Never Taser A Rottweiler

I learned so much from my relatives during a fantastic thanksgiving feast my nephew's wife made for our extended family. 

I learned that while a taser can stop a human being cold, it just makes a Rottweiler mad. So I vow to never taser a Rottweiler. 

For the first time since we've been in Florida, Shannon and I didn't host the big family feast. Consider that when you're doing your retirement planning. If you choose a big house with lots of bedrooms and a pool, you're likely to host more than your share of family gatherings. 

We drove to their lovely home. We were guests at the party. I loved it. Hosting is hard work. When you're hosting, you run around seeing that everyone has everything they want. When you're a guest, you get waited on, and you have time to talk and listen to the conversations. 

Since we moved to this delightful CCRC (continuing care retirement community) we no longer have the biggest house, so the next generation has stepped up. My nephew and his wife did Thanksgiving. My son and his wife will do Christmas, and Easter is to be announced.  But, it won't be at our house. 

One of the benefits of reaching your seventies is a future filled with being a guest. I've compared living at The Glenridge to resort living, because it really feels like a retirement resort. I feel like a guest in our retirement community. All our needs seem to be anticipated, and built into the single monthly fee. 

I like being a guest. I loved hosting when I was younger. But, now, I love being a guest. If I weren't a guest on thanksgiving, I wouldn't have learned to never taser a Rottweiler. 

I hope your holiday was delightful and filled with interesting conversations. 

Yours for a fun filled, stimulating retirement experience. 

Ken Johnston 

P.S. If the term CCRC is new to you, find out about them. They are the next great thing in retirement living. Ours is pretty full, but their web site will show you what is possible in a Florida retirement community. Sarasota CCRC

99 year old Mother suddenly needs skilled nursing care.

I've mentioned before that my mother is 99 and lives in an assisted living facility in Venice, just south of Sarasota. A couple of weeks ago, she spiked a temperature and the assisted living folks sent her the hospital for what turned to be only a bladder infection. Thank goodness. 

The doctor was a nice young fellow and kept in touch with us daily. After three nights in the hospital, the doctor told us he was releasing her to go back to her home. 

Knowing how quickly one can lose muscle tone while in bed, we asked if someone had been getting her up and walking every day. He said, "Oh, that's a good idea," as though it hadn't occurred to him before. 

The next morning, the physical therapy folks gave her an evaluation and recommended that she be sent to a skilled nursing facility for physical therapy before being released to go back to assisted living. They estimated it would take mother 10 days to 2 weeks of therapy to be strong enough to walk unassisted with her walker. 

The nursing home they wanted to send her to was adjacent to her assisted living facility. Both of my sisters have spent time in that nursing home, and we hated the place. The nurses were cranky and unpleasant. The place smelled bad throughout, and everything was very institutional, in our judgement. 

We quickly checked with The Glenridge, the CCRC (continuing care retirement community) we live in, to see if they had room in their skilled nursing section, called the Carroll Center. They did, and we quickly had mother moved there, right down the street from us. 

Frankly, I had never seen the inside of the Carroll Center, but had heard great things about it.  I was dazzled by it. The room was private. Each room was decorated like a bedroom at home would be, and the nurses were delightful and caring. Mother got outstanding physical therapy sessions every day, not just weekdays. She loves the place. She doesn't want to go back to her home. 

Unlike other nursing homes, the Carroll Center had no odors, no feeling of being institutional, and delightful surroundings. I hope I never need skilled nursing, but I know now, if I do, I'll get the best care possible. 

Mom's still in the Carroll Center, and if we can, were trying to get her into the assisted living portion of The Glenridge. Normally, they only have room in assisted living for Glenridge members, but this is the first time a Glenridge member's mother requested space, so they might be able to work something out. I'll let you know how that goes. 

Yours for a happier, more stimulating, more exciting retirement,

Ken Johnston

P.S. If you're interested in discovering more about living in a CCRC, check out The Glenridge web site and see what you want to look for for your retirement community. 

Best Places To Retire

Everybody wants to know, "What are the best places to retire?" 

The answer is highly personal. You may like California. I like Florida. So, I won't say anything about where. 

The best places to retire, in my judgement are CCRCs. Continuing Care Retirement Communities are very special places, and for our third home since we've been retired, we finally hit a home run. 

I watched my Mother and Father retire to a condo on the water on the west coast of Florida. I watched my 88 year old mother tend to my bedridden Father, in the living room of that condo. 

If they had chosen in their 70s to live in a CCRC, their later lives would have been vastly different. Dad would have moved to the assisted living section while mother stayed independent. They could have had meals and common activities together, but mother wouldn't have lost touch with her friends, and stopped her activities to care for dad. 

Eventually, dad would have moved to the next building over, to the skilled nursing facility. Again, they would have had all the together time they wanted, but mother would have kept close to her friends and continued her independent activities. And, she wouldn't be an 88 year old nurse and caregiver. 

We tried to get them to consider a retirement home, but to their generation that was the same as a "nursing home" or an "old people's home."

