Starting Over. I mean really over.
 

OK, say you're..............56. No wife, no kids. No marketable skills in todays' economy. 37 years, and 27k hours airbourne with out a single accident, incident, or even scratched paint. No violations of anykind. No injuries, simply a lifetime of 'doing your portion' (from 'The Mexican')....

And you thought you were retired. But for the last 3 years, you've watched everything you've worked for go down the drain, right behind the country you fought for, watched friends die for, see kids dying today for.....

You decide that you need to 'start over'. With $10k in your pocket. Not a dime of debt. No other real assets. It will all fit into one small pickup and a small enclosed trailer.

The entire world is open. There's no 'bucket list', having done it all already.

Bartend on a beach somewhere? Get a job on a cruise ship? Start some kind of niche business?

I am really serious and open to ideas. What would you do?

I know I'll get some sarcasm (as I have dispensed a lot of that over the years here), but I would really like to get some ideas.

Wow...dunno what to say. It's a great question, but you're the only one who can answer it. One plus is that having flown all over this planet, you probably have a greater location knowledge than any of us!

How about travelling flight instructor? You sure have the background for that...

Go disappear in Key West for a year like my brother did after his marriage and business imploded.

Got himself a gig at a nice boutique hotel as the caretaker. Room and board included.

Sometimes you need to escape reality for a while so you can come back to it with a fresh head.

What do you want out of life? Doesn't that make the most difference in your decision?

"...Be like Kane in Kung Fu. Wander the earth, meet people, get into adventures."
~Jules Pitt, Pulp Fiction

When and if needed, I always said I am filling a bag full of money and going back down to Roatan Honduras. English speaking part of the 3rd world. Should be able to find someway to make a buck in the Tourist industry.

Do you Scuba? Great place to teach others to dive.

You are standing on the threshold of my dream. I have no suggestions but I wish you luck, and I hope you find whatever it is you set off to find.

Wow, what a great opportunity you have in front of you. I've also had the question come up in my mind if I were not married 38 yrs. I would travel all over the country doing odd jobs. That way when you do find something you like, you can stay at for a while. If you've had all you want (material), and dont need much, you're better off than most of the world. It does not cost a lot to live simply. Enjoy what you do, live where you want, sit back and read a good book. A motorhome of some kind comes to mind. Good luck and HAVE FUN.

You lost your entire $900K IRA/401K in the past couple of years???

How does that happen? (However it happened, sorry to hear about it)

Anyways, I think you do have marketable skills, there is nothing you can do with your flying experience? Be an instructor, fly for someone, etc.?

If that's not the case, or you don't want to do that, I think the answer has to lie with you personally. What you want to do. With no debt, and no strings attached to anything, you sure have a lot of options.

I think my first move would be to move somewhere nice/interesting that has a low cost of living and plenty of employment opportunities. Get a month to month lease (or a year max, or better yet somewhere where you can live for free in exchange for watching over the property, etc.), get whatever job that is low stress, and take a year to sort through the options.

I envy you. If it were me, I'd pick a region of the country I like at the moment: Pacific Northwest or the Southeast, for example, and head there to see what I could do to pick up living expense money. Work a little, hang out a lot. We all deserve to do that at some point in our lives.

go to a "NUDE BEACH". drink heavily. gaze upon hardbody HOTTIES! contemplate naval. contemplate other appendages. do they all WORK? if answered "YES" then proceed with..........................


1) the bartender plan in say maybe barbados or some other exotic local that speaks english.


2) move to an amerikan enclave in baja messiko and stretch yer dollars. buy cheap ass trailer with air conditioning. buy a dirt bike/quad/buggy. become certified "fish taco" chefy! run hardbody "HOTTIE" especials every single day and night of the year. get tired of that throw a match in trailer and nojuan will notice or care.

3) move to sun city,az and pillage all the MILFS! become a GIGOLO!

4) go to alaska and get ready for next pipeline build! land a job(previous experience) as certified "FISH TACO" chefy but this time set it up as a "TOPLESS" fish taco joint. run especials every single day and night of year.

5) join GOGAR'S band

6) go to the arctic and join "save the baby fur seals for jesus today" group and open "baby fur seal blubber" taco stand. the PETA's will think they are eating healthy and nojuan will be the wiser,since your exalted "certified fish taco chefy diploma" is on the wall and all you serve is FISH! you didnt kill the fish they just were asleep and jumped into the skillet!

7) become a WALMART GREETER!

8) become an artist that specializes in ONLY NAKED WOMEN portraits from 18-36!

9) BUY A BOAT AND LIVE AT LAKE POWELL!

10) BUY PLAYBOY MAGAZINE! and kick hughs dead ass out of the mansion.



think about the basics...............fun vehicle/sex/beer/sex/food/beer/dirt bikes/quads/racing/huntin/fishin/sex/boats/scuba/flip flops/shorts/maybe a t-shirt for dress occasions/sex/beer.............................


WHAT THE HELL ELSE IS THERE??????????????

Let me know when you figure it out. Doin that myself..

rjp

10K in cash isnt much..jesus, tough question. i think at that age, one tiny serious illness or injury and you are royally fcuked. your money would evaporate.

i would go to thailand, and jump into the tourism business. boat tourists from one island to another in krabi. start a cooking school, move in (but not marry) with some thai hottie. take vacationers to some cove for snorkling..thailand is some serious laid back living.

Man this is the kind of thing you could go nuts trying to think your way through. I'm with Vash though, $10K will disappear fast even if you are living in a hut on the beach.

