WEBVTT 00:00:06.100 --> 00:00:10.919 So this is a good place to tell you about a particular 00:00:10.919 --> 00:00:28.179 retirement story. I've changed some details for 00:00:28.179 --> 00:00:31.780 privacy but We've got Andy and we've got Pam. 00:00:33.200 --> 00:00:38.240 Andy's due to retire. Let me tell you a bit about 00:00:38.240 --> 00:00:43.340 Andy. He's due to retire after about 40 years 00:00:43.340 --> 00:00:51.659 in logistics. He's the kind of guy who's a planner. 00:00:52.280 --> 00:00:56.200 Loves a good spreadsheet. Proud, slightly stubborn, 00:00:56.380 --> 00:01:07.099 but well -meaning. And his wife, Pam. A patient 00:01:07.099 --> 00:01:10.780 lady. She's realistic. She works part -time still. 00:01:11.019 --> 00:01:18.140 And she knows that Andy does tend to be a little 00:01:18.140 --> 00:01:32.159 bit over -ambitious in his plans. So scenes start, 00:01:32.239 --> 00:01:35.819 imagine it. They're in the pub. It's a bit of 00:01:35.819 --> 00:01:41.000 a retirement do, nothing formal. And during the 00:01:41.000 --> 00:01:43.920 evening, Andy pulls out a whiteboard from behind 00:01:43.920 --> 00:01:49.540 the chair and an easel. Sticks it up in front 00:01:49.540 --> 00:01:57.799 of everyone and starts sketching away. So he 00:01:57.799 --> 00:02:03.140 does this sketch of... campervan. Right away, 00:02:03.200 --> 00:02:07.319 Bessie above it. Now the most surprised person 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:11.319 in the room is Pam because she knew nothing about 00:02:11.319 --> 00:02:29.939 his plans to buy a campervan. The group. He has 00:02:29.939 --> 00:02:33.039 a couple of friends with him. They start to discuss 00:02:33.039 --> 00:02:35.360 what his plans are. And what he plans to do, 00:02:35.379 --> 00:02:37.379 he's going to do up the van, needs a little bit 00:02:37.379 --> 00:02:39.759 of work. And they're going to go travelling, 00:02:39.860 --> 00:02:51.819 him and Pam, around the UK. Pam's obviously really 00:02:51.819 --> 00:02:54.159 happy about the fact that they're going to be 00:02:54.159 --> 00:02:57.680 spending some time travelling. Little bit cautious 00:02:57.680 --> 00:03:01.819 because she knows Andy can be a little bit over 00:03:01.819 --> 00:03:04.599 -ambitious when he's doing this planning. But 00:03:04.599 --> 00:03:06.840 the group, anyway, have a laugh and they contribute 00:03:06.840 --> 00:03:11.699 to where they think Pam and Andy should travel 00:03:11.699 --> 00:03:14.740 across the UK. A couple of them have been travelling 00:03:14.740 --> 00:03:18.300 before in Caravan Park, so they know the ropes 00:03:18.300 --> 00:03:29.319 and they pass on some good advice anyway. Next 00:03:29.319 --> 00:03:33.400 morning, Arthur wakes up really early. He's generally 00:03:33.400 --> 00:03:35.960 up at six o 'clock in the morning anyway. So 00:03:35.960 --> 00:03:38.879 he enthusiastically runs out into the garden, 00:03:39.020 --> 00:03:43.699 starts digging a massive trench for some pub 00:03:43.699 --> 00:03:46.680 foundations at the back of the garden. One of 00:03:46.680 --> 00:03:50.879 these extended summer houses, but full electrics, 00:03:50.879 --> 00:04:04.789 the lot, big trench. Pam goes off to her part 00:04:04.789 --> 00:04:08.569 -time work leaving Andy to his own devices pretty 00:04:08.569 --> 00:04:18.670 much. So fast forward a couple of weeks and the 00:04:18.670 --> 00:04:23.889 garden looks a bit like the sun. It has not stopped 00:04:23.889 --> 00:04:27.089 raining since the day after he started digging 00:04:27.089 --> 00:04:32.529 the trench. Bessie the campervan. is sitting 00:04:32.529 --> 00:04:35.170 on the driveway because it failed its MOT and 00:04:35.170 --> 00:04:39.949 it wasn't just a minor fail. It was a proper 00:04:39.949 --> 00:04:45.230 refit needed. The whole underneath chassis was 00:04:45.230 --> 00:04:50.230 rusted and the advice of the technician in the 00:04:50.230 --> 00:04:52.910 