If only they could have lived to see the place Shannon and I chose to move into; The Glenridge. It's incredible. It's like a resort.  We feel secure physically, socially, and financially. We know that whatever healthcare needs that either of us might have, it'll be available for us, at no extra cost. 

We looked at other retirement communities, but we never saw anything like The Glenridge. The others were so institutional. This place is like a resort. There are more interesting activities than one could ever want or need. 

So, getting back to the "best places to retire," I say, look for what is becoming the next new thing in retirement communities, a CCRC.  It's a place you can move to early in your retirement while you're still active and curious and vital. You feel secure because you know healthcare costs can't disrupt your comfortable retirement. No matter what health problems you ever might have, you pay nothing more than you pay while you're totally independent. And, if you find a new CCRC that's like a resort, you've found what I swear is absolutely one of the best places to retire. 

Yours for a safe, secure, worry free, active and vital retirement,

Ken Johnston

P.S. The Glenridge is almost completely full, but you can always get on a waiting list. Take a peek at their web site so you will know what to look for in other CCRCs. 

Funny Retirement Poem

Here's a sample Funny Retirement Poem

An ode to old age:

There's quite an art to falling apart as the years go by,

And life doesn't begin at 40. That's a big fat lie.

My hair's getting thinner, my body is not:

The few teeth I have are beginning to rot. 

I smell of Vick's Vapo Rub, not Chanel #5;

My new pacemaker's all that keeps me alive.

When asked of my past, every detail I'll know,

But, what was I doing 10 minutes ago?

Well, you get the idea, what more can I say?

I'm off to read the obituary, like I do every day;

If my names there, I'll once again start - 

perfecting the art of falling apart. 

(author unknown)

This, like many other funny retirement poems, paints a sad picture of retirement. 

 

I'd like to show retirees there is a different life in a CCRC that focuses on lifelong learning and activities that stimulate. 

I invite anyone interested in lifelong learning, healthy activities, and rewarding community activities to check out the incredible CCRC that we were lucky enough to get into. I'm not selling our community, heck, they may be sold out. It's probably too late now for anything except a waiting list. 

I'm suggesting that people search for continuing care retirement communities that focus on life enrichment, lifelong learning, and building community. Ours is just a good example of what to look for. 

If you want the remainder of your life to be filled with kick the balloon and old people's jokes, there are plenty of retirement homes that will fill the bill. 

If you want life enrichment, lifelong learning, and stimulating, vibrant and interesting people, look for a CCRC that aims for an enriched offering of stimulating opportunities. 

Yours for a retirement full of fascinating people and lifelong learning,

Ken Johnston

P.S. For a good example of what's possible click on: A Great Example of Life Enrichment

Retirement in a Retirement Resort

My mother, (bless her heart, she's 99) lives in a retirement home just south of Sarasota, in Venice. She lived with my sister, who is 77, in her condo on the bay until last year. Then my sister became unable to care for her, so we moved her into a retirement home which offered independent living and assisted living. 

The CCRC Shannon and I just moved into is more like a resort than a retirement home. I'll tell you what I mean. 

Our new continuing care retirement community has over 300 living units for independent living. Each is a complete home. You pay up front for the apartment or club home, and then a monthly fee which covers virtually everything you could imagine. 

That fee may go up each year with inflation, but if we should ever need assisted living, or (knock on wood) skilled nursing care, the fee we pay doesn't ever change. We have no worries about healthcare or healthcare costs. 

I say it's like a resort because of all of the amenities and services that we get for our monthly fee. We can dine in one of three dining rooms. We can get meals delivered to our house, like room service. The list goes on and on, but the main thing is the community is alive and vibrant. People are learning and playing and interacting. 

I don't know about you, but in caring for my parents, and Shannon's parents, we scouted out a lot of retirement homes. We saw lots of really old people, and walkers and mobility scooters. When we visit my mother, we see people staring at televisions, with little to do. 

At our new place, there are dozens of activities to choose from daily. It's almost too much. You can read the list of daily activities on their web site, so I won't list them here. Just think resort and imagine living in a retirement resort. That's what it feels like. 

We really feel secure knowing that no matter what healthcare issues we have in the future, we never have to worry about high healthcare costs and outliving our money. 

In your retirement planning, I hope you'll consider finding a CCRC that is like a resort, and for goodness sakes, don't wait too long. Don't wait for health issues to hit you, and like my mother and sister, not be eligible for membership in a retirement resort like ours. 

Yours for a happy and healthy retirement,

Ken Johnston

P.S. To see what makes this place seem like a resort, go to their website and click a few links to see what makes a continuing care retirement community so different from a retirement home. Explore our new community. 

P.P.S. If you want to see pictures of my mother and her many birthday parties, go to our personal website: http//www.kenshan.com

Light Bulbs Out. Call Maintenance!

We just spent 13 years in a wonderful house in a great area. We kept adding on to the house till it was 5500 square feet. It was a fantastic house, but a maintenance nightmare. 

