90 Minute Evolution

My wife and I had an early dinner recently. I joked that we’ll be eating dinner earlier when we’re both retired. But that’s true, isn’t it? Retired people eat dinner earlier. So, do they eat lunch earlier too? I don’t think so. Why not? What about breakfast? Do they eat breakfast earlier? I’ve never heard that, have you? If they eat dinner at, say, 4:30, aren’t they hungry again at like 8:30? How’s that work? And aren’t these early retiree diners showing up at restaurants during happy hour? How’s that work? So many questions and so few answers…

I read somewhere that retirees eat dinner, on average, about 90 minutes before the rest of us. But there’s one bit of information I can’t find anywhere and it’s this: Does the 90 minute evolution happen all at once when you retire? Or do people in their 70’s eat at, say, 5PM but gradually move up dinner time to 4PM in their 90’s?

To get that answer, I’ve been asking senior types how old they are when I see them coming out of restaurants. My wife hates it when I do that…