Retirement…Lucky Me!
by Farrell Hannah
For those who have asked me prior to retiring, and since, “So, what are you going to do? Won’t you be bored?”, and for those contemplating retiring or coaching others about this time of life, I thought that you might like to know how I managed to live through my Friday May 13, 2005! If you aren’t interested, that’s OK and I won’t worry about that either.
These are some of the highlights, and I won’t include details about eating my fruit, vegetables, and drinking water, but that did happen, too, as usual.
- Awake and up at 6 AM, remembering it’s Friday the 13th and then thanking God that I was going to have a good Friday golfing in the cloudy sunshine.
- Feeling a bit strange and like I’d lost something. Weighed myself for a change and found that it was a loss of 4 pounds without “trying” from the last time I weighed in! What’s going on…or off, I asked myself. Never mind, enjoy it.
- Being greeted by our dog for her breakfast, and having an enjoyable one myself.
- Being greeted by my Loving but Sleepy Wife and wished well for the day.
- Replying to my good friend’s offer to purchase a supply of apples at low cost.
- Having a smooth, 50 minute drive to a golf course in Vancouver despite rush hour.
- Enjoying listening to the morning humour on the radio in our new truck.
- Being greeted by the other, recently met men in my regular Friday foursome as part of a Senior Men’s club, and paying only $35 to play at Senior’s rates.
- Playing 18 holes, laughing and complaining, and walking non-stop without sitting for the whole game, being able to complete the round in 4 hours, 10 minutes without waiting.
- Finally, after 4 rounds scoring over 100, scoring 44 + 51 = 95 and only losing 2 new golf balls instead of the 6 lost last time!
- Losing only $3, the maximum possible loss, and distributing it equally to the other 3 men.
- Being welcomed after the 9th hole by another good friend who had introduced me to this golfing group, and being encouraged yet again by him, despite my erratic scores.
- Socializing and laughing with the guys over a weekly hot dog with raw onions.
- Watching the rain start to drizzle outside after we completed our round.
- Returning home before the real rush hour, safely and with a “good tired” feeling.
- Being welcomed by my Loving and Awake Wife with hugs, kisses, and congratulations for breaking 100 at last, and scoring only 30 strokes higher than my age. There is hope.
- Going on a ½ hour fast walk to the park with Doberwoman dog.
- Meeting our cheery Son at the Skytrain and fetching a few groceries together, reflecting about some of the day, and laughing about the ongoing activities in the stores and on the roads.
- Briefly greeting our cheery Daughter-in-law and our boisterous younger-of-the-two- Granddaughters, and some of the children at Daughter-in-law’s home daycare business.
- Chatting and raising a toast with Loving Wife of Nearly 44 years (that would be in marital years together, not her age nor mine anymore) before having one of our favourite dinners for two at home.
- Doing the dishes together, never having had a mechanical dishwasher and not planning to.
- Replying to and sending emails to friends.
- Succumbing finally to the urge to go and get a Friday the 13th (Any Excuse Will Do) Ice-cream Cake for us to celebrate the day and prepare for sweet dreams or indigestion.
- Waving to a Friday the 13th black cat in the neighbourhood on my return with the cake.
- Completing an on-line crossword puzzle (part of my mental alertness and word usage anti-rusting program), and doing it in my personal best time.
- Actually solving the one and only Solitaire game I played in the evening.
- Falling asleep watching TV, not really caring whodunnit or who was bashing whom politically late into the night.
- Thanking God for a fine day and for the people, animals, and nature in my life.
So, that was my day. Lucky me. And thanks for asking.
