A Day Without Dress

Yeah, I have a closet full of clothes. Way too many clothes and shoes to boot, or should that be and shoes to boots! I have a lot of boots as well.
Clothes horse, that's me. Before I retired someone asked me what I was going to do with all my "pretty dresses."  I said I was going to be like June Cleaver and wear them around the house, including my pearls. Yes, I have pearls too. What can I say, I've always liked dressing up.

Now, here I am all retired and sometimes wearing my PJ's until late morning before changing into my "uniform." Wondering what my uniform is? Pair of jeans, or cords, and a turtleneck and inside jacket.

I used to love dressing up when I went to work. I considered it one of my own perks to me. Now, I have to learn to dress for being at home. I don't want to become one of those people that wear the same thing day in and day out. So, I will begin wearing my nice sweaters and slacks around the house when I don't plan on doing any "dirty work."  You might be thinking that's crazy talk, that I should save my good clothes for "events." However, events are few and far between, and styles change and I would like to wear out some of these clothes before they actually go out of style.

As for my shoes and my boots. Well, right now, since it's winter and all, the boots are coming in pretty handy, however, my feet are not interested in being stuffed into heels anymore, some of those might be going to charity. I'll keep a couple of black pairs of heels, just in case an "event"worth dressing up for happens to come along.

 Otherwise, if you happen to see me around town and I am in my  jeans and turtleneck, just know that I didn't consider grocery shopping a major event in my life, and I won't be sporting pearls or heels!

The First Day of Forever (Kinda, Sorta...)

Today, here it is Tuesday, January 17, 2012. A milestone in my life. Today is the first day of me being officially, albeit willingly unemployed; but more importantly than that, it is the first day of my retirement.

The day is marked with lots of snow blowing around, cold and me with a headache that won't quit.

I ended last year with a mammogram and a bone density test. I have learned that I am healthy, but as with most people in my age bracket I need to take more calcium and Vitamin D to keep my bones healthy and strong. I can do that!  :)

When I was resting before I began to think of what it had been like when I was working and I found myself (unintentionally) with a wrinkled up forehead as though I were worried. I readjusted my thought pattern and uncrinkled my face. I think I must have worked all those years with my shoulders up around my chin, a classic stress position. I sure am not going to miss the stress.

That being said, I am sure that there will be other stress makers, but for now I'm going to enjoy the respite of not working daily; enjoying the slowness of each day and watching the cardinals and other birds eating their birdseed, free from hunger and stress as they go about in freeflight---pretty much the way I am feeling too.

Onward!

Looking Out the Window

What's that song about, "What a difference a day makes, 24 little hours...."?

Indeed.

Day before yesterday we almost broke the temperature record as local temps were hovering near 50 degrees. I, as many others, were outside with just light jackets or sweaters. It was sweet.

Then the sweetness broke as they began forecasting that a storm was brewing and we would be getting some snow. No, not just some snow! Depending on which meteorologist you were listening to, or watching, they predicted anywhere from 12 inches down to 4. The inches that were to fall were sometimes highly exaggerated or sometimes nil. This morning, the snow on the patio deck at our house appears to be about 6".

Of course, it could be a different story at your house. Whichever way the wind blows.

I thought maybe the school day would be delayed or cancelled, but it turned out that it was not as bad as they had expected and/or anticipated. Kids always expect, adults always anticipate, or is it the other way around? Nonetheless, this morning I got a bit of exercise and fresh air when I was out helping shovel the fluffy white stuff.

I sure was happy that I didn't have to venture out past my front driveway in this first winter's snow. I did what I needed to do outdoors and came back to my warm house. I watched the cardinals swooping around the trees in search of food. They always come around when we have heavy snow, that red against the bright white is always a beautiful vision. Very serene.

I am counting this as another perk of being retired. That is, from my window I am able to watch the snow blow around, or I can help with snow shoveling(no more slacking!); then I can come back indoors or venture out later in the day. It's my choosing. Today I can say yes to going out, or yes to staying in. These are choices I didn't have when I was seated at my desk looking out of the office window wondering what the world was doing when I didn't have a choice.

Retirement: The land that time forgot

Before I retired I had always said that when I got the chance to retire one of the things I would do first would be to free myself of being tied to an alarm clock.

As a child we were always made to go to bed by 8 PM, year 'round--even during summer when my head would be hitting the pillow while the sun continued to shine outside. 8 PM, that was our bedtime, come hell or highwater.

