What will you do when you get too old ?

[LathrenJames]

"Total Conciousness!" No money but I got that going for me...lmao

 

[DLTooley]

"Total Conciousness!" No money but I got that going for me...lmao

Bill Murray is a wise, and funny, man.  Presumably he eats right, among other things.

 

[MrNoodly]

Psalm 37:25 King James Version (KJV)

25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

Then he must not have been looking.

 

[LathrenJames]

Bill Murray is a wise, and funny, man.  Presumably he eats right, among other things.

Agreed. And it was a great scene! Thanks for the link.

 

[Dingfelder]

If there is anything that can help me change my thinking from negative to positve that's it.  Or sometimes it's music - I can put on some old rock n roll and soon I'm singing (out of tune) and dancing (sort of I have issues) 

I know what you mean.  I'm white too.

 

[crofter]

Going seasonal & moving twice per year is an option. If leaving the road entirely then perhaps a 30 year loan with low monthly payment due to the balloon payment at the end. So if you're 85 that'll be due when you're 115 years old.

Wow thats old (115).

Mom is almost 90 and still driving, but now lives in an Arizona RV park with a gate and security, pool, dominoes games, orange trees etc. She went back and forth for a while before she decided to just stay in Arizona all summer too. She has the world's largest air conditioner now.

~crofter

 

[julianp]

I'm in the planning stages of moving into this lifestyle and I wondered the same thing. I told my wife that if I get dementia to let me take some mushrooms and wander the desert until I die. She didn't like that idea but the last thing I'd want is to be a burden and since dying in combat to get to valhalla is out for me at this age I'd be fine with dying in nature.

 

[JohnHarrelson]

Wow... you youngsters need to take a deep breath and relax..  last August 2, 2017  I celebrated having lived 3/4 of a century..

Think about that for a moment.. 3/4 of a "CENTURY" I have been kicking around this old world.. 

I admit the past 10 years of that have not been the best as far as "Living" goes, but I still do everything for myself with no help from anyone but the good Lord. 
I'm a potbellied, bald headed, one eyed, toothless, hearing aids wearing, crippled with spinal stenosis and one step away from a wheel chair old man.  

At my age I know I don't have many tomorrows left but just in case I do wake up in the morning I wanna make sure I have a plan so the day is not wasted.
I still look when a pretty girl walks by, but at 76 yrs old it's kinda like the dog chasing a car, what's he going to do even if he could catch it... 

During my 76 years I lived the type of life that many people can only dream about.  Two hitches in the Navy, two hitches in the Army traveling around the world seeing and experiencing things people did not even know existed. 
I've had so many different types of jobs that I'm the poster child for the old saying..  "Jack of all trades, Master of none"

I've been a full time RVer and a part timer.. I have lived in a truck camper, a tent, a 22 ft travel trailer, two different 5th wheels, a motor home and for a short time was forced to live in my car.  Now I am forced to live in a "Senior Mobile Home park".

Thankfully I am a veteran and covered by the VA for everything but dental but a program called "Adopt-A-Vet" took care of that for totally free.
and with my VA disability check and Social Security I live comfortable on about $1700 a month.

So for you "youngters" still in your 40's, 50's and 60's.. relax … old age is just a state of mind and remember that a calendar only shows when you were born, not how old you are..

ooops, gotta go, …  that cute chick down the street is celebrating her 65th birthday and I wanna practice chasing a few cars before I go to her party. 

John

 

[wasanah2]

Why did I want to answer this post with:

Old Vandwellers never die, they just...….

Seriously though, it is a concern.  In the older days people had a larger family structure than now.  I'm early 60s and I take care of my elders.   But there aren't too many around to help them out if I go somewhere.  I want them to have the dignity they deserve into their latter years, but I also wonder about the inconvenience I may cause my kids if it happens to me.

Let me tell you what I did as an insurance policy.  Some might be too old to do it, but others might not.  I joined 2 organizations.  I joined Eastern Star before I turned 60 (kind of the female side of the masons) and I joined the Moose club.  Both have programs for people who are members and who don't have the funds to live out the end of life with dignity.  I think only Eastern Star is one that requires you to be a member before age 60 to qualify.  The Moose club I'm not sure, but I think any member can take part of the benefit after a few years.  The also good thing about the Moose is that they have campgrounds at many of them which cost the members from 0 to 15 a night that often include hookups.

So if you haven't thought about joining the Moose, you might think about it.  I just called our local one and said I didn't know anybody and the woman at the other end said she'd be happy to sponsor me.  It didn't cost that much.  I can't remember.  I didn't even have to go to a meeting!!!  I think it was like 65 dollars and that included the one time fee for membership.  It's not that much to renew it every year.

And they have bingo. 

 

[Deb_A]

My son says he'll take care of me, but I don't want to burden him. I don't really want to live long enough to be old and decrepit, so I have the Smith and Wesson retirement plan.

We've had people die in these apartments where I live and not be found for days. This is not a community, it's just a place to live. That's one reason I want to van dwell for as long as I can and become part of some kind of community. I'm so tired of being alone and scared that something will happen to me and I will lie here and die because nobody will know I'm not o.k. I've started wearing my cell phone around my neck now, because I've fallen on this hard, tile floor and am afraid that the next time, I'm going to break something and not be able to get help.

