Nothing lasts forever, no matter how much you enjoyed it. For the last 13 years I’ve been feeding people, treating dogs and conversing with people about everything from social democracy to absurdism, music, all of it, classical, jazz, K-pop, Saudi metal, Yungblud, art, books… you name it, at an urban grocery store. My peeps have been all ages, all races, assorted ethnicities and genders. And since Covid we have been letting dogs in, and I give them roasted chicken or beef treats. I love every single one of their furry bums.
There have been a lot of changes over the years. I’ve worked for 4 different owners. The original owners were an Italian family, who prided themselves in providing the best produce, as often as possible from Ontario and a wide supply of grocery items that were difficult to find. When they sold it, unable to compete with the monster that is Loblaw’s, it was bought by a smart, forward thinking Chinese woman, who kept their vision and added her own. She took me to China making my dream of a lifetime come true. The last two slowly destroyed the store by spending as little money on produce, grocery items and store maintenance as possible. The last owners who now have the store up for sale, have never even bothered to work in the store and are willing to leave shelves half empty rather than stock them. They put nothing in and when they got nothing back, they put it on the market.
This year I turned 68 and for my birthday I handed in my notice.
In 5 days I will be jumping off the cliff of relative financial security and into the unknown. No more alarm clocks. No more trying to be a day person when I truly come alive at midnight and no more standing all day. No more anything, I don’t want to do as long as it doesn’t affect my ability to look after myself and be a relatively decent human being.
I can’t wait.
The surprising thing about retiring from employment is that most people over the age of 35 seem to think of it as retiring from life. People are very concerned about how you will spend your time now that it is not dominated by a job. And they all give me the same look when I assure them that I have a multitude of ways to fill my time. The look of disbelief. I find it infinitely sad that so many people find work their main focus.
One of the things I am looking forward to is getting fit. I’ve always put more time into brain development which I don’t regret but it catches up with you as you get older and standing on your feet all day is an energy sapper at my age. When I get home from work all I want to do is snuggle with my cat, Sid.
The building I live in has an indoor pool. I’m looking forward to starting my days with a swim ending in a long float. Then I will have a light nosh and sit down at this computer and write. This is another thing I haven’t had the energy to do and if you know me, you know that’s the thing I should be giving priority.
I plan on posting both on this and my other blog http://www.magicforthedisillusioned.com, my fiction blog. I’ve had a couple of novels in the works that have stayed on my mind long enough for me to know that I need and want to finish them.
I am considering facilitating a playwriting group at my neighbourhood community centre. And possibly even a community improv group, maybe I’ll walk dogs or cook for a select few out of my home. I’m just going to take my time and figure out what will be the most fun.
The Adventures of Danger Girl 