I was let go from my last full time permanent job when I was 66 and 3 months (2023). I was eligible for full Social Security at 66 and 6 months. But I still wanted to work, so I applied for jobs. Actually, I was hired for 4 different jobs over the next 2.5 years. I even moved from Texas to New Mexico for one. But for one reason or another, none lasted more than 3 months. The unemployment benefits ran out and I started taking Social Security. My credit card balances started getting bigger. Finally, I threw in the towel last December and moved to an apartment I could afford on just my SS. I'm done looking. People just don't want to hire 69 year old fat women with gray hair and bad knees. I'm focusing on my mental and physical health for AT LEAST 6 months.
I'm selling my car, which I hardly use now, so I can pay back the money my brother loaned me to make the deposits and move. I'll be able to buy a "beater" or just go without for a while and put a few thousand in the bank for emergencies. I'm filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy to dispose my credit card debt.
Before I was let go from that job I was debt free and had a 750 credit score. I got my first full time job 51 years ago. Now I'm 69 & 4 months. My mother died at 69 & 6 months. I was her care giver for the last 10 years of her life, from when I was 37 to 47. I never married or had children. My brother plans on moving to Mexico when he retires in 2 years. He has a nice house that's mostly paid for and a much better pension than my $1,924 a month SS.
So I'm going to buy a vehicle I can sleep in and hit the road. I'll be damned if I don't at least see some of the U.S. before I kick the bucket. Unlike my mother, I hope to celebrate my 70th birthday. Beyond that, who knows? Her sister made it to 96!
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