Most days I tell myself that “maybe today I really should start a new blog post.” Most days I tell myself this but not every day. There are days where I don’t think about writing at all and others where general irascibility ends my day’s literary “Battle Royale” before the first Nespresso. Often there is no rational reason for this, what I call my “Morning Red Ass,” I just wake up pissed and then things sort of go all Italian from there (you know, lots of yelling and hand gestures?) – a bad round of golf while I’m in the Red Ass can seriously bring on an existential meltdown and more often than not that bad round of golf creates the Red Ass in the first place! But that’s a story for another day, isn’t it? Anyway, it’s been a long while since GrumpyMarty has blogged. My man Hemingway once stated that there’s nothing to this writing thing, you just sit down at your typewriter and bleed. Fair enough Ernie, let the bleeding begin!
My soleus (it’s that calf muscle I tore skiing a few months back) has greatly improved. I won’t lie, it was a long process and at times incredibly frustrating. Every week I thought, “yup, this is the week I am going to turn the corner and be better.” Didn’t really happen though, or at least it didn’t happen on a timetable convenient for me. I know, right? It took 3 arduous months for my calf to sort of heal, and even now (4 ½ months later) I will feel discomfort if I push the envelope too far. Has this grievous wounding put me off from further winter adventures on the slopes? Absolutely not! We already have our season passes for the upcoming 23/24 season. This coming year however, efforts will be made to ski in a more age-appropriate, and skill appropriate manner. Mart’s athleticism can no longer bail his sorry ass out of “shit’s about to get real” situations and the injuries don’t heal as fast as they used to.
And hey, hard to believe but it’s been a little over 13 months now (remember, it’s not retirement, I’m not retired – just not actively engaged in anything remotely resembling work – so don’t call it retirement) and I think it fair to say that I do not for one second miss being chronically sleep deprived and stressed out of my fucking mind. I don’t miss getting up at 4 am and not getting home until 18 hours later and I don’t miss night shifts ( well, I actually enjoyed working the dark ones, but the recovery from them was less than pleasant). I do however miss the many, many wonderful people who brought a small sense of normalcy every day into an otherwise insane environment. I miss our laughs my friends, and I do miss you!
For me, the rhythms of life have changed; I go to bed later and get up when I feel rested. Occasionally, I go for a round of golf, 9 holes (not 18) and on foot, the way golf was meant to be played. I don’t need a tee time where I play now, and I don’t need to be “properly” attired, I won’t pay an exorbitant fee or be grouped in with a bunch of strangers from the city. I just play, and when I’m done, I go home. More often than not, I don’t keep score, because if I keep score I usually get the Red Ass and it ruins my day. Mart does not like his day ruined by the Red Ass.
They say too that every person who has decided on leaving working life behind should have a plan. I have no plan. Whoever said that was probably some anal-retentive Boomer. I’m Gen X, we’re slackers, ne’er-do-wells’; we rock out to hair metal, ride our e-bikes without a helmet, and live by our own set of rules. I didn’t have a plan when I walked away from gainful employment, and I don’t have a plan now. I do plan though. After missing the Spring window, I am actively researching possible locations for an epic Fall 2023 road trip to… well… yeah… I have no idea yet. In the end though, I guess it doesn’t really matter, does it?
What matters now I think, is getting away from what is known and familiar to experience all that is different and strange that’s right there all around us. New and different is interesting, let’s get curious, take a journey of discovery, re-connect with old friends, make some new ones. Sounds amazing doesn’t it? Hell yeah it is, except that it’s not so easy to do, especially for an antisocial sonofabitch like me. I’m trying though, but sometimes the shit things in life get in the way of you going to where you need to go. We are however making positive strides, aren’t we – all of us, you, me, everybody. Of course we are. How could we not? We’re awesome, right? Damn straight Bro! Next week it’s Rockin’ The Kootenays and there’s going to be a boat load of weird and wonderful; I’ll be there and maybe you will be too. We can be weird and wonderful together, share a laugh, re-connect! Until then, stay hydrated and lay off the hash!