How was your decade?

[Wolford6]

I'm 65 and considering retiring. Trouble is,  I enjoy work.

In the last decade, I lost a shedload of money and work when a supposed business friend did the dirty on me at  a construction contract. Turned out to be a life-benefit because a very close friend was dying of cancer at 54. Because of my work-loss,  I was able to spend a lot of time with him before he left us.Put things into perspective.  For a devout atheist, I still get great comfort in talking to him at the cemetery. The irony is that, though I had time for him because I had lost work, he left me a fair bit of money that kept my business afloat. I'm grateful but wish that he could have enjoyed it for himself.

I lost my Mam, which knocked me sideways (much more than I  imagined) both personally and professionally.  My three sisters and I lost the rock that held us together. In future, we may well only meet up a couple of times a year.  Against that, my 18-year-old student granddaughter came to work for me on weekends and we get on great ... emphasising that (a) "family" is more than just a biological term (b) our future generations are far more competent than we feared and (c) they have the same mixture of overconfidence, insecurity and cheek that we had. My grandkids are just what Bradford needs but they want to try somewhere else.

Work's okay, the phone rings. I've got a lovely girlfriend but we 've fallen out a few times. At our age most people  prefer keeping two houses. When you're at home alone, you can have a Tesco's corned beef hash ready meal followed by a choc ice for your breakfast. My friends have got me having porridge for breakfast but sometimes it's nice to have an escape from wallpaper paste. Health's okay but waistline is 38 and straining.

I've never heard anyone accuse Bradford Council of being straight but the people are fantastic. I have plenty of friends and I feel blessed.  I just love this city and I always will. Haven't had a week's holiday for 20 years, just the odd weekend away. Not, bothered and, anyway,  would rather watch cricket on the telly and watch bands in local venues.

Will this be the last decade that I'll be able to reflect on?  My Dad died at 68; so did his Dad. My Mam died at 91; her Mam at 102, her Dad at 88. Going deaf; well thanks for that flipping gene. 30 years at seat 3 in the quiz team, now sitting at seat 1 so I can hear the quizmaster.

How long have I got left? Who knows? Life's not fair. Made a will, leaving my body to science. Leeds Medical School wrote back, reserving their right to not accept it.  Thinking of getting a dog ... best get a middle-aged rescue one just in case. Trouble is, you can't give it a Welsh name.

I could have done better, I could have done worse. At the end of the day, we're all normal blokes and normal women.

 

 

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

On 10/12/2019 at 11:56, Bleep1673 said:

The last 9 years have been tough. I lost my job & registration of 30 years, and found out my partner has been cheating on me, almost since day one. I have declared myself as an alcoholic, and fell out with my brother, my only relative.

On the positive side...... Oh.

There is always a positive... Look hard for it mate and ask for help 

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

On 10/12/2019 at 18:50, Red Willow said:

 

Travelled to places I never expected, such as Russia, Estonia and Alaska.

Any rugby in Estonia? 

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

Stopped sh*gging around. Married the filly of my dreams, stayed faithful and had two little foals

Took up rugby again... Back buggered but tramadol keeping me going 

Tried to destroy my career but others showed more faith in me than I did for which I am grateful 

Still got a big mortgage and not many savings but things improving 

Still a Broncos season ticket holder and still believe we'll win the Grand Final in my lifetime.... Maybe in the New flapping 20s

London calling to the far away towns!!! .......... 

 

[clwydianrange]

Started the decade with depression and struggled with it for four years making life miserable at times for folks close to me. The wife finally discovered the problem when she read up on the Statins I was taking and found out that depression was a side affect. A change of medication and I was back to normal after a couple of months. Unfortunately it was a rough time and a couple of folks still don’t talk to me which is upsetting. On a brighter note I took stock of my pension three years ago and packed in work. It took me a couple of months to adjust but now life is good. The kids have done brilliantly. One being a teacher and the other has a PhD in physics and a career to match. The only dark cloud on the horizon is the wife’s father has dementia and deteriorating pretty quickly. Sad to see but nothing we can do about it.

