Things came to a head today

[tlmiller]

8 days to go. I had people chasing me around the property today about issues in their units, which were the responsibility of the owner not the HOA. Certainly wont miss all the hassles on this property. My job took over my life to the point that I rarely left the property in 14 years. Emergencies and constant issues pretty much kept me prisoner. It will be amazing to be able to move freely and go where I want to go without worrying that my phone will ring and Ill be back handling an emergency.

That's the spirit!!!

[CaptNoize]

Well you'll see... My dad was worried about retiring,until he did,and then he found that he was busier,and way more happy, doing exactly what he wanted,and not what he was " required " to do for his job. My father retired when he was 63,cause his company that he worked for,decided to get rid of the unions that made it great,( he was a teamster for 40 years) and close down. It rebranded itself as a non union company,went back into business,and didn't last 2 years.
But my father went to work delivering lawn tractors for our cousin,and he loved it..!!! He died 11 years later,but, he at least, got some enjoyment out of his retirement. This is why I think you'll be really busy and get alot of enjoyment doing what you want.

[crosscourt]

Im going to lose a lot of cash and we only have one car but If I dont make the break now I might not get any meaningful time out of life at my age. Ill figure out how to make some cash over time, but I want some time where I dont have to do anything other than what I want to do. I wont miss drain and pipe problems at 1am in the morning, floods in laundry rooms due to storms, and having to shovel out snow on a property with 17 buildings. I did this as well as my normal supervisor duties for 14 years. Its caused a lot of physical problems and the stress has damaged my body considerably. A physical style job is out given the situation but we'll see what happens. Was never able to take a long vacation and I had no direct backup even when I was sick or trying to take a few days off. They want me to do an HR exit interview which should be interesting as frankly I dont give a crap. I do want my vacation payout though so lets see what happens.

[wove]

I wont miss drain and pipe problems

That made me smile, last week the spout on the kitchen sink broke off. It is a messy job. Of course being retired I could fix it at my leisure, but also being retired I could and did get to it right away. Being retired does provide a very nice new and interesting perspective on what really needs to be done and how urgent the task is. (Snow, who cares about snow when you have no where to be.) I am sure you will find that enjoyable. For the transition took me about a year to really be done with the old and embracing the new and then you can really settle into embracing the rewards.

[crosscourt]

The type of pipe and drain issues we had in the condo complex were large nasty jobs, many times happening in multiple units. Bathroom stacks are the worst, so when I have to deal with normal household issues like a faucet, its a far cry to what I typically have to deal with.
Im sitting here still having second thoughts about retiring, but some of my friends who have retired told me they went thru the same thing. Particularly in the days right before they were going to quit their jobs to retire. When youve been locked into a tough situation such as I have experienced, its a negative addiction to the feeling of responsibility to the community and making a decent salary. You feel youre letting people down, not providing for your family and losing the authority you once had. I never expected I would feel this complex a set of emotions about this once I decided to retire.

[wove]

It is the last big change in life we make and it has been a long time since we have changed from being adolescent to adult and have plenty of time to forget all the upheaval that that brought about. It was most unsettling to me to accept that the world moves along in its own way without need of my input. Fewer and fewer ask for your opinion or advice and it will start to piss you off when you get patronized and considered useless. But then you realize you can look after yourself just fine without supervision and find you have time to explore all the interests you had that were put on a back burner, because you were bogged down in a job and had way to many other obligations and responsibilities.

[crosscourt]

Im free! Had my HR exit interview and it went well. Had my final meeting with my Regional and even that went very well. All the loose ends have been taken care of and Im home and free as a bird. I was so programmed because of my job, its going to take some time to feel normal and realize my life is mine now.

[CaptNoize]

Excellent..! Congratulations..!! It's your time now, go enjoy yourself..!! Forget that place..! You'll see,after a month, there won't be enough hours in the day, to do the things that YOU want to do..! Trust me....!

[tlmiller]

Excellent..! Congratulations..!! It's your time now, go enjoy yourself..!! Forget that place..! You'll see,after a month, there won't be enough hours in the day, to do the things that YOU want to do..! Trust me....!

Yeah, he pretty much said it. Nothing to add but "ditto".

[wove]

I can not say that retirement is all wine and roses, but overall it is a very pleasant and enjoyable time. I wish you good luck and good times. New adventures can be a real hoot.