I'm Retired... Now What Read online

  11

  Gardening

  Maybe you’ve always had a knack for gardening, or at least you’ve enjoyed the fact that you like working out in the garden. Now is your chance to explore your green-thumb potential. If you want to expand your knowledge, you could always join up with the Master Gardener program through a 4-H office. You don’t have to already be a Master Gardener to join, but be careful, you may enjoy it so much that you become one inadvertently. Come on, who doesn’t enjoy a quiet afternoon in the shade, planting and enjoying the outdoors? Golly jeepers, even Mr. Wilson from Dennis the Menace always enjoyed gardening…even with Dennis around.

  Also, if you took the advice to move to the country, break out the tractor and plow some rows…well, at least pull out the tiller or try some square-foot gardening if acreage is not available. What to plant? If you like color, flowers. If you like vegetables, vegetables. If you don’t like bugs, plant both. Flowers attracts bugs that will eat the vegetable-eating bugs (just a hint to start you off). Plant too much? Take the surplus to the farmers market. You may just make a little money, but the greatest part is you get to meet a lot of interesting people!

  12

  Focusing on Your Current Hobby

  A lot of what I have discussed in this book has been about starting new adventures; however, not everything is about newness. How about if you focus on your current hobby? Maybe you have always enjoyed a hobby but have never had the time to pursue it as much as you have wanted to—now’s your chance! Take advantage of the fact that you don’t have to be anywhere tomorrow because you are retired. Don’t delay—get started and enjoy what makes you happy!

  13

  Starting a New Hobby

  After reading the previous adventure, you may be thinking, “But I don’t have a hobby!” If you don’t, start a new hobby today. Whether it’s stamp collecting, painting, ping-pong…do whatever piques your interest. Don’t see how one hobby can keep you busy? Start two, three, or four hobbies, or however many you can handle at one time. For ideas for a list of hobbies, just google “list of hobbies” and see if anything piques your interest.

  14

  Knitting, Crocheting, Quilting, and Needlepoint

  For the next few ideas for adventures, you may think, “This would fall under the idea of hobbies.” However, the defining difference I would like to point out is that hobbies are done for fun and not for money. The remaining ideas in this section are adventures that can be converted from being just a hobby to something that creates supplemental income. “Wait a second,” you might say. “You mean to tell me that I can get paid to have some fun?” Absolutely! Who says you can’t make any money doing something that you love to do?

  Even though I have absolutely no clue about the activity, I have heard that if you knit, crochet, quilt, and/or do needle point, your time will definitely be occupied. Although for my generation these skills are in danger of becoming a lost art, there are still many talented devotes of them, some of whom may be happy to teach a beginner. While I know nothing about how to quilt, what I do know is that when I’m watching a movie, I love to snuggle under the quilt my wife’s grandmother made. I have heard that you can also sell such items at arts and crafts fairs and that there are groups and clubs all over the nation where fellow crafters get together to work and socialize.

  15

  Woodworking

  This next adventure is a topic I get to brag about to my dad. Although he will never admit it, Dad has always been good at woodworking, and he often refinishes furniture and builds items made of wood. This is an adventure that is broad but can be done at any time and will never go out of style. Whether you are good at refinishing or you are good at construction, wood working is a craft that almost everyone can appreciate.

  16

  Golfing

  Of course you were expecting this next adventure in a book for retirees; however, it almost didn’t make it in here. Let’s call this the ninety-ninth adventure. The reason I say this is because I could only think of ninety-eight adventures and was short one. This adventure is the ever-present sport of playing golf when you retire. “This is blasphemy!” you say. “How can he speak lowly about such a great game?” The reason I speak this way regarding golf is because most retirees feel that it’s the “thing to do” when you retire. However, I have noticed over the years that most of the people on the golf course are bored. They get excited about getting a particular tee time and then complain about the group in front of them and the group behind them. They drink nonstop while out on the course. And then, at the end of the day, when they are asked, “How was your day?” the typical response is, “It beat a day of work.” I am completely serious when I say this: retirees who spend three or more days a week playing golf are usually bored and feel that they must do this because they are retired. Subvert the norm! Find another adventure. Make yourself so busy that when you play golf once a month, you are telling your other three partners all the adventures you have been doing. Watch your golfing chums eyes light up with interest and the questions begin about how they can get in on the action.

  17

  Beach Combing

  Most of us have combed the beach while on vacation, but here’s a challenge: beach combing in all coastal states. Yep, once again, I am combining multiple adventures to maximize the fun element. Remember walking up and down the shorelines as a kid looking for “treasures”? You probably will not discover a long lost pirate chest of gold, but a beautiful shell or a piece of unique driftwood aren’t out of the question; or you could collect a bottle of sand from each beach you visit. Imagine an ocean breeze, waves gently lapping the shore, the blue of the sky meeting the water, you get the picture. Not even the greatest of artists can paint the moments you will experience while on this peaceful adventure.

