Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Money & Business

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4: Your MARRIAGE may profit from a little less togetherness

By Renuka Rayasam

Posted 6/4/06

Page 2 of 2

Travel also helps keeps retirement relationships strong. Tom and Bonnie Tappan of Anderson, Ind., took a 4 1 _/2-month hike on the Appalachian Trail when Bonnie, 60, quit her sales job at Russ Berrie, a novelty and gift company. Tom, 64, was itching to travel when he retired from General Motors after 30 years. The Tappans decided to join the Peace Corps, landing in Honduras for 27 months. "Plan something outside the normal realm to adjust to being together," suggests Bonnie.

Many successful couples have also figured out that the key to staying close is keeping some distance. Within the past year, Sheila Strauss talked her husband into joining a local historical society on his own. Judy Bordwell began taking classes at nearby Northwestern University, restarted piano lessons, and began volunteering as an election judge and on political campaigns. Husband Pete works out at a fitness club and takes half a day every week to volunteer in guest relations at the Lincoln Park Zoo.

Illustration by James Steinberg for USN&WR

While the Bordwells still like going to the symphony and traveling together, having an escape where each maintains a separate identity helps keep the relationship fresh. Like many couples, they've figured out that their careers may have ended, but the work of married life never stops.