We've been in the new place for 7 weeks and I am thrilled. Yesterday I noticed a light bulb was out and I called maintenance. 30 minutes later the bulb was changed. And, since maintenance is built into our monthly fee, there will be no charge. 

Doris, our friend and neighbor, noticed her refrigerator was not keeping things cold enough. She called maintenance. In less than an hour, two maintenance guys showed up with a new refrigerator. They moved everything from the old fridge to the new one, and wheeled the old one away. (This place is only three years old, the "old" fridge couldn't be that old. 

I'm 73, and while I still glide smoothly around the tennis court, I don't do well crawling around the floor. Five years ago, I couldn't see it coming. I just sort of assumed I'd be nimble and flexible forever. But, that's not how aging works. 

This place comes with free cleaning service, so I'm delighted to save some of the low down tasks for our housekeeper. I call this blog retirement at the last resort, because it is really resort living at its best. It's like living in posh resort. 

In your retirement planning, I hope you'll give some consideration to a retirement with some built in indulgences. You won't always be able to do everything you've always done, and you won't want to. 

Yours for a happy and healthy retirement,

Ken Johnston 

P.S. There are CCRCs all over the country. It's the next new thing for retirees. Discover what you might want to be looking for by taking a look at Our new Place.  

Retirement Planning. Where will you live?

Bill & Nancy retired in place. They wanted to be near to their friends and family. Two years later, they realized that their friends were still working, their kids were involved with their own lives, and they felt left out and ignored. 

They retired to Florida, in a big house in a posh gated community. Now, they had new friends, and people who were available to play golf or tennis during the day. 

Nine years went by. The house was bigger than they needed. It was hard to care for. They wanted something smaller with less maintenance. That's when they made the mistake they're paying for today. They bought a lovely new condo before they sold their house. 

Now, because of the real estate market, they've got a condo they can't sell and a house that still takes a lot of maintenance, and instead of a happy peaceful retirement, they're going nuts trying to get out of the mess. 

They've visited the continuing care retirement community we moved to and they realize they should be here, with us. But, they're stuck. They really didn't consider their healthcare needs or the potential healthcare costs they face. 

I could tell you other, similar stories. For some reason, people delay going into a retirement community and keep making the kind of decisions they've always made. It's as though they don't see the future. 

I hope you study the stories of people who have been retired before you. Time and again, you'll see examples of people who waited too long. Illness struck, and they were stuck. 

The reality of retirement is you get older. Older and frailer. Look ahead. Plan ahead. Start considering different choices than those you've always made. I'm not saying you should move to an over 65 retirement community as soon as you retire. I'm just saying you have more risk if you wait too long, than you face by moving in too soon. 

Your's for a happy and healthy retirement,

Ken Johnston 

P.S. If you want to see something about the place we chose, it will give you some ideas of what is possible. Maybe there is some place like this where you want to live. TheGlenridge

Retirement Planning must include health care costs

Nobody tells you that your retirement planning must include health care costs. Everybody focuses on how much money you need to save, and how much you can draw out of savings every year. 

The secret truth about retirement living is that it's haunted by fears and worries. You don't know how long you'll live, so you worry about outliving your money. You see illness, strokes, cancer and heart ailments pop up in your friends. Will it happen to you? 

You want to live independently as long as you can, before you enter a retirement community. That's natural. The problem is you can't enter a continuing care retirement center if you've already been hit by big health problems. So, people tend to wait. Most people wait too long, and then it's too late. 

Big health problems mean big health costs, and then you really sweat it out. Will the healthcare expenses wipe out your savings? 

The solution for all of these worries is to find a continuing care retirement community that can make retirement enjoyable while you're healthy, and take complete care of your health needs at exactly the same level of spending you had while you were healthy. 

We were fortunate enough to discover just such a place. They call it America's First Life Fulfilling Community, and we feel that's what they have here. We were lucky to get in. The place is new and filling up fast, so we got the last of the town homes. But, if this interests you, you could check out the final few apartments they have. Or, get on the waiting list for an apartment when one opens up. 

To learn more about our place, click on http://www.theglenridge.com 

More Soon,

Ken Johnston 

Retirement in a CCRC. Peace of mind for your life.

Retirement is an incredible adventure. In our recent move to a CCRC (Continuing care retirement community) we discovered America's First Life Fulfilling Community. Everyone here agrees that it's one of the best places to retire to. 

This blog is about retirement, retirement living, senior housing and healthcare for the young and elderly retiree. We'll tell you some secrets it's taken us 15 years of retirement to discover. You'll learn about independent living, assisted living, and skilled nursing care. 

You'll learn that lifetime learning and discovery can make the elderly feel young again. 

We'll share some funny retirement poems because humor makes retirement life delightful. We'll give you the real dope on elderly sex. 

We'll show you how a CCRC can make you worry free about healthcare expenses because it offers the most complete nursing care plans. 

We'll introduce you to one of the world's friendliest retirement communities and the people that make it so friendly.  

Thanks for your interest,

Ken Johnston

P.S. For a fantastic example of a CCRC check out our new resort like home: