Eighteen months ago, my better half told me I was retired. Note this wasn’t a question or a request, it was a “demand bid” and there wasn’t an alternative.
I’ve spent that time trying to decide what “being retired” meant to me – a writer/storyteller/creator. I even filled several notebooks with thoughts, rants and whining.
But all those hand-written words, (aided by several bottles of ink for my fountain pens and an entire sack of coffee beans) solidified the other day into something I’m calling Doug-Five-Point-Zero or Doug 5.0 Let me answer a few questions to get us started.
Where Did Doug 5.0 Come From?
I split my life into different stages:
- Infant 1.0
- Toddler 2.0
- Youth 3.0
- Adult 4.0
- Senior 5.0
Objectives
So these notes report on the things I discover and/or experience – as a creator of a “certain age.”
Will they be useful to you if you’re not a senior?
- Let me ask if you intend to be one some day? If the answer to that is “yes,” you might want to stick around.
- Got parents? This may help.
- And who really knows – being older may not be a handicap to explaining things of interest to other ages. 🙂
Other Topics?
Yes, I’ll continue to write about other topics as well.
I”m updating a rather large chunk of the posts on this site as well as getting it ready for some other book projects I’m working on.
Random Thoughts On Being Retired
I don’t identify as “senior”. I’m healthy, active and curious. I still move heavy stones around as I build dry stone walls as a hobby so I’m not yet doddering around the garden.
But yes, the knees and ankles complain when the weather changes and on those mornings, I do feel each and every year. (An active athletic life left some injuries behind.)
And yes, my age does qualify me for senior’s discounts.
And yes, I’m still trying to adjust to this label (not sure I ever will.)
My brain seems to function as well as it ever did – in some ways even better – but we’ll talk about how senior’s brains differ from younger folks brains in upcoming notes.
Will I research topics for readers on being retired or otherwise?
Sure, if it interests me. You can suggest topics by using the contact-me form here.
Other Topics?
l continue writing about other issues as well and you can see those in the menu.
What else am I doing moving forward?
All of my creative projects are clearly being evaluated again this simple criteria: “Hell yeah or no.”
One fiction pen name has already been nuked and no longer exists.
Several projects have been deleted from my “maybe project list.” There’s nothing new about this, my project list is as much a work in progress as I am.
As I said, it’s a work in progress (damn, do seniors repeat themselves?) 🙂
All the best
Doug
p.s. you can get updates when I post something new by clicking here