Creatures of habit, or just a creature.....

   The early morning sun streamed into the bedroom. It was time to get up. I glanced at the clock. OMG! I had overslept. Before my day even got started I was now running about thirty minutes behind schedule. What schedule? I'm retired. Panic, fear and a sense 'what to do next' gripped my body. How could I have overslept. I always get up at the same time each day. I have for years, with maybe one or two exceptions. It's funny how a slight change in schedule or routine can effect the rest of the day, maybe even life. For sure, we are 'creatures of habit.'

   Take, for example, the car keys. I always turn off the car engine, remove the keys from the ignition and drop them into the ash tray.(Now everyone knows where they can find my car keys, even the crooks.) It is a habit  I have done for years. It just makes it easier to know where they are if someone needs to use the car, especially if one  is in a hurry, although, admittedly, I probably would not do this in a big city.

   But on this particular day I put the keys in my suit jacket pocket, came inside and, who knows why, I hung up my jacket in the closet.    First, rarely is that the first thing I do upon entering the house. Eventually my jacket does make its way to the  closet, but usually not the first thing upon arriving home. That's what the chair just inside the door is for.

    Second, I had no memory of putting the keys in my packet. You guessed it. When it came time to go to the store, do you think I could remember what I had done with the keys? OK Lucky. What did you do with the car keys? I know you want to go to the park.

   After a somewhat frantic search I remembered I 'may have' put them in my jacket pocket and sure enough, there they were, along with a few receipts from the hardware store and a handful of dog treats. Most of my pockets now have bits and pieces of dog biscuits these days.

   For me, everything has its place, especially my tools. It was a lesson I learned many years ago from an eccentric boss I worked for, actually he was a fanatic. 

   (Just an aside, he would  wear a dress shirt only once. Yes, once. The workshop was litter with boxes of new, unopened dress shirts, blue ones, white ones, stripes and solids. After it was worn it got tossed in the garbage. Too bad we were not the same size.)

    But his message about tools? If you put the tool back where you found it, you'll know where to look for it the next time you needed it. Makes sense. It took a while to learn. I was a scatter-brained college kid at the time,  but it was a practice (habit) I continue, even to this day...well almost all the time.

   One might think that with all the tools I have accumulated over the years I would have no trouble finding a Phillips head screwdriver when I needed it or a pair of needle nose pliers.  

   “Lucky, did you borrow those pliers again. How many times have I told you to put them back after you use them. “

   "What's that? You didn't use them? OK! It must have been the neighbor then. Sorry."

   It amazes me how accustomed we become to our routines and how often we don't even realize it. I usually put  my right sock on first, then my left. If I do it the other way, left first, it just doesn't feel right and I end up taking them off and starting over. And I always put my pants on after I have my socks on. That way I won't wrinkle the bottom of my pant legs. Sounds logical anyhow!

   By now you are probably saying to yourself....."My goodness... he has slipped off the deep end.” There are many who may agree that happened years ago. But I challenge you to take a look at some of the unique things you do.

   In the kitchen, at breakfast time, the first thing I do after turning on the television to catch the early morning news,  is  make the coffee. If the paper boy (person) arrives or the dog needs to go out or I get distracted by something being reported on the morning news, it changes my entire routine and I end up having to wait an extra five minutes for my morning jolt of 'wake up'... my slightly pumpkin flavored  coffee. It's got to be pumpkin this time of year.

   On this particular morning I was distracted by a story on the  news about one of our local politicians and something he may have said or done. Can't these guys wait until after I have had my morning coffee before doing something stupid?

   Humans are not the only ones on the planet who are creatures of habit. Lucky has his favorite toy for certain times of the day, knows exactly when it is 5:00 PM,  dinner time  and.... what's this turning around and around in a circle before lying down on his bed. If I did that before going to bed, I'd probably end up sleeping in the car, after finding the car keys.

   Being a 'creature of habit', following certain routines each day, is probably not a bad things. It does put a bit of order into one's life and it may offer clues about how someone might act or react in routine and normal situations.

 So I was a few minutes late today. So what! It's not as if the world was expecting me at a certain place at a certain time. Well almost no one. Thank goodness for cell phones. A quick call to the person who cuts and styles my hair, telling her I was running a bit late and.... all is good. 

If you thought this past summer was great.....

   If you thought this past summer was great, just wait until this Fall. Sure, the warm sunny days, high humidity lasting for what often seemed like weeks, the almost daily afternoon showers were all part of this year's summer. But the warm temperatures and frequent showers keep the vegetables growing and the flowers blooming and this year produced a bumper crop of cucumbers, tomatoes and various herbs. I like growing herbs the most. They're easy.

