| It wasn't all that long ago when retirement was | | | | Now you have a plethora of places from which to |
| pretty simple. You quit working and took up hobbies | | | | choose to live and many are in your own city. You |
| or helped raise the grand children. Your hobbies | | | | don't have to move to Arizona to find a Sun City |
| helped pass the time. If you were good at saving | | | | type of environment. You have what is now called |
| your money you probably had enough to do some | | | | independent retirement living and used to be just |
| traveling. There are people at both ends of the | | | | moving to a place that was mainly for older people. |
| spectrum in retirement that either had lots of funds | | | | Now the communities have age restrictions and you |
| and money was no object that hindered what you | | | | can't live in these neighborhoods unless you are old |
| wanted to do or there were those at the other end | | | | enough. There are no elementary schools in these |
| of the spectrum that really never retired due to | | | | neighborhoods. You won't find a day care facility for |
| having to work to live. The middle class though had it | | | | miles. You will find an assisted living in Illinois just like |
| alright. They could play golf, take up hobbies, be with | | | | you will In Arizona or Florida. Only these are for |
| the grand children, or just hang out and relax away | | | | seniors instead of youngsters. If you live on the |
| their days. There were some places to go and be a | | | | south side of Chicago and you need more than a little |
| snowbird if you wanted. There were the two major | | | | help you can go to a south Chicago hospital and get |
| places, Florida for those on the East coast and | | | | full service and there is no age requirement for that. |
| Arizona for those on the West. Some could afford to | | | | There are entire communities that have it all, from |
| go to California but Arizona was the place to go and | | | | independent living or put another way, adult |
| have dry heat if you lived west of the Mississippi. | | | | neighborhoods, to assisted living facilities in the same |
| Quite a few traveled to Mexico if they had the | | | | neighborhoods to full care facilities. It is convenient |
| interest in going international and living pretty well | | | | since as people age and get more dependent they |
| because the cost of living was pretty cheap in | | | | don't have to move far away from their loved ones. |
| Acapulco and Guadalajara. There were places to go if | | | | If they need special care for diseases such as |
| you needed to be taken care of and you didn't have | | | | Alzheimer's disease their loved ones won't have to |
| a family who could or would. There were referred to | | | | travel far to see them. With so many baby boomers |
| as old folk's homes, at least by those too young to | | | | reaching retirement age it was in the cards that |
| know better. | | | | things were going to change. |