Tag Archives: retirement

Retirement Musings

“Is it really 10 o’clock?”

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Sitting at the breakfast table this morning, a thought came to me very suddenly; I am beginning to enjoy retirement.? It is now almost exactly six months since I walked out of the last school I will ever teach in and settled to a life of finding things to do that would fill the void.? It finally dawned – this ‘altered state’ – when Hubby said casually,

10-o-clock

“Is it really 10 o’clock?? Now you really must feel as though you’ve retired!”

I grinned, thought for a moment and agreed.? It took me a while.? At first, it had been in the back of my mind that I ought to be doing something.? I found myself? thinking ‘I would normally be doing [insert school-based activity] at this point’ or ‘I wonder if [insert school-based activity] is still going to happen this term’.? It suddenly became clear, this morning at the breakfast table, that I haven’t had one of those thoughts for a while now, probably since before Christmas.? I have lent a hand, from home, with some ‘computery stuff’ that I had initiated in the first place, but I don’t mind that.? If there’s one thing I do miss it’s creating resources for the classroom or for colleagues.? What I don’t miss is the speed at which some of these activities needed to be done or the possible fallout if they didn’t work first time!

frazzled

Although I still miss the camaraderie and my mad fellow teachers, I have now doffed the ‘member of the profession’ bit and I am settling into that very important new phase of my life.? I have heard from others that, after you retire, you suddenly find so much to do that you wonder how you ever managed to find the time to go to work.? I haven’t quite reached that stage … yet.? There are things that I do on a Tuesday and a Wednesday that are not shopping or housework.? I also have the time, each day, to make the bed (yes I have said it before but it’s very special to me!), empty and refill the dishwasher, do the washing AND drying on the same day and prepare the night’s dinner at any time during the day that I damned well please!? Going away for a couple of breaks in term time last year was my way of rebelling – snubbing my nose, if you like.? Now, I am settling into more of a routine and it fits well.

So, goodbye to waking up at 6.20 am because I have to, to wasting? half a day (at the very least) doing the shopping at the weekends because I don’t have the time (or energy) during the week, to arriving at 8 pm on Sunday night and remembering that very important something that I forgot to do for Monday – and hello to retirement.

don'thavetoretired

Other thoughts, Retirement Musings

Auld Lang Syne

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Spinning, once again, towards a new year makes you think.? Well, it does me, so I decided to review my 2015.? Boring, I hear you say.? Everyone does that.? Yes, they do, but I intend to focus on the positive – if I can.

Last January hove into view with my decision to retire firmly sealed in an envelope, ready to hand to my head teacher.? The next few months were a flurry of putting paperwork in order, reassigning jobs (which may not have always been strictly in my job spec but? I had been doing anyway) to other people and, of course, teaching.? Clearing my desk drawers was a challenge.? The most important question I had to ask myself was “Do I need this?”? My brain kept trying to substitute ‘want’ for ‘need’ but I won in the end.? I re-purposed some items by donating them to colleagues and simply disposed of most of the rest.? (There is one zip-top, plastic folder snuggling in a corner of the lounge that contains things I just had to bring home – mainly small items of stationery!)

There was ‘Poldark’, of course, about which I was in two minds, having seen the original, but enjoyed very much in the end.

In April we celebrated the 94th birthday of my crazy, wonderful dad.? Brilliant to still have him making those awful jokes and, sometimes, even more awful faces!? After a major operation and the addition of a pacemaker in the last few years, he is still going strong and is surprisingly independent for his age.

Dad proving that a splitting headache usually has a reason

Later, we had an election which, in my opinion, was a travesty.? No more on that – I was going to be positive!

On July 9th, 2015 (let it be recorded) I retired.? It was a smooth transition and I can honestly say that the only things I will miss are?? some great colleagues – who, I hope, will stay friends! – and imparting knowledge.? Two days after that I attending the wedding of my son and, in one, fell swoop, gained a daughter and a whole new family!

Start as you mean to go on

Now, ever since deciding that I would definitely retire people have been asking one question – what will you do?? My first answer has always been ‘Nothing’, followed by ‘take the opportunity to go on breaks in term time!’? Well, first I did a lot of not-planning and not-marking throughout what was still, for me, the summer holidays.? That was the only sign, at that point, that something was different.? In September, when I did not return to work, we visited friends in the East of England and the Midlands; in November, we took an overnight trip to France.

The view down into the lobby from the first floor of our lovely little hotel

This December we were lucky enough to share Christmas dinner with the best newly-married couple and had a wonderful, relaxing day with good food and good company.

So much for 2015.? Next year will prove to be a challenge, but more of that later.? May I wish all who have read any of my ramblings a very Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year.

Retirement Musings

Free, at last!

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What to do, now that I was no longer a slave to the alarm clock?

We agreed, my not-retiree husband and myself, to try to leave the house at least once in the working week in order to ‘do something’ that isn’t shopping or some other mundane activity.? There are a few lovely parks in the vicinity and we want to make sure we walk enough in the short term to keep us mobile in the long term.? However, my first wish, ever since I had made the decision to leave gainful employment, was to have our holiday in term time.? After the lovely wedding?of our son at the beginning of the summer, we let the rest of July and August drift by, just enjoying the fact that I wasn’t chained to my computer in a planning frenzy.? Our get-away was to be to friends – other retirees – in September!? We arranged this guilty pleasure and waited eagerly until the moment arrived.

I really did feel like a naughty child as we packed the car and left, having cunningly avoided the morning rush hours to work and school.? We made our way across London, up the M40 and into the wilds of Central England.? We had lived in the Potteries when we were first married and it always feels like going home, in spite of all the other places we have lived, both in and out of the UK.

Arriving at our destination brought the next flutter of my heart.? We really were away during the week, during the term.? Part of my hope for this visit – aside from spending quality time with good friends – was to learn from them how to be retired.? I was certain that there were many tricks and wrinkles (sorry!) that it would otherwise take time to acquire, so I wanted to steal a march.? The first advice, shown not vocalised, was that you get dressed when you want/need to!? I think I already knew that, intellectually, but needed some polishing.? So, Rule One – You only finally give in when there is somewhere to go.

The second handy hint was quite simple, really.? You have lots of time to plan and execute a good meal.? Missing an ingredient?? Pop out and get it -? now! Due to this relaxed way of thinking, we ended up, variously, with an excellent fish pie and – something none of us had eaten for a long time – a cheese and apple flan.? Some things only happen with the right people.

Third piece of advice – take advantage of going out whenever you want to.? We belong to the National Trust and there are a number of properties in Staffordshire and Cheshire.? We visited many of them when we lived there, forty years ago, but some we never managed to get to or they were not open to the public at the time.? The beautiful Styal Mill was a spectacular, if overwhelming, example of a cotton mill, both inside and out.

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The gardens were also enchanting and, as I looked around the many other people who were strolling through them, it was obvious that we had joined a club – almost everyone was ‘of a certain age’.? The wildlife was especially accommodating and sat around for more than long enough for me to photograph it.

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After several sleeps, we moved down to Hubby’s sister in Norfolk for another couple of days of indulgence.? Different pace but relaxing all the same and another NT property, Ickworth, that we had never seen.

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It was hard to turn around and head for home.? We had tasted life without work and it was good,? Now thinking about the next trip … in term time … of course!