At Last! Retiring for GOOD!

Great! That's not me, but it expresses how I feel. I've spent a lot of the past 3 months clearing up old tasks, unloading accumulated junk from my house, and enjoying NOT having to put off needed medical appointments because the time off wasn't convenient to my employer. I've developed some good habits, like: Making my bed every day. Of course, it helped that my husband leaves so early, but, he has also jumped on board with this during his summer break. Keeping the kitchen spiffed up (Is that a phrase? My mother used it). I've been deep-cleaning and organizing (which, of course, makes it easier to keep it clean). Walking - not every day, but most. Outside, if possible, otherwise, in the house. My FitBit is registering meeting goals every week. Laundry - no longer with piles in front of the washer. Writing - every day, something. The novel is not progressing as fast as I would like, but I am making progress. I'm starting to reach out to various ma...

I've been REALLY busy this morning (Thursday 8/24/17). The RamJet people are here to shore up our foundation. I've been working to get the bedroom cleaned up and cleared out. I started by tackling Den's stuff - he does have the tendency to drop what's in his pockets anywhere. Over time, the junk has built up - pens, receipts (mostly not necessary to keep), cough drops, change, etc. He also tends to use meds/lotions/razors/etc. in the bedroom, but not removing them again. Together, with the habit we have acquired of eating while watching TV, that has made a huge mess. I started at one end of the room and methodically moved through it. I put some of the 'probably important' stuff in a lidded container, for him to sort out later. I dusted, wiped, and swept as I went. A funny thing happened when I got near my chair. Suddenly, the junk started to be MINE. I was amazed at the sloppy habits I'd gotten into, as I had to confront them for the first time in we...

I started off strong - really, I did. When I first retired, I had the strength of 10. But, as the summer passed, I lost my Mojo. The first thing to go was my dedication to daily upkeep of the house. I found myself weakly saying,  mañana. Then, I began raiding the fridge. I packed on a lot of the weight I had lost in the last semester I worked. Lastly, I began skipping my revision schedule. I read aimlessly, both on- and offline. I started taking naps. Like a 3-year old. So, unless I want to become this: I need to re-boot my life plans. I started Tuesday morning by getting cleaned up and dressed. I got to work with revising my Chem book, planning my week, and cleaning up the kitchen. Together, Den and I planned a healthy breakfast, conferred about our schedules, and made the bed (that last is not easy to get done early, if you have a partner - like mine - who likes to sleep in). I didn't manage to check-in with the Ham Radio NET today, but I did re-set my...

It's been good. My house is on the road to organization. In other words, small pockets of it are cleared out. I have a LONG way to go. Part of this, I realized after talking to my sister-in-law, whose home I'd always thought perfectly lovely, is that the modern no longer goes through this purge process once a year (Spring Cleaning). I never valued it before, but doing a regular yearly 'turn-out' is something desperately needed in American life. It might be a good plan for a small business, for someone who is mega-organized. Not a professional organizer, but just someone who can come in and nudge that person to: Put away in some organized fashion Give away Sell Throw out This can be an overwhelming task, needing weeks of planning, moving stuff out of where it's at, cleaning the containers, and putting back ONLY what should be kept. It's not a fast process. I'm doing it in bite-sized hunks. Much more, and I'd be facing massive back issues,...

AWESOME! Just AWESOME - that's all I have to say about it. I made MAJOR progress on cleaning up the house - bathroom - Check! Living Room - In Process. Desk Cleared - Check! Office - In Process. My goals this month are clearing out paperwork backlog, and general cleaning and organization. So far, so good.

This is one of the BIG things I have to do over the next 3 months or so. We have a ridiculous amount of loose paper around our house. This paper onslaught comes from several sources: Work papers Paycheck stubs, communiques from our benefits department, receipts Related to professional activities PD (professional development) Continuing coursework and CEUs Mailing list items, catalogs, random CD/DVDs PTRA - we provide workshops for teachers - this will continue even after retirement Student work - this will be less of a problem, as I will no longer be generating these. But, Den still has responsibilities to maintain records and grade papers Financial Bills Financial investments Banking statements Refunds in process, warranties Taxes Hobby/Church Radio and electronics (me) - I recently built a workbench in the attic, and will be moving most, if not all, of my gear to that space Magazines, mailing offers Church bulletins, Catechist paperwork and materials, ref...