I like this option. :)

As true as that may be that is the same kind of thinking that goes into airbags. That is thinking worst case.
With no debt, and no start up cost., 10k can go a long way. Time to dream guys, not be responsible.

rick..say your "airbag of life" goes off and you simply cut your hand to the bone living it up, shucking oysters on some island somewhere.. no insurance, no savings..that $10k is gone. i answered honestly. $10k, and no debt is do-able, but one must move carefully. that is not that far from being homeless. if homeless, be homeless in thailand.

PeaceCorp. Drop the $10K into a long term CD, then travel for 2 years on someone else's dime, experiencing thing that maybe even you haven't yet experienced.

Spend $2000 on a motorcycle, $2000 on gas, and wrap the last $6000 in a plastic ziplock and drop it in the gas tank. Stop riding when it's time to stop riding.

I agree, I recon I am just so envious of the option I don't want to think about the reality of it. :D

Any other monies coming in monthly?

Do you want to work full time?

Office job? Federal Government? The DHS really needs UAS pilots....can't hire enough.

Sales?

I guess what I am getting at is what do you like to do? What, besides flying, makes you smile.

I plan on teaching when I retire/retire (I've got to get kids through college first) because I found some circumstances that I find great in a part of the country I want to live in (not Maryland).

I wish you all the best.

Not bad Mr Bradshaw, not bad at all.

You need to do what you really want to do. This is easy to say, figuring out the what you want to do, not so much sometimes.

I'd run for U.S. Senator. We will set you up in an ornate office and treat you like royalty, all expenses paid. I doubt you'd ever have to dip into your $10K for anything. But the best part is you wouldn't need to know anything or do anything of substance. Just show up for some of the key votes and let everyone know your vote is always for sale to the highest bidder. You'd have million$$ within a few years. Near the end of your term, have an affair with an intern and leave in mock-disgrace.

Then move to Key West and write a book.

+ 1

Any chance you could employ yourself as a pilot and help tourist island hop in some tropical paradise?

I bet there are a fair number of us getting no work done this afternoon just thinking about this.

I would buy a RTW ticket and hit all the nooks and crannies of the would I havent seen just yet.
Round the world flights - Wikitravel


Or, you could also dissapear if needed.......

Frank M. Ahearn - How To Disappear

Drive to Honduras like someone else mentioned, or Costa Rica, I had full insurance in Costa Rica for 350 A YEAR, the best hospital in San Jose. You might find work at the beaches, always somethng to keep busy and the weather is great. Many women. The drive is interesting but you should find someone else to make it with you. Not a pretty woman, too much trouble for the trip, plus you can find them around. Get a guy you trust for the drive. Stop in Tampico for a day or so, VeraCruz for a day or so. Guatamala is super, get through El Salvador as fast as you can, Honduras is cool, Nicaragua used to be cool, don't know now that Ortega is in charge. Panama is cool but I wouldnl't live there. If you watch it there your money can last.

I'd think there would be a demand for a man with your skills in the "delivery" business. The kind of "fly across the border and don't ask any questions" kind of delivery.

If that does not appeal to you, I know a number of folks who have subsisted in ski towns working odd jobs (like driving a snow plow for condo complexes). They smoke a lot of dope, have plenty of time to hang out, stay in pretty good shape from skiing and climbing mountains.

:cool:

Maybe he could become a Community Organizer :D

Are you interested in adventure? Want to do something exciting and live on the edge or not? There are plenty of contractor jobs available in SW Asia. Pay is generally very good but there is a price of course. Not having wife and kids helps in this type of endeavor. Then move to Key West and write a book. That always sounds good.

Good luck to you

My first trip to Hawaii I met a sharp guy running a snorkle/dive shop. He struck me as being a bit out of place. I asked him about his story. In short; he WAS a divorce attorney --surrounded by people at the worst point in life (divorces) which gave him a heart attack. So he dumped that profesion, moved to Hawaii and rents gear . . .to people at the best point in their lives (playing in paradise)

So, go fly tourists around some tropical islands somewhere.

10K cash to start? I can introduce you to a couple old friends from Columbia who can help you turn tht into a couple million in less than a year. But you have to cut me in on a share.

Two ideas come to mind. First, do you want to retire or keep working?

If you want to retire, find yourself a wealthy widow that you like, marry her and be a stay home husband.

If you want to keep working, do you want to keep flying? I have a friend pilot who lost his job with Continental, and now flies a tiny private jet. He calls himself a Limo flyer. He has been flying only the owner and his familly so far, but they are going to charter it to other parties now. Just an idea to look at...

Good luck, whatever path you take.

Ditto. Some sort ot tourist pilot would be cool. Tropical island hopping, Australia or Alaska outback delivery would be exciting.

Fk flying off to the tropical isle..I would want to get my money back...

U could become a Picker....buy stuff and then resell...

You could go to work as a Mercenary.....

I take it you're not talking about that university up by Harlem.

A few years ago my wife and I took a boat trip in one of the Carribean islands. He, his wife and two children ran the boat.

I asked him his story. He has been doing this for 6+ years. They own the boat. They sail to a desired port. Drop anchor and start a toursit business. Fopr the next 6-9 months they take us toursists around until their mone bag is full. They then set sail to wherever looks like fun until the money runs out.

Lather, rinse repeat.

Not a bad life.

In that exact situation, I bartend on the beach until I die

Yea, you could get a shrimp boat and live on it. All the shrimp you can eat.

Shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that's about it.

The boat/bartend on beach, etc. stuff sounds like fun, but seriously, I take it you need to go to a country with govt provided national healthcare, no?

Or it the "bartend til you die" thing more literal??