PORTLAND: After a lifetime of working hard, pensioners deserve to raise a toast to retirement.
And these days they’re doing just that – enjoying a daily tipple at 6.30pm.
Some prefer to crack open a bottle a little earlier, around 4pm, but others can’t even wait that long… and say cheers with their first glass at lunchtime.
With such a relaxed start to the day, it’s no wonder that a poll of retirees aged 60 and over found 94 per cent are enjoying their post-work life, while half said they are having more fun than ever before.
Improvements in healthcare and living standards mean that these days pensioners have the energy to manage a hectic social diary, buoyed up by an average disposable income of $480 a month, which allows them to go on three holidays, two weekends away and 17 day trips a year.
The survey found that 6.30pm is retirees’ favorite time to enjoy a tipple or two. A third of those polled said they drink alcohol between 6pm and 7pm, while one in ten prefer a late afternoon drink between 4pm and 5pm, and a hardy one in 20 kick off their socializing between 1pm and 3pm.
More than half said they drink wine, while the rest opt for spirits or beer.
The study also showed that most pensioners eat out three times a month, but one in ten do so more than twice a week.
This is despite family commitments, with retirees dedicating an average of six hours a week to looking after their grandchildren…