What did you do on the first day of retirement?

[dragoneggs]

I just thought of what I want to do on my first day of retirement (a number of years away but what the heck). I want to take a cooking class. A series of cooking classes. I like to cook but have never had any formal training. THAT is what I want to do on my first day of retirement.

Why not start that now? Maybe when you retire you will be a darn good chef! :licking:

 

[Doofy]

I'd be thinking of a "Time Budget". Write down all your interests and hobbies as you think of them. Make this "Bucket List" fluid, so as to not to make anything look like work. Don't make it a chore and don't try to do everything at once and don't spend a bunch of money without careful consideration.

 

[goeduck]

Why not start that now? Maybe when you retire you will be a darn good chef! :licking:

I probably should. I am actually a good cook, but a far cry from a chef. Know of anywhere in our neighborhood that has cooking classes?

 

[dragoneggs]

I probably should. I am actually a good cook, but a far cry from a chef. Know of anywhere in our neighborhood that has cooking classes?

Good question... I will ask my wife to look around. She is a darn good self taught cook. Amazing actually. Maybe when she finds one I will get some classes as a gift for her. Several years ago we were in Bali for a vacation after my work in Australia. We went to an all day cooking class at a private residence where the family grew many of their herbs and spices and we had a blast learning how to make oils and sauces, and some stir fry. At the end of the day we shared a meal with several other couples that joined in.

We both agreed then, that we should look into cooking classes at home. We just never acted on it. I know there are some in Seattle but haven't heard of any in Kitsap. You know we aren't that sophisticated 'round here.

 

[Thall303]

40 or more years ago I worked with a nice man who had carefully saved and planned his retirement!

Someone asked him what he would do in retirement.

“I plan to sit on my front porch, watch the cars go by and think”

“On other days, I pan on just sitting on my front porch”

 

[sixdogs]

^^^My retired Commander Military friend and his wife almost didn't survive the first year of his Navy retirement... she was use to him being deployed and managed nicely with what she had..

She had to remind him she was in command of the home front...

Anyway... he built his shop with her blessings and it saved their marriage... they both say that. He was restoring cars and the shop was his domain... and hers the house... still remember her calling down from the deck... "Father, supper will be ready in 15 minutes"

As long as they had clear boundaries and each had their space things were good...

This is how you stay married long enough to get to retirement. Clearly defined roles and responsibilities are what makes things work. I stay the heck out of the wife's duties and she stays the heck out of mine.

On retirement, I started mentally getting ready 15 years before the hour. Then, when it came, I was ready to roll and had been sort-of living that way for a few years beforehand. It was a seamless transition and I already had my direction and objectives in hand.

 

[Bird]

This thread reminds me of a couple of fellows I was involved with one year in planning the State Fair of Texas. These two guys had each worked about 35 years for the same company, but one retired a couple of years before the other one did, but they'd been long time buddies.

So the first had been retired a couple of years.
The second one then retired and early the next morning, called his buddy, woke him up, and said, "Well, now that I'm retired, what should I do?"
The first guy replied, "Sleep a little later."

 

[MossRoad]

I'd bet we have 40-50 cookbooks. Most were gifts or picked up at garage/book sales, 2nd hand stores, etc... About 4 years ago I got moved to evening shift, 7pm - 3am. So, I started cooking dinners at 4:00pm, so my wife and I could eat together between the time she got home from work around 5:30 and the time I left around 7:00. It's pretty fun and not too hard. Take a recipe, look at it, cut back on the spices you don't like, add in more that you do. After you cook the same meal 3-4 times you'll have it down pat. I started a binder with about 20 of our favorite dishes. And they all have penciled in additions and subtractions. I could cook before that, but having to do it 5 days a week for 3 years, well, I got pretty good at it! :licking:

When I lost my job due to outsourcing about 7 months ago, I got another job, but back to normal hours. We both work similar shifts again. I continued to cook, but we now sometimes share the kitchen........... that's a warning to you folks thinking about retiring.... the old adage about too many cooks... it applies! :laughing:

So now, if I'm cooking, the wife goes off and does her thing until dinner is ready, and if she's cooking, I do the same. We have a one-butt kitchen anyway, so its a bit too cozy in there when the oven door is open.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

The thing about cooking, is planning ahead so you have what you need when its time to cook.

 

[MossRoad]

The thing about cooking, is planning ahead so you have what you need when its time to cook.

Yep. Once I got my kitchen/pantry and freezers stocked, I had enough of everything to make at least two meals of it. Anytime I pull something out to use, I add it to the grocery list. Wife and I argue about this. She likes to put it on the list once the last one is used. I like to put it on the list if we only have one left, and then buy two more at the store! :laughing:

We have a nicely stocked cabinet in our kitchen. It's a 5' high X 18" wide, deep cabinet. The 5' high door has about 6-7 shelves on the inside of the door that hold two rows deep of spices, packet mixes, etc... I try to keep them organized alphabetically, so I'm not looking for Cinnamon by the Pepper.