Several of my neighbors retired this year. I know this because our once-quiet neighborhood is now a daily flurry of activity focused mainly on lawn care. There’s barely a moment when someone isn’t mowing or trimming or blowing or edging or seeding.
It would be comical if it weren’t so darn noisy and smelly. I miss the old days when people swept the grass clippings from their driveways and sidewalks with a broom, and used hand trimmers to trim the long grass next to the garden. Everyone would certainly burn a few more calories if they weren’t using all the gas-powered and electric devices to tidy up the homestead.
I think my neighbors might be suffering from “retirement amnesia”. When they were working they dreamed about all the exciting or relaxing things they would do when they had more time. Then they retired and their stress levels dropped and that vast list of activities disappeared from their memories.
I remember having a similar affliction in college. At the end of the school year when final exam time arrived, I would struggle to study and my head would fill up with all kinds of fun ideas for the summer. However, once the exams were over and I had my free time back I was lucky to remember a handful of those grand ideas. By my junior year I got smart and started making a list.
Perhaps I should patent a “retirement amnesia list” since today’s retirees—at least in my neighborhood—are lost without one. How many times can a person mow the lawn in a week? The answer is three times (at least so far) in case you were wondering. Some of these folks are in desperate need of a hobby.
I’ve already encouraged my husband to start making his list so many years from now he isn’t wandering around the yard each morning with a gas-powered trimmer hoping upon hope that the grass grew overnight while he was sleeping.
If he doesn’t make a list, I could always make one for him…