I retired in
June of 2011 after a long career in public education. Ever since, the first
questions anyone asks when they haven’t seen me for a while are “How do you
like being retired?” and “What are you doing to keep yourself busy?” Some
people, who aren’t retired, ask those questions with a good natured edge to
their voice, while others, who are or are about to be retired, genuinely want
to know how it’s going.
It seems
there is some fear out there among boomers that the transition to retirement
will be difficult, tedious, boring…even depressing. That hasn’t been my
experience. In fact, it’s been just the opposite. So when people ask those two
questions, my first answer is “I love it,” and my second is “How much time do
you have?”
First of all,
retirement meant a huge reduction in responsibility, a significant weight off
my shoulders. I immediately felt lighter in spirit and more energetic. With the
elimination of constant “work thoughts,” my creative mind reawakened. I started
writing articles for a local magazine, keeping a daily journal, starting an
online blog and filling a notebook with poems and other ramblings. I also
started playing more music (guitar, harmonica) and picked up the tenor
saxophone. I have a wonderful seventy-six-year-old teacher who comes to my
house every other Monday for a forty-five minute lesson. A friend and I have
played at a few events under the name FreeWill, taken from the first part of
his last name (Freeman) and my first name. It suits us perfectly and we
continue to practice and expand our song list.
I started a
book club called The Short Attention Span Book Club, comprised mostly of male
friends. We meet once a month, alternately choosing a book from Column A (Classic)
or Column B (Contemporary). We have a 250 page limit, and so far it’s working
out beautifully. On my blog I post Short Attention Span Book and Movie Reviews,
and friends check in regularly for updates.
My wife and I
have been on two very rewarding vacations, one last fall to national parks in
the southwest (Grand Canyon, Canyon de Chelly and Mesa Verde), and one in the
spring to New York and Boston (Broadway shows, historical sites, meeting our
new granddaughter, Fenway Park). Regular hikes on beautiful Central Coast and
Big Sur trails, backpacking trips in the Eastern Sierras, and golf (no cart)
have helped keep me physically fit, along with other exercise routines.
Frequent participation in cultural events keeps me psychically fit.
Finally, regular
service activities keep me involved in the welfare of the city I love, San Luis
Obispo.
Looking
ahead, I don’t see the need to make many changes in my new life. I try never to
be in a hurry and there is nothing better than the sound of the alarm clock not
ringing, although on most days I’m usually up by six anyway. If year two comes
close to rivaling year one, my “attitude of gratitude” will grow even stronger,
and retired life will continue to get better. “To boldly go where millions of
my fellow boomers are going…”
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