Retirement is not on the horizon for most.
The reality of the work-until-you-die economy is setting in:
The Associated Press-LifeGoesStrong.com poll found a baby boom generation planning to work into retirement years — with 73 percent planning to work past retirement, up from 67 percent this spring.
A majority of boomers also are shaky about their nest eggs.
In all, 53 percent of boomers polled said they do not feel confident they'll be able to afford a comfortable retirement. That's up from 44 percent who were concerned about retirement finances in March.
There are a lot of factors here, of course. You've got people's retirement increasingly being linked directly to the ups and downs of stock market. You've got decades of stagnant wages with falling median income even post-recession. You've got the policy threat of proposed cuts to Social Security. You've got median wealth declining as the housing market sags and, again, retirement accounts suffer with the stock market. Many people have seen extended bouts of unemployment erode their retirement savings, too, even if they've been able to find work again.
All of this adds up to what the AP's poll and interviews found: People don't know when they'll be able to stop working at all, and the retirement that now seems likely, if it ever comes, doesn't look at all like the one they envisioned through their working lives. For the 99 percent, anyway. A few people will have gold-plated retirements.