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Thread: Retirement is coming to an end.

  1. #1
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    01-15-02
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    Arrow Retirement is coming to an end.

    So I knew that this day would come, just wasn't sure when. You can't live like you used to and retire. I have 12 more payments on the truck and of course the newer fifth wheel but the killer is my one and only credit card. Now I stopped using it a year before I retired but haven't been paying enough to make it go away anytime soon.

    So I'm looking to go back to driving those big trucks. The problem is where? There's not any trucking companies in my little town. So I'm going to visit Swift cooperate when I head to Phoenix in March. I'm think I'll do like I did several times when I was loaned out to other terminals for months on end and just live in the tractor between trips home. They are still doing some of the Winco loads the last time I talked to some of the workers I worked with. They also where looking for drivers at the Walmart terminals in Los Lunas, NM and Corinne, UT. Both of which I've worked out of. I'm also going to angle for a sign on bonus.

    I'm trying to minimize my expenses so I don't want to pay rent for an RV site and the electric bills in the summer. I don't really want to have my pickup in the winter snow and slush, rust is not your friend. I'll do like I di the first four years and cut expenses and pay off bills. I figure something like 2 to 2.5 years. Also my goal is to get some type of a quad and trailer to bring to the SW in the winter, I've still not done the knees or feet. I'm think I'll need to start by August or September.

    Guess I'll need to change my signature line.
    **************************************************
    Retired April 17, 2019
    Back to driving October 12, 2022
    Damn Credit Card
    Life’s too short to drink cheep booze and argue with stupid people.” Mickey Thompson

  2. #2
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    11-22-03
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    So far my retirement has worked out OK, sorry to hear yours isn't, Paul...When I sold my business right after the divorce was final, I used some of the proceeds to pay every debt I had at the time...I refinanced the house with a lower rate and paid it off quickly...When I went on Social Security I promised myself I would live within that budget even though early SS means a 25% reduction in income...So far, 13 years later, I've kept my promise to myself...I have no luxuries at all, but I also haven't owed anybody a nickel in over ten years other than the utilities, taxes and insurance...

    Whatever I charge in a month gets paid off the next month so there's never any interest...I hope after you regroup and plan your next retirement, it will last a little longer......Ben
    The future is forged on the anvil of history...The interpreter of history wields the hammer... - Unknown author...

  3. #3
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    What I'm getting from all of this is we need to make sure our financial paths are under control.

    I spent my day with my father and my brother discussing where all of us stand on this issue. Frankly, my father is struggling financially - not because he's made bad decisions, but because he's hit 87 and didn't expect to live that long. But, if he needs money, my brother and I will jump in to help. That's what families do.

    Hunter
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

  4. #4
    Join Date
    10-22-01
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    I'm sorry to hear that Paul, I know how you looked forward to retirement. The good news is that the industry will be happy to have you back

    The big unknown with retirement is how much is enuff, in terms of mathematics it is an indeterminate. The other thing is we can't always accurately project costs.

    I am anal when it comes to planning, retirement didn't mesh with my financial plan.

    Some days God throws us a curve ball.

    Added in edit: Paul---you might want to consider a bank loan to pay off your credit card---the interest will be a fraction of what the credit card is.
    Last edited by Dave Grubb; 02-18-2022 at 09:15 PM.
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

  5. #5
    Join Date
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    Truckman I kind of knew this was going to happen when I did retirement. Having driven for 14+ years and never being home you don't want to buy toys to just set. So the week I purchased the house for cash I also bought a used pontoon for cash because I just can't stand and walk lake shores to fish any more and I always wanted a boat. The thing is if I sold the toys I too wouldn't have to go back to work but I don't want to set and eat roman noodles and watch soap operas on TV, do they still have soap operas? The biggest problem I was still living like I had a job. The thing that always made it easier was that I didn't have to worry about anyone but myself, made life a lot simpler.

    Utah I thought I was in pretty good shape but it's amazing how fast a quarter of a million will go. The thing is I am in as much debt as when I left the Grand Canyon and started trucking, but this time I think I'll be able to pay it off in 2+ years, not 4+ years. I'm looking to leave the fifth wheel at home in Nebraska and pretty much live out of the semi. No space rent, no electrical utilities and the my truck won't be in snow and salt country. Once everything is paid for I should be able to get by on social security until they put me in a home. I'm planning on suspending the benefits because of the limit I can earn before 70. I need to do more research on that and Medicare.

