Our wedding anniversary is coming up. With or without fanfare, depending on one’s point of view. The number is almost more than I can compute. Seriously, people, I’ve been married to one man over half of my entire life. That he’s ‘the best man alive’ (my anointment) is more than pleasing: his status provides the homeostasis of secure and stable life.
We’re both retired, well mostly, because we remain active in every arena that we can.
My husband is the Mayor of the gym we attend, LA Fitness. He has an innately ebullient personality and befriends all. Both of us are extroverts, eager to meet-and-great others as our gifts command.
He’s a gym regular while I’m semi-dedicated. He’s a forever jock while I’m constantly rehabbing aging muscles and joints, especially the dang knees which want to give out. But I’m dedicated to non-surgical interventions such as water aerobics at the gym.
Because I’m a writer, I’ll never fully retire, for it’s a writer’s duty to be a secretary of life. Another work-out series I endure at our gym are those that aim to correct my rounded shoulders and slouch-in-the-chair posture.
We’re both retired, well mostly, because we remain active in every arena that we can.
For home chores we have a series of helpers as we both cast off tasks we no longer wished to do in retirement:
- On Tuesday the yard crew arrives, mowing and weeding our ever-growing landscape. This assistance has actually been in place for many years because of our mutual allergies to mowing our grass – even with it’s postage stamp size compared to the Midwest where we grew up and from which we just returned.
- On every other Wednesday the cleaning ladies, named the Brown Tornadoes, for the speed with which they perform household cleaning chores we abhor.
- On Thursday the pool cleaner arrives to keep our pool healthy. Larry used to act as Cabana Boy, relishing chores as lifelong friends.
We’re both retired, well mostly, because we remain active in every arena that we can.
You may note that there are no Friday – Monday helpers in our home. Those days are dedicated play dates, in part because those were the days we were together in his perpetually traveling salesman life.
Gosh, I’m glad he’s retired! I see him and hug him daily!
Happy anniversary!
Staying active and involved – you both know how to live right.
thank you, Alex
Happy Anniversary! You two are too cute! Happy IWSG Day.
Thanks, Joylene – just returned from a visit with family and friends in Indiana – ready to celebrate on Saturday!
What an uplifting post, PJ! Congratulations on your anniversary! And I love the photos of you two. And yes, hire someone to help with the drudgery if you can swing it. You’ve long paid your dues.
I, too, have helpers to do things I don’t like. Like my wonderful Mario and his three fabulous ladies who whip my house into shape every three weeks. I don’t mind housework, but having them tackle the the basic chores like scrubbing floors and cleaning showers frees me up to do projects like painting the cement steps or cleaning and organizing closets and drawers. We live in a townhome, so we don’t have to worry about landscaping or snow shoveling or other maintenance things.
I love that you have dedicated play dates. Terry and I have dedicated snuggles on the couch to watch tv together for a bit most evenings, and we go on play trips to Vegas and other places.
Have fun celebrating your anniversary when the big day arrives! Take care!
While I don’t agree with the notion that the love of money is the root of all evil, you and I are blessed with funds to pay other people for tasks we wish to avoid = Freedom!
It’s great to keep love alive with snuggles, play dates, and such – such keeps us young, doesn’t it, Louise.