   Of the four seasons of the year, five if you count “mud season,” I have always liked Fall the best. But I really enjoyed the past summer season  and I am not sure if this Fall can match the sunny blue skies, reasonable temperatures and until the last few weeks, the lack of mosquitoes. But if I had any doubts, what happened this week would eliminate any question or concerns about the upcoming season and provide a perspective I had not expected.

  I am back working again, on a part time basis for just a few weeks, until the snow flies. It is a job that brings me in contact with many different people, with many different life experiences. My job is to sit down with them for about forty five minutes to complete a survey. Wow. A survey. Confidentially prevents me from going into more detail about the type of survey, but...

   This past week I had the opportunity to call upon.... let's call him Bud. (That's not his real name.) I pulled into the driveway and Bud was out washing the dust and dirt off his car. He and his wife had just returned from a camping trip.

   I introduced myself, told him what I was doing, how he had been selected to be part of the survey and... he agreed to  spend the next forty five or so minutes with me. I admit that it brought a smile to my face. Not everyone is that agreeable or willing. After all, it is voluntary and it is a survey!

   The survey went well and as we began to wrap things up, he said to me....” It's a good thing you caught me now.”

  I must have looked a bit puzzled. He continued....” The doctors have told me I may have only six months to a year to live. I have a stage four cancer. If you were to come back next Spring I might not be here.”

   Bud is only fifty two years old and has been battling cancer for several years. Along with his wife and family he is traveling to Boston every three weeks for treatment, but the cancer has taken a turn, not responding to the treatment any more and is worsening.

   We continued to talk for a while and what was difficult for me to understand was how positive he remained, about life, about the treatment he was receiving and the people around him, including has doctors and nurses at the cancer center. Truthfully, I'm not sure how I would react to such news.

   He spoke of camping, and working in the garden, of washing his cars, of the smell of the smoke of a wood fire from the chimney next door and the upcoming holidays. And his favorite time of the year...Fall.

   In a somewhat clumsy way I asked him how he was able to remain so positive. His response...”Sure, I could curl up in a chair or never get out of bed each day and feel really sorry for myself. But what would that accomplish? There is too much to enjoy regardless of how long I live and I want to take advantage of every minute.”

   We shook hands, I wished him the best and I started my drive back home. This 'chance' meeting had given me a bit more to think about than I had expected.

   I decided to skip the highway ride back home and stuck to the back roads with less traffic. The trees that lined either side of the road were now changing color and the bright sun added to their beauty. But my mind continued to replay my conversation with Bud and I questioned if I would be able to remain as positive as he was if facing a similar situation. What had started out as simple work assignment this day had ended up to be a great deal more.. at least for me. This would be a 'meeting' I would not soon  forget.

   Yes, I like the Fall season. I like to bite into a freshly picked apple, or pick the few remaining vegetables in the garden before the first frost, smell the smoke of a freshly lit wood fire in the fire place. But now I can add one other memory to that list, Bud, and his positive attitude about life. “There's too much to enjoy regardless of how long you live and I want to take advantage of every minute.” 

Want to be heard? Speak up......