garage was he should probably scrap it. But Andy's 00:04:52.910 --> 00:04:57.329 laid his hopes on this and he's quite keen to 00:04:57.329 --> 00:04:59.970 get in there and get this thing fixed. But I'll 00:04:59.970 --> 00:05:03.230 be honest, two weeks in, and he was feeling a 00:05:03.230 --> 00:05:06.689 bit down. He was questioning his retirement, 00:05:06.810 --> 00:05:18.389 questioning his plans. Pam was, you know, a little 00:05:18.389 --> 00:05:21.389 bit frustrated, but, you know, her main emotion 00:05:21.389 --> 00:05:25.850 was feeling really sorry for Andy and the position 00:05:25.850 --> 00:05:29.589 he'd gone in. You know, he'd been probably took 00:05:29.589 --> 00:05:39.829 on a bit too much. at the same time really. So 00:05:39.829 --> 00:05:42.189 he's having to go fixing his campervan himself 00:05:42.189 --> 00:05:45.310 and he ends up in a bit of a mess and things 00:05:45.310 --> 00:05:49.430 are gradually getting worse. So next day he's 00:05:49.430 --> 00:05:58.120 in the pub in the afternoon and he walks in His 00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:00.079 old workmates, they're all still at work. He 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:03.980 was the first to retire. And he realises at that 00:06:03.980 --> 00:06:05.839 point he's sitting in an empty pub and although 00:06:05.839 --> 00:06:09.620 he's got a lot to do, he's got nothing that he 00:06:09.620 --> 00:06:17.800 particularly wants to do. The garden's a soggy 00:06:17.800 --> 00:06:22.540 mess. The van doesn't feel achievable within 00:06:22.540 --> 00:06:26.560 his skill sets. He looks back at his spreadsheet, 00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:28.899 thought he was so keen on that. Nothing seems 00:06:28.899 --> 00:06:33.579 to add up anymore for Andy. He's on the verge, 00:06:33.680 --> 00:06:35.819 really, of a little bit of depression, to be 00:06:35.819 --> 00:06:47.839 honest. Anyway, it continues to rain. The garden 00:06:47.839 --> 00:06:52.759 becomes an absolute trench. Pam comes home and 00:06:52.759 --> 00:06:55.160 actually finds... And they're sitting at the 00:06:55.160 --> 00:06:57.620 kitchen table staring blankly at a mug of tea. 00:07:03.379 --> 00:07:06.860 The retirement dream for him has fallen apart 00:07:06.860 --> 00:07:09.959 and he's pretty much in despair by this point. 00:07:10.920 --> 00:07:15.100 Well, Pam, ever the optimist, she's been in the 00:07:15.100 --> 00:07:19.540 library and she's heard about a meet -up for 00:07:19.540 --> 00:07:25.970 newly retired. And Andy's not keen at all, to 00:07:25.970 --> 00:07:31.069 be honest. He's newly into retirement. The last 00:07:31.069 --> 00:07:33.250 thing he wants to do is go and commiserate with 00:07:33.250 --> 00:07:36.870 some other retirees about how things have gone 00:07:36.870 --> 00:07:39.149 wrong and why they should all probably stay at 00:07:39.149 --> 00:07:52.209 work. But he goes anyway. Pam pretty much insists 00:07:52.209 --> 00:07:54.610 that. He gets out of the house and does something. 00:07:54.790 --> 00:07:57.930 So he turns up at the coffee morning. When he 00:07:57.930 --> 00:08:00.889 arrives, he meets Sunita and she runs the event. 00:08:01.529 --> 00:08:05.449 Really, really warming. And he finds a seat and 00:08:05.449 --> 00:08:14.029 sits next to a guy called Dave. And Dave hears 00:08:14.029 --> 00:08:19.589 about Andy's plight about the campervan's chassis 00:08:19.589 --> 00:08:25.079 rusting. mentions that he actually uh used to 00:08:25.079 --> 00:08:28.199 work as a mechanic so a bit of a chippy as well 00:08:28.199 --> 00:08:31.019 so good woodwork and he says you know i'll pop 00:08:31.019 --> 00:08:33.159 around we'll have a look at this fan together 00:08:33.159 --> 00:08:37.600 refuses any payments i'm not looking just you 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:39.799 know of interest want to come see around see 