Take A Day Off!

Seems like I have been on or working on a mower for several days in a row.  I think it is time to take a day off and see what mischief I can get into.  I know there is a ton of things to do but a part of me just needs to see if recuperation is in my future.  Nah, I'll bet I find something to do that involves work sometime today.

What do you think you will be when you grow up?    I know there was a lot of things I could have been but a singing Farm Laborer was just not in my vision.   Another thing I did not see is how hard I have to work to maintain my health.  Sitting on my butt is just not the way to achieve and maintain good health.  This next year I am going to spend a little more winter time working on fitness so it is not so hard to get back to full strength.   Well, at least as strong as a 66 year old man can achieve. 

Barb and one of her life goals.  A good book and a place in the sun.

Have I told you how lucky I am to have my wife Barbara?   With her help, we have amassed a good enough amount of retirement funds and can really enjoy life.  When one of the mowers wasn't working I complained and Barb asked me who was keeping me from having a new mower.  Yes, as much as I love to shop, I am somewhat a cheap Charley.  A part of me wants to drive to the nearest store and buy a new mower and part of me says fix the old one.  I guess I will probably use the old stuff until I can no longer get or keep it running.  You should see the junk in my old mower bone pile.   The sad part is that the mowers don't wear out evenly.  I know that there is one mower out there that had a good motor on it and one with a good mower deck.  The bad news is that I can't manage to cobble them together and make it work to my satisfaction.

Today on the Today Show, there was a person pitching the good advice they got from their father.  I'll bet that 90% of it is just made up bullshit.   Over my lifetime, I have said many times that it is a shame the young don't learn from the good advice of their parents.  Just as that thought comes out of my mouth, I am reminded by my own imp of perverse that we learn best those life lessons that are accompanied with a Significant Emotional Event (SEE).   Getting advice from a parent seldom is accompanied by a SEE.  Many of my lessons start out with the thought, "I wonder what will happen if..." That's when the learning really begins.  My Dad said that I didn't want to make a living digging ditches.  Guess who started working construction to pay for my schooling?  When I stopped really working hard, I got soft and fat and had to work hard to get/stay in shape.  The moral of the story?  I am not sure but if you have one, please send me the answer. 

I do have a simple recommendation to help keep you happy.  Find something you love to do and do it.  Sing, plant, find a hobby that keeps you involved.  There isn't a school Board out there that couldn't use a new member.  Even the race will get you up and off your butt.  The ideal thing in life is to find a job that you love and do it your entire life.  If you can't find one that fits that ideal, find something to do with the money that will.  Throw in some retirement saving and you will get to you end goals.  If none of that works, sit on your butt until you have a heart attack.  If you think it is hard to get in shape with a good heart, wait until yours  doesn't work as well. 

There is a saying that the American Indian was reported to say each day.  "Today is a good day to die!"   I agree but try to not let it really be today.  When I was 20, I thought 60 would be old and now that I have passed that mark I am thinking  80 or 90 might even be a good, or better time to die.   I just hope whatever kills me is quick and not too painful.  I also don't want my last thought to be, "I wonder what will happen if..."


MUD