  18

  Metal Detecting

  Metal detecting can sometimes be a subset of the previous adventure, but not everybody loses a diamond earring at the beach. However, there were many great battles fought throughout the nation that have left behind a multitude of historical artifacts. Areas throughout the United States hosted Native American conflicts, the War for Independence, and the Civil War. Most of the time, locating historical artifacts is achieved through metal detecting. However, I have read so many accounts of bank and stage-coach robbers burying their loot, and it has never been recovered. Someone’s got to find it. Also, my dad lost his gold wedding band in the garden at our old house; you might want to go look there for a treasure!

  As I mentioned earlier, these adventures are a lot of fun. However, a word of caution would be to make sure you have permission from private land owners and that state and national parks allow for digging and removing items.

  Please do not allow this disclaimer to sway you away from this kind of adventure; with the right permission, you may just uncover a “national treasure.” The government may not allow you to keep it, however, but they generally will give you credit and free tickets when the exhibit opens!

  19

  Bartering/Trading/Swapping Items

  As the owner and founder of the website BarterOnly.com, how can I not talk about bartering, trading, and swapping items? Whether it’s online or at a swap meet, trading can be a lot of fun (and profitable). You need an item; someone else has that item. But then guess what: you have something they want. Just like back in school, it’s time to make a trade. Does this concept sound odd or complicated? Actually, the majority of the world is still on the bartering system. Therefore, in some areas of the world, it’s a necessity; however, it can be fun and exciting because “one man’s junk is another man’s treasure!” Need a little guidance as to where and how to begin? Head on over to BarterOnly.com and check out some of the articles I have written there.

  20

  Restoration Projects

  My wife already sees this one coming when I retire—starting and hopefully finishing another restoration project. Prior to writing this book, I restored a 1978 Corvette. My mother h
as always been amazed and has wondered how I was able to do this. It’s quite simple: I took tractor mechanics in high school and know how to watch YouTube videos. Don’t think that a restoration project is too complicated—with a little effort and by knowing the right people, you too can restore anything, from cars, to boats, to Coke machines, to any other antique item. There is no satisfaction like that of bringing history back to life. Find your interest, combine it with a dose of passion, and add some effort, and you have a project that will be educational and fulfilling.

  21

  Garage Sale-ing, Antiquing, and Storage Auctioning

  Well, folks, the adventure of garage sale-ing, antiquing, and storage auctioning is quite a broad idea; however, there is a lot of overlap to assist in exploring this dynamic. Generally, the best deals on purchases can be found at garage sales. The average garage sale lists items for a fraction of the original cost. However, the actual value of these items can be realized for a profit if sold in a different circumstance. You will find bargain hunters scouring garage sales looking for items to resell. Savvy retirees can purchase quantities of these items and resell them through auctions online or live local auctions. Not everybody finds a hidden treasure that is worth thousands of dollars, but with the proper effort, you can find some treasures and resell them for profit. A lot of people make a living doing this. My suggestion is that you do it to supplement your income with some “fun” money and for the adventure of treasure hunting. (A treasure is in the eye of the beholder.)

  Here are two little hints: 1) Make sure you have Internet available on your cell phone while you are shopping so that you can research the value of items as you come across them. 2) Just because someone is asking a particular price doesn’t mean that’s what it is valued at.

  22

  Starting a Scrapbook

  Here’s the moment you may have been talking about for your entire career: you’ve always wanted to scrapbook, but you have never had time. Well, time is what you have, and it’s time to get cracking. Scrapbooking stores are popping up all over the nation, with groups and classes forming all the time. The groups and classes start with the most basic and progress on up to the most complete methods of scrapbooking. A word of warning—I have had to remove my wife from the scrapbooking store because she would get so involved that it was like a full-time job for her. Have fun doing this for the grandkids. Have fun doing this for your kids. Not only is scrapbooking rewarding for you, but the scrapbooks make awesome holiday gifts.

  23

  Raising Livestock / Breeding Small Animals

  There is a joke that goes around in the horse industry, and it goes like this: “How do you make a small fortune in the horse business?” The answer is this: “Start with a large one.” With scrapbooks, you probably shouldn’t go in with the hopes of making a lot. However, in the case of raising livestock or breeding small animals, it’s not always a losing battle. I have a few clients who train and breed dogs. Most of the time they exceed their expenses with income. My aunts turn a minor profit most of the time, but mostly they enjoy it more than they are concerned with making money.

  My action plan to incorporate this in my daily life is:

  III

  Creative Activities

  As I am being creative to create this book, so must you be during retirement. Although I may be creating this book for a business purpose, I am also exercising my mind through the use of creativity. In the same respect, as you age, you must do the same. However, just as a person will exercise his or her muscles to maintain physical fitness, so must everyone when it comes to the mind.

