What Was Your First Big Purchase After Separating or Retiring?

A home where we raised our 2 children that were born while on active duty.

A new (to me) lime green 1974 Volkswagen Beetle

New Home

I bought a SawStop table saw for my woodshed when I retired.

A car

After returning from Vietnam and out of the service I purchased a 1969 Chevy Impala with a three barrel carburetor. I don’t remember the displacement or horsepower. I believe the cost was $2800.

I bought a pair of very comfortable Clarks brown and black dress shoes, and a nice sports coat.

My first big purchase was a flight ticket to go to Puerto Rico with my son (10 months at the time). He was able to meet three of his great-grandparents. It was the best investment and well deserved vacation.

Buying a truck.

When we retired from the Air Force in November of 1977, we moved from Bellevue, Nebraska, Offutt AFB, to New Hampton, New Hampshire. There we purchased a 1790s era home which had once been a tavern and the first post office in the area. Due to a divorce by the previous owners, it had been undergoing a modernization - but we restored the old house to its previous glory and saved it from a terrible fate. The Olde Kelley Tavern.