00:08:39.799 --> 00:08:47.980 what your project is next day anyway dave turns 00:08:47.980 --> 00:08:51.450 up at arthur's house with his toolbox and a couple 00:08:51.450 --> 00:08:55.090 of other members of the group, they assess the 00:08:55.090 --> 00:08:57.730 damage, look at the van, assess what's going 00:08:57.730 --> 00:09:01.769 on in the garden. And over the next few weeks, 00:09:02.070 --> 00:09:07.529 quite a few of the community group all come and 00:09:07.529 --> 00:09:12.509 lend a bit of a hand. Andy's good with logistics, 00:09:12.970 --> 00:09:19.269 so he's able to organise this local tool -sharing 00:09:19.269 --> 00:09:23.429 library Someone's got a mower, someone's got 00:09:23.429 --> 00:09:26.529 a hedge cutter, someone's got some drill equipment 00:09:26.529 --> 00:09:30.129 and they actually pool their resources as part 00:09:30.129 --> 00:09:32.409 of this community and feel that they're giving 00:09:32.409 --> 00:09:44.490 a bit back as well. Now Dave helps to actually 00:09:44.490 --> 00:09:48.169 weld the camper van and also gets a couple of 00:09:48.169 --> 00:09:51.720 guys in. to lay down the deck in Friars Keepers 00:09:51.720 --> 00:09:59.220 Garden Pub. Summer kicks in, things brighten 00:09:59.220 --> 00:10:03.940 up. End of the summer, they've named the backyard 00:10:03.940 --> 00:10:09.940 pub The Second Wind. It's finished. Andy and 00:10:09.940 --> 00:10:13.500 Pam have a barbecue for the whole crew who've 00:10:13.500 --> 00:10:18.019 been there all summer. Now, Andy... looks around 00:10:18.019 --> 00:10:21.600 at Dave and Sunita's there as well and his new 00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:23.500 friend and they're laughing and chatting and 00:10:23.500 --> 00:10:26.960 he starts to realise that his original plan was 00:10:26.960 --> 00:10:33.580 actually about isolating himself. Okay, so it 00:10:33.580 --> 00:10:37.200 was him and Pam travelling but his main concept 00:10:37.200 --> 00:10:41.100 was him spending time on his own making his man 00:10:41.100 --> 00:10:50.049 shed and doing up his camper van. He hadn't really 00:10:50.049 --> 00:10:53.610 considered community at the point of retirement 00:10:53.610 --> 00:10:59.049 and that was a mistake. But eventually anyway, 00:10:59.190 --> 00:11:03.509 him and Pam get on the road and Bessie's fully 00:11:03.509 --> 00:11:06.690 repaired and they take a trip to the Lake District. 00:11:12.509 --> 00:11:15.809 It's not uncommon this when I chat to people 00:11:15.809 --> 00:11:21.759 about retirement. It's this feeling of, you know, 00:11:21.759 --> 00:11:25.879 I've been in a busy office, a busy work environment, 00:11:26.139 --> 00:11:27.720 wouldn't it be nice to have some peace, just 00:11:27.720 --> 00:11:32.919 me and a book or just me and the garden. But 00:11:32.919 --> 00:11:36.759 that could quickly turn to isolation if you're 00:11:36.759 --> 00:11:41.200 not careful. And actually, some of the best retiree 00:11:41.200 --> 00:11:47.100 stories come from people who join communities, 00:11:47.299 --> 00:11:51.600 whether that's Within their own street or whether 00:11:51.600 --> 00:11:58.519 they go to an organized group. That community 00:11:58.519 --> 00:12:02.279 element of retirement really makes a retirement. 00:12:06.000 --> 00:12:09.299 Okay, we all need a bit of downtime and a bit 00:12:09.299 --> 00:12:14.500 of alone time. But don't let that become isolation. 00:12:15.200 --> 00:12:19.299 Community, friends, family. and what successful 00:12:19.299 --> 00:12:30.840 retirement is all about. So I'm here in Eastern 00:12:30.840 --> 00:12:34.019 Country Park, a lovely part of the world not 00:12:34.019 --> 00:12:40.299 too far from me, in the pink. I tend to walk 00:12:40.299 --> 00:12:44.159 along here two or three times a week. We drive 00:12:44.159 --> 00:12:52.730 up this way on the Whirl. Thanks for listening. 00:12:52.909 --> 00:12:54.450 I'll see you again soon.