[Mister Ting]

1 hour ago, clwydianrange said:

Started the decade with depression and struggled with it for four years making life miserable at times for folks close to me. The wife finally discovered the problem when she read up on the Statins I was taking and found out that depression was a side affect. A change of medication and I was back to normal after a couple of months. Unfortunately it was a rough time and a couple of folks still don’t talk to me which is upsetting. On a brighter note I took stock of my pension three years ago and packed in work. It took me a couple of months to adjust but now life is good. The kids have done brilliantly. One being a teacher and the other has a PhD in physics and a career to match. The only dark cloud on the horizon is the wife’s father has dementia and deteriorating pretty quickly. Sad to see but nothing we can do about it.

Good to see you got over your depression and that your life is back on track.

Forget those who don't want to speak to you, they're not worth the worry.

You take care of yourself and your family, that's what really matters.

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

2 hours ago, clwydianrange said:

 Unfortunately it was a rough time and a couple of folks still don’t talk to me which is upsetting. 

Blessing in disguise if you ask me. Any friend who ditches you for depression is one you can do without

[clwydianrange]

13 minutes ago, Bedfordshire Bronco said:

Blessing in disguise if you ask me. Any friend who ditches you for depression is one you can do without

Spot on mate. One girl who was sat next to me for a year asked to be moved when I told her I was struggling with depression. Just shows the ignorance and lack of compassion in some folks.

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

13 minutes ago, clwydianrange said:

Spot on mate. One girl who was sat next to me for a year asked to be moved when I told her I was struggling with depression. Just shows the ignorance and lack of compassion in some folks.

Dear oh dear.... Life too short to be around dingbats like that

[bbfaz]

Honestly, it has been a pretty bad decade and I honestly hope the next decade improves, though I feel it's far more likely to get much worse for the world in general. 

I will sit down and write something detail but probably keep it to myself. Unfortunately one of the lessons I learned this decade was that people will use things you've written semi-anonymously on public forums against you.

Personally, I finally feel I am on the right track. I finally feel people took me seriously. I finally asked for help. I've lost a lot of people in this decade, lost a lot of sham friends, gained a couple of real ones. I have a hot meal in my tummy and I'm going home to a warm place. In that regard, I'm one of the lucky ones. 

But the degeneration of the world at large and people's defence of it weigh heavy though. To quote Charles Bradley, who rose to fame and fatally-succumbed to cancer in this decade, this World is going up in flames and nobody wanna take the blame. 

 

[Vambo]

Like many others I've had a decade of ups and downs.

Biggest down was my mother passing away. She was always my biggest hero and in many ways my 'anchor' so losing her sent me reeling and inhabiting mentally dark places.

Biggest up was turning 50. Without any conscious effort I had a good look at myself and didn't really like what I found. Turned myself around and my life is now following a path I am purposely walking and I haven't been this happy for a long time.

 

 

[Bedfordshire Bronco]

3 hours ago, Vambo said:

 

Biggest up was turning 50. 

 

 

That one's cheered me up! 

[wilsontown]

Interesting to read the many and varied experiences posted here, thanks all for sharing.

I started out the decade working as a researcher at the University of Manchester. Once it became clear that my dream lectureship was unlikely to be forthcoming, I had to think of something else and joined a small company in Leeds. Via a takeover by a large multinational, I am still in the same job which is decent and well paid, but there's a crossroads to come I think and it seems unlikely I'll be in the same job at the end of another decade.

On getting the job in Leeds I moved to York, which is possibly the best decision I've made so far. It also got me into RL via the Knights. I started watching York City FC, and when the Knights ditched Guildford and started to play at Bootham Crescent I was curious, and I've been going on a regular basis ever since. Proud to follow them, and much more rewarding than YCFC at the moment...

The bad part was when it transpired that our lass was having an affair with someone I had considered a friend. The fall-out caused all sorts of problems with friends and acquaintances, wreckage and poison all over the shop. Interesting to see who stands by you in such circumstances. We eventually patched things up, but of course some element of trust is lost and I guess it won't be coming back.

But overall, I'm solvent, relatively fit and healthy, and don't have any major worries at this point, so I definitely consider myself fortunate.

[Moralgy]

Meeting my wife. My previous relationship finally ended in the beginning of '10 and I met my now-wife in December of that year.

