Retirement? Perhaps!
April 30, 2011
Hey gang! Plenty of stuff to do and no time to get any of it done. Sound familiar? Around here the work piles up.... and piles up.... and piles up until I need a front end loader just to get to the bottom of the freaking pile. Now and then I get a burst of energy and knock something out.... but with all the other stuff UN-done it's really more of a TKO rather than a genuine to the mat sort of knock out.
3 days out into the future..... (May 3rd for those who are calendar challenged) I officially become an OLD FART and eligible to begin drawing Social Security. You know what? I think I'll do just exactly that too!
Since wrecking my back driving a truck my work options became rather restricted. Having Becky develop cancer narrowed things even more. I think I'm physically able to drive again and, being somewhat crazy, I do rather enjoy the driving aspect of that occupation. But like anything else there are always dick-heads to deal with and they all tend to gravitate to become dispatchers. But given a good company and something like a dedicated run and it could be fun again while making a ton of money. (okay... maybe a half ton)
Anyway.... I ended up at Wal-Mart working in Automotive.... which is a piece of cake since I've forgotten more about vehicle maintenance than the entire crew knows... and I still know more than they do. Gotta remember... the average "tech" is a whopping 22 years old!! WooHoo! Consider that I rebuilt my first V8 engine 45 years ago and retired from the Army as a Motor Sergeant and Master Mechanic.... and they have a bit of catching up to do.
The biggest problem with Wal-Mart is the schedule..... which is deliberately all over the place. They keep it mixed up for one simple reason.... to keep you from having the window of opportunity to work anywhere else. Think about it.... if I go in to work today and it's 7am till 3 pm..... then tomorrow I work from 4pm till 8pm and the following day I do 11am till 7pm.... where the hell could I possibly work with that chopped up "free" time? Employers need to know they can count on you being available for specific blocks of time...... which is impossible if your primary employer is Wal-Mart.
I've thought about it for a while now and I think it's time to just plain RETIRE and be done with it for a while. The S.S. check for me retiring at 62 is slightly more than I get working so I'm not loosing a darn thing but the headaches. (which are genuine and seem to happen ONLY on days when I have to work for them) What it gives me is..... Free Time!
My day will still be in minor conflict with Becky but that's okay. I'm still here 24/7 to take care of her and that's always job one. But by establishing a more normal routine I'll have the time to commit to making progress on the house. Our remodel has basically been on hold for half a dozen years now. We visit the "house" to eat, watch TV and unwind..... then we trek out back to a converted garage / mother-in-law apartment to shower and sleep. Face it.... it's a bother. The ONLY good thing about sleeping out back is that it's a big bedroom and it's dark! Very easy to sleep late out there. In here... not so much.
The other day I got off work fairly early in the afternoon..... so I sort of "practiced" being retired. I've been working some sort of job since I was about 10 so not working a JOB is a somewhat strange situation. So what did I do? Nothing more serious than tinkering in the yard but it was enjoyable and I got a lot done too.
What I really need time to do is to simply finish the work in the living room. I have some ceiling beams to finish sealing and then painting. I have floor molding to cut and install. I have electrical outlets to change out and more recessed lighting to put in. I have some detail work to finish on the entertainment center and a valance to build and install over the living room windows and then curtains to hang. Finally equipment to move out..... book cases to move in..... and hundreds of books to load and organize on them.
Next I have a new steel entry door for the front of the house and another for the rear. Both of those will involve tearing out the old doors and door frames and starting from scratch at the door framing..... possibly replacing that if necessary. I intend to install them in such a way that all a home invader is going to do is bounce off. Extra large screws.... extra deep locking bolt holes.... and steel surrounds for all latches and deadbolts. Hinges installed with screws a minimum of 3 inches long. Get the picture? It's a project that takes time.
Once the book cases are situated and loaded I can work on making a bedroom available inside the house! Yeah.... novel concept I know. Call me crazy but I think I'll run with it. IF (and that's a big if) I can get the main house livable again then it will be time to gut the kitchen and begin the final phase.
We've already decided to contract out the stuff that we're just not physically up to messing with anymore.... like the sheet rock. With all the changes that need to be made we're in favor of just ripping it ALL out and starting over once all the plumbing and electrical is done. Tile goes down on the floor to match the rest of the house and all new solid cherry cabinets go in. Ditto for the appliances.... all Pro grade cooking stuff so I can, once again, delight and take pride in working in my kitchen. I *love* to cook and that is something that I genuinely miss too.
