Imagine some people retire in peace at 50. What a sad, sad, pathetic existence :)

Retirement is often sad and pathetic.

Exactly. I am almost 50 myself. Retire and do what? Wait do die? Drink wine all day and wait to die?

There isn't much to me that is worth doing that wouldn't produce some kind of income.

Still so much I want to do yet, I don't have time for retirement.

Ride bicycles and/or motorcycles. Travel. Hike. Read. Learn things. Volunteer. Cooking is fun. Gardening as well.

I'm at a loss for how people can get bored and I don't even game or watch much in the way of movies or television. I think for some people they get attuned to work so much that they don't remember what life is like without it.

Totally agree. I don’t think I’ve been bored since I was a teenager. Every day I think to myself, all the things I could do with extra time in the day, if I didn’t have to work for a living. I am counting down the days until I retire! My nightmare actually is I die the day after I retire, just as I’m getting ready to start living my life!

Have you actually experienced a long period (year or more) with no obligations like work or school? It's much easier to be motivated when you're busy than when there's no real need for your effort or deadline for anything. I know some people manage great and have very active retirements but some just fade into passivity. Keep an eye out for the danger warned by John Mellencamp - "Life goes on long after the thrill of living is gone".

>Have you actually experienced a long period (year or more) with no obligations like work or school?

I have. And have had no problems filling it with the above activities. My folks are retired and don't seem to be having much trouble finding creative projects and enjoyable things to do, like hiking and discovering new things.

Honestly I thought my dad would be a prime candidate for the type who gets so used to chasing the rabbit that they have no idea what to do once they retire. I'm glad to see that isn't the case.

Fantastic. I'm pretty sure I'm the wrong type myself and it's a bit of a worry. Hobbies are a lot more exciting when I don't have time for them.

> Every day I think to myself, all the things I could do with extra time in the day, if I didn’t have to work for a living.

I think about stuff like this too, but then I remember how my existing hobbies are already funded by my job.

Why retire at all? Depending on what you want to do, why not just do it for as long as you can?