"I draw Social Security checks, but it goes right into the bank," he says, as does a small pension from his decade at Hilton Hotels Corp. "I'm not dependent on it right now, but who knows what the future brings? It's my nest egg. When I was younger, I wasn't the saving type."
Gumbert's current soapbox is the future of Social Security and the legislators he blames for poking holes in that safety net. He thinks everyone should see Michael Moore's "Sicko," an eye-opener about the state of the American healthcare system. He is an ardent fan of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.
"I'm scared to retire," he says after weighing bamboo's eco-friendly attributes against the ease with which it can be scratched for a well-tanned man in a Hawaiian shirt. "I like to travel; I couldn't afford to.
"Eventually I think I'll have to retire," Gumbert acknowledges. "When I'm 90 I don't think I'll be selling flooring. But why not? You never know. At least I don't feel my age."
Gumbert and Deal -- the 72-year-old former electrical engineer -- are walking, hawking proof of another sobering statistic.
In a separate study scheduled for release later this year, the Urban Institute found that 43% of people working full time in their early 50s will change jobs before their late 60s. More than a quarter of those fiftysomething full-time workers will enter a new occupation. Nearly one in four will be laid off.
"Older people really need to prepare for a work life of change," said Richard Johnson, a principal researcher on both studies. "There's a real strong possibility that you'll lose your job, and you're going to have to go out and find another one."
That's exactly what happened to Deal, a slender man with bright blue eyes who worries that he will last longer than his savings. The former engineer worked for various software companies in the Silicon Valley. One went bankrupt and was bought out by another, then that one got into serious trouble.
"I was actually let go with the reduction in force," Deal said. "I was in my 60s. I went out on unemployment. I put out 100 or more resumes. Most people want to hire some young kid out of school so they can pay them next to nothing. I gave up after I ran out of unemployment."
He went to work with his son, an electrician, and hired on at Home Depot about nearly a year ago. Deal works 16 to 32 hours a week. He wishes the pay were better -- he earns a little over the minimum wage -- but he'll keep at it "until I really can't push myself."
