What have you been up to lately?

[Buster]

Cherish your Dad because when he is gone like mine you'll miss him - alot!

It's why I make the 6 hour round trip weekly, and in the summer to get him out on my brother's pontoon to drown minnows.

 

[jlake1958]

Signed up for Medicare in preparation for my retirement Jan 31 2025. It will be very different not having a job any more.

Signed up for Medicare in preparation for my retirement Jan 31 2025. It will be very different not having a job any more.

I have struggled a bit with retirement, Covid years, and loss of work friendships.
On the other hand, I have been letting my freak flag fly as I am in deep project mode. That part of retirement has been fun. Had a porsche 944 turbo project, then a Vanagon project, and now on a Lund Tyee total rebuild of the interior, the stern, and painting. These projects give my ADHD brain the obsessive focus almost to the exclusion of anything else. I plan on expanding my fishing in a boat greatly as I was not kind to my body in earlier years and now am paying the taxman so walking streams and most wading is a little dicey anymore.
Hoping to switch gears and really explore new species and locations in the Lund. I am thinking a 16' jon boat with a couple mods might be fun too.....ANOTHER PROJECT!

 

[FuzzyGrub]

Projects keep the brain sharp and blood pumping.

 

[lightflyer1]

About three years after my dad retired he said to me "I always wondered when retired people said 'I'm busier now than I ever was when I was working.' But now I understand--you do everything at about half the pace."
I checked out of full time work at 52 and did some light consulting for a few years just to keep a foot in the door in case I wanted to get back into work. Now I'm fully retired while my wife finishes up her career. She's happy working, I never was. My personal take on being busier is that objectively I (and most others) aren't "busier" if that means doing productive things that have to get done. Instead, we have expectations of doing more and however we decide to fill our days we can't get to all the things we want to do, so it feels busy. I also think many people WANT to feel busy because they've spent 40 years or more being busy and that energizes them. So we structure our lives in ways that make us feel busy. Using my 92yo dad again as an example--he tells me he's busy. He has to sweep the floor and read the newspaper and magazines, and there's a football game on at 3 and then he has to help mom with dinner and there's a movie he really wants to watch at 7. I wouldn't call that busy because with the exception of a bit of housework and meal prep, there's nothing on that list that has to get done--it's 90% leisure from my point of view. But I think he needs to believe he's being busy and productive. And if that keeps him going for a few more years--good on him.

My dad also always said that if he ever stopped he would just die. He always found something that needed doing.

 

[David Atkins]

My Dad said the same thing, he worked his garden (Summer and Fall) I did the tilling for him as the Sears 6 HP tiller would kill you if you didn't keep an eye on it, lol

We went fishing so he could bring home fresh fish for dinners, I took fresh venison and pork to him and mom from my hunting trips, he walked the dog 2 times a day for over a mile each time! He kept busy doing things for mom (she was an invalid)- cleaning the house, cooking food, grocery shopping - I told him he made a good wife, he laughed and said mom was his best friend, mother of his children, his honey pie! Made me feel warm inside when he said that, OH! they were married for 55 years when he died, tells you something about them!

Guess I learned something from mom and Dad - me and my better half will be doing out 35th in May of '25. She is also my best friend, mother of my 2 children, even though I am disabled I do the shopping and cooking when I can; finding a good woman is a blessing from God and to be loved, cherished and above all told how much they mean to us everyday! OFF MY SOAP BOX NOW - MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY FAMILY HERE ON "TINBOATS" - MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL THIS HOLIDAY SEASON!