Over the period of my life, with that 8 PM bedtime drilled into my brain, not to mention my subconsious, I was always in bed at a "decent hour." Some folks have really fantastic goals on their bucket lists; mine, not so much,  I just wanted to be able to stay up past 10 PM without feeling like I had a bomb ready to explode in my head.

Retirement has come at last and I no longer have to wake up at an ungodly hour to prepare for the work day. One of the first things I did when I got home on my last day of work was to SHUT MY ALARM CLOCK OFF! A sense of freedom and excitement rolled over me. Could I really do this? Could I live a day without time parameters?!??!

The answers is a sold YES! YES, I CAN!

With no alarm clock to wake me every morning; with no work to keep me awake every afternoon I have taken to waking up at about 8:30 AM, laying in bed watching TV till about 10 AM, taking a late afternoon nap, say, oh about 5:30 PM and then hitting the hay sometime after 11 PM (sometimes even 3 AM). What can I say, I am just one of those people who needs a lot of sleep. Always have been, but now I can sleep when my body tells me, not my boss. I can nap without worrying if I'll get that tremendous urge while sitting at my desk the next afternoon.

Oh, and another thing, I cannot keep track of what day it is. Sometimes I lay in bed and think, "well, let's see, I went to church yesterday, so today HAS TO BE Monday." Then I think of my old co-workers, grin a little grin, and either get up, or roll over and go back to sleep!

Sunday, Sunday

After going to bed at 3:30 AM the day starts at 8:30 with attending 10:15 AM Mass. I was surprised at myself that I didn't feel like nodding off. I think it was because our young pastor was "saying" Mass. He did have some sad news to tell us, and that is, that he is getting reassigned in June of this year. I don't know him personally, I just know him from attending some of the services that he has presided over. He has been at our parish for about 3 years. As we can inherently know some things about people, I do know this, that he is a kind, gentle and loving human being. I will miss him, and hope he is off to better things.

 Not much activity today. Some football games on so that we'll know which team we are up aginst in the playoffs. The GB Packers have had a tremendously successful year. Right now we won't think about the future seasons that might not work out like this one has, no, "we'll worry about that tomorrow".

Right now, we're just really happy with our team. And, most of us are really proud of Aaron Rodgers our star quarterback!


Mid-afternoon found me taking a nap. I hope this isn't the "flow" I hear everyone talking about. I am not sure I like this flow, I will have to swim upstream, and create a better stream, and/or scenario, for myself. I like that saying by Jim Hightower, "swim against the current, even a dead fish can go with the flow." Yep, going to have to start swimming upstream before I get "caught" in this nap net.

I thought since today is so quiet that I would write a little about moving around here in blogger. I have some friends who are not sure how it works. Sometimes, I have a devil of a time trying to do a post here! When you first log in you can see some of my older posts over in the right hand column. --->

If you want to leave a comment, you don't have to create your own blog, as one of my friends thought. You do have to use one of your e-mail accounts and then give yourself a password that you'll be using when you come and visit me to read and leave comments, and I hope that you do visit daily.

For instance if you have yahoo mail and want to post a comment, you go to the bottom and you could choose "Google" and then a box pops up and you type your e-mail address and a password of your choosing, a password that you will be using here. Then the comment can be posted. At least that is how it has worked for me.

 Please do advise if it works another way. I do not know how one becomes a "follower."  I actually think this site is not very user-friendly, but have seen other people use this one for blogging so I came here first when I thought of creating a blog. Perhaps over time I'll learn of a site that is a bit easier to use, until then I'll just continue here.

I want to say thank you for the time you have taken to come and read my thoughts. That means a lot to me, and I appreciate it so much. It's easier to go through a transition in life with friends, rather than having to face it all alone. Writing about it is a great catharsis too, that's for darn sure! I enjoy your comments and find that they are invaluable to me. So!

Thank you, I mean that sincerely!

Flameless Candles-No matches required!

Yes, not too long out of the work force, not even worth counting yet, and already the brain cells have begun to diminish. How so? Probably one of many little misadventures to come.

So, let me begin by asking you this, "have you ever tried to light a flameless candle?"