    Dave Grubb I always said that I would not retire but just fall over dead but the last 8 or so years of working changed that. I'm looking to see what I can work out with Swift, since I know their systems and it would just be easier to step back in and go. I plan to contact some of my old coworkers and go visit before I head home. I figure I'm setting in the drivers seat so to speak. Wonder what kind of sign on bonuses they are offering?

    Good advice about the credit card since I've stopped using it for the last several years. I have a small credit card through the credit union that I use on line and it gets payed off monthly. The pickup will be payed off by next February but since the interest is paid off there not much reduction paying it off early but I'm shooting to pay it off before the end of the year. That would lessen my credit load and might be the prefect time to get a loan to pay off the other card. In fact you just gave me the idea to go visit with them to discuss it since I still do my banking in Arizona.

    Thank guys it's all been good advice and I hope the trucking gig won't be a long one.
    Last edited by Blue74; 03-03-2022 at 01:28 PM. Reason: Spelling
    **************************************************
    Retired April 17, 2019
    Back to driving October 12, 2022
    Damn Credit Card
    Life’s too short to drink cheep booze and argue with stupid people.” Mickey Thompson

  6. #6
    Join Date
    10-22-01
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    38,191
    Paul, regarding your SS. I think you are correct in thinking you can suspend it---but by going back to work it is very likely that your credits and therefore payout will increase. My monthly payment increased every year that I continued to work. I had passed the age where I could earn any amount without affecting my SS benefits.

    From the SS web site:

    When you reach full retirement age:

    Beginning with the month you reach full retirement age, your earnings no longer reduce your benefits, no matter how much you earn.
    We will recalculate your benefit amount to give you credit for the months we reduced or withheld benefits due to your excess earnings.
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” ---Sir Winston Churchill
    "Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all." ---John W. Gardner
    “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” ---C. S. Lewis

  7. #7
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    10-30-01
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    May all of our retirees be financially secure.

    These tough financial times are hurting too many Americans. Many who thought they were set are having to restructure their funds.

    Hunter
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

  8. #8
    Join Date
    01-15-02
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    Hot Phoenix / Big Springs NE
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    So a few things happened. I paid off the last year on the truck. I sat down and worked the numbers and it will be close but I need to control spending more. I was planning on doing the driving during harvest this fall but now I need for my left eye to clear up. Posterior Vitreous Detachment It apparently bleed a bit (1 in 100,000) so it's like looking through a dirty piece of gauze that's moving. I'm dealing with it and in the three weeks since it seems to be getting better but I don't want the try and drive a semi with one good eye.

    I decided that I would have to have the fifth wheel in Phoenix and the expenses would keep it from being a good financial move and I don't think the dog really wanted to go back on the road. So for now I'm doing small projects around the house and fixing what broke on the fifth wheel while in the southwest. I keep hearing about different work from home types of jobs but I'm cautious about scams. Figure around August I'll do some serious looking.
    **************************************************
    Retired April 17, 2019
    Back to driving October 12, 2022
    Damn Credit Card
    Life’s too short to drink cheep booze and argue with stupid people.” Mickey Thompson

  9. #9
    Join Date
    10-30-01
    Location
    Salt Lake City
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    30,645
    Wifey had some floaters that were driving her crazy. An eye surgeon from the Clarus Facility removed them and fixed flaws in her lenses too. As a result, she doesn't need glasses anymore.

    May your eyes do well too, my friend.

    Hunter
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

  10. #10
    Join Date
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    Quote Originally Posted by UTAH View Post
    Wifey had some floaters that were driving her crazy. An eye surgeon from the Clarus Facility removed them and fixed flaws in her lenses too. As a result, she doesn't need glasses anymore.

    May your eyes do well too, my friend.

    Hunter
    Thanks it seem to be clearing up I enjoyed the months of no glasses except to read after having worn them since the third grade. I had cataract surgery in July and August of 2021. I needed them before but just thought my poor eyesight was normal. I'm not sure or my brain is learning how to compensate for it.
    **************************************************
    Retired April 17, 2019
    Back to driving October 12, 2022
    Damn Credit Card
    Life’s too short to drink cheep booze and argue with stupid people.” Mickey Thompson

  11. #11
    Join Date
    10-30-01
    Location
    Salt Lake City
    Posts
    30,645
    I tried contacts but did not like how much work they were. Nowadays, glasses are easy to obtain and cheap. Yeah, I've had to work to find the right ones - but it's worth it.

    May your eyesight and your life be strong and fulfilling.

    Hunter
    I don't care if it hurts. I want to have control. I want a perfect body. I want a perfect soul. - Creep by Radiohead

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