Once all the house stuff is done..... I *may* consider going back to Wal-Mart and doing something there. Or perhaps I'll go a different route and start some sort of small business out of the house. Who knows? But I think that after 62 years it high time I start marching to the tune of MY drummer rather than that of someone else.
Till next time.... take care of each other.....
3 days out into the future..... (May 3rd for those who are calendar challenged) I officially become an OLD FART and eligible to begin drawing Social Security. You know what? I think I'll do just exactly that too!
Since wrecking my back driving a truck my work options became rather restricted. Having Becky develop cancer narrowed things even more. I think I'm physically able to drive again and, being somewhat crazy, I do rather enjoy the driving aspect of that occupation. But like anything else there are always dick-heads to deal with and they all tend to gravitate to become dispatchers. But given a good company and something like a dedicated run and it could be fun again while making a ton of money. (okay... maybe a half ton)
Anyway.... I ended up at Wal-Mart working in Automotive.... which is a piece of cake since I've forgotten more about vehicle maintenance than the entire crew knows... and I still know more than they do. Gotta remember... the average "tech" is a whopping 22 years old!! WooHoo! Consider that I rebuilt my first V8 engine 45 years ago and retired from the Army as a Motor Sergeant and Master Mechanic.... and they have a bit of catching up to do.
The biggest problem with Wal-Mart is the schedule..... which is deliberately all over the place. They keep it mixed up for one simple reason.... to keep you from having the window of opportunity to work anywhere else. Think about it.... if I go in to work today and it's 7am till 3 pm..... then tomorrow I work from 4pm till 8pm and the following day I do 11am till 7pm.... where the hell could I possibly work with that chopped up "free" time? Employers need to know they can count on you being available for specific blocks of time...... which is impossible if your primary employer is Wal-Mart.
I've thought about it for a while now and I think it's time to just plain RETIRE and be done with it for a while. The S.S. check for me retiring at 62 is slightly more than I get working so I'm not loosing a darn thing but the headaches. (which are genuine and seem to happen ONLY on days when I have to work for them)
My day will still be in minor conflict with Becky but that's okay. I'm still here 24/7 to take care of her and that's always job one. But by establishing a more normal routine I'll have the time to commit to making progress on the house. Our remodel has basically been on hold for half a dozen years now. We visit the "house" to eat, watch TV and unwind..... then we trek out back to a converted garage / mother-in-law apartment to shower and sleep. Face it.... it's a bother. The ONLY good thing about sleeping out back is that it's a big bedroom and it's dark! Very easy to sleep late out there. In here... not so much.
The other day I got off work fairly early in the afternoon..... so I sort of "practiced" being retired. I've been working some sort of job since I was about 10 so not working a JOB is a somewhat strange situation. So what did I do? Nothing more serious than tinkering in the yard but it was enjoyable and I got a lot done too.
What I really need time to do is to simply finish the work in the living room. I have some ceiling beams to finish sealing and then painting. I have floor molding to cut and install. I have electrical outlets to change out and more recessed lighting to put in. I have some detail work to finish on the entertainment center and a valance to build and install over the living room windows and then curtains to hang. Finally equipment to move out..... book cases to move in..... and hundreds of books to load and organize on them.
Next I have a new steel entry door for the front of the house and another for the rear. Both of those will involve tearing out the old doors and door frames and starting from scratch at the door framing..... possibly replacing that if necessary. I intend to install them in such a way that all a home invader is going to do is bounce off. Extra large screws.... extra deep locking bolt holes.... and steel surrounds for all latches and deadbolts. Hinges installed with screws a minimum of 3 inches long. Get the picture? It's a project that takes time.
Once the book cases are situated and loaded I can work on making a bedroom available inside the house! Yeah.... novel concept I know. Call me crazy but I think I'll run with it. IF (and that's a big if) I can get the main house livable again then it will be time to gut the kitchen and begin the final phase.
We've already decided to contract out the stuff that we're just not physically up to messing with anymore.... like the sheet rock. With all the changes that need to be made we're in favor of just ripping it ALL out and starting over once all the plumbing and electrical is done. Tile goes down on the floor to match the rest of the house and all new solid cherry cabinets go in. Ditto for the appliances.... all Pro grade cooking stuff so I can, once again, delight and take pride in working in my kitchen. I *love* to cook and that is something that I genuinely miss too.
Once all the house stuff is done..... I *may* consider going back to Wal-Mart and doing something there. Or perhaps I'll go a different route and start some sort of small business out of the house. Who knows? But I think that after 62 years it high time I start marching to the tune of MY drummer rather than that of someone else.
Till next time.... take care of each other.....
posted by Rev. Joe Ruyle | 7:19 PM
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