Just another typical retirement week. Maybe yours are the same? The first thing to say is that our son went back to Australia on Tuesday although his presence lingered a while longer. I’ve written about getting back to our old comforting routines a few times recently and frankly that was never going to happen while he was staying with us. So maybe, now he’s safely back in Oz, we can truly begin to get back to normal.
Although there are a few other impediments to overcome. For example, there’s the van to fix. It’s been stuck out in the street waiting for my neighbour (who sometimes borrows it) to help me repair it. If there is one thing I hate it’s being dependent on other people to get things done. In the end I started to ‘fix’ it myself by recharging the battery.
I must have shamed him into action because he came out to help, but the two of us couldn’t sort it out even though we did get it going. His mechanic chum is coming today to take a look so that challenge is kind of moving forward. Which is more than I can say for the conservatory roof the top pane of the safety glass which has been shattered for weeks. We’re waiting for the guy who built it to come and replace it. So far, despite several phone calls, this hasn’t happened. Again frustrating.
Also today we’re meeting ‘our’ agronomist up at the vineyard. I need some advice about fertilising the vines and possibly spraying against any diseases. So he, at least, did reply to my email and request for a meeting. As did, eventually, my IT guy who ‘eventually’ repaired an irritating little flaw in my blog, namely the pictures being missing on my blog front page. Not serious but deeply irritating but, as I say, after a long wait (he had Covid) that’s fixed now.
While all this was going off or more accurately not going off, I managed to write Tuesday’s blog and now this one hopefully for Friday, so getting back to my blog writing routine. Except for the podcast, The Vineyard Years, with which I have really struggled and nobody to blame for that but moi. But now I’ve done that.
Tonight (actually Thursday) it’s folk fiddle practice and then, if I can’t avoid it, another outdoor gig at Baildon, farmer’s market*. I’d really like to avoid the gig if I can but that depends on how much I’m needed. It also throws up the question of, do I offer or agree to play the bodhran (as I would have been doing at last week’s Haworth gig)?. So many questions. And in the meantime, a new tune / sheet music to print off. This from Iveta, our group leader, who seems to have recovered from her sciatica attack and can now crack the whip in a pain-free fashion.
So all this frantic and frustrating activity begs the question (and not for the first time) , am I hitting the right balance between purposeful retirement activity and pipe and slippers dullness, between mental acuity and boredom? I must admit mostly it feels like I’ve over-booked my dance card. But then again a couple of days of inactivity and the b word raises its ugly head. Hard work this retirement business.
Typical retirement week summary
If you just take a look at my typical week above and judge for yourself whether it seems simply too full. And, bear in mind, that doesn’t include two doggie walks every day. Oh, and we’re off to Derbyshire again either Saturday or Sunday depending on whether I can wiggle my way out of the farmer’s market gig. No jazz this week though. Phew.
*I needn’t have worried it was cancelled. Ha.