Joe is retiring next week. Wednesday to be exact. My life will never be the same.
I used to look at people my age when I was in my twenties and think, "Well, their heading for the dirt nap." Now I'm there. I don't feel like I thought I would. I feel like I'm stuck at around 33. Then I walk by a shop window, see my reflection and shock myself. " Who the HELL is THAT!?" Or when I head back UP the hill I just came down and I'm gently reminded by my heart and lungs. Sigh.
Joe will have a lot of time on his hands. Like he has never had before. He has lived an amazing life and I can't imagine what this transition must feel like to him. He asked me today as we were looking around the yard, "What will I tell people I do when they ask?" Good question. He'll be working on that. Perhaps he'll spend more time collecting rocks. Joe is called the Rock Man around here. He loves rocks! He'll see a rock on the side of the road and we'll have to stop to collect it. See these? In the picture above? Yep, you guessed it. He seems connected to them like he used to be a rock. Except the pebbles. He got these at Home Depot and scattered them amongst his rock relatives.
It was a glorious morning. Look at the way the sun's light shines through the leaves of this wild violet. It spang from amongst Joe's rocks. It's quite at home here. I can't wait for it to bloom.Have a great week.
Love,
Ronnie
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13 comments:
I know what you mean. I thought at this point in my life (with 40 in the rear view mirror) that I would still be youthful, or at least aging well, and infinitely wise. Instead, I find myself saying, "I don't know," more than ever. And when I look at myself, I see my grandmother looking back.
Congratulations on retirement, Joe! Show us how it's done.
When my father-in-law retired, my mother-in-law went to work - immediately. She was almost 60 at the time & worked for 15 years.
Nowadays they bicker blissfully 1000 miles north of us.
Congrats to Joe - He's gonna be a Rock Star.
:D
Ronnie...the dirt nap?! Man, that cracked me up, I have never heard that saying!
Even though we are different ages I can relate because I will always feel 22-ish, haha, but then I will catch a glance at myself and realize that ain't so! Haha...
It was a great post :)
"Dirt Nap" is a new one. Never heard it before!
Retirement is a huge adjustment. You wait and dream about it and then.....now what. How about volunteer work? I am sure he has tons to offer:) My mom volunteers at the Emergency Dept of the hospital and loves it.
I know what you meant about that glimpse in the mirror, lol.
loving the rocking chairs.
you sure can capture the beauty in the little things in life.
thanks for the jamesfowlers spirituality stuff, i checked it out.
Please don't stop doing your own art .
I live two different lives ... my winter life is the opposite of my summer life [ because he is never home in the summer and ALWAYS home in the winter ]
ah ..... good luck
Tomorrow is Joe's retirement. It is a real milestone and one to be honoured and enjoyed.
Good for him Ronnie, and good for you too.
I laughed at your reflection and the who the hell is that. har har
Love Renee xoxo
I recommend "retirement" to anyone at any age. I was able to quit work much earlier than most, to devote my time to art. My DH work is home based also, and he thought I needed to be entertained constantly. Just let him ease into it and don't feel like you need to help him. I'm saying this lovingly and from experience, it's his retirement, not yours. This was the only stumbling block we had. all that being said, Congrats! Susan
ha ha ! so true, who is that person in the reflection!
Congrats to your hubby. That's really exciting.
You always crack me up. Your blog posts never fail to make me happy!
Boundaries were important for us.. and now he works for me. Ha!
I'm having a giveaway, are you feeling lucky?xxPJ
Thanks for all the advice and good wishes, ya'll! A whole lot of adjustments are in order!
The nice thing about retirement is you can still work but you can choose what to work at each day.
Retirement doesn't equate with death, to me it spells a kind of freedom (I'm waiting for!)
I hope Joe grabs all he can from this new opportunity. He sounds like a guy who looks at the glass as half full. And it is, it still is ;)
Congrats to Joe!! And peace be with you both as you share the same space 24/7!!
;)
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