Now that I'm on the wrong side of 40, and the years officially go by like seasons, I often find myself nervously thinking about retirement.
You know, simple, everyday worries like what am I going to do for money, will I have enough saved, and, most terrifying of all, will I be writing this website forever?!?
Although I worry and think about retirement stuff probably too much for a 47-year-old – "Live in the now, Patrick!" – one thing I rarely think about is where I'll retire. I was born in this state, grew up in this state, and – thanks to familial obligations and general laziness – will likely retire and die in this state. Sad story, huh?
Well, at least that's what I always thought.
WalletHub recently released a clickbait ranking of the best and worst states to retire in, and I may have to find somewhere better to grow old(er) and die:
Yep, out of all fifty nifty of our United States, Oklahoma is the second-worst place to retire.
I guess that's not surprising.
We're usually in the Bottom 10 of any state ranking that doesn't involve teenage pregnancy, but come on, it can't be that bad of a place to be put out to pasture.
Sure, there's not a ton of stuff to do, healthcare access is poor, and the weather's kind of manic, but it doesn't cost a lot to live here, and based on my experience, old people on Social Security really love that! Did the geniuses at WalletHub consider that important fact?
Oh. We're number one in cost of living… and still finished 49th. How's that even possible? That's the number one thing seniors care about. It would be like leading the league in points and still having the worst record! I demand a recount!
Anyway, if you're into this stuff, you can read the full WalletHub report to see where your dream retirement place ranked.
In the meantime, it will be interesting to see what Governor Stitt does to address this latest Bottom 10 ranking. Will he direct the Tourism Department to start installing shuffleboard courts at all state parks, or turn Lake Hefner into one giant retirement village? Knowing him like we do, he'll probably just hit up all retirees for reverse mortgages and drop us to 50th.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We'll keep you advised.