I still enjoy her company every single day, and she was easily the best thing to happen in the '10s

[JohnM]

Actually seeing the decade out will do for me  after current medical issues. We've both wills have made, powers of attorney have we set  up,  property have we legally protected to some extent against having to sell it for care home fees, etc. all done professionally.

Had a pretty active decade. various motorcycle tours (13?) with mates:  Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, Germany, Luxembourg , Austria, Belgium, Spain. Same in caravan, too, plus a month in Malta.

Not been to many games in last few years but aiming to see more this season.

Fully retired  at 70, 3.5  years ago, busier than ever in many ways, looking forward to next 10 years (if possible - we've all got to go at some point, just not yet, please.)

 

[longboard]

On 11/12/2019 at 01:57, Wolford6 said:

I'm 65 and considering retiring. Trouble is,  I enjoy work.

In the last decade, I lost a shedload of money and work when a supposed business friend did the dirty on me at  a construction contract. Turned out to be a life-benefit because a very close friend was dying of cancer at 54. Because of my work-loss,  I was able to spend a lot of time with him before he left us.Put things into perspective.  For a devout atheist, I still get great comfort in talking to him at the cemetery. The irony is that, though I had time for him because I had lost work, he left me a fair bit of money that kept my business afloat. I'm grateful but wish that he could have enjoyed it for himself.

I lost my Mam, which knocked me sideways (much more than I  imagined) both personally and professionally.  My three sisters and I lost the rock that held us together. In future, we may well only meet up a couple of times a year.  Against that, my 18-year-old student granddaughter came to work for me on weekends and we get on great ... emphasising that (a) "family" is more than just a biological term (b) our future generations are far more competent than we feared and (c) they have the same mixture of overconfidence, insecurity and cheek that we had. My grandkids are just what Bradford needs but they want to try somewhere else.

Work's okay, the phone rings. I've got a lovely girlfriend but we 've fallen out a few times. At our age most people  prefer keeping two houses. When you're at home alone, you can have a Tesco's corned beef hash ready meal followed by a choc ice for your breakfast. My friends have got me having porridge for breakfast but sometimes it's nice to have an escape from wallpaper paste. Health's okay but waistline is 38 and straining.

I've never heard anyone accuse Bradford Council of being straight but the people are fantastic. I have plenty of friends and I feel blessed.  I just love this city and I always will. Haven't had a week's holiday for 20 years, just the odd weekend away. Not, bothered and, anyway,  would rather watch cricket on the telly and watch bands in local venues.

Will this be the last decade that I'll be able to reflect on?  My Dad died at 68; so did his Dad. My Mam died at 91; her Mam at 102, her Dad at 88. Going deaf; well thanks for that flipping gene. 30 years at seat 3 in the quiz team, now sitting at seat 1 so I can hear the quizmaster.

How long have I got left? Who knows? Life's not fair. Made a will, leaving my body to science. Leeds Medical School wrote back, reserving their right to not accept it.  Thinking of getting a dog ... best get a middle-aged rescue one just in case. Trouble is, you can't give it a Welsh name.

I could have done better, I could have done worse. At the end of the day, we're all normal blokes and normal women.

 

 

Mark Twain reportedly said the he had nothing against retirement, as long as it didn't interfere with his work.

[Robin Evans]

9 minutes ago, longboard said:

Mark Twain reportedly said the he had nothing against retirement, as long as it didn't interfere with his work.

For me at least, the only thing wrong with semi-retirement is that "semi" bit!!

[Gray1967]

Been hit and miss! Still with my Mrs and the my old dog Benny, who is 19 next year and still hanging on in there, still working and just about getting by.

Diagnosed with Cancer(bowel which spread to my bladder, prostrate etc) in 2015, had a permanent colostomy fitted in 2015, loadsa heavy chemo and an 11 hour operation later I was cancer free...unfourtanetly came back on my lungs this year and Lymph nodes, so back on the chemo...find out Mon if it is working, if it isnt, it probably wont be a happy Christmas.

Sportswise, my footy team are still rubbish and infuriating, NFL team are rubbish and infuriating and looking foward to seeing how London and Salford get on next season.