"I Didn't Buy It, I Live It": Retired Adults Are Sharing The Very Best Things They've Gotten For Themselves For Life Post-Work, And I'm A Little Jealous
Assuming we're lucky enough to ever retire, every one of us working adults has at least one thing we're really looking forward to after we hang our career hats — even if it's just the time off and no early wakeups. Redditor Onewarmguy recently asked the r/AskOldPeople community for their input on what to do with some extra money.
He wrote: "I'm 71, single, and comfortably retired with my dog; I recently realized that I have some extra cash (low five figures) in the bank, and I'd like to buy myself something nice. What's the best present you bought for yourself since you hung up your spurs?" Hundreds of older adults responded with their favorite gifts to themselves in retirement, from small life-improving items to the best splurges. Here are a few of their responses:
1."An e-bike. A medical problem made me decide I was a risk while driving, so I parked the car. Balance issues made taking off on my regular bike a little difficult. After six months of riding my bike, I realized my car was sitting, so I sold it. I've found so many places to explore and visit in my area that I previously drove by. I also got into metal detecting, so every trip is like a little history lesson. The only time I rely on a ride somewhere is for vet visits. The dog won the battle of getting into a dog trailer with the bike."
2."Edibles and an electronic drum set!"
3."We live in Colorado. I bought myself a season pass for skiing. I competed in the Junior Olympics in the downhill event when I was 12 years old."
4."Single, 72, and my career was in software development. My favorite place in the house is my workspace, so I gifted myself a very nice desk chair, built myself a high-end computer, a 4K 43-inch monitor, some audio add-ons, and a very comfy bed. I do all my reading at my workspace, and I still mess around running VMs under Linux, I have a few Raspberry Pi, etc. Basically, I indulge my geekdom."
5."A house in Spain! We retired, sold everything in the states, and moved permanently to Spain. Life is great!"
6."A new 2024 12th generation Kindle Paperwhite. Much better than my old generation 7."
7."Neither one of us is big on things (although my husband’s guitar collection is growing), but as a joint gift to ourselves now that we’re both retired (coming up on our one-year anniversary), we offloaded our most hated chores and hired people to take them over. House cleaning (which we both suck at), snow removal, and landscaping? Yeah, more than happy to have others take 'em on. More time for us to do anything or nothing."
"Buying yourself time is the best money spent..."
8."I moved in with my daughter after she moved North and put in a lovely garden area with raised beds. I also have an herb spiral in there."
9."I didn’t buy it, I live it: peace and contentment."
10."Airplane. Retired aircraft maintenance guy (military civilian). Bad eyes, so I couldn’t fly for the Army. Set piloting aside. Rode my motorcycle across the country, skydiving while in the military, volunteer work after retirement. Finally found myself in a place to get a pilot certificate. And then started airplane shopping. It wasn’t inexpensive, but it didn’t break the bank. So I went for it. Now it’s a matter of getting open days on the calendar (holidays and all) and good weather."
11."A really good mattress for a really good night's sleep. Beauty Rest Black. Our old mattress was sagging, and every movement my husband or I made annoyed the other person and woke us up. Plus, sagging, making little canyons where our bodies sleep the most."
12."Buy quality for any product between you and the ground: mattress, shoes, tires, etc. It makes all the difference! Also, pillows — just got organic solid latex and LOVE them. Didn’t wake once to flip my pillow the first night or since."
13."I'm not waiting until retirement to buy myself presents. I like to buy things that make my hobbies more enjoyable. For instance, I like to cook, so I bought myself a $200+ knife. It makes cutting stuff up so much easier. I also play guitar, so I bought a $1,000 Taylor acoustic guitar. I didn't want to get it too expensive because I still wanted to take it camping and stuff. It sounds 100 times better than my last guitar. It's truly a pleasure to play. I play disc golf, so I spent $400+ on a pull cart that has a place to sit. It holds all the stuff I normally carry, and I can take a load off the longer tournaments that wear me out. Not sure if you're looking to buy yourself one big ticket item, but maybe a bunch of smaller quality-of-life items would be nice too."
14."At 75, I bought a sports car. Still have it at 88. Not many miles on it. Gets lots of attention. I may give it to my granddaughter in a few years — or just let it be a part of my estate. I love just knowing it is there."
15."Art. My partner and I have started buying original art, and it gives us such a lift to look at it on our walls. And it's nice to support local emerging artists."
