12 Seniors Who Still Clock In: a Rookie Taken for the Boss, a 91-Year-Old at 5:30 A.M.

My mother lasted three weeks of retirement before she signed up for pottery, and her favorite classmate is a 78-year-old who works Saturdays at a hardware store. She says she took the job for the conversation and stayed because she now knows where every screw lives. These 12 people went back to the workplace long after retirement age, and their coworkers are not complaining.

1. Starting a New Job Sure She’d Make No Friends, Then Meeting Her 80-Year-Old Colleague.

Annie started a new job convinced there would be no friends there. Then came the 80-year-old colleague. The two now have their own routine in the office: one starts dancing by the lockers, and the other joins in a few steps later with exactly the same moves.

“me starting my job thinking I’ll make no friends”

2. Living in Hawaii for a Year, a Retiree Became a TV Extra: a Patient, a Professor and a Family Member on a Battleship.

When we were living in Hawaii for a year, I worked a day or two every week as an extra on [two TV crime dramas]. After 6 weeks, I became eligible to join [the actors’ union].

I don’t have any tattoos, so I was very popular to get selected for all kinds of parts. I was a hospital patient, a professor at U of Hawaii campus, a restaurant patron at the resorts, an agent on beaches, a family member on the USS Missouri.

It’s a fun way to meet people and see the island.

3. After 5 Years Off, a Former Tech Project Manager Took a Cashier Job at a University Dining Hall.

I took a simple part time job after about 5 years off. Previously I did a lot of project management and some electro-mechanical design in various tech companies. I wanted something non-stress for socialization.

For the last 2 years I’ve been working at a small dining hall at the athletic center of a university. I help set up and cashier about 20 hours a week. I chat with students, get free food and it’s 1/2 mile from my house. I have 3 day weekends and have spring break and winter breaks off plus minimal hours in the summer as I like to hike and bike a lot. It’s been fun.

4. An Angry Customer Took a Semi-Retired Trainee for the Manager, and Her College-Age Trainer Had the Perfect Reply.

“Customer assumed age meant seniority”

I was on registers preparing to monitor a new employee. It’s her last day of training, so I just mainly stand there and make sure she’s all good.

I get a customer who wants a manager because I told her the coupon wouldn’t work. I have a new customer step up and he’s just giving me the sympathy look. While I’m checking him out our newest employee comes up to registers. The angry lady beelines over to her and starts complaining.

Here’s an important detail — I’m in college but have been there over two years but our new employee is semi retired. This meant the customer thought she was in charge.

I’m finishing with my customer and preparing to go over and explain what’s going on to both of them when the customer’s girlfriend came over and told me that the customer was saying I was only refusing because I was lazy and didn’t want to, and that I shouldn’t work there then.

I handed the man his receipt, looked at the girlfriend, shrugged and said, “She’s newer than me.” The guy burst out laughing and that boosted my mood.

I asked how it went and she told me that she was not sure why the customer wanted her, but she said she heard the story and said the same thing I did, and complimented me and the customer was fine with not getting the discount from her.

5. A 22-Year-Old Receptionist and Her 75-Year-Old “Work Grandma” Run the Clinic’s Front Desk Together.

At this clinic, the front desk runs on a 53-year age gap: a 22-year-old receptionist and her 75-year-old coworker, whom she calls her work grandma. The two spend their shifts trading jokes about it, and the older one usually wins: told someone here is in their 20s, she shoots back, “Yeah, 1920.”

“POV: You’re 22 and your coworker is 75”

6. A Retiree’s Fourth Part-Time Job Is in a Hardware Store’s Doors and Windows Department, With 12 More Dream Jobs on the List.

I took a part time job at a hardware store, and I like it. I’m learning all sorts of interesting things, and at the end of the shift, I just put my togs in the locker and it’s out of my mind completely.