Just the other night I thought I would try one of the Christmas candles that were given to me. Each one was so lovely and at my beck and call. I selected the stocky one in a glass container with gold trimming. Even smelled nice, like vanilla. Got out the handy-dandy  American Lighter, (labeled: Made in China!); and proceeded to try and light my candle. Dang! That thing was stubborn, I tried one way and the other, I tried scraping the wick and having another go at it. Then, the LIGHT came on... (can you hear the angels singing?) I turned the candle upside down to discover that it was battery operated!! The giver of the candle had been nice enough to put the batteries in. Laugh, giggle, sigh.Kind of reminds me of when I was working and someone actually OVERWATERED the fake plant...and it was NOT ME!)

Chalk it up to what? Being old fashioned and expecting it to be, well, an old-fashioned candle? Or, not thinking it through at the first try and having no success? Or, having to learn not to take things for granted, especially in this electronic age!?

Qutting the Work World

Goodness! Retirement is not as easy it would seem. There are so many little things that have to be tied up, and the ribbon and bow can get pretty darn messy!

First comes training the person who is going to be replacing you and knowing it's going to be ok, whether you think so or not because once you are gone, you're gone.

Then you have to worry about the various insurances because once they've turned you loose, you are left out there hanging on your own and you have to have some kind of medical protection. This makes me give pause about so many Americans, with families, who go to bed every night with no insurance. That would give me a very fitful sleep, but Americans have a great spirit and keep, keeping on.

You have to worry about any other benefits that you might have coming to you and hope that it is all in good hands, because, if you're like me, you have always trusted these things to the powers that be and never really quite understood how they worked.

So, the year is new and so is my ever-broadening and ever-increasing knowledge of things that had been just in the sitting comfortably, and quietly, in the background until you got around to actually doing them...like retiring!

A little at a time I hope I am spreading some light over it, one little light beam at a time, and am so thankful for the sunshine!

Now What?!

This whole insurance thing is driving us nuts. To keep mine is soooo expensive, but not sure which insurance plan fits us the best for the dollars that will have to be expended.

You know, this shouldn't be so hard, as you get older your brain isn't quite as sharp as it used to be and then you get bombarded with so many insurance offers it can make your head spin, and give you a headache, not to mention a tummy ache over the worry of it.

I think it's more the fear of the unknown. Right now my gut instinct is to stick with the insurance I had at work, even though it costs an arm and a leg, at least till we can get some experience about this under our belts.

What would you do?!

Sweet Repose

Night before last what a crummy amount of sleep I got!  I do have to say though that yesterday afternoon you would have found me splayed on the living room couch in full winter sunshine taking a much needed nap. There is something delicious about a nap in the middle of the afternoon. The sun was so warm on me and the book I had been reading was quickly put aside as I could no longer keep my eyes open.

That's one nice thing, well, maybe 2 so far about being retired. Number one was the ability to turn my alarm clock for more than just the weekend. Now, I find that that being able to take an afternoon nap, if I so choose is so relaxing. I think I read somewhere that it is healthy and good to take a nap mid-afternoon. I wonder if I should keep up with that habit.

I'm trying to get a schedule going for myself so that I don't turn into a slovenly bum. I plan to exercise daily, write daily, Facebook daily, hopefully paint and more important than that I want to learn to relax. Learning to relax is not as easy as it sounds. Meditation, not medication, is what I want!

Needless to say, I slept much better last night which gives me a better outlook on what I hope to do during this time of reinvention. :)

Weary at Retirement?

Here it is Tuesday, January 3, 2012. Yes! I'm quite sure of it because I woke up almost as the day was new. I'm a fresh retiree. Really? Not yet. Still hanging on to using up those much protected and beloved vacation days. So, yes, I am on vacation for at least 2 more weeks. Then they'll turn me loose onto the world, and I'll plunge into it, feeling much as I did when I graduated from high school.

That seems like eons ago, me, fresh faced marching out of the building with my tassel on the other side, the other side that meant freedom and fear at the same time. I'll write about that later.

Right now I'm wondering why my sleep pattern has suddenly decided to change. This morning I woke up at 1:35 AM or some outrageous time like that, tossed and turned until 2:30 and by 3 AM, I thought there was no need in laying in bed, so I got up.

I goofed around a little bit on Facebook and read and re-read some e-mail. Sometimes things take a little bit to sink in, you know?! Then I thought, with the quietness of the world at this dark moment in the early morning, I'd use it to write, though my brain feels a bit foggy, I'll do my best. 

My first retirement question is this, just because I am now re"tired." Does it mean I will be tired all the time?!?