Retirement is hard getting used to!

I’m retired. Now what?

It was a lot easier thinking about how I’d spend my retirement before I actually did the deed. I actually had a long list of fun things I’d do. Now that retirement is here, I find myself reviewing the list and mentally adding up the costs of taking pottery and art and yoga classes, cruising the Mediterranean, camping in the Grand Canyon, traveling all over the US, etc. Maybe I'll delay that stuff a bit. In today’s economy, retirement can be scary.

New Morning Routine

I sleep later than I used to and get awakened by Aggie, my cat. Generally she tries to rouse me around 6 a.m. by sniffing my nostrils. I’m not making this up. After a few sniffs, she presses her cold wet nose to mine. I thought it was cute at first but lately I’ve been gently nudging her away. She comes back. Sometimes she licks my nose. Lately she's been licking my face.

After I convince her I’ve survived the night, she leaves me alone for about an hour and then repeats her routine. I give up and get up. She’s happy.

A friend who retired several years ago told me that I’d start to lose track of what day of the week it was (check), and the date (check). She predicted that trips to the grocery store would be my new high-points. Oh gawd. I need to get focused.