View source for Long list of things to do when you retire

== Ways to answer the question of, "But what will I do all day?" with something else than "Whatever I feel like" ==

Unless you look close to being the traditional retirement, a good way to avoid awkward conversations is to model them on the following conversation:

A: "What do you do for a living?"

B: "I < insert activity from below >"

A: "Can you really make a living from that?"

B: "Hard to say, but I saved a lot of money while I was a <insert the job you retired from>"

At this point, people will either ask for details in which case you can start talking about how investing for financial independence works or they'll start talking about something else. 

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Early Retirement Extreme 21-Day Makeover [https://earlyretirementextreme.com/day-5-find-a-free-hobb.html Day 5: Find a free hobby]


In no particular order (but let's try to make this list as long as possible). Also, if possible, it would be helpful to write a short introduction page on how to get started for each of these activities.

== Sports/Physical Activities ==
* Go fishing
* Go whitewater rafting
* Hike the Appalachian trail
* Hike every nature trail within a 2 hour radius
* Run ultramarathons
* Become a martial arts black belt
* Win an amateur bodybuilding championship
* Coach soccer
* Swim across a large body of water
* Go canoeing
* Go kayaking
* Go surfing
* Go stand-up paddle boarding
* Get in shape
* Go [https://www.geocaching.com/ geocaching] (requires a GPS)
* Learn how to rollerskate
* Learn scuba-diving or freediving
* Fly kites
* Go kitesurfing
* Juggling

== Creative activities ==
* Draw pictures
* Learn ceramics or throwing on a pottery wheel
* Learn to sculpture
* Learn photography
* Take a photo per day
* Edit photographs digitally (Photoshop)
* Publish artwork online (e.g. DeviantArt.com)
* Learn a musical instrument
* Join a band and jam
* Improve your singing and learn new songs
* Write your own songs
* Paint your own wall art
* Study interior design
* Write a book, blog, or play
* Create a comic book
* Knit
* Crochet
* Needlepoint
* Design and make clothes
* Make a quilt
* Write a memoir
* Record some memories and anecdotes from elders in the community
* Host a podcast
* Cultivate bonsai trees
* Create/improve your garden
* Try new recipes
* Write, produce and direct a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primer_(film) film]
* Produce short movies, or vlog
* Start a Youtube channel based on your interests
* Woodworking/carpentry
* Wood carving

==Social Activities==
* Spend more time with family and friends
* Meet my working friends at their jobs on weekdays with a picnic lunch
* Throw more parties
* Write more letters
* Join a book club
* Volunteer to do social activities with other people 
* Find a partner 
* Join a club (for example a chess club)
* Host [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CouchSurfing couchsurfers]

==Spiritual Activities==
* Meditate
* Attain enlightenment
* Make a pilgrimage
* Help other people (volunteer)

==Intellectual Activities==
* Read the classics
* Sit in on college lectures and audit classes
* Learn a new language; travel to where it's spoken
* Get a PhD
* Offer free help to a scholar working on an interesting subject
* Play chess
* Play Go
* Work crossword and other puzzles; create puzzles

== Second Careers/Volunteering/Semi-Retirement ==
* Volunteer at the library
* Go into politics
* Become a mentor for start-up entrepreneurs
* Develop open source software
* Become a visiting professor
* Open a bar
* Open a coffeeshop
* Become a tour guide for your favorite place
* Drive the SAG wagon for amateur cyclists
* Become an activist for a cause you care about
* Become a movie star or an extra
* Join the road crew of your favorite band
* Tutor students
* Teach English (or other language) abroad
* Volunteer at an animal shelter:
**Walking dogs
**Socializing cats
**Cleaning cages
* Sell your crafts on Etsy
* Become a quant trader/researcher

== Other ==
* Make a [[bucket list]] and start doing all the things on it
* Make bird houses
* Become a master gardener
* Become an expert Starcraft player
* [[Sailing | Sail]], backpack, walk[http://www.odysseyxxi.com/] or cycle around the world[http://downtheroad.org/]
* Enter ham radio competitions (contact every state, etc.)
* Read trashy novels
* Have a lot of sex while your body is still in full working order
* Fix up cars or motorcycles
* Build a boat
* Build a log cabin
* Research your family tree
* Watch birds
* [[Amateur astronomy]]
* Finally get adequate sleep
* Become as healthy as possible
* Build the Gingery series, a metal working workshop from scratch[http://www.gingerybookstore.com/]
* Keep the house cleaner (ambiguous phrasing :-D )
* Save the world
* Rebuild civilization from scratch
* Live very well without money for a year
* Go to the top of a high building and throw away $100.000
* Burn $100.000 on a public place
* Spend the last day in the job speaking all the truth to clients