Crazy world we live in!

Today’s post provides some of my thoughts on various modern day conveniences we use today that, while worthwhile, d0 present problems for some of us due to our size and stature or our current mental stability – or instability!  Having said that, allow me to turn the conversation to some of our modern day conveniences – some of which are already being replaced with more modern technology. I refer you to the container in the restrooms that hold the paper we are to dry our hands with. What very tall person must have invented that? Should you be out to dinner one evening ladies and find your eating companion returning to the dinner table wiping his arms as though he just showered , believe me when I say he came from a bathroom that had the paper towel dispenser mounted approximately six feet from the floor. Is it any wonder they are replacing these modern day conveniences with a… wait for it…. “high powered blow dryer” that makes you feel -when leaving the bathroom as though you are going into surgery…….. as the incoming surgeon ready to operate!

Another pet peeve of mine has to do with grocery stores. Why do they insist on relocating  the merchandise in each aisle every couple of months? Don’t they know we are senior citizens? Recently we went into one of our favorite supermarkets only to find that the yogurt is now at a different location as were several other items we purchase on a regular basis. Do they do this to keep us on our toes and alert? While not happy with the change – I must admit – it is working!

And what is it with doctors today? Why do their appointment clerks make several appointments for patients at the same hour? Our last visit was set for four o’clock on a Tuesday afternoon. We were taken into the exam room at approximately 4 o’clock. The nurse took our vitals and left the room. At approximately 4:45 PM, I decided to scout the halls to see if our doctor was even there. Fact of the matter is that I stumbled upon the room where the doctor and nurses were and each one of them was working on their computer. The doctor, upon seeing me, apologized and said she would be there in just a few minutes. 5:10 PM she finally came into the room. True, we are retired and my educated guess is that her time is more valuable than ours – but is it? Think about it, who knows, our clock could have run out at 5:05 PM and then who would she have billed?

Here is another pet peeve of mine – it has to do with movie theaters. Why is it that when attending a movie theater, you find your seat that happens to be in the center of the theater about seven rows up from where you entered the theater and no sooner than you are settled in – another couple enters this theater and – you got it – where do they choose to sit? In the row in front of you and yes you are right – not only do they sit in the row in front of you but they also decide to park themselves directly in the two seats in front of you as well! Why does this bug me? Because – on this particular day – in this theater that probably seats over 150 people – there are only ten patrons (two of which are us, six are scattered all throughout the theater), and these two recent additions decide to sit directly in front of us. Why? Do we not live right? Someone please help me figure this out.

Okay, I am done ranting and raving today. Just a few of my pet peeves and for what it is worth, I feel so much better now that I have gotten it all out of my system ………………… NOT …………….. but at least I shared it with you.

Until next time!

How to spend your time in retirement!

Below is a list of things I do to keep my days of retirement interesting. I know there are a few on my list that will not be applicable but I include them so as to provide food for thought as to what type activities you may be interested in. For example – I include line dancing primarily because we enjoy doing it. It is a hobby, if you will, that provides both physical exercise as well as mental exercise (it isn’t easy to remember several 64 count dance routines). But some of you may prefer to go to the gym to stay in shape or do crosswords to keep your mind active.

It’s the list of things I try to do every day. Yes, there are days when I don’t get them all done, but I do my best to accomplish most of them daily. It has proven very effective for me. They are:

