are you retired? do you fish ALL the time?

[Darth-Baiter]

I'm getting to the point where I feel I can retire financially.  but I LOVE and adore the social aspects of work.  hanging with people, collaborating, debating, etc.  I basically love being with people for the most part.  I like to think I am decent company in return.  

 

I love fishing.  looking into my future, at retired-me.  I dont think I would be fishing non-stop.  first, I'll be older (@$!#$!!!) and so will my friends.  going fishing is still effort.  not like I can step off my back deck and go fishing.  I would be so bored fishing the same waters anyways.  

second, my wife is younger than me and will not retire when I do.  so not like I can buy a Sprinter Van, and tour the country looking for out-of-state bass. (I'm looking at you Florida).  I would miss my wife dearly.  again, social person and my wife is a huge part of all of it.  plus she would be so ticked if all of our vacations involved a Sprinter Van and my kayak.  

 

I am mid 50's so probably too young to retire.  

 

right now I just call in vacation time or the time-honored "mental health day" and go fishing.  like I am doing this upcoming Tuesday.  I have an appointment with Clearlake.  it is why I wear a face covering religiously (in all my photos)..I can't to to work all sunburned.  hahhah.."huh..the doctor treated me with UV lights...yea..that's it"

 

sorry just rambling and trying to see what the landscape of retirement looks like.  with fishing.

[PaulVE64]

Retired you will look back and wonder how you had any time to go do a job everyday.

[TnRiver46]

2 minutes ago, Darth-Baiter said:

I'm getting to the point where I feel I can retire financially.  but I LOVE and adore the social aspects of work.  hanging with people, collaborating, debating, etc.  I basically love being with people for the most part.  I like to think I am decent company in return.  

 

I love fishing.  looking into my future, at retired-me.  I dont think I would be fishing non-stop.  first, I'll be older (@$!#$!!!) and so will my friends.  going fishing is still effort.  not like I can step off my back deck and go fishing.  I would be so bored fishing the same waters anyways.  

second, my wife is younger than me and will not retire when I do.  so not like I can buy a Sprinter Van, and tour the country looking for out-of-state bass. (I'm looking at you Florida).  I would miss my wife dearly.  again, social person and my wife is a huge part of all of it.  plus she would be so ticked if all of our vacations involved a Sprinter Van and my kayak.  

 

I am mid 50's so probably too young to retire.  

 

right now I just call in vacation time or the time-honored "mental health day" and go fishing.  like I am doing this upcoming Tuesday.  I have an appointment with Clearlake.  it is why I wear a face covering religiously (in all my photos)..I can't to to work all sunburned.  hahhah.."huh..the doctor treated me with UV lights...yea..that's it"

 

sorry just rambling and trying to see what the landscape of retirement looks like.  with fishing.

I’m a long way from retirement, and I get sunburned while I’m at work haha

 

even if I do make it to retirement, I’m sure my wife will put me to work all day anyhow 

[Swamp Girl]

I'm semi-retired. I still write for about ten magazines, which sounds like a lot, but I used to have national columns, wrote for other magazines that closed shop, and was on the lecture circuit for up to two months at a time. Plus, I'm building a garden, which takes at least as much time as fishing, so all these factors mean I'll be fishing two to three days a week for about six and a half months a year. 

 

Darth, I don't think you should retire because you love your work. Retire when your wife does. 

[youeverjust]

Does your job have the possibility of reducing days/hours only work 2-3 days a week? You could keep up the social aspect and still have plenty of time on your days off for fishing or any other hobbies.

[Darth-Baiter]

2 minutes ago, youeverjust said:

Does your job have the possibility of reducing days/hours only work 2-3 days a week? You could keep up the social aspect and still have plenty of time on your days off for fishing or any other hobbies.

I wish.  

 

btw.  I would have an optometrist appointment if it wasn't raining today.  hahhaa..just kidding.

[gim]

I am a ways off from retiring.  However, even when I do retire, I don't foresee myself fishing every single day.  I just don't.  There are still other items that need to be attended to as a homeowner.  Errands still need to be accounted for.  Everyday life still continues, just without the daily grind of a full time job. 

 

My parents are both retired now and they like to fish, often together.  They go more than they did when they still worked full time, but not a whole lot more.  The biggest difference now is that they can go on almost any day they want to.  If the conditions don't look great one day, they just go the next instead.

[Team9nine]

Different strokes for different folks ?

 

Retired in 2020 at age 54. Not a social bug beyond forums and such, and wasn’t “in love” with my work or coworkers. Lots of people wonder what they’ll do in retirement, but sitting on my arse and going fishing, beyond routine house tasks, is perfectly fine for me. Between boat and bank, I fish between 175-200 days a year on average, so I get lots of activity and sunshine ? Don’t miss work some 3 years later, and can’t ever see going back into the job market outside of writing/contributing pieces for fishing sites, free-lance, etc., which can all be done remotely.

[Bankc]

I think only you can answer that.  

 

Here's my take.  The older you get, the harder it is to make new friends.  So if you're a social person, then you'll likely suffer pretty hard from social withdrawal after you retire, unless you currently have a bunch of friends outside of work.  Even better if they're retired too.  

 

However, for most people, when they hit the age at which they can retire, there's usually not much more than a tiny window of time where the still have the strength and stamina to get out and do things like fishing.  So retiring early gives you the opportunity to actually get out there and do the things you love, before you're too old to do them.  

You could work a reduced schedule.  That might be a good compromise.  However, when the next economic downturn hits and your company has to trim the fat, the guy who doesn't work as much is going to be the low hanging fruit, as they've already proven to themselves that they can get the job done with you not there.  

[Deleted account]

Yes, no. 

