Born to retire

Well, it isn’t Rambling Thursday, but I guess I’ll ramble a bit anyway. The photos should give you a hint. We’ve both been baking. More on that in a few.

NY Times Subscription

First, I finally subscribed to the The New York Times online. There’s a deep discount right now – $4 a month for a year. Then it goes up to $15 a month. I made a note in my calendar for next year, so I either cancel or re-subscribe, but the price doesn’t shock me.

I made kind of a mess of this whole thing. I used to subscribe and then canceled in a cost-cutting move. I started using the free access code I shared earlier. Then I got seduced by the puzzles and subscribed to the puzzles only. But then I got booted out of the free code offer, since they now considered me a subscriber.

In the end, it’s all good. As a journalism major and concerned clinically depressed citizen, I appreciate the work they do, and I know it doesn’t come free. I also like the The Washington Post, and both newspapers are doing a good job keeping tabs on Trump.

By the way, I’m not really clinically depressed. I have PTSD … Post Trump Stress Disorder.

Island of the Sea Women

I finished Island of the Sea Women by Lisa See. It’s about the friendship between two women who live on Jeju Island in Korea, where historically women were the breadwinners free diving for urchin, octopus and other treasures. The book starts just before World War II and finishes up in modern times. The story is compelling, and I learned a lot about Korean history, which is quite tragic. Of course, I cried at the end.

Two of my other favorites by Lisa See are The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane and Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

Throwing money at the plumber

The toilets were installed today, and they look great! The cost was almost as much as the toilets themselves, but this was money spent in the interest of relationship preservation. Dale and Donna installing toilets together? Nothing good can come of that.

I did a pre-clean so the plumber wouldn’t be grossed out. The toilets are Dale’s job, and let’s just say he needs a performance improvement plan. He doesn’t scrub under the rim. Or if he does, it’s a minimal effort at best. Since we have brand-new toilets, I asked him to take more care when he cleans, and he did not appreciate my developmental feedback.

This seemed like a good opportunity to buy new toilet bowl brushes, and I learned something new on Wirecutter. You’re supposed to replace them every few months. I went with their recommendation, the Oxo Good Grips Compact Toilet Brush and Canister. One for each bathroom, so Dale doesn’t drip stuff all over as he is wont to do.

The brush heads are replaceable. I replace our toothbrush heads quarterly, so I guess I’ll replace the toilet bowl brushes at the same time. That should be plenty. I mean, previously it was every five or 10 years or maybe never, so anything is an improvement.

Baking

I made raspberry scones from the blueberry scone recipe at Retired Introvert. They look yummy, although I was probably a little over-zealous with the raspberries. Something about a single cup. So sad and tiny. Clearly, the raspberries needed more raspberries for company.

The blueberry scones I made earlier went into the freezer, and it was so nice to have those little goodies at hand. One minute in the microwave at 50 percent power and they were perfect! We gobbled those up, so I thought I’d try raspberry … Dale’s favorite. What is it they used to say at work? Three positives to a negative when giving feedback? Maybe the scones will get his scrubber moving.

Dale made rosemary olive bread, which was out of this world delicious. A big rise made it perfect for the sandwiches we made with leftover grilled lamb, goat cheese and arugula tossed lightly with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Oysters

Our oyster lunch last week was profoundly disappointing. The oysters hadn’t gone bad or anything, but they didn’t taste fresh from the sea. And the shucker basically destroyed them. The Bloodies were pretty good, so there was that. To recover, we decided to do an overnight trip to Tomales Bay, where the oysters are splendid. That’s next week, and we’re excited.

Labor Day

I guess this weekend is Labor Day. It’s hard to keep track when every day is a vacation! I am so happy I don’t have to mess with a job anymore. And I’m still in shock we pulled it off financially. Although I was quite dedicated and had a good career, I don’t think I was born to work.

Reading, writing, golf, hiking, cooking, taking care of our nest … I spend most of my time these days focusing on simple pleasures.

Maybe born to retire?