36M and am aware that I look even younger for my age. I've scrimped, worked extremely hard to make additional income, and finally hit a mark where my wife and I agreed that we could retire indefinitely. I decided I liked my job so kept working. Ended up quitting a few months later due to stress with work and personal stress (father ill). I have to say. IT'S SO WEIRD being retired. Ever since, I've been asked countless times what I do for work - or how's work going. Maybe I just never noticed how often I was asked before but there is no good way to respond. If I say I'm retired, I get an almost shameful feeling for "bragging." If I say I'm unemployed, I get the same feeling but for being "unemployed." If I say I'm taking a break from work or just say what I used to do (software engineering), it seems like I'm lazy or that I'm lying. You really do lose your identity when you retire. I really thought I'd love being retired, not having the stress of work, etc. Instead, I'm bored out of my mind. I dreamt of the day I could sit and play video games in my pajamas. I don't even like video games anymore. I sit and put together LEGO sets. I find myself not working on new sets to try and save that excitement for another day. I'd laugh but I'm being serious. Decided to go back to work and just accepted a job that pays less than half what I used to make but seems really chill. Hoping that'll be a good balance. Someday, I'm sure I'll want to retire again. So in preparation...
If you retired (especially if you retired young), what's your story and/or advice?
