Work & Leisure Should I stay or should I go? There are numerous articles and reports about how we should continue working into our 80s, if capable, to maintain optimal mental and physical health. The research is mixed on this topic. In general, honest work contributes to one’s overall better well-being, but working past the typical retirement age of 65 requires that whatever it is you’re doing be meaningful and purposeful. Many people work at jobs they are not truly engaged in and only tolerate to pay the bills. Hopefully, if you are in that kind of work environment, you can exit by the time you reach 65, and preferably earlier.

Aging, Retirement & Place I do not consider myself financially well off in the least, but I have worked hard all my life, mostly as a freelance writer and publisher – a tough business that I would not recommend to anyone unless you have a very thick skin that can take more rejection than what most people deal with throughout their lives. READ MORE Scholars on Aging: How Art Promotes Well-being This is the first post of a new series I’m calling “Scholars on Aging” in which I synthesize some of what I personally consider, from self- studies, to be the most interesting articles and books written by academics and authors around the world who conduct research on aging. READ MORE Economics of Soul vs. a Job in Old Age While I have always been a highly introspective person, I never thought my introspection would grow more prominently into old age. I assumed (never assume) that by now – at 64 – I would have it all figured out and there would be less of a need to be looking inward and more of a desire to pursue leisurely activities. READ MORE Eight Books on How to Deal with Procrastination As a work-for-hire freelance writer, I have always believed that the deliberate practice of my work over the years/decades would give me some small semblance of financial success and a more continuous stream of reliable, paid work by this stage of life in my early sixties. I believed I would have more clients to write for to a point in which I’d be forced to refuse potential customers, and that my fees would go up due to my professional experience and honed talent. Instead, I’m experiencing less work due to ageism. Plus, even in those instances when I had garnered an occasional writing assignment, the pay had dropped dramatically to less than 50 percent of what I used to get. READ MORE Ageism is Real I’ve been hesitant to write about job- related “ageism,” defined by Merriam- Webster as simply “prejudice or discrimination against a particular age-group and especially the elderly.” As a 64-year-old seeking some kind of part-time or full-time work in the content development job market (writing, editing, researching, designing, publishing), I felt it would not be a wise decision to complain about all the job opportunities I applied for but was not even getting interviewed for, despite that I have more than 30 years of solid experience and a host of knowledge and skills that have been fine-tuned over the years. Firing off ageism complaints surely would not serve any good purpose. READ MORE Ruminating on Otium “Otium” is a new word I picked up from an online discussion. It’s a wonderful word that has very interesting implications for people in their retirement years. READ MORE My New Respect for Retail Employees and a Serendipitous Message from an Artist I’ve always enjoyed strolling around office supply and electronic product stores. So, when I was suddenly forced to figure out how to quickly supplement my social security income after my self-employment anchor-client relationship unexpectedly ended due to economic reasons, I was both surprised and grateful to be hired as a part-time printing/marketing customer-service associate for a well-known national office supply store located a short 5 minutes from where I live. I figured I could handle about 15 to 20 hours per week servicing customers with their copy and printing needs, especially since I have a strong background in publication design and production, even though the job paid only $10.30 per hour. READ MORE