16."This may sound nuts, but a couple of months ago, I went to a hobby shop and purchased a remote-controlled race car. I took it to the county park and ran it all over the place, wearing out the tires. It gave me hours of fun and sparked dozens of conversations with friendly strangers. I went back to the shop, bought new tires, and ordered a custom-made super fast ‘monster truck’ and a fast battery recharger pack from them. That truck is tons of fun! Now, my great-granddaughter and I can race whenever she drops by, but for me, they have consistently been a good way to break up my boredom."
17."We got a new-to-us Casita camper last year and spent three months in it last year."
18."Two whitewater kayaks."
19."We remodeled our bathroom for 'aging in place.' No tub to climb over, grab bars actually blocked into the walls, a nice shower bench, etc. My favorite thing is the warm towel rack. I do miss having a tub in there, but I can't get out of a tub once I'm in one, so there is that. And I've heard awful things about the walk-in ones."
20."My extravagance is first-class air travel. My wife complains it’s too expensive but has yet to sit in economy while I’m up in front enjoying a few perks."
21."I’m concerned about the climate, so I bought a new plug-in hybrid and geothermal heat/AC system."
22."My KitchenAid mixer and a kitchen reno. Now all my stuff fits in my cupboards, I've got counter space to hold my KitchenAid, so I don't have to lift it down from a shelf, I have a pantry that holds months' worth of canned goods, and I can see them all, and I have a giant deep sink where you can bathe a dog or stack up three days worth of dishes."
23."An excellent massage chair!"
24."I bought a Switch, a PS5, and spent a small fortune at my local dispensary. No, I never grew up. I'm ok with that."
25."When my dad passed away and left me some money, I bought myself a natural gas Kohl’s standby generator. That feeling of safety is unparalleled."
26."When I retired, my wife had already passed away. Kids are long grown and on their own. I myself didn't actually need anything, as I expect it is with many men. There were things I'd wanted over the years for myself that I'd either put off obtaining, or I'd gotten the thing but not the one I'd really wanted, opting for a cheaper version of whatever. One of those things was a good set of binoculars. I enjoy nature, I enjoy animal watching. I had a few sets of binoculars, cheap and bought new, or a set of mediocre quality bought used. I went optics shopping. And enjoyed every minute of it. And did what I would have never thought I'd do... especially given that I'm a cheap SOB... I spent WAYYY too much on a good pair. And have not regretted it."
"Not suggesting you buy binoculars. But you're retired. Isn't there some hobby or activity you've put off? Or that you've gone cheap on in the past?
A friend of mine is a golfer. He didn't buy all new clubs. But he went out and bought two specific ones, ridiculously priced...but ones he'd always wanted. Thought he'd never have.
Give yourself a little reward. You earned it."
27."For $1,000, we had heated floors installed in our bathrooms. Getting up in the middle of a winter's night to use the bathroom is a toasty warm experience for your feet."
28."Some crocodile skin-style Dr. Martens boots. I look like a pair of bouncy golf clubs. It's great."
29."Memberships: Club Pilates, community rec center/pool, dog park. I’m getting fit and making friends. It’s not so much the expense that prevented me from doing this before but the lack of time for myself."
30."Plants. Lots of plants. And home repairs we had been putting off."
31."I went on safari to Africa. Spent a boatload of money in order to have the trip of my lifetime, nothing spared. Each place we stayed was more fabulous than the previous one, and we flew there in the first class. I was there for a month and went to Rwanda (gorilla trek), Tanzania (great migration), Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. Spent $150K. It was the most awesome experience of my life and changed my perspective on a lot of things. My husband was 80 and I was 65."
32."Motorcycle. Wind therapy right there. Gets me out of the house every sunny day, winter or summer."
33."74M...I also had a little windfall...have all I need and more, and I gave it to St. Jude to help dying children. Best gift I've ever gotten."
34."Bought a Big Green Egg and accessories. Been cooking everything you can imagine on it — BBQ, chicken, vegetables, pizza, brownies, even a baked French toast. Try brownies with some added smoke. You will never put them in an oven again."
35."Le Creuset lavender colored enameled cast iron cooking pots."
36."An entire living room set, wall art, lamps, custom performance fabric sofa and loveseat. I hired a designer. I've never gifted myself anything more amazing in my entire 57 years."
If you're retired, what's the best buy you've made for your quality of life? If you're not, what are you looking forward to purchasing for your golden years? Let me know in the comments.
