I gotta say, I'm into my second year of retirement now, doing it on a barely-get-by level, and I'm enjoying the hell outa this not working for a living stuff. I retired at 63, because ... why not, eh? Work another couple/four years for another a hundred bucks a month? I fish in the summer and hunt small game in the winter. I play video games, and I get good and drunk once a week, whether I need to or not. I read good books and argue with smart, politically aware people in cyber-space. I practice literary art - I'll do another bit of genius from my blog here in a minute. Teaching was fulfilling, and it was much better than working for a living, but c'mon. Dealing with pampered brats and, worse, the parents who pampered them? Incompetent principals playing politics in hopes of becoming a superintendent? Fuck that. Hell, the reason I got into teaching, other than the money, of course, was for all the time off. For those who find validation in being a gerbil turning the wheel, Gawd bless you. Me? I'm gonna get drunk tonight, be hungover tomorrow, and enjoy the Arizona outdoors and laziness thereafter.