# Countdown to retirement **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 25, 2023, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653 "2023-03-25T17:37:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/221 "2023-05-09T12:35:59Z")
Good for you, **mmm**. I started another thread asking for people’s experiences with Amazon Pharmacy. I’ll have to pay for my expensive med myself, apparently, so I looked it up on Amazon and it’s considerably less than even going through a Canadian pharmacy. Still trying to figure it all out. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/222 "2023-05-09T13:12:25Z")
One more place you can look, @teelabrown, is [Cost Plus Pharmacy](https://costplusdrugs.com/), a business created by Mark Cuban with the intent of lowering the cost of prescription drugs. They skip the insurance companies and deal directly with manufacturers. They do have a limited number of medications available but it’s worth a look. Also, have you tried [GoodRx](https://www.goodrx.com/)? mmm ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/223 "2023-05-09T17:18:38Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > I told her that it didn’t matter, as long as it wasn’t at 8:00 in the morning. Heh. My next cardio appointment is at 7am next Wednesday. They’re doing some sort of test they haven’t done before that requires a 12-hour fast. It’s the first appointment I’ve had with them that’s been before 10am. ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/224 "2023-05-10T19:09:20Z")
2.5 days to go. My desk is 90% cleared out. Forms to continue long term care insurance benefit have been filled out and submitted. Wrestling with how to properly fill out applications for Medicare part B has been done, after waiting on hold with social security for an hour. Next up: after the part B apps are accepted, tackle parts C and D. Then on to rolling 401ks over. Whew. Retiring is more work than working! ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2023, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/225 "2023-05-10T19:18:23Z")
It’s been almost six weeks for me and I’m still making phone calls and figuring some things out: - Medicare (B, D, Supplement, Dental/Vision/Hearing) - all done, first payments made - Cobra for the wife - Finally all done, first payment made - My pension - Finally all done, first check coming June 1, retroactive - Social Security for wife - Finally all done, first check coming next month - Consolidate various 401ks, IRAs, multiple bank accounts - ongoing Hey, it beats working. 🙂 mmm ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2023, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/226 "2023-05-11T01:36:19Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > It’s been almost six weeks for me and I’m still making phone calls and figuring some things out: > > - Medicare (B, D, Supplement, Dental/Vision/Hearing) - all done, first payments made When I applied for these I was at my daughter’s in Vegas, and I remember spending an eternity on the phone as the nice lady from the insurance company read all the ipso factos, provisos and quid pro quos from the policy so that I could confirm I accepted them. Whew! But I’ve only had to do it once. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2023, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/227 "2023-05-11T04:55:05Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Hey, it beats working. 🙂 Huh. My job is way more fun than any of those things. I hope you only have to do that work once ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2023, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/228 "2023-05-11T10:55:12Z")
Ha ha, I’m going to advise you to not retire then. The upside is that you can do it pretty much at your leisure. I’ve accomplished these in bits and pieces. There were many days I did nothing, other days where I was _done for the day_ after a single phone call. mmm ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/229 "2023-05-12T19:43:27Z")
Well, about 4.5 hours to go. HR wants to meet with me at 4:30 to do “final paperwork”, and hopefully to hand over a check for all 97 of my unused hours of vacation time. I’m trying to delete off anything from my work computer that could cause a problem, like Amazon. It does autofill of my password and launches and nothing I’m trying in settings is making it stop doing that. I don’t want some future IT person working with my computer to open up Amazon and have access to my account. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/230 "2023-05-12T19:46:41Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > I’m trying to delete off anything from my work computer that could cause a problem, like Amazon. It does autofill of my password and launches and nothing I’m trying in settings is making it stop doing that. I don’t want some future IT person working with my computer to open up Amazon and have access to my account. At my company the first thing they do when someone turned in a laptop was to wipe and reload the disk. Not to protect you, but to protect them from someone inserting a virus into it. So you are probably safe if you forget to delete something. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2023, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/231 "2023-05-12T20:36:17Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > Well, about 4.5 hours to go. HR wants to meet with me at 4:30 to do “final paperwork”, and hopefully to hand over a check for all 97 of my unused hours of vacation time. Damn, doing the “final paperwork” at the eleventh hour sucks. How do they expect you to blow all 97 hours of pay at happy hour if they keep you that late? Oh, and congratulations! ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/232 "2023-05-13T12:11:24Z")
And I’m retired. I held it together when I said good-bye to two of my favorite bosses, but I cried as I drove out of the parking garage for the last time. Hubs is puzzled why I’m not overjoyed to be out of there, but he has never held a job he liked very much. I dreamt last night of working at my desk, shuffling papers, and finding out that there was something important undone. Got a fat check and it’ll be deposited today. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/233 "2023-05-13T12:19:07Z")
Best wishes ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/234 "2023-05-13T12:20:54Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Ha ha, I’m going to advise you to not retire then. It’s something I’m actively considering. There are a growing number of annoyances at the office, and they want us to stop working remotely this fall. But…i like the actual work part. I dunno. I need to give 3 months notice to retire, and it’s something I’m wrestling with. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/235 "2023-05-13T12:35:00Z")
Congratulations and best wishes. It’s a big transition. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/236 "2023-05-13T14:49:14Z")
I _hated_ my job for the last three years or so before I retired. I was even tired of the people I liked there by the end, and I still had some pangs at the beginning of my retirement. Because my work years ended in early June and commenced again in mid-July, there was a time when I wouldn’t have been working anyway, it didn’t really hit home until the new school year began. The administrators called me a lot the first few weeks, since I was the only one who knew how to do some tasks, and I secretly didn’t resent it. If you actually liked your job, I’m sure those mixed feelings will be stronger. However, as time goes on, your focus will be more and more on what you’re doing now, and the future is full of possibility! ---
**Author:** ![squeegee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/squeegee/32/14537_2.png) [@squeegee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeegee)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/237 "2023-05-13T15:13:08Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > And I’m retired Congratulations, Teela!! Yeah, it feels quite weird to leave; for me it felt really great though there were pangs. I hope your mixed feelings settle and you enjoy this next chapter enormously. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/238 "2023-05-13T16:06:21Z")
Congratulations. Someone at my old job started organizing lunches and invited us retired people also. We had a break for Covid but we had another one just last week. He’s going to do it every month now. Most everyone has been laid off but we still had 8 people there. I still get some work dreams after 7 years, but mostly conference organizing dreams. I guess they replace can’t find where your final is dreams. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/239 "2023-05-13T17:03:26Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > and they want us to stop working remotely this fall. I wondered when companies would start needing to justify all that real estate. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2023, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653/240 "2023-05-13T19:45:32Z")
> [@teelabrown](#): > > Got a fat check and it’ll be deposited today. Good. Maybe spend it on something special just for you. You deserve a gift to yourself. Perhaps a day at a spa, tickets to a musical, etc. Best of luck adjusting to having time for yourself again. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countdown-to-retirement/981653.md?page=13)