The Bear Minimum

I wonder… The last few posts have gotten me thinking about early retirement.

You see, I got to thinking about retirement, what with the thought of pensions and what not in my upcoming contract, and then with all that talk of hobbies and leisure time, I quite naturally thought of retirement.

Now, I can’t just up and retire during the next three years, but I wondered if I’d be able to retire early after that. I have to go through our savings accounts and see what sort of interest we’re getting and whether or not it’s the best savings rates available for our needs. I saw a news report recently stating that many people weren’t aware of their savings rates, and were subsequently letting go of a great deal of potential money. I don’t want to be in that boat.

We’ve both got our super, and a good home that we won’t need to move from. We’ve been saving pretty well for most of our careers, so we have a nice nest egg, but I wonder if it would be enough, given three years of concerted saving, to retire on? Would I have to go another three year contract after that? Would I be happy retiring fully and not working at all? I’m really not sure, and I’m glad I don’t have to be sure any time soon.

My wife is certainly not adverse to retiring early, either, as she says she’d love to spend a great deal of time in our garden as well as learning to quilt. I don’t know what new hobbies I’d take up if I retired, but I think I’d love to expand my already considerable library. I might also take up collecting antiques. Not sure exactly which period, or even what kind of antiques, but I do find the whole thing rather fascinating. I tune in every day for Antique Roadshow when it’s on, and my wife and I enjoy the show immensely!