Gettin' By On Gettin' By

Everyone has been asking: "How's retirement?" Well, so far, it's a lot like summer vacation has been for the last 35 years or so. I've finally wound down from the intensity of teaching 167 students every day and dealing with school district politics at the same time. I've gotten some projects done, read a couple of books for fun and watched as much baseball on TV as possible. I have gotten better at making recipes my lovely wife Carol actually likes instead of experimenting in the kitchen, and I can FINALLY make the bed correctly. I did hesitate for a moment yesterday to muse that July was here and school starting is just around the corner. Two things then happened which made the whole deal a bit more real.
I was working with a student last night in preparation for a test. We were discussing media, its history and role in society, when the subject of magazines came up. The text mentioned that AARP's magazine was the most widely-read periodical in this country. Staci didn't know what it was, first of all(she also had not heard of Oliver Twist, the musical version of which I was watching when she called for help), but when I explained what it was and asked her why she thought the circulation numbers were so high, she replied, "Well, all the old people can't DO anything else but read magazines." She's lucky to have survived the evening. Her explanation that she meant REALLY old people not retirees like myself was somewhat lame. Humbling.
Today, I got my first retirement check from the state retirement board. It is, of course, my money, since I earned it during the last 35 years, but it still seemed like "free" money to me. What caught my eye, however, was the disclaimer on the check: "This check is void if the recipient has died before the issue date." Whoa! Now, there's an eye-opener for you! I wonder if they and Staci know something I don't know. At least my wife is guaranteed 179 more payments if I go tomorrow.
Retirement is grand thus far though Lambeau Field calls tomorrow and The Police concert at Wrigley Field on Thursday mark the beginning of the busy part of the summer. The AARP would be proud of me.