Bought myself a retirement present!

[Kim]

Well, I’ve done it.

Today was my last day of work!  I’m officially retired! 😊 Well, not exactly official yet – I’m on vacation for the next two months and THEN I’m officially retired.  But for all intents and purposes, as of today, I’m out on my own!  And I could hardly be more excited!

So, to celebrate my newfound freedom, I bought myself a retirement present for the shop.  No, not a new big expensive tool (though that’s still not out of the question 😊).  I figured that since I will be spending more time out in my man cave, I wanted a better sound system out there.  No, I don’t need anything really high-end, what with machines running and whatnot.  But I’ve been using a transistor radio that I inherited from my father-in-law.  It’s been a great companion for 15+ years, but honestly, it is quite tinny-sounding the reception is pretty sketchy sometimes (weather-related I think).  And what's worse, when you get it loud enough to hear at the far end of the shop it hurts your ears when you’re at the near end.  This is the old radio I've been using, and believe it or not, it sounds worse than it looks!


So, I’ve purchased this little setup!  It’s an entry-level receiver – nothing fancy, just AM/FM radio and Bluetooth, plus an inexpensive set of passive bookshelf speakers.  They were highly rated but cost less than $90 for the pair.  And the receiver was about $140.  There were some cheaper options but they just got bad reviews, so I bumped up to a known name that got much better reviews.

So, after my virtual retirement lunch today, I was all done at work - no more obligations.  So I shut down my laptop and went out to the garage to open up my amazon boxes to see what I had.  And I think I'm pretty pleased:


I’ll be spending some of my shop time tomorrow setting this up and I’ll give you a full report on how it turns out.

But this ought to keep me good company now that I’ll have more time to spend in the shop!  (He says optimistically 😊)

And you retired folk can give me all your good advice.  I need it being a newbie to this living footloose and fancy-free lifestyle!

Kim

[steamer]

Congratulations Kim!    I'm about 10 years out from there...but it's getting closer.    I need a better rig in my shop too.....it's on the list

Enjoy!!

Dave

[crueby]

Welcome to the retirement club!  Pretty soon you'll be forgetting what that W*rk word means. Then you'll have to ask someone what day it is. No problem, just grin and go play!
 

[Dave Otto]

Wow congratulations Kim!
I would have guessed that you were much younger than me, I still have a few years to go.

Dave 

[Bear]

Congratulations, Kim. Hope you enjoy your retirement  .

[Jo]

Well done Kim, welcome to what should be the best part of your life.  I am in my third year of retirement and I can highly recommend it. 


(Once Covid is under control and we are allowed out you will find there is another much better world out there beyond W*rk  )

Jo

[vcutajar]

Congratulations and welcome to the retirement club.

I have to admit that whenever I see a contrail high above in the sky I miss work.

Vince

[zeeprogrammer]

Congrats Kim! Enjoy the extra time.
You'll have plenty of extra time, right?
Yeah, right. 

[gerritv]

Welcome to retirement, and the joy of music to work/think/ponder by.
I find having some sort of music in the background keeps my mind from wandering too far while turning handles and dials.

In a while you will wonder how you had time to work, this retirement thing is a very different life for those with hobbies and interests.

Gerrit

[Tom1948]

Soon you will be so busy that you will wonder how you had time for work. At least that is how it is in my case. Congratulations ! I hope you enjoy your new "sounds"

[joe d]

Welcome to the club Kim!  I'm at 4 years and change, can't imagine going back to that w%$k stuff.
 
I had a 1970's era radioshack radio in the shop for years, when it finally expired, my brother gave me
an identical unit he'd had hiding in a cupboard! 

Cheers, Joe

[cwelkie]

Congratulations Kim on retirement and the new shop addition. Enjoy the time that is yours now.
I'm just coming up on the end of my first year in retirement and am so grateful for having the opportunity to retire while being able to enjoy it.
Charlie

[fumopuc]

Hi Kim,
that seems to be a special retirement issue.
One of my first purchase after starting the retirement last December, was a good set of speakers for my shop computer.
So I am able to listen to the internet radio now.
Enjoy your time, it will take some weeks and than you will sit down be asked by yourself, how did you get it managed earlier to find the time to go to work.


As Gerrit already mentioned.

[mklotz]

Congratulations, Kim. 

I really like your new receiver.  I have exactly the same model sitting next to my desk here as I type.  It works very well except for a sensitivity to power line transients that can turn it on or off unexpectedly. 

I retired on my 55th birthday and can recommend it highly.  I'll be turning 80 this June and have already bought myself my octogenarian birthday present - a fancy new camera with all the bells and whistles.  I have a retirement goal.  If I can live to 88 I will have been retired for as many years as I worked - my idea of a life well-lived.

[Kim]

Thank you everyone for the kind thoughts and words of encouragement as I set out into this new phase of life. I'm quite ready to give it a try!  I'll be sure and keep you all posted on how I'm doing.

And Marv, if I can do what you're aiming for - be retired as many years as I worked - I agree; that would be real work/life balance 

Now, out to the shop to set up my fancy new sound system!
Kim

[Art K]

Kim,
I have a few years to go before I can retire myself.  Congratulations it is quite an accomplishment. Enjoy yourself & don't get to busy. I have a pair of speakers and a receiver inherited from my dad, need to set it up though.
Art

[Flyboy Jim]

Congratulations on your retirement Kim. You'll be amazed how quickly you'll settle into the retirement lifestyle. I'm sure you won't have any trouble keeping busy. I was fortunate to be able to retire at 56. Been retired for 18 years now and have enjoyed every minute.

I bought that exact radio, as your old one, back in the early seventies. It was known back then for it's long range receiving capabilities and a lot of the offshore cruising types had them. Audio quality............not so much!

