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WHEN SHOULD YOU RETIRE?

 I retired in 1999 at the age of 59, so I've had a quarter century of bliss.  But more about that later.

Then there is Bette Nash.  She passed away last month at the age of 88.  She was an avid New York Yankees fan, and last lived at a retirement community in New Hampshire.

  • Was born in 1935.
  • Hired in 1957 by Eastern Air Lines as a legal secretary, but attended its charm school and became a stewardess in 1958, the year I graduated from high school.
  • Kept working as a flight attendant through her marriage to James Nash in 1973, and had a son, who has suffered from Down syndrome.  She continued working.
  • Switched to Trump Shuttle in 1989 after Eastern's shuttle and 17 aircraft were sold to Donald Trump.
  • But, as most of Trump's enterprises fizzled, including this one, she moved to U.S. Airways Shuttle, which became American Airlines Shuttle in 2015 when those companies merged.
  • Honored by American Airlines for 60 years of service, given diamond earrings by chairman CEO Doug Parker, plus $10,000 in her name to the Sacred Heart Catholic Food Bank, where she regularly donated her time.  “My favorite part of flying over the years has been greeting my passengers as they board and deplane. People really are fascinating and it’s truly been a joy,” said Nash.
  • In 2022, her 65th year of service, Guinness World Records recognized her as the longest-serving attendant.  
  • Entered hospice care after being diagnosed with breast cancer, but never retired.  
  • She died last month after working as an airline stewardess for 67 years.
  • She is survived by her son Christian.

She looked happy to the end, and clearly enjoyed her years of service to the airline industry.

I too, liked what I was doing through my working career.  
  • A long stint in the Hawaiian sugar industry, where I learned a lot about the past and present of my home state.  But this was the toughest job I ever had in my life.
  • Professor of Engineering at the University of Hawaii, but mostly as director of the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, involved in the full spectrum of clean resources, from wind energy to ocean resources to hydrogen to biomass to the Blue Revolution.  
  • My university, as others, wants you to also expand your capabilities, and allowed me to work on Laser Fusion at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, on the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence for the NASA Ames Research Center, and three years in the U.S. Senate, where I drafted the original legislation that became law in ocean thermal energy  conversion and hydrogen.
However, as I said above, at the age of 59 I wanted to do something different.  So my wife and I retired in 1999 to enjoy life in a different way.  We traveled some, she went into various crafts with her friends, while I wrote three books, reported for the Huffington Post and started this blog site.  It's unimaginable that this has now been a quarter century of joy and happiness.

I didn't totally abandon academia, for I still maintain an office at the University of Hawaii Manoa to raise funds for the Blue Revolution.  Was invited to various events the world over to expand on this subject.  One stop was in the Orient, where I gave a seminar to the Japan Marine Technology Society, and here is a presentation in San Francisco.  Also had a TEDx talk a couple of years ago on this subject.

So while I'm minimally still contributing what I can to Humanity, I decided only a few years ago to better enjoy life for myself.  

  • More recently built another close relationship and a travel partner after my wife passed away 15 years ago.
  • A good day is when I have nothing to do.  Something about minimal stress and maximum freedom is what retirement is all about.  
  • Sure, I'm now in my 16th year of this daily blog, but most of that is to keep educating myself.  
  • Maximum sleep and regular exercises in our wellness center, with weekly golf.
  • I was on the high end of Body-Mass Index normal, and, after losing 10 pounds, am now centered between overweight and underweight.
  • Just returned from a global adventure, which included three cruises, and am looking forward to another one in fall/winter, where we will be cruising from Seattle through the Panama Canal to Southampton, then on to a European Christmas cruise.
  • I have acronyms for my more monumental trips, as for example MUGA in 2013, MUFA in 2014 and GAWA in 2015.  A European wine-tasting trip in 2019 was memorable. 
  • But best of all just might be my leisurely life in 15 Craigside.

So when should you retire?  Some can't.  Donald Trump needs to do everything he can to keep himself out of jail.  For those who can, whenever you want.  Never, if you're like Bette, and as soon as possible if you're like me.

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