Author's note: About me -- Preface: You know her -- Lost, ashamed, and shell-shocked -- Old-school wisdom from an elderly Black woman -- Shock and awe: you call this retirement? -- After a lifetime of work, how did we land here? -- Grabbing denial by the lapels -- Smalling up: rethinking limits, lack, and deprivation -- Circling the drain -- Borrowing money from family and friends -- The changing world of work -- Thinking outside the box [overstruck] country -- Retirement security requires housing security -- Strategic responses to housing -- Conclusion.