit some wonderful places with a picnic in tow. Come to think of it we have visited some strange places to have a picnic i.e Hunterston B power station !