Volunteer Do not retire from life.

I was reading a blog post at “Senior Chatters” which is a website for seniors out of Britain. In the post was the following:

If you are bogged down with the thought of retirement, volunteer somewhere. Read to the blind, visit nursing homes, and talk to tenants at a senior citizen center. Participate in life. That little visit could change your ending as well as someone else’s. It makes no difference what you talk about, just being there is the key.

You now have the time to live and appreciate the life you have been given. Show others their life matters too. Don’t take ten years to learn that you have only retired from work. Do not retire from life.

Everyone has their own story, and it is important to tell your story, but the advice given in this post is important. Move away from thinking about yourself. One of the things I noticed when I talk to those who have recently retired, is that many become a bit depressed. I think it is because of the I used to be somebody syndrome. I don’t know if this is a real malady, but it is one that I suffered through and I think many also suffer through.  

Many of us have our identity wrapped up in our occupation or career, I am a teacher, truck driver, Accountant, etc. When we retire, we lose that sense of who we are. Now there are many who do not see themselves as the role they play at work, they are the ones who can make the transition to retirement easily. Those who have lived their lives as “the job title” find it harder to make the transition.

One of the best ways to help in making that transition is to “show others their lives matter too”. Reach out, volunteer, and help others you will feel better for it and may even find a new way to define who you are and with that new sense of purpose retirement will become more fun and a bigger adventure than you first imagined. 

A few Murphy Laws and work history

 Some oldies but goodies to help lift the mood in the middle of one of the darkest months of the year.

Whenever I find the key to success, someone changes the lock.

To Err is human, to forgive is not a COMPANY policy.

The road to success?? Is always under construction.

Alcohol doesn't solve any problems, but if you think again, neither does Milk.

To get a loan, you first need to prove that you don't need it.

All the desirable things in life are either illegal, expensive, or fattening.

Since Light travels faster than Sound, people appear brighter before you hear them speak.

Everyone has a scheme of getting rich which never works.

If at first, you don't succeed…Destroy all evidence that you ever tried.

You can never determine which side of the bread to butter.

If it falls down, it will always land on the buttered side.

Anything dropped on the floor will rollover to the most inaccessible corner.

42.7% of all statistics are made on the spot.

If you have paper, you don't have a pen. If you have a pen, you don't have paper. If you have both, no one calls.

After a long wait for bus no.20, two 20 number buses will always pull in together and the bus which you get in will be crowded than the other.

The last person to be fired or quit is responsible for all the errors until another person is fired or quits.

It's Not Easy Finding a Job...

At my first job, I was working in an orange juice factory, but I got canned. I just couldn't concentrate.

Then I worked in the woods as a lumberjack, but I just couldn't hack it, so they gave me the axe.

After that, I tried being a tailor, but I wasn't suited for it - mainly because it was a sew-sew job.

Next, I tried working at Starbucks, but I had to quit because I got tired of the same old grind.

Then, I tried being a chef - I figured it would add spice to my life, but I just didn't have the thyme.

Next, I tried working in a deli, but anyway I sliced it, I just couldn't cut the mustard.

My best job was as a musician, but I eventually found I wasn't noteworthy.

I studied for a long time to become a doctor, but I didn't have any patience.

Next up was a job in a shoe factory - I tried hard, but I just didn't fit in.

After that, I became a fisherman, but I discovered I couldn't live on my net income.

Next, I managed to get a job at a pool maintenance company, but the work was too draining.

So, after that, I got a job at a workout center, but they said I wasn't fit for the job.

After many years of trying to find steady work, I finally got a job as a historian, but I realized there was no future in it.

My last job was when I tried working in a muffler factory, but that was too exhausting.

So, I tried retirement! And I Found I'm PERFECT for the Job!

Headlines to grab your attention

RED TAPE HOLDS UP NEW BRIDGES. 

NICARAGUA SETS GOAL TO WIPE OUT LITERACY

FILMING IN CEMETERY ANGERS RESIDENTS

FEDERAL AGENTS RAID GUN SHOP, FIND WEAPONS

CRASH COURSES FOR PRIVATE PILOTS

CHEF THROWS HIS HEART INTO HELPING FEED THE NEEDY

BODIES NEEDED TO LOOK AFTER GRAVEYARD

BODIES IN GARDEN ARE A PLANT SAYS, WIFE

30 YEAR FRIENDSHIP ENDS AT ALTER

STOLEN PROSTHETIC ARM DISCOVERED IN A SECONDHAND SHOP

BLIND WOMAN GETS NEW KIDNEY FROM DAD SHE HASN'T SEEN IN YEARS

MINERS REFUSE TO WORK AFTER DEATH

And now for something completely different:

One day while he was at the track playing the ponies and all but losing his shirt, Mitch noticed a priest who stepped out onto the track and blessed the forehead of one of the horses lining up for the 4th race. Lo and behold, that horse - an exceptionally long shot - won the race!

Before the next race, as the horses began lining up, Mitch watched with interest the old priest step onto the track. Sure enough, as the 5th racehorses came to the starting gate the priest made a blessing on the forehead of one of the horses. Mitch made a beeline for a betting window and placed a small bet on the horse. Again, even though it was another long shot, the horse the priest had blessed won the race.

Mitch collected his winnings, and anxiously waited to see which horse the priest would bless for the 6th race. The priest again blessed a horse. Mitch bet big on it, and it won. Mitch was elated. As the races continued the priest kept blessing long-shot horses, and each one ended up coming in first. By and by, Mitch was pulling in some serious money.

By the last race, he knew his wildest dreams were going to come true. He made a quick dash to the ATM withdrew all his savings and awaited the priest's blessing that would tell him which horse to bet on. True to his pattern, the priest stepped onto the track for the last race and blessed the forehead of an old nag that was the longest shot of the day. Mitch also observed the priest blessing the eyes, ears, and hooves of the old nag. Mitch knew he had a winner and bet every cent he owned on the old nag.

He then watched dumbfounded as the old nag come in dead last. Mitch, in a state of shock, made his way down to the track area where the priest was. Confronting the old priest, he demanded, 'Father! What happened? All-day long you blessed horses and they all won. Then in the last race, the horse you blessed lost by a Kentucky mile. Now, thanks to you I've lost every cent of my savings -- all of it!'.

The priest nodded wisely and with sympathy. 'Son,' he said, 'that's the problem with most people, you can't tell the difference between a simple blessing and last rites.'

Protection from lawsuits for ltc facility management

 Civil liability protection for B.C.’s seniors’ care providers: BCCPA recommends that government introduce appropriate legislation that would offer protection from civil liability for workers, volunteers and organizations in the seniors’ care and living sector – including long term care, assisted living, independent living and home health care operators – who continue to make an honest effort to follow public health guidelines and COVID-19-related orders.