School and Community Fall 2022

The grass isn’t always greener... BY MICHELLE TURNER, RETIRED MEMBER T he grass isn’t always greener on the other side. It’s such a cliche but, like with most cliches, there is a big kernel of truth in those words! I have to confess that when it comes to my choice to take the early and reduced retirement after 25 years as a public school teacher in Missouri, the grass hasn’t necessarily been greener on the other side. Now that I have spent a full school year out of the classroom, I get a chuckle out of what I thought my life would be like versus the reality of it. I really did buy into the myth that once I left the land of full-time employment, my life would be radically improved. Less stress and more free time were within my reach! However, those weekly lunch dates with old friends and extra time to take care of “me” never really seemed to come to fruition. All those mental images of how I’d finally drop the pounds I packed on by stress eating have been replaced with the image of the same old me in the mirror. Is my blood pressure down? Sure! But looking back is the reflection of a woman who just swapped out one form of stress for another. So, my MSTA friends, as a woman who has sat where you are sitting, consider this a “cautionary tale” of the things I didn’t see coming when I was in your seat seeing that, technically, I could retire early and not wait for that magical Rule of 80. Inflation, anyone? One thing that certainly isn’t greener on the other side of my retirement is how fast that monthly check goes out the window. I not only sat through the retirement planning offered by PSRS/PEERS, I also met with three different financial planners before I made the decision to retire. Three. Sadly, not one of them had a crystal ball to paint the true picture of what my first year of retirement would look like. Little did I know that from May 2021 to May 2022

the Consumer Price Index was going to experience the biggest 12-month increase since 1981. And, as if that wasn’t enough, June 2022 would see inflation soar to 9.1%. From groceries to gas and every little thing in between, any budget I had planned was obliterated. Because of this, one of my new retirement hobbies has been figuring out how to make my dollars stretch further. I learned how to cut coupons and use cash back apps. Upside, Ibotta, and Fetch have all been helpful. I have also taken online surveys to get discounts or gift cards to offset soaring prices at the checkout lane and gas pump. I gotta be straight with anyone pondering an early retirement. You SHOULD meet with multiple financial planners to take and compare notes. However, be prepared for a scenario like I have faced that was never put on the table. Now, you might think to yourself, “Doesn’t PSRS/ PEERS grant cost-of-living adjustments when the Consumer Price Index is that high? Didn’t her monthly retirement check go up?” Brace yourselves, folks. Yes, on October 25, 2021, the PSRS/PEERS Board voted to give retirees a 5% cost-of living adjustment that started in 2022. However, that didn’t apply to me because I technically hadn’t been retired a full year. I was super excited when I saw that 5% increase had been agreed upon but - just like a balloon deflates under extreme pressure - my mood dropped fast when I realized it had no impact upon me in 2022. “Your Time Is Not Your Time” Only one of my recently-retired friends warned me, “Your time is not your time, Michelle.” I remember her saying that and not totally grasping what she meant until I found myself living it. Listen, I know that as a full-time teacher you feel pressed for time. I was there for 25 years and I fully understand how there never seems to be enough hours in the day. When I signed those forms and stepped into the

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