  In this section, we will explore various adventures that utilize the mind. I highly recommend that every retiree undergo at least one of the adventures in this section or one of the intellectual ones in the next in order to maintain mental fitness.

  24

  Starting a Blog

  No formal writing experience is required to start a blog. A blog is strictly made up of your ideas and opinions. Your blog can cover any topic or subject matter of conversation. A blog can also be random in nature when it comes to ideas. What is your passion, your interest, your knowledge…today? Write an article and post it. Millions of people scour the Internet daily looking for information to read. What’s that? You say you don’t have any information that you can write about? Then write about someone else, their life, their adventures, their anecdotes. Have fun with it!

  I will be discussing this later, however, I must mention here that you can set up advertisements on your blog page and get paid! Don’t expect it to be much, but money is money. However, if you provide a lot of content and keep up with your blog on a regular basis, you will end up attracting a lot of people. In the Internet world, people equals traffic, and traffic equals money!

  25

  Hosting a Podcast

  Maybe writing is not your forte, but speaking is. How about developing and hosting a podcast? Ever thought about interviewing the stars, but afraid of the camera? Podcasts are the latest and greatest form of media. What’s that? You can’t think of something to talk about? What about helping friends who own a business and asking them to write out a description of one of their processes and then recording the message and posting it on their website? What about recording an event or discussion and then uploading it onto the website? The possibilities are endless. But remember, not everybody has the time (or desire) to watch a video. There may be something out there that people are interested in listening to while working out, driving, or doing some other activity.

  26

  Creating How-To Videos

  Unlike creating podcasts, this adventure is about creating how-to videos on YouTube. You may be sitting there a little perplexed and saying, “I don’t know how to make a video on YouTube.” Well, all you have to do is to go to YouTube and search “how to put a video on YouTube.” Guess what you’ll find? A how-to video.

  The next statement you may make is, “I don’t know what to talk about.” Let me help you out here, as I have searched YouTube for information on how to do just about anything and everything. I, like many Americans, am too lazy to read the instructions, and so I revert to visuals to explain. Technology has allowed for masses to follow a visual presentation better than written instructions. Therefore, take anything that you know how to make or do (e.g., the best cookie in the world, a cool birdhouse, changing a car tire); explain what you are teaching the viewer to do; and then publish it on YouTube. It doesn’t matter how simple or complex you get; people are going to watch your video. Always remember—your subject doesn’t have to be new to the world, just a new or easier way of explaining something. The only people who don’t need to watch how-to videos on YouTube are people who already know it all, and last I checked, there weren’t that many people who were bona fide geniuses.

  27

  Making Homemade Movies

  A buddy of mine got me into the next adventure. He has a website called Buckheadhunting.com. Basically he showed me how easy it is to make a movie just by using his iMac. Whether it’s the classic home-movie compilation of your family vacations or the next Blair Witch Project, making a movie can be fun and, if you utilize YouTube properly, profitable.

  Just like for how-to videos, if you are not sure about how to make a movie, go to YouTube and search “how to make a movie.” Yes, it’s as simple as it gets.

  28

  Writing a Book

  I once heard that the human mind contains enough knowledge to fill a library with books. Therefore, if your mind can fill a library, why not write a book? Just as I have written this book, you too can write a book. Really, a book such as this is one of the easiest types of book to write. First, take a notebook sheet of paper. (Yes, we are doing this the “old school” way.) Then number the lines 1 through 99. Now think of your topic: ninety-nine ways to cook carrots, ninety-nine ways to get out of a speeding ticket, ninety-nine ways to landscape your backyard, and so on. If you can only think of thirty-five ideas, then call yo
ur book Thirty-Five Ways to Skin a Cat. This is the simple way to write a book.

  If you can’t seem to come up with a topic, write about your life, someone else’s life, or your career, or use your memoirs. Keeping it personal will allow you to get more in depth in terms of subject matter, and I suggest you write about a field you have some expertise in. A buddy of mine has written several military books. Because of his top-secret clearance in the military, he had to convert the books to fiction. Therefore, if you can’t think of anything informative to write about, then write a fictional story. I promise you that the world of readers will always find room for another book.

  29

  Interviewing Elders in Your Community

  Prior to formal education systems, most of the world was unable to read or write. Therefore, stories were passed down verbally. The greatest way to record history is to interview elders in your community and record their memories and anecdotes. This does not have to be in a formal book form. Even just taking notes in a spiral-bound notebook would be sufficient. Just as you were interested in recording the memory or anecdote, someone else will most likely be interested in reading it. Refer back to the section on starting a blog or writing a book to find creative ways to have your recordings preserved and shared with others.