[813basstard]

Financially, I can retire when I’m 237. 
Luckily I’m planning on hitting a scratch off which will set things in motion. Trade the wife in for a newer model, buy a boat that has more gadgets than the space station, increase my alcohol and fried food intake by 37% and play bad golf often…

 

I mean, I don’t see any holes in this plan

[Fishin Dad]

Retirement is getting closer for me as well.   I have had summers off my whole career, so I fish a lot right now.  I don’t see myself ever without some sort of job.   I have become a lot less social and have no problem just chilling on the couch sometimes, but I think I want a purpose and to have some social time.   I am looking forward to getting out of my current career and having a “job” that is more fun than stressful and not full time.  I also look forward to getting out of Minnesota winters and having some sun for January and February.   I am very much looking forward to retirement!   
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.  

[Jar11591]

When I retire sometime in the next several thousand years, I will run and never look back. Was born a laborer, will die a laborer. The labor is the only part I like. The social aspect of work makes me sick. It’s so superficial and gross IMO. And yes, I will be fishing every morning when I’m retired. 

[TnRiver46]

10 minutes ago, Jar11591 said:

When I retire sometime in the next several thousand years, I will run and never look back. Was born a laborer, will die a laborer. The labor is the only part I like. The social aspect of work makes me sick. It’s so superficial and gross IMO. And yes, I will be fishing every morning when I’m retired. 

[Darth-Baiter]

21 minutes ago, Jar11591 said:

 The social aspect of work makes me sick. It’s so superficial and gross IMO. 

that's a bummer.

[volzfan59]

1 hour ago, PaulVE64 said:

Retired you will look back and wonder how you had any time to go do a job everyday.

Ain't that the truth!

 

@Darth-Baiter, I'm retired and hate to admit this but I don't fish nearly as much as I thought that I would. I had these grandiose plans of fishing all the time. Just hasn't worked out that way.  Unlike you, I'm basically a loner. Nothing wrong with being social, just not for me. I love being around family and friends, that's about it. It's a double edge sword though, how does one make new friends when they're not willing to meet new people.

[Zcoker]

I'm not retired yet but can fish just as much as a retired person. That's because I do a LOT of night fishing, fishing all night until the sun comes up. I do need breaks, though. Can burn out on anything, fishing included. I usually bounce back and fourth from the fresh side to the salty side. If I'm not out tagging sharks for NOAA, then I'm out in the Everglades all night fishing for giant bass. One way or the other, there's a thrill to be had. I also find that if I am fishing either fresh or salt for a long time, it becomes very exciting to transition from one to the other, almost as exciting as if doing it for the first time! I've fished freshwater for many months now and finally put down those rods and picked up my  Zenaq topwater setup for blacktip sharks.....can't wait to get out there and slam some of those! There's nothing quite as exciting as seeing a big shark go psycho on a topwater lure!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Catt]

I was forced in retirement by physical disabilities in 2005. I actually fish less now that I'm not working, & not because of the disability. 

 

I'm too dang busy when the kids or grandkids need something its call dad or Pawpaw.

 

They do understand if conditions are right Pawpaw is subject to bale at anytime!

[MN Fisher]

I took early retirement to take care of the wife. Before COVID, we had a regular PCA so I could go out 2-3 times a week for long periods. Once COVID hit, we lost our PCA and even now are having trouble finding a replacement as like all medical/personal care fields, they took a big hit. So I'm the wife's PCA now.

 

So for the foreseeable future...maybe once a week for 4-5 hours...if I'm lucky

[king fisher]

  You have the opportunity to go fishing every day while your wife is at work.  What's the problem?

[rboat]

I am semi retired now. I work 3 days each week. Funny, but I still find it to be too much work. Crappy weather always hits on the days I'm off work and it is beautiful when I'm at work. There is still house chores and the honey do list, so fishing time still suffers. I think I am going to drop down to 2 days of work at the end of this year and see if that helps. I will fully retire in a couple years if they get this hyper inflation under control and my 401k stops tanking. Look forward to much more fishing before my body can't take it. 

[Susky River Rat]

My dad is retired. He never owned a boat. I had him run the trolling motor a few times and use the motor. I told him he could take my boat out anytime he wanted. His reply was  “ I am retired I sure as hell don’t want to work to fish” so he goes with me whenever time allows me to get out.

[Jar11591]

18 minutes ago, Darth-Baiter said:

that's a bummer.

Yeah. The number one reason I work for myself now. When I’ve worked with other people it was all incompetence, weird cliques and shameless backstabbing and brown nosing, high school level drama. Full grown adults wanting to physically fight each other. It scorned me. That plus my natural introversion makes me have no interest in the work place socialization. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve made real, genuine friends at work but I don’t include that as part of the superficial fraternizing that happens in work settings. 

[Darth-Baiter]

17 minutes ago, rboat said:

I am semi retired now. I work 3 days each week. Funny, but I still find it to be too much work. Crappy weather always hits on the days I'm off work and it is beautiful when I'm at work. There is still house chores and the honey do list, so fishing time still suffers. I think I am going to drop down to 2 days of work at the end of this year and see if that helps. I will fully retire in a couple years if they get this hyper inflation under control and my 401k stops tanking. Look forward to much more fishing before my body can't take it. 

Haha. I changed a faucet the other day.  I was up/down and into a fetus position.   House repairs…yuck. 
 

I imagine days where I get body-aches if I sneeze wrong.  Haha. 

[Deleted account]

34 minutes ago, Zcoker said:

There's nothing quite as exciting as seeing a big shark go psycho on a topwater lure!! 

 

Until you book an all inclusive Costa Rican fishing trip with the Platinum house keeping package...