I Want to retire...

Jim Burr

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Reno, Nv
I had a great visit with one of the shop "managers" from our church shop. We had a demo on making cabinet doors Saturday morning and as usual the talk turned to turning after the demo. Pete invited me to his shop to pick up some walnut he ricked about 3 years ago. Like most of us old timers he gets up early so I popped in about 8 and holy cow...what a shop!! PM stuff everywhere...not a spot on the floor and about 4 sets of cabinets in several stages of done-ness. He sent me home with a 12x6x48 slab of walnut and an invite to work on my canoe at his place. I need to plane 3 2x4's 16' long screwed together for the bench to build the canoe on...what does Pete have? PM thickness planer he just put new blades on. He's been retired for 8 years now...wants me there Saturday morning to get working on the boat. 12 more years.....
 
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That is great Jim, and I understand your meaning, but Pete did not retire into that situation, he most likely worked very hard to be able to progress to the situation your describe! :thumb:

I guess unless you win the lottery, or are born into that kind of money, the only way to do that is to work very hard to get into that position, good for Pete, and I hope you get there too! :D
 
That is great Jim, and I understand your meaning, but Pete did not retire into that situation, he most likely worked very hard to be able to progress to the situation your describe! :thumb:

I guess unless you win the lottery, or are born into that kind of money, the only way to do that is to work very hard to get into that position, good for Pete, and I hope you get there too! :D

Oh he did Stu...As I'm sure most of us have. I don't want a shop like his...but it sure was nice to ogle over for a while. I don't need a Legacy, a shaper, or a panel saw, but it was kinda funny that his lathe is a ShopSmith...His fathers ShopSmith...in better than excellent condition. I was more impressed with the pride he takes in his shop so I came home and took my lathe apart and tuned it up...filed the banjo, changed the belt...waxed the ways. Cleaned off my shelves and put stuff away. It's not much, but it is mine...his attitude was infectious. I bought a moderate sized cabinet yesterday to store some other "just put it there" things and I feel better already :thumb::thumb::D
 
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I retired from my day job 4 years ago and have opened my cabinet shop full time plus I sell curriculum materials for a textbook company. I guess I totally flunked retirement but I'm much happier than I ever have been. I work more than I ever did and am probably further behind than ever but it is much more of a satisfying work. I did make sure that before I retired that I had as near as possible a full set of tools and a nice shop that were all paid for so I didn't have to feed the finance monster every month. It took me a long time to work myself into that position but since I did life has gotten better. In 12 years you can put yourself in that position too. It took me about that long from setting my goal to actually achieving it. Good luck to you. My response it to tell you that it actually can be done.
 
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