It’s very difficult for those of us who are retired to explain what it’s like to those still working. And it’s equally difficult for those still at the desk to visualize their time after work.  Save with SPP took a look around the Interweb to see what sort of things we don’t do once we are retired, hoping this listing might help demystify the intrigue that is retirement.

According to The Terrace blog, a thing you’ll stop doing and saying is that you’re too busy or have no time to do things. “The new retiree finally has the time to do the things that have been put off for years. This includes projects, such as cleaning out closets and other chores around the home, travel to visit family and friends, starting new leisure activities, hobbies and taking classes,” the blog notes.

The Disabled World blog lists a variety of things that most seniors will be no longer able to do, such as getting to the phone on time, reading small print, “watching bad news,” and significantly, opening packages “containing things we really want to get our hands on.” Things that were easy to do before, warns the blog, will eventually become more difficult, a factor to be aware of.

One great thing is that you can stop planning for retirement once it has happened, notes US News and World Report. You will have done all the things the article lists, such as reviewing your finances and sources of income, health and benefit coverage, and using up your last days of vacation. You won’t have to “take vacation” once retirement has begun.

The MoneySense blog notes, among other things, that you will stop not being able to see your spouse. “Sure, you love your spouse, but let’s do a little math here. Chances are, for most of your married life at least one of you has worked outside the home. Subtract sleep, travel time and other away time and you’ve seen your beloved for— at most — six hours a day,” the blog notes.

You’ll see your spouse twice as much once you retire, the blog adds, and that can cause “some couples to bicker.”

Other things Save with SPP has noted include not having to buy a commuter pass or pay for a workplace parking spot, not having to have `clothes for work,’ including a vast array of ties, dressy shoes, and suits, and not having to attend one or two meetings every day of the workweek. You’ll find you lose track of what day it is, don’t really experience a difference when it is the weekend or a holiday, and put off doing things until it is NOT the weekend so there’s better parking and less crowds.

And strangely you’ll probably find you are just as busy as you were before you retired, but it will be with different tasks and activities.

The transition to retirement is a tricky thing. Putting away a little more money for those golden years is always a good idea, because once you don’t get a paycheque you’ll be dependant on workplace pensions, government retirement benefits and your own savings. Why not perk up your personal savings through a Saskatchewan Pension Plan account? You can save at your own pace, watch your money get professionally invested at a very low fee, and then enjoy additional lifetime retirement income once you’ve left the punchclock behind. It’s win-win.

Written by Martin Biefer
	Martin Biefer is Senior Pension Writer at Avery & Kerr Communications in Nepean, Ontario. A veteran reporter, editor and pension communicator, he’s now a freelancer. Interests include golf, line dancing and classic rock. He and his wife live with their Shelties, Duncan and Phoebe, and cat, Toobins. You can follow him on Twitter – his handle is @AveryKerr22