Ok, starting to get heebie-Jeebies worried about perpetual boredom. Especially living in tiny apartment waiting for house to be built.

One small project is to perfect a sous vide cooking system without using a fancy-dancy dedicated machine. I'd like to use a slow cooker or electric roasting oven without having to continuously monitor the water temps do to sloppy controls.

Solution: An in-line thermostat to feed through the appliance's controls that turns it off and on a much narrower band of water temperature.

Question: does such a thermostat exist as a mass produced consumer item? or would I be locked into a scientific/labratory device? That, of course would defeat my entire project definition.

Model RR layout...keep.you busy for decades.

Electronics...Scenery...wiring...weathering rolling stock... possibilities are endless

KATS tank type engine block heaters do this, give me some time to think about I may come up with something.

Between hunting, fishing, trapping, hiking and staying busy at the ranch doing improvement I don't have time for much else. I log just over 300 days a year in the outdoors since I got out of the harness 8 years ago. I ER at 57 to do all the things I want to at any time I want too.

There is another world awaiting you once you are a free man. Retirement isn't the end but the start of a new journey. Most people are afraid to retire that I know. They think there is no one else that can do their job better and they just can't give up their status of who they are, and their job/title defines who they are. I never needed that security in my job to be my identity. I will say I loved my career and loved my job, so it was a tough choice but a good one as I look back.

I wish you well, but if you get bored with life after retiring than that is your fault. I'm glad you are trying to retire to something and not just retiring. Most make that mistake IMO.

Good Luck!!

Here's some different options.

https://www.mcmaster.com/products/thermostats/

Thanks Nessmuck, but I'd rather watch sourdough rise.

Thanks, snowy. Yip, I know that if I get bored it IS my fault. I am a total failure at retirement. tried it at least three times and failed at each. Done all the things you mentioned, (less ranch work) but still needed some additional stimulation. That's what I'm trying to line up now.

Thanks, Bob. I went through all the Mcmaster Carr offerings you sent, and found one that should work fine. It's a bit more cumbersome and expensive than what I had hoped It kinda falls into that scientific catagory, but, an excellent starting point.

Thermostat

I believe there are people that should stay in the harness till they drop. Some will never find their way without the security of their work they have done in life. They will never be happy not working and work has been their whole life and really never had a life. Being creative and having a desire for other things in life, some just don't have that mind set, because they have become institutionalized from their working career.

Good Luck but you may want to stay working if that is where you are the happiest and nothing wrong with that.

This time "retirement is not really a choice. I am being "forced" out of my property by a developer with "an offer you can't refuse". I took that to be an opportunity to escape the communist state of Tim Jung Walz. My job never has been my identity. And, while it is likely I will again end up with some regularly scheduled gig, it likely will be nothing like what I've done in the past. That has more to do with my need of adventure than institutionalization.

lots of options
https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Itc-...O2C3hvQbLNteJjTEENsClK7O0-hoCZBwQAvD_BwE

this one goes from -58 to +248 F if you set your roaster to high , plugged it in to a device like this then set power on at 135 and power off at 140 you would have a 10 degree window to keep your cooking happening in

Fancy way of boiling in a bag !!! My granny did that when I was a kid. But post it on facebook and it's the wheel reinvented and the best thing that ever happened.
Why doesn't a vacuum sealer and a stock pot full of water on a gas stove not cook just as well...???
Asking for a friend..LOL

I hope you find your way and all the hobbies in the world to keep you happy. That is number one thing IMO being HAPPY and CONTENT with life.

I'm not saying any of the scenarios I gave are you but a lot fall into those areas and make it very difficult for people to retire and enjoy life. Most won't admit to those reasons or want to talk about them but in actuality those are some of the reasons why people can't walk away from their career.

GREENCOUNTYPETE, That is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you.

You are correct, exactly the same cooking principal. The difference is the time spent monitoring the process

consider volunteer opportunities or part time jobs

my mother in law volunteered at Overture center in Madison for a long time she loved seeing the shows so she walked people to their seats with her little flashlight then as the show starts she can grab a folding chair and sit at the entry exit point where they have the handicapped area for wheel chairs.

was also a big fan of UW sports and did some similar ushering actually worked security for some games as a paid gig


my dad fishes a fair amount for his retirement , in the summer it is 3-4 days a week and he has a day he spends working on projects around the church , a group of guys meet up at church about 8 work till noon then go out for lunch.
for several years after he retired he was the treasure for his fishing club which doesn't sound huge but they ran a large fishing tournament every year it ended up being a lot of receipts.

When my old scoutmaster retired from working for the state he joined a gym I talked to his son about a year after he retired.
Said his dad was back to the same weight he was at when he left for Vietnam in 1968.
work out and socialize with all the other retirees at the gym in town

Metal detecting can take up some of your time. Go out for an hour, and before you know it, it's 3 hrs later. Pocket the coins, give your wife the jewelry, and research the interesting junk you find.

I've been metal detecting since i was 16. A long time ago. I still do it regularly. It is a great hobby but it is almost as much work as trapping and one of the few hobbies that you have a chance to actually pocket some change. If you live near one of the coasts, thats where the big money finds are with the gold jewelry. I don't have that option but i do find a lot of civil war, some rev. war items and every kind of coin imaginable. Good luck on whatever you choose.

My daughters friends father was bored in retirement, never was one for hobbies. He got a part time job driving bodies, dead ones, to various facilities for cremation, medical research etc.... he loves it!
Probably not most folks cup of tea but somebody has to do it.....

You know yourself better than any of us do. You also probably know what things will be more satisfiing for you emotionally, physically and mentally. Finding enjoyable ways to consume time or give you fullfillment is not nearly as difficult as you may think it is. I spent abouy 8 months after my first retirement with every day being "Saturday" but then found even more volunteer organizations to work with then I did while working and also found part time work. Having moved from home a 14 and working every day and year since I found not doing something that seemed productive was not satisfying as I thought. I "squeezed in a lot of volunteer work and hobbies while working and still do. The neat thing about today as I don't keep track of days or time. Nothing is really work when you are enjoying what you do. The harder part is convincing ones spouse that being busy is not a bad thing!

Bryce

My only regret about retirement is that I didn't do it sooner.
I have so many things to do that I never had time for when I was working. I made a list. I'll probably be dead or dead tired before I ever complete all the tasks on it.