   As I continue to enter a new phase of  life along with many other 'baby boomers',  I must admit  the way I had pictured retirement and planned for it may  not be the way it will turn out. Naively, my view of retirement and the senior years was modeled somewhat after the retirement of my parents and grandparents and what we hear and see on television. But times have changed and so the definition of retirement.
   At some magical age, after  years of working a "regular" job",  you would stop going to the office or where ever you worked every day, get a check from Social Security or a state pension program and, supplemented with a bit of savings, live life comfortably. You could sleep late in the morning because you stayed up late to watch Jimmy Fallon, hang out at the local Tim Horton with all your 'buds', supervise the grandchildren as they splash around in the pool...(doesn't every grandparent have a pool) or catch up on reading all those books and magazines you never had time to read while you were working.
   I didn't anticipate the millions and millions of dollars still being spent daily defending the 'freedom' of people in countries half way around the world whose only view of the United States is what they are told by their political leaders or see on television, if they have a television at all. (Bet they have cell phones though!) Could some of those dollars be better spent at home, used in search for a cure for cancer or ALS or Alzheimer's?
   Now, I understand the concept of a 'global economy' and the importance of people working together to make the world a better place for everyone to live. But one only needs to watch the news or read the paper to discover that not every country or  world leader really cares about a cure for cancer or other potentially deadly disease.They just let the people join  radical groups and die. Senior years planning? If terrorist  around the world are decapitating anyone, American or not, is it a sign of a world spinning out of control?
   I had expected  when the 'boomers' started to retire there would be a transition of power and decision-making to a younger generation, a generation filled with enthusiasm and enlightenment, having learned from the mistakes of those who had come before them and understanding  the world would be a different place. They would know that in the not too distant future, they too  would be 'old' with dreams of a comfortable life in retirement. (Definition of old? Fifteen years older than your current age.  :))
   By the time I retired I figured there would be medical advancements that might cure cancer, new technology that would decrease our dependency on foreign oil and gas, or not need gasoline at all, and have clean air and water for a healthier life. The good news is that we are slowly making strides in those directions. The bad news is .....it's still politics as usual when it comes to change and priorities. We just can't seem to get out of our own way to insure success and move forward.
   I had not anticipated the arguing and bickering taking place within our own government among the political factions that now requires a need for a new level of credibility and honesty from elected officials. Power, in the wrong hands has always corrupted. But how many politicians in the past year or so have been accused of abuse of power and corruption and have  legally been charged? If it's more than one, it's one too many. Greed!
    And as today's  federal, state and local officials debate the financial shortcomings of their inability to live within their means or the perception of an ever increasing roll of government in our everyday life, why would someone not expect the public to respond with renewed activism and involvement, especially as the aging population gets larger and lives longer.
   We hold elections to select those we believe will represent us best, not who can raise the most money for his or her 'campaign war chest'. (Did you know they get to keep some of the money  they raise if they  don't spend it all?) Is this the funding of a new American democracy? (Oh.....I forgot. Election day just around the corner.)
   Instead of sitting at home and allowing things to get done to us, perhaps we need to make sure  those who represent us remember what it's like back in the home and what it will be like in the future. They need to hear from those who elected them and they need to listen to all the different perspectives and point of view.
   Think about it....fewer  babies are being born and the population continues to live longer and the average age of a typical person is increasing, like Maine.   Maybe it's time to  “speak up and be heard”. Perhaps this is the 'new politics' for those entering the “golden years.” We had the Million Man  March on Washington a number of years ago. What about a 'Golden Years Rally' in every city and state across the nation. Isn't it time to find out who's listening!!!!

When you are having fun.....

     I have said it myself on occasion, I have heard it said many times just in the past several weeks, especially from the kids as they return to school. “My how the time does fly!” Now we know that time does not fly. It moves at a sixty second per minute pace, but it just seems that when you are doing something that you enjoy, it seems to pass by at a very rapid 'clip.'

     As I often do, the notion of 'time flying' peaked my curiosity, so I thought I would do a bit of research to its origin. Much to my surprise there was not much information available about 'flying time' except in relation to the often endless minutes spent flying in an airplane. Near the top of the list of my search was the history of the expression about “go fly a kite.” Maybe there was a message there for me.

     What I did discover are the seeming endless comments about time, hundreds of them. So I thought I would pull out a few to share, along with the name of the person to whom they are credited.

   “Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to.”    Lao Tzu

   What a great excuse. If you don't want to do something, just say that you don't have time!! I need to remember that. The boss tells you to do something....sorry I don't have the time right now!

   “One day spent with someone you love can change everything. Mitch Albom

   This may not be specifically about minutes or seconds, but it's a nice thought and sentiment about life.

   “How did it get so late so soon? It's night before it's afternoon. December is here before it's June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?”      Dr. Seuss

   This probably summarizes they way many of us feel and leave it to the good Dr Seuss to put it into words for us.

   “Time is what keeps everything from happening at once.”

Ray Cummings,

   Actually, I think this make a great deal of sense, don't you?

   And to credit one of our own from Maine......

   “Time takes it all, whether you want it to or not.”     Stephen King

   “Only time can heal your broken heart. Just as only time can heal broken arms or legs.”    Jim Henson

    Now this one has a bit of special meaning for me right now, not a broken heart or leg but a bit of knee surgery. Doc.....will this every heal? I missed the tryouts this year for tight end with the New England Patriots and the Boston Celtics have been calling  to see if I am ready to play point guard. (Like that would ever happen!)

   “A man who waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life'    Charles Darwin,

     I like this one. I wonder if it applies to going outside to cut the lawn? Maybe I should consider hiring someone to come cut the grass.Then again, maybe it's not a waste of time. It allows me to get to know my lawn mower better. 

   “Time spent with a cat is never wasted.” Colette

   Got to think about this one for a minute. Now if it had been a dog.......

   “Enjoy life. There's plenty of time to be dead.” Hans Christian Andersen

   Hmm. An interesting way to look at it, don't you think?

   “Lost time is never found again” Benjamin Franklin

   Leave it to Uncle Ben  to state the obvious. He usually did.

   We all have, at some point, thought about time...  how quickly it sometimes passes or maybe, how slowly. But without a doubt, everyone has an opinion about time and if you don't, maybe it's time you did. 

   Perhaps William Penn sums it up best......“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.”

OK. Time to move on.  :)