1. Read – What do you enjoy reading about? Mysteries? Humor? Biographies? Health? Attempt to make it a point to read something related to what your interests are so as to keep your mind active. And by choosing a topic you are interested in – chances are you will stay with it once started.
2. If computer literate – send two or more emails to touch base with old friends and relatives.
3. Write – I have been keeping a daily journal for longer than I can remember and I find it to be very satisfying. At times I look back at some of my writings and think – how boring – same old, same old, but then there are some days that the entries cause me to sit up and take notice of how much we have seen and done since the first day of our retirement and that in and of itself reminds me how fortunate we have been.
4. Check in with a long lost relative to see how they are doing. You might be surprised to learn how much they might like hearing from you.
5. Prepare a short-term list of little jobs you may want to do around the house.
6. Give serious thought to what, if anything, your home needs to be sure it will satisfy your needs as you grow older. Grab bars in the bathroom and shower area come to mind. And then devise a plan to make it happen.
7. Review your top three goals or objectives for the upcoming year. Ours are some home projects, more travel (having kids spread across the country does keep us on the go), and improve our health (more exercise and eating right).
8. Prepare five valuable pieces of information that will assist your relatives should you become confined to your home or hospitalized in the coming year.
9. Take a full minute to appreciate what you have and how far you’ve come.

This list could be longer. BUT…

If it was longer, we wouldn’t be as good at getting them all done. This list has to be manageable to you. Of course, in this particular instance, doing some of these things is a one-time job and all that need be done in future years is to keep the list updated. Having created items such as those mentioned free you up to add a few more tasks to your daily list. But, in making a list – be it a list of five or a list of ten items – make them the five or ten items you choose to do with consistency. Why? Over the years, you will find that they will tend to make your life easier. And let’s face it – as we age, easy is good! By being consistent with the completion of these tasks hopefully the collective results will enable you to have less stress in your life, making your life and retirement seem more worthwhile.

What things do you do every day to make your retirement living a fun time of your life?

Improve!

My word for the year 2015 is: “Improve”.

The dictionary definition of improve is to grow better; to make better; to increase value of, as a piece of land, by erecting buildings on it.

There are several different ways one can interpret the meaning of improve. For me, I can think of several areas of my life that I would like to improve.

• Improve physically. While I attempt to stretch every day and line dance at least two days a week, I know deep down in my heart that my body needs more exercise than just these two forms. Supposedly the human body loses 1% of muscle with each year once we attain the age of 30. Being 74 heading towards 75, fact of the matter is, I need to improve upon my current exercise program.
• Improve mentally. I know for a fact that I watch too much television. I love to read but say I do not have time to read when the reality of it is I should replace an hour or two of my television time with an hour or two reading time. In that manner, two things would be improved upon – I would spend less time in front of the television, and I would improve my mental status by reading and gaining whatever knowledge I can from the written word. Another thought just occurred to me and that is to literally learn something new in 2015.
• Improve my environment. I have been thinking about many areas of our house that need improvement and 2015 might just be the year I plan to take care of them.

So, since my word for 2015 is improve and have already begun the process by outlining some of the things I hope to improve upon, next step is to uncover more of this path I chose to follow in this New Year. To say one wants to improve is merely but a generalization of what most of us do at the beginning of a New Year. Now, however, I must get down to the “nitty gritty” or meat of the situation which is to be a bit more specific as to what it is I hope to accomplish in 2015 and then make it happen.

If I am lucky, utilizing this word for the entire year, I may just find what it is I have been searching for in order to dream up posts for this blog. So, it looks as though my homework for the next few days is to focus on the word and see how I can improve both myself and this blog.

Until next time!

Brand New Year

Okay – today is the first day of a new year. What does that mean? A fresh start – a means to look at today as a new chapter in a life waiting to be written! When I think about it, today is a new day – new questions – questions wherein the answers will enable us to discover new things about ourselves.

Hopefully the changes created as a result of these questions will provide each and every one of us a year of enchantment and self-discovery.   The writer in me looks at today as a way to whittle out a quiet pause in the action (thinking back to the year 2014) enabling me to dream with pen in hand hoping that I may just find my muse and start writing again. After all, I once read that when you let yourself choose what feels right in the moment, you learn who you really are, how to recognize when you are changing, and why it’s so important to respect your values, at all costs.

So this will be a short post today as I am just glad 2014 is over. Tomorrow will be the second day of this brand new year and yet another day to smile, be happy, and content that we are still upright and taking nourishment.

Until next time!