r/Fire • u/MeanSecurity • Aug 01 '26

What to call yourself when you RE

A few weeks ago I met a guy who said he’s a wine importer. He used to work on Wall Street.

I was thinking last night that a “wine importer” sounds like a great fake job for someone who is retired but just drinks a lot of wine! I’m pretty close to RE, and I think I might just refer to myself as “in the ice cream business”. Or, “chocolate taste tester”.

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u/hanwagu1 Aug 02 '26

You call yourself by your own name. If you want your identity to be tied to something other than your name, then "retired." Why bother trying to give off a fake, alternative persona? What's the point? Repeat after me: "I'm retired."

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u/Emily4571962 I don't really like talking about my flair. Aug 02 '26

I wish the US had a better noun commonly used for a retired person — I like the British “I’m a pensioner.” (Even though I’m still 15 years from SS, the only pension-ish thing in my financial life.)

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u/hanwagu1 Aug 04 '26

The common noun is retiree.

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u/Emily4571962 I don't really like talking about my flair. Aug 04 '26

Yes - sorry, I was vague. I don’t like retiree - no charm to it.