The Tao Of Paul

Retirement Planning usually puts the big emphasis on money. Annuities, pension plan a, b, or c. Health insurance and life insurance. I’m not real concerned. I am pretty sure that my income will be sufficient.

But what will I do with that money? What will be my new purpose in life?
The kids are out of the house, so father/provider role is done. Wife makes more than me, pretty much self sufficient, so I’m not really required there. Obviously my employer will not need my talents.
At first glance my only true purpose in life will be to feed the cats.
Volunteer work? Perhaps. But I would look for truly volunteer work where I set the schedule for my time. Sort of like I do with homecoming.

I think the price of gas will probably limit the amount of traveling i do.
I could sit on my front stoop and yell at passing kids to stay off the grass and turn down their music.

Regardless, this is something that I feel is pretty important. There are too many people at work that won’t retire because they don’t know what else to do, and they aren’t happy. And there are too many that are unhappily retired because the did not plan ahead.

Current plan is to cut back on household chores and upkeep now so I will have something to do when I retire. Wife’s current plan is to kick my ass for slacking, and don’t worry there will be more than enough to do later mister.

I love it when she’s feisty…

Son of Dub is home. Left Arizona Saturday morning, hit a dust storm. Tumbleweeds and all I guess.Driving through Indiana he called to comment on the abnormally large number of dead cats & dogs at the side of the road. Texas had a live rattlesnake place right next to a fried rattlesnake place.
He will only be here until beginning of June, but I will enjoy having him around just to visit. That, and I need a load of topsoil moved to the back yard.
The Drive In was most enjoyable this weekend. Forbidden Kingdom was worth the money. Next up? Weekend of May 2nd - Iron Man. Definite Drive In stuff.
I see that MKG has her own blog. So far, so good. On the sidebar if you choose to peruse.

Other than that, busy at work, and looking forward to getting into the gardens. I won a pile of annual seeds and I just want to get things going.

What’s your function?
Apparently members of the school Board have no clue.And Mr Esmonde does an excellent job of pointing that out. Current grading system not to your liking for personal reasons? Force the principal to change it. And what good is being a member of the Board if you can’t get your friend’s kid placed at City Honors?
When the Superintendent allegedly makes an unfounded complaint, you don’t go after him, you demand a state investigation to find out who leaked it to the press. These people make a living out of idiocy. Someone should tell them that incompetent and accountable are not interchangeable.

In a less than surprising move, Lenihan & Co. endorsed Frank “I wanna be on TV’ Clark. It seems that his face is constantly on the tube. Usually to give odd explanations on why his office gave a less than stellar performance in one way or another. I guess Lenihan thinks that this position does not need a fresh infusion of competence.
In other breaking news, the Executive Committee also endorsed Antoine Thompson. I have seen that he has appeared a number of times in both Niagara Falls and Buffalo. His constituents that live outside of the cities don’t know what he looks like, but what the heck.

Yep, it’s drive-in time again! I’ll be there tonight, popcorn in hand.
Saturday - I already made a commitment to myself for yard work and fence repair. Then yesterday I received an email from Riverkeeper on the spring shore cleanup. Two days notice, two sites listed. what,all the other places filled up? Nothing from the Coalition for Progress, which usually works the Gallagher Beach area. Doesn’t seem to be the cause this year I guess. Anyhow, yard comes first.
Sunday hopefully the gallery, and fishing. Gotta fish.
How ’bout you?

On another note, My Son leaves Arizona tomorrow for the drive home. Here’s hoping he has a St. Christopher statue on his dash. Although he probably has one of those wiggly hula girls there instead…

Type II Diabetes. I’ve been taking my medications like clockwork. Walk a mile or 2 every day. I’ve been watching what I eat, no fried food, not going crazy with sugar or any other carb for that matter. But for the last couple of months my Glucose levels have been going haywire.
I would eat the exact same thing for lunch 2 days in a row and my levels would be vastly different. I had what some would consider a good sized breakfast with home fries, and 2 hours later my glucose was in the low - normal range. Have a small sandwich and it would be through the roof. I figured my Pancreas was getting ready for its last gasp.

Then last night I had the terrors. You know, one incredibly bad dream after another. Death, destruction, I woke up a couple of times where the pounding of my heart was almost painful, gasping for breath.

When I woke up for good at 6 this morning, relieved that the rather stressful night was over, it hit me. I checked my glucose and it was a rather high 156.
When you fast for 10-12 hours, your sugar should go down, not up 45 points.
So being the boy genius that I am, I went back and bounced the high number against what was going on that day. Every one could be tied to a stressor.
I was tracking the wrong variable.
So I am going to spend my day off clearing up all the problems that are going on. Most are things that can be corrected with a couple of phone calls. You know how it is, leave little things undone, and they become big things. And I will re-learn the little fact that those things I have no control over, I should not obsess over.
I’ll let you know if it works…

There is a room in my house we call “The Office”. Has a desk, 4 drawer filing cabinet, therefore the name. We also call it the “Shit Collector” for equally obvious reasons. With the weekend forecast less than stellar, I am going to get rid of my stuff in there.
The Room is a parallel to my life right now. Cluttered, a bit disorganized, a lot of stuff from the past in there that I should just let go of. My grandmother gave me a pile of book of the month club type mysteries and such right before she passed, because she “knew I wouldn’t just throw them out”. After 11 years I think I can get rid of them. I always loved Differential Equations, do simple ones in my head to stay awake at meetings. But I don’t think I need the text any more.

So,Classroom texts, with the exception of a couple philosophy ones are gone. Louis L’Amour westerns, all going. Heinlein that I have just about memorized, gone (except of course Stranger in a Strange Land). The Military History stuff stays, old paperbacks go. And of course C.S. Forrester (the Hornblower series) stays. And so does Poe. Ludlum can go because that’s pretty much been memorized. The Bullfinch stays.

As for all the other junk? Wife makes the decisions on that. She can point, I will remove. And maybe after this we may actually be able to use the desk!

Sort of.
I guess Phoenix wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. He was carrying a 4.0 average and things were I guess, okay. But Phoenix is a new city without a lot of things the east can offer. So the end of April will see Dan back on the home front for a few weeks until he starts in Pennsylvania. Right outside Philly, the same school that he was going to in Arizona. But much, much closer. 7 Hour drive as opposed to an expensive plane ticket. I will be able to visit on long weekends, as will he.
I am ecstatic as hell.

Or Happy Hour. Or something. The Blogger Christmas party didn’t quite get off the ground. Rumors and promises only for January. So let’s make this easy. Follow this, and be at the next Tweetup. The first one at the brewpub was a good time, and I imagine the next one will not disappoint either!
Bowling shirts optional. I will have to decide which one - might have to break in a new one….