It's also why I want to stay mostly in cities. but that's not even a guarantee. I read about people who find van dwellers dead in WalMart parking lots, or parked on city streets, and I wonder how many are out in the back woods somewhere, where no one knows where they went or when they're going to come back. While I admire the "lone wolf" dwellers who trek off to parts unknown by themselves, I could never do that. I need to stay somewhere there are either other people around who will check on me if I don't show up one day, or where I have a cell signal so I can tell someone where I'm going to be.

Having my van break down is nothing in comparison to the fear of serious injury of death on the road.

 

[wasanah2]

My son says he'll take care of me, but I don't want to burden him. I don't really want to live long enough to be old and decrepit, so I have the Smith and Wesson retirement plan.

We've had people die in these apartments where I live and not be found for days. This is not a community, it's just a place to live. That's one reason I want to van dwell for as long as I can and become part of some kind of community. I'm so tired of being alone and scared that something will happen to me and I will lie here and die because nobody will know I'm not o.k. I've started wearing my cell phone around my neck now, because I've fallen on this hard, tile floor and am afraid that the next time, I'm going to break something and not be able to get help.

It's also why I want to stay mostly in cities. but that's not even a guarantee. I read about people who find van dwellers dead in WalMart parking lots, or parked on city streets, and I wonder how many are out in the back woods somewhere, where no one knows where they went or when they're going to come back. While I admire the "lone wolf" dwellers who trek off to parts unknown by themselves, I could never do that. I need to stay somewhere there are either other people around who will check on me if I don't show up one day, or where I have a cell signal so I can tell someone where I'm going to be.

Having my van break down is nothing in comparison to the fear of serious injury of death on the road.

Oh man, I hear you.  I don't want to be a burden on my kids, but I also wouldn't go out with S & W.  I'm too much of a neat freak and would be concerned about the mess it would leave.   But seriously, I hope you won't do that.

I hope you will never go to that point, but community is something you can end up with in this lifestyle.  RVers and other campers are so friendly.  At the campground here (temporary till I have surgery) people wave at each other and always stop and talk and shoot the breeze.  Campers are just that way.  Here they have dances and activities and retro rock concerts.   There's a pool and game rooms and library and laundermat etc.

Probably if you can afford a campground with full timers, you'd like that because everyone here is tight and close knit.  They help each other too.  I had trouble starting my car one time and a guy just came over, diagnosed the problem, went to Auto Zone for me and swapped out the part.  I paid for the part but he wouldn't take anything for fixing it.  It probably saved me a lot of money.   People are just like that.  Oh and taking the 30 lb propane tanks down to get filled is something I never have to do.  Some neighbor always offers to do it for me because it's a struggle.

That's the way people are in a full timer's park.  Now the one I'm in is more expensive than a lot of them because it's gated and well looked after.  It includes cable tv and wifi at your site.  And the monthly rate is like 400.  I forget, because they put my electric with my monthly charge.  There are better sites that are more expensive and the big rigs go there, and I pay for my own electric, but it's way cheaper than a house or apartment.  And some people pay a lot more for rent in an apartment.  I think when I get older, I'll just pull into a park like this one and be a part of the community at the RV park.

But if that doesn't work out later and I have cognitive issues, I expect I will turn in my insurance policy from Eastern Star or Moose and move into one of their rest homes.

 

[Moxadox]

ooops, gotta go, …  that cute chick down the street is celebrating her 65th birthday and I wanna practice chasing a few cars before I go to her party.  [emoji14]

John
[/quote]

John, you're awesome! Hope I get to meet you someday before we both croak.

Keep on keepin' on--

Laura

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

[Vermithrax]

I would imagine I will die and start new journey.

 

[Deb_A]

^^ Evidently, my last post to you was unacceptable to the moderators, so I'll try again. 

Thanks for the recommendations, truly. You were very kind to do that. 

I don't really like RV/trailer parks, being a true loner and EXTREMELY private. I need total privacy, where I don't have to see anyone unless I want to. Even in my 30s, I had a sign on my front door that said "If you weren't invited and it isn't an emergency, don't even knock." While it was meant to keep religious groups away, it worked for sales people and pesky neighbors too. 

I always promised myself I would never live in a retirement home after I worked in one for the summer when I was in my teens. 

My entire family were Masons, up until my father died. My mother and sisters were Eastern Star. I was the only person in the family who refused to join. Same with the Moose. I got invitations to be sponsored many times, but I don't like belonging to organizations, especially not secretive ones.

My sons both know my wishes, and while one is completely opposed and wants nothing to do with it, the other understands and accepts it. I have a living will with NHM (No Heroic Measures) and DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) orders in case I am determined to be too physically or brain damaged to ever have a normal life again. I would hate my sons if they forced me to live that way, which is why I've designated a totally impartial medical surrogate who will carry out my wishes to the letter. I would never force them to make those decisions.

I feel people should be able to choose how they live and how they die. I'm not a Christian, so death doesn't scare me.  
 

 

[QinReno]

>>>>
I feel people should be able to choose how they live and how they die. I'm not a Christian, so death doesn't scare me.
>>>>

Oh wow, is that ever an edgy comment. I agree with the first part, and let the Xtns believe what they like re the second part. We all make our own choices.

The diapers don't scare me, but the part about living for years in dementia, and not knowing who or what you "were" is troublesome.

 

[Starr]

My old Uncle Weeks, he had a heart attack while cruising. Died instantly, ran off the mountain with a smile. Not like the cousins riding with him, they screamed all the way down.

Oh I feel so inappropriate for giggling at this! lol  Thanks for the much needed smile!!