Time passages again

 The joys of retirement! With the freedom to create your own schedule, time should be more valuable than ever. And yet, many of us find ourselves with a peculiar phenomenon: we have more time but we are not necessarily using it more wisely.

Time is precious, but it's also fleeting. As I've aged, I am reminded of the importance of making the most of every moment. But what about those unexpected diversions that pop up along the way? The ones that seem too good to pass up, but might not necessarily align with your original plans?

Here's the thing: retirement is all about embracing flexibility and spontaneity. It's about being open to new experiences, exploring new interests, and making the most of our golden years. And that means being willing to pivot when the mood strikes.

So, what does this look like in practice? For some, it might mean taking a detour to visit a friend or family member who's in town or stopping to watch a sunset on the way to a planned outing. For others, it might mean trying a new hobby or activity that catches their eye, even if it's not part of the original plan.

The key is to strike a balance between structure and flexibility. We all want a sense of purpose and direction, but you also want to leave room for those unexpected diversions that bring joy and excitement to your life.

Here are a few tips to help you make the most of your retirement time:

Prioritize your goals and values: Take time to reflect on what's most important to you in retirement. What do you want to achieve? What kind of lifestyle do you want to lead? Having a clear sense of purpose will help guide your decisions and ensure you're using your time wisely.

Leave room for spontaneity: Don't overschedule your days or weeks. Leave some buffer time for unexpected events or activities that come up. This will help you stay flexible and open to new experiences.

Embrace the power of "maybe": When an unexpected opportunity arises, don't be afraid to say "maybe." It's okay to take a chance and try something new, even if it's not part of the original plan.

Practice mindfulness: Stay in the moment and focus on what's happening now. This will help you appreciate the little things and make the most of your time.

Celebrate your successes: Don't be too hard on yourself if you don't stick to your original plan. Celebrate your successes and accomplishments, no matter how small they may seem.

In the end, retirement is about creating a balance between structure and flexibility. By prioritizing your goals and values, leaving room for spontaneity, embracing the power of "maybe," practicing mindfulness, and celebrating your successes, you can make the most of your time and create a fulfilling, joyful retirement.

Time keeps on Slipping into the....

Time keeps on slipping, sometimes it slips into the past, sometimes it slips into the future. I was reading Ronnie Bennet's post The Mystery of How Time Slips Away where she talks about time flying away from her. I sometimes feel the same and it bothers me. I have a busy life, like many of you and most of my friends, so I get annoyed when I find that I have lost time. We are, as human beings by nature workers and doers and we need to be productive and be a part of something bigger than yourself. 

The next time you are feeling tired, foggy, and mentally unfocused and you find that time is slipping away, whether it is to the past, as you think about your life, or slipping into the future as you envision what you want to do, take a 5-minute breathing break to flood your brain with more oxygen. Every day you take tens of thousands of breaths and 20% of the oxygen you inhale is used by your brain.

Oxygen is so critical for brain cells that they can live for just a few minutes without it. It may be hard to accept that you aren't breathing "properly," but few people do. Ideally, you should breathe deeply from your diaphragm, not your chest. (Children naturally breathe this way until the constant stress of life retrains them to breathe shallowly.) Breathing helps you gain clarity but it won't make up for the time you have lost and for some this is frustrating. However, if you think of the time lost as the time in-between, the time after an ending and before a beginning then the time lost may not be thought of as a bad thing.  What you are doing could be starting a transition, which could be chaotic. 

However, a transition is a choice. When you get fired, stop practicing law so you can write novels, or hand in your keys to the office, you have made a change, not a transition. A change is an event. A transition is a transformation. Whether or not we are making a change or a transition, we need time to sort life out and sometimes that could mean that time appears to slip away from us. In reality, our mind is aware of what is happening all of the time but it may choose to withhold that information from our conscious mind until we are ready to hear/ Time keeps on slipping, and that could be a good thing for us.

Today’s seniors participate less in active pursuits than seniors in 1986

In my final post on the time we spend on activities, Stats Canada provided a Wayback Machine so we can compare how the Boomers spend time vs how our parents spent their time. 

It is possible to use data from the 1986 General Social Survey on Time Use to examine changes in time spent on selected activities, specifically unpaid household work, active pursuits and passive leisure.

In 2015, the participation rate for seniors aged 65 and over in unpaid household work was 87%, significantly higher than the 75% participation rate for 1986. During this 30‑year period, the participation for senior men increased significantly from 58% to 83%, while senior women’s participation rate remained fairly unchanged (88% versus 91%). Despite the fact that senior men in 2015 were more likely to participate in household chores and the average time they spend has increased, senior women still accounted for a larger share of unpaid household work in 2015 (209 minutes, compared with 177 minutes for men).

Table summary This table displays the results of Participation rate and time spent on selected activities for individuals aged 65 and over Total, Men (ref.), Women, 1986 and 2015, calculated using percentage and minutes units of measure (appearing as column headers).
	Total		Men (ref.)		Women
	1986	2015	1986	2015	1986	2015
	percentage
Participation rate
Unpaid household work	75	87	58	83	88	91
Active pursuits	74	69	69	68	77	69
Passive leisure activities	88	90	89	92	87	89
	minutes
Average time (participants)
Unpaid household work	162	195	130	177	179	209
Active pursuits	223	185	214	179	230	190
Passive leisure activities	291	283	318	291	270	276
Source: Statistics Canada, General Social Survey, 1986 and 2015.

In the 30 years between 1986 and 2015, the participation for senior women in active pursuits (excluding using technology) decreased significantly, from 77% to 69%. In addition, the results showed a significant decrease in the average time spent on these activities. Between 1986 and 2015, both senior men and women decreased their average time spent on active pursuits (by 35 minutes and 40 minutes, respectively).

The findings on participation in passive leisure activities show that the seniors’ participation rates (for both men and women) have remained fairly unchanged in the last three decades. In addition, the average amount of time they spent on these passive activities did not change significantly between 1986 and 2015, with the exception of senior men, whose time spent decreased by nearly half an hour (27 minutes).

There are several characteristics associated with time use allocation among seniors. Senior women spend more time on unpaid household work and less time on passive leisure activities than senior men.

The findings also highlight the importance of employment, which has a significant impact on the way seniors spend their time. The findings also show that health is a significant factor in the way seniors devote their time to various activities. Seniors who describe their health as fair or poor spend less time on unpaid household work and active pursuits. But they also spend more time on passive leisure activities.

Finally, this study also examines how time use allocation changed for seniors between 1986 and 2015. Seniors appear to have moved towards a more egalitarian division of unpaid household work. Senior men’s participation rate in unpaid household work increased from 59% to 83%. At the same time, seniors now spend less time on active pursuits than they did three decades ago.

The fact that seniors spend less time in active pursuits could have implications on the health and wellbeing on this group of seniors as they age.