Jim

[Kim]

Thanks for the well wishes, Art and Jim!

My first order of business today was to get my new sound system setup.

I picked a likely spot for the speakers, though I may move them around a little to try them out in different locations – I’m mainly looking for good even sound coverage around the shop.

One is on the shelves that hold mostly household stuff (as opposed to shop stuff).  But as you see here, I’ve got my tender sitting on the shelf too .


And I will likely put a small shelf on the wall here for the speaker.  I don’t really want it sitting on top of the powder-coating long term. But to try it out, its not bad.  Here I’ve got it facing the wall.  It seems to help distribute the sound wider this way.  Not sure it will stay like that though.


And lastly, I put the receiver on a shelf and re-arranged some of my storage bins.  Anyway, I left the wires for the speakers on the long side so I had the flexibility to move them around some and we’ll see what I like best.


I can tell you it is FAR better than my little radio.  And I get much better coverage around the shop and it sounds quite good.  You certainly don’t get a booming bass out of those little bookshelf speakers, but then again, that’s not necessarily the top priority here.  But I am pleased with how they can fill up the shop without sounding like they are trying.  Still have some headroom, which is good.

So, my verdict is that while not perfect (a little more base would be fun) they are certainly worth what I paid for them and I’m pleased with the speakers and the tuner.

Kim

[Don1966]

Congrats on the retirement Kim and I am sure it’s well earned. It’s been five years for me and still enjoying it. Love the sound system I never put one in mine but I do have a big radio my kids gave me for my birthday 21 years ago and it has never be turned off since the first day I tuned it on and it’s still playing today. Enjoy buddy you earned it....


 
Don

[Kim]

Thanks Don!
I'm quite looking forward to it!   We'll see how it goes, eh?
Kim

[Ramon Wilson]

Hi Kim, just came on to find you've made the great day.

Congratulations on reaching retirement - a milestone for sure and one to be savoured. A couple of points to bear in mind of which I'm sure you won't mind me saying 

It disappears at an alarming rate and out of all proportion to days at work

You only get one go at it so make the very best of it

Beware of those who now think you have time on your hands to do things for them that they are to idle to do themselves - thats family excepted of course

I've had twenty one years of it so not much left now but I make sure I don't waste a minute of it. ('cept for things like this )

On that note then turn that radio on and have a truly great time

Best regards - Tug

[Lew Hartswick]

:-) I'd have to hang on till I was 112 to have as many years of retirement as "work" . But many of those work years were as much fun as most of the retirement ones have been (a lot more than the last year) :-)  from age 18 till 65 "jobs" like TV repairman to RADAR maintenance to senior engineer , always in the electronic field. Wood and metal working has been great change . :-) AND I don't like radio or other "entertainment" while I'm playing in the shop.
   ...lew...

[mklotz]

I don't know what the radio stations in Portland are like but here in LALA land the selection is abysmal.  Even the lone classical station is annoyingly commercialized.

My receiver is next to my desk and has a feed from my computer directed to one of its inputs.  That opens the possibility of listening to internet feeds from stations all over the country/world. 

For the shop, absent a computer, an MP3 player feeds the older receiver out there.  Keep that solution in mind if you tire of what the Portland airwaves have to offer.

[Kim]

Thanks for the great advice Tug!  Seems like very sound advice, thank you!

Lew, sometimes I work out in the shop with no background audio, but not usually.  I find I enjoy listening to things going on, and quite frequently I learn something useful or interesting by listening to the radio.

Marv, I mainly listen to KOBP which is the local NPR station here in the Portland area.  And when I get tired of that or don't like what's on (which happens) I now have the option of listening to anything I can stream from my phone (the receiver has built-in BlueTooth).  So I've got lots of classical music, rock, and all sorts of eclectic things I can listen to plus anything else I could find to stream.  So hopefully I'll be set.

Kim

[Lew Hartswick]

Kim I'm convinced my brain is a single track. I can do only one thing at a time. I envy those that can "walk and chew gum at the same time" .
:-)  I'm to the point where if there are two people talking at the same time, I understand absolutely nothing.
   ...lew...

[scc]

Lew, I'm with you on the conversation problem.        Kim ,I used to love my big speakers in the workshop.  My hearing aids now convert music into an irritating noise so speakers and radio have gone       Enjoy but not too loud!       Terry

[Kim]

Well, thank you both!  I'm sorry that conversations get muddled with other sounds around.  I have some relatives who feel the same way - can't hear anything if more than one person is talking.  I'm sure I'll get there too. But for now, I'll enjoy

Kim

[Craig DeShong]

Hi Kim

Getting in late on this but CONGRATULATIONS 

I've been retired for eight years now and I look back and wonder how I ever put up with it all

I too have the radio in the shop; tuned to the classical station (WCPE) here in Raleigh.  It's GREAT till Saturday afternoon when they put on the metropolitan opera   

[Kim]

Thanks, Craig!  Never too late for that

Not a big Opera fan, eh?   I can enjoy Opera from time to time but it's not a steady diet.  I enjoy a pretty wide range of music.

Kim

[mklotz]

I too have the radio in the shop; tuned to the classical station (WCPE) here in Raleigh.  It's GREAT till Saturday afternoon when they put on the metropolitan opera. 

I listen to WCPE regularly via the computer when our local classical station, KUSC, has one of its annoying, endless pledge breaks.  When the opera comes on, I switch to the KBAQ stream in Phoenix; they don't broadcast the Italian revenge.

[gary.a.ayres]

Nice setup Kim.

Our main amp that we route our living room TV and audio systems through is a Yamaha. It has a really nice sound.

Congratulations on your retirement.

Enjoy!