Adift

[sweetana3]

So much depends on the size of the city. We have numerous food pantries looking for help and two huge food distribution centers. One has a volunteer crew of around 60+. If you enjoy the elderly, various forms of nursing homes need volunteers for companionship and such. Go to admin and talk to the higher up staff at the homes and schools regarding mentoring. Here in Indiana, we have CASA who a individuals assigned to children at risk to help them thru the process. They get loads of training. https://casaforchildren.org/

Meals on Wheels is a very valuable organization too.

Note: many organizations are not as welcoming to volunteers because it takes a lot of time from staff to manage programs with volunteers (even one volunteer).

[Gardnr]

I, also, feel adrift. This time last spring I was teaching reading in an afterschool program and loving every minute. This year there is no funding, so there is no program.

I do want to quilt, but I haven't figured out how to do that in our small < 400 sq ft space, since I have 1 dog who delights in getting into things. She is forever grabbing papers off my desk. Grabbing scissors or pins could be lethal. I guess I could crate her while I work, then put everything away after each session...

I LOVE LOVE LOVE to quilt. If I weren't setup all the time though, I would get nothing done. With my stuff setup, I can sew just 5 or 10m and get forward progress.

Do you have a small table you can dedicate to your sewing machine being setup? If yes, consider this; https://www.sewsteady.com/product/large-deluxe-18-x-24/

Your sharps can live in the little drawer when you step away. Use a lidded box for your current project. Can be an art sachel type if you want to spend that, or a shoebox from the dollar store.

I don't have this one with a drawer. But i do tuck my sharps under the table when I step away. i have cats not dogs. I have to ALWAYS keep thread hidden from 1 cat-she likes to chew it and her had to go have major surgery once because she ate so much of it-I was nearly hysterical when we figured this out.

It is an investment piece for sure. But I do LOVE my Sew Steady table. It will last forever.

Best of luck finding your way through the years ahead.

[iris lilies]

...Many organizations are not as welcoming to volunteers because it takes a lot of time from staff to manage programs with volunteers….

At my last job there was a period where every department was required to use volunteers. Yet, the work they do could not be work that was performed by regular staff so that was tricky to set up and took a fair amount of my management time.

I rejoiced secretly in two events during our “every department must use volunteers” phase:

Our IT manager stated flat out “when I can get a volunteer who comes to work 5 days a week, 8=5, I will create a job for him/her.” So,he refused to participate in the volunteer game.yay, him! I did not have that courage.

My department volunteer who was convinced she knew better than I about how to run aspects of my department took her all-knowing self to our CEO and told him she knew better than he did about several things. That was a hilarious moment and the outcome saw her fired on the spot as she stood in front of his desk. All of this went down without me complaining at all, being the good dooby I was. Enjoyed that too much, I admit! And frankly I didnt even mind this bossy volunteer because she wasnt a bad worker, just bossy. Incompetence I hate, but bossiness I can deal with.

Soon after our Administration’s emphasis on volunteers sunk into oblivion. Volunteers are great in certain departments and for certain jobs but they are not appropriate for all jobs.

Much of the purpose of supporting volunteers is about public relations and growing community buy-in to the organization.

[Lainey]

TT,
one idea: I had a friend who volunteered to teach basic finance and money management to older Girl Scouts. The Scouts earned a badge for it, and she got the satisfaction of introducing some of these concepts to teens on the verge of getting their first jobs.

I also wonder if it's not a good thing to be adrift for a while - let this fallow period be a good time to let your thoughts wander. I bet it would result in seeing some new ideas bubble up.

[iris lilies]

TT,
one idea: I had a friend who volunteered to teach basic finance and money management to older Girl Scouts. The Scouts earned a badge for it, and she got the satisfaction of introducing some of these concepts to teens on the verge of getting their first jobs.

I also wonder if it's not a good thing to be adrift for a while - let this fallow period be a good time to let your thoughts wander. I bet it would result in seeing some new ideas bubble up.

I think that’s a good idea about Relaxing to let thoughts wander. May lead to a new very interesting phase of life.

[Teacher Terry]

MSchris, I am sorry you are going through the same thing. I can’t do anything until my wrist heal and I am glad it’s summer. I have to be careful what type of volunteer work I do because I have back/neck injuries and can’t bend, stoop and lift a lot. I know about casa being a social worker but it would be too much like a past job. For awhile I did office work for the humane society but that’s mind numbing tasks like just data entry and bothered my neck if I did it for too long.

[SteveinMN]

Some of the same thoughts have been running through my head.

With the closing of my photography business last year and DW seriously considering retirement (maybe as soon as the end of this year), it's occurred to me that we did a pretty good job of planning for retirement financially, but really didn't think through what our days would look like once DW no longer spent 50+ hours each week in an office and I no longer needed to be the househusband. Too many hours to fill to just putter around (at least for us).

Answers have come slowly. Certainly DW will want some time to unwind from her job. She's mentioned maybe consulting in her field, but that may depend on doing more traveling around the state than she wants to do. I haven't minded keeping house and being the on-call for the family but I think those hours could go into a more significant achievement -- though I don't know what that is at the moment. Then there is the wild card of having several years between retirement and Full Retirement Age (we're working with a financial planner on that and trying to see what health care/insurance will look like over the next five years or so). Fortunately both of us are reasonably healthy and we should be okay financially without "eating our seed corn" until much later in life.

I wish I had better advice to impart, TT. I'll admit I'm in a different position for not losing a well-paying gig I really enjoyed. But maybe it helps to know that you are far from alone in this.

[pinkytoe]

There is quite a bit of banter about this topic on the City Data Retirement forum. Lots of advice about money out there but not about how challenging it can be to structure one's time without paid work and maintain a sense of purpose. I have difficulty sometimes with a sense of "guilt" for lack of a better word as we are trained up to feel our value lies in work. Puttering which I actually enjoy is not highly valued.

[Tammy]

I’ve grandmothered 4 foster kids over the years, with one of them adopting into our family. I think about volunteering at the crisis nursery, through which all 4 of them passed on their journey to a forever home, as a retirement goal which would bring purpose to my life.

I taught psychiatric nursing clinical for 3 semesters a few years back when I had time. That was also a lot of fun, as compared with the responsibilities of a full time job. It paid about $40 an hour and took just a few hours of unpaid prep time for each clinical group.

But I think I do need to take the first 3-6 months after retirement and do nothing at all. To see what I really want when I’m apart from the fray and able to reflect.

[nswef]

It took me a full year after teaching 31 years to wind down and find my pace. Now 16 years later I try NOT to guilt myself that I don't do enough. My days are full enough, my time is pretty much my own. I've discovered I like writing and am doing picture books now....success? Not with money, but with joy abounding. I am lucky to be healthy, have a healthy husband, we enjoy each other's company and also do things individually. Terry, I think taking time to figure it out and try some things only when you are ready is a sensible plan.