Monday, February 27, 2012

My husband doesn't have to go to work, EVER!!

I told you my husband quit his job.  And, in December I pondered what it was going to be like when my husband no longer worked outside the home, at this post.

Here I am.  Today is the first day of my husband's status as a retiree.  My husband doesn't have to go to work, EVER!  He is free to do whatever he wants to do, all day long.  If he wants to sleep until noon, he can.  If he wants to take college classes online, he can! If he wants to eat bon bons on the couch and watch tv all day, he can.  If he wants to be on facebook all day, he can.  My husband is retired from working hard for the last 30 years and he can do whatever he wants to do.

When I've told anyone my husband is retiring, the first thing the ask is, "what's he going to do?"  Seriously, this is a stupid question.  Ask yourself, what would you do if you didn't have to go to work anymore.  Can you answer this question?  I'll bet you can't.  I fully expect my husband to live for another 30 years or more.  I don't expect him to know what he's going to do with all that time.  I usually answer this question with, "I don't know, but I do know he's not getting another job."  I guess most people think you are defined by your job.  In my husband's case, this is not a complete picture.  He is MUCH more than a government contractor.  Much more.

It's lunch time on the first day of my husband's retirement and I'm at work.  Btw, I may not be at work all day.  I'm feeling pretty lousy with a crummy cold and I think I may be running a temperature, but that's not important.  I didn't think anyone at my job would believe me if I called in sick on my husband's first day of retirement.  Anyway, ... so far, on my husband's first day of retirement, I can tell you some of the things he has done.  First of all, he got up and dressed at the same time I did.  So, no sleeping in until noon.  Secondly, he has texted me WAY to much.  All the items sitting on my desk have been jostled around by the incessant vibrating of my iPhone.  One the plus side, this has knocked all the dust off anything on my desk that had dust on it.  I thought I would scare him away from texting me by asking him to do a household chore, vacuuming.  This didn't work.  On the plus side, he vacuumed.  LOVE this.  I'm not going to ask him to cook.  (for some reason, EVERYBODY asks if he's going to have dinner ready for me when I get home from work)  My husband has no interest in cooking.  I am completely good with this.  I don't mind cooking and when I do mind, he doesn't mind taking me out or ordering in.  Tonight I'm making soup for dinner.  I'm sick, I need soup.  I'm going to make Italian Wedding Soup.

So far today my husband has made money for our family by trading APPL options and made progress on his dissertation paper.  I call this a full day.  When you can make your old salary in the first few hours of the morning and still make progress on your PhD dissertation, I call this a very good first day of retirement.  I don't know what the rest of the day is going to bring, but I'm open to whatever he comes up with doing.

In fact, I'm open to whatever the future holds for our family.  Maybe we will move to La Jolla, CA.  Maybe we will move to Daytona Beach, FL.  Maybe we will move to Prescott, AZ.  Maybe we will buy an RV and travel around the country like the school bus family.  It's my first day in the new chapter of our life.  I'm excited to see what will happen next.

Gratitudes:
13.  Etrade account
14.  Cold medicine
15.  Tylenole
16.  Chicken soup in cans for lunch
17.  Kleenex
18.  Warm cardigans
19.  Paid sick leave
20.  Hot tea

 

8 comments:

  1. Congratulations to you and to your husband! What a great feeling to be able to do whatever he pleases! And good for you for feeling excited! All is good and we are all safe!

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  2. sounds like a good first day...ha on the texting...i do hope you feel better!

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  3. You reminded me to stop whining and be thankful. I had a tough day at work but guess what? I am employed.just tired AND a little crabby. Nothing a good nights sleep wouldn't cure. Thank you for your post !

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  4. Congratulations to your husband (I almost called him Mr. Happy! haha) on his retirement, and may God continue to bless and keep both of you.

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  5. That is a very productive first retirement day!  :)

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  6. Congratulations to both of you!

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  7. That is such exciting news to be starting a new chapter. I vote you both move to LaJolla, CA...then I would have a friend to visit in a beautiful place! Good luck to you both on the next chapter of your lives.

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  8. Good for him.  Now everyday will be Saturday for your husband.  I enjoy doing as much goofing off as I can.  It feels really good to not be in the saddle of work. 

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