When that’s done, I’ll move on to something else. There are so many options: Segway city tour guide, installing art in new hotels, tutoring, pie making, concierge, front desk receptionist, corporate plant waterer, grocery bagger, bike mechanic.

I have a list I’m working through. I’m on my fourth part time job, retired a couple years.

Working in the doors and windows department at a hardware store, tutoring HS kids in math and science, pie baker at a diner, parts runner for auto repair shops, flower arranger at a florist, art installer at new and refurbished hotels, plant caretaker at corporate office buildings, Segway tour guide for city tours (dream job), usher at performance hall, intern librarian, test bench technician at local space probe company, set builder for local theater company.

So. Many. Cool. Things.

7. A Grandfather Who Dreamed of Being a Florist When Men Weren’t Supposed to Is Still Arranging Flowers in the Family Business.

Back when he was young, men weren’t really supposed to work with flowers, and becoming a florist was his dream anyway. He believed in himself and became one of Sweden’s best florists. Today the whole family works with flowers, and he is still a big part of the family business, arranging stems at the table.

“my grandfather is a big part of our family business!”

8. A Job at Her Favorite Grocery Store Was Meant to Be Temporary, Until She Realized “Happiness Is Attainable”.

Got a job at my favorite grocery store. I get 20% off my groceries.

I meet interesting people all day and get to share recipes. I work with energized people who get me to work harder to keep up with them. I don’t do the same thing for more than an hour.

I was going to stay temporarily until I could get a job in my field, but realized my eyesight improved without staring at a computer all day AND I get in a tremendous amount of steps and activity. No gym needed.

Realized happiness is attainable.

9. A Retiree Became a Walking Tour Guide in Their Own City and Researches Every Historical Date for the Tours.

I became a tour guide in my city after retiring. I work minimally, about once a week or so, although lately I’ve had daily tours scheduled. It checks all my boxes for a part time gig.

I develop the tours myself so I get to research historical dates and places. It’s a walking tour so I’m outdoors getting exercise. I meet people from all over who are genuinely interested in history. Most of all it’s just fun!

I also worked for a company that provided indoor gardening services and activities to nursing homes. That was also fun and creative. Sadly, they closed.

10. An Estate Gardener of 16 Years Now Waters Plants at a Garden Center and Calls It “My Garden Away From Home”.

I worked as an estate gardener for 16 years then was downsized when the plantation went on the market to be sold. Since then I’ve worked as a tax preparer and at the garden center of a home improvement store. Working the two jobs became tiresome, so I let the tax prep go.

I love working at the garden center. My main job is watering the plants. I call it my garden away from home. I enjoy chatting with customers and co-workers too. Granted, retail is not the greatest job, but the company I work for seems fairly relaxed.

11. The New Front Desk Greeter at a Nonprofit Gym Turned Out to Be Its First Responder Too.

I thought it would be fun and stimulating to work at the front desk of our local nonprofit gym. I’d previously experienced greeters and such at the front desk, and thought this is perfect!

I was hired and the job includes: greeting members; data entry for new members, changes of membership, freezing of membership, cancellations, and two programs for insurance memberships; reserving courts and classes; sign up for camps, personal trainers, and swim classes; and the most challenging, being first responder to any injuries or emergencies.

I’ve done it for 1 year and 6 months. Lots of synapses between my neurons must be healthy.

12. Lawrence Krug Turned 91 at Work: He Still Clocks In Once a Week at 5:30 A.M..

Lawrence Krug was born on December 28, 1931, and on his 91st birthday he still came in to work. He works one day a week now and gets there at about 5:30 in the morning. Asked on camera how old he was turning, he said “ninety-one,” and then reported the important part: “I got one pallet done.”

“Always looked up to my grandfather, he’s just awesome.”

Lawrence Krug has been clocking in since long before most of his coworkers were born, and on his 91st birthday he still finished a pallet. None of the people on this list went back for the paycheck. They went back for the people, the routine and one more thing to learn.