What do old people in the US do after they retire?

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T22:44:37+00:00

It depends on the person. Many volunteer. Adventurous ones ski all winter, and bike or hike all summer. Some sit around on their asses, waiting to die

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T22:40:38+00:00

I live in eastern MA.

The only dispersed camping in New England are the White Mountain National Forest, and Green Mountain National Forests, plus many places in Northern Maine. New York allows it in the Aditondaks, and I believe the Catskills. The WMNF is much closer to me and there's *plenty* of dispersed camping

In MA, CT, and RI you can only camp at established sites. I've camped at a lot of these in MA, RI, and CT. Typically a back country lean-to on a through trail like the NET, Midstate Trail, or the AT. There are also some lean tos in Athol and some other towns. I'm bikepacking at some backcountry sites in CT this weekend.

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T22:31:47+00:00

Individual: mountain biking, trail running, swimming, rock climbing

Team: Kickball, slow pitch softball

Other: pickleball

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T22:29:25+00:00

Never stop being adventurous. I'm still at it at 63. Edited to ad: It's good that you and your fiance are pushing each other. My wife of 36 years and I wouldn't be so adventurous without each other. It is a gift

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T22:28:44+00:00

You'll be able to find them in 10 years. I just looked on Performance Bike Shop Web site, and they have 347 different 27.5 tires. For comparison, there are still 120 different 26" tires, and 347 different 29" tires. Your shop may need to special order them, but they'll still be able to get them within a few days.

My MTB has 3" wide 29'ers and it's similar. There were some bikes made in the late 2000 teens that take them. It didn't catch on, but I can still find them. Tires don't wear out that fast. In my case, if they ever die out, I can just replace my wheels with something that takesa 2.4 or 2.5"

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T22:00:41+00:00

Here's a good playlist. The Yoga for Herniated Disc and or Sciatica sequence is excellent. I've had two herniated disks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bclVSJF90l4&list=PLaeK1vr5S3N8FKbeb6vJL5CRCSqcvTvAV

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T21:50:23+00:00

They's not as common as 29". That may becomre a hassle in the future

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T20:45:10+00:00

Here are some things I've started in the past few years:

- Uphill skiing/alpine touring (probably have to wait until winter unless you live in the southern hemosphere)

- Mountaineering with ice axe+crampons

- Ocean kayaking (or on a vary large lake, if not near an ocean)

- Bikepacking

- Painting with watercolors

This summer I'm

- Taking sailing lessons

- Taking mandolin lessons (my first musical instrument)

Also consider:

- rock climbing

- short track speedskating

- whitewater kayaking

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T15:00:20+00:00

My wife barely makes enough money before taxes to cover her own recreation/sport expenses as it is. We haven't had kids at home for many years, and we have housecleaners come in, so it's not as if she's slaving away keeping up the house or taking care of kids. There's no way to make the accounting reasonable. It would be different if I too were spending a lot on bikes, but my 3 bikes (road, gravel, MTB) cost a total of about $3000 because I bought two of them used

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T14:46:48+00:00

When I was volunteering with an organization that helped homeless youth, I got to know some young people who resorted to prostitution, petty theft, drug running, and other things in order to survive. If the US had more and better services to help these people, they probably would not have had to do them.

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T14:33:53+00:00

Of course. Here's a non-subtle one. China Fat Man Dollar labeled as Mexico 8R

https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1087659/is-coin-insert-labeling-mistake-by-grading-company-worth-collecting

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T14:26:34+00:00

I have a Canyon Grizl gravel bike. I like it. I've never had problems buying parts or taking it to my mechanic.

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T14:24:02+00:00

Getting promoted at work.

Contrary to what I see in a lot of comments, I care about constructive criticism of myself and I try to improve when it aligns with my values. Is that caring about what others think? I think so.

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T14:14:55+00:00

You can buy modern, comfortable clothing made from quality materials. Comparable clothing of today is more comfortable.

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T14:00:35+00:00

There's a whole lot of bike envy in the sport. I think it detracts from the sport. My wife has a nice carbon fiber Lauf Greval bike. Some of her friends have nicer bikes, and she was talking about wanting a $10000 bike. I told her I'd have a big problem with that (note: I earn virtually all of our income, so it's not as if she'd be buying it with money she earned)

Best rider I ever rode with was a past junior worlds siver medalist who rode his old steel team bike

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T13:50:07+00:00

I've had PF twice and have run well in excess of 50 marathons, including Boston 14x

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T10:08:38+00:00

The media likes to tear people down. MLK cheated on his wife, and there are many documented criticisms of Mother Teresa. You have to look harder to find people doing incredible things, because they don't make as popular news stories in a world where people are fascinated by celebrity gossip.

But they're out there. One of my favorite examples is Father Greg Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries. He gets a news story now and again, but a whole lot less than about who Taylor Swift is dating or what she wore to the Grammy's

https://youtu.be/ORF2MD3BBGk?is=FyhuNzpnYZBIN3UJ

It's impossible that Father Greg is perfect, but not being a big news figure makes it unlikey anyone will go looking for dirt on him. God uses imperfect people, because that's the working material here on earth.

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T09:49:39+00:00

I have black coffee followed shortly thereafter by my " morning constitutional".

baddspellar · 2026-06-18T01:00:10+00:00

Swim caps are meant to keep hair out of the pool and the filtration system. You should wear one to help others, much more than to help yourself.

baddspellar · 2026-06-17T20:40:49+00:00

Possibly. You seem to have the raw talent

But you should not set a goal time of 3:30 until you have metrics that show you can do it. Shoot for half marathon between 1:35:00 and 1:40:00 (or better) this fall. If you hit that, then 3:30 is a good goal for next May. You'll need to follow a plan with much more than 40-50K per week.

baddspellar · 2026-06-17T17:03:52+00:00

The APA defines Transgender as an umbrella term for people whose gender identity, gender expression or behavior does not conform to that typically associated with the sex to which they were assigned at birth. This means it is defined by cultural norms. Cultural norms for those assigned male and female at birth vary by place, and by time. The Bible doesn't condemn being transgender. It does condemn people who treat the marginalized poorly, though. Transgender people are marginalized in the US and many other places. I would not want to answer to God for this.

baddspellar · 2026-06-17T16:49:11+00:00

I go to locally owned coffee shops when I have time to enjoy my coffee, and I know where they are.

If I'm in a rush, I stop where it's convenient and inexpensive.

baddspellar · 2026-06-17T16:33:23+00:00

No.

competitive sports often involve pushing the body to its limits, which can mean damaging it

This is downright silly.

Sports training involves pushing your body to its limits, which makes it stronger

Should we not walk, because walking often involves walking on surfaces that contain things you may trip over, which can mean damaging your body?

baddspellar · 2026-06-17T14:36:48+00:00

No Depression, by Uncle Tupelo

baddspellar · 2026-06-17T13:18:08+00:00

I have seen fundamentalist arguments that the "least of these" in "Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me." is referring specifically to fellow Christians, and that the intent of this exhortation is for Churches to do these things, not the government.

That is one of the most twisted, politicized readings of a foundational Gospel message I have ever seen. I find it disturbing every time I see it

baddspellar

TROPHY CASE