New commer "squeaking by?"
New to this group... I "think" I fit the Squeaking By profile... I'm not sure I want to think about it as "squeaking by". I more like the idea of living a simple life (no charge cards for over 15 years; older model car; bartering for goods and services; recycling clothing, furniture, household goods -- and not junk, either). I love the Stone Soup idea of creating something beautiful from basically very little. I have never been able to work in a 9-5 corporate kind of box. I've always wanted a certain amount of daily freedom (to come and go as I please; say yes or no; spend time with my grandchildren; help my kids in a crisis situation; have coffee with a friend in the middle of the day, etc.) so I've been in business for myself for over 20 years.
I believe in the "just in time" theory of life... That my needs and desires are always met just in time. It has always worked for me. I have my social security retirement (for now...) which is not much, but bits of work come to me in odd ways... Of course, I still do massage, Reiki, and my readings (part time). I also often fill in for temp and odd jobs that someone or other calls me about (receptionist, housesitter, dog walker, helping older friends with housework, driving internationally located people to spiritual retreat centers, etc.)
A lot of my work is "off the books" and I generally love my life. Things might be a bit tight for traveling, and so on, but whenever I need a bit more money, work seems to open up in odd ways. Right now I'm housesitting for pay, and it's like a mini-vacation (big house, nice view, big tv, garage parking, blah blah)
I definitely would love to hear how the rest of you manage your retirement or semi-retirement. For me, I expect to always be working in some way or other. And truthfully, that appeals to me. I always want to add more, so I'm also exploring possibilities for volunteering my time... somewhere/somehow.
I believe in the "just in time" theory of life... That my needs and desires are always met just in time. It has always worked for me. I have my social security retirement (for now...) which is not much, but bits of work come to me in odd ways... Of course, I still do massage, Reiki, and my readings (part time). I also often fill in for temp and odd jobs that someone or other calls me about (receptionist, housesitter, dog walker, helping older friends with housework, driving internationally located people to spiritual retreat centers, etc.)
A lot of my work is "off the books" and I generally love my life. Things might be a bit tight for traveling, and so on, but whenever I need a bit more money, work seems to open up in odd ways. Right now I'm housesitting for pay, and it's like a mini-vacation (big house, nice view, big tv, garage parking, blah blah)
I definitely would love to hear how the rest of you manage your retirement or semi-retirement. For me, I expect to always be working in some way or other. And truthfully, that appeals to me. I always want to add more, so I'm also exploring possibilities for volunteering my time... somewhere/somehow.
