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Discovering the Golden Years |
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This is the first sunrise of the New Millennium.
The Retiree’s Best FriendThere is an old saying in Washington: If you want a friend get
yourself a dog. As a lifelong dog person, I certainly agree with the gist
of this saying. Most dogs are the epitome of unconditional love. They like
you because it seems to be built into their DNA. They want to be with you
and they want to follow you where ever you plan to go. It also turns out
that a retiree makes a good master for a dog, because you have more time
available and you have more time flexibility. My day begins about 5:30 am when my dog and I leave the house
for a walk. If I happen to sleep in
past 6, which doesn’t happen very often, the dog comes over and gives me a
nudge. She looks forward to her walks and she doesn’t plan on missing any.
Because it is usually still dark when we leave the house, we have gotten in
the habit of walking along lighted streets, bike paths and around parking
lots. Dogs are well known for loving to ride in the car, this is
certainly true of my dog. I don’t let my dog stick her head out the window
in the classic mode. But I do let her ride in the front seat with a seat
belt fastened through her harness. She gives the impression of liking to
look around at scenery and traffic. When a car pulls up next to us she has
a snooty way of looking down her nose at the driver in the car next to us a
traffic light. I may get a tape to play at these times that says, “excuse
me but do you have any Grey Pompon”. She also likes to bark or growl at dogs she sees getting their
morning walks. It is like she thinks she has the right of way and that
other dogs shouldn’t be allowed to be there when she is passing. My dog is
also especially prejudice against small white poodles. They make her
especially angry, it could be that she was orphaned when her previous owner
replaced her with a white poodle. I don’t know its is just a theory. This
is another intriguing property of dogs they have a secret past and they
don’t bore you with the details they let you makeup something that you find
appealing. Our morning trips have allowed us to explore a great part of
our town that we normally don’t visit. It allows us to keep track of what
is going on in terms of new construction or new businesses. Basically my
snooping instincts and my dogs sniffing instincts are highly compatible. I
have also considered the possibility that I might come across the missing
WMD. After all why should terrorist hide WMD in Iraq or somewhere else in
the middle east; the logical place to hide them would be someplace in the
vicinity of Washington, DC.. Early in the morning is also a good time to run certain
errands like buying stamps at the Post Office or going to the grocery store
to pickup a few items. When you are at the store shortly after opening you
can buy bagels just after they come out of the oven. The dog of course
wants to make sure that I remember to buy dog food and dog treats. It can
also be a good time to stop by the local gasoline station and fill up the
tank and check the oil. There are no lines and little traffic early in the
morning, so it is probably the safest time for driving. After our walk we come home for breakfast. The dog also
remembers that she eats at this time and she won’t let me forget to feed
her. So we eat our breakfast, read the newspaper and then head out to the
gym. The dog usually goes along if the temperature is moderate and waits
for us in the car. She likes to watch people come and go from the gym part
of the time she is waiting, but frequently she will take a short nap. After exercising for about an hour we either go back home to
do a little yard work or in the summer we will head out to the garden for
about an hour. While I am working in the garden the dog is tied on a long
line to the garden fence. She likes to bark at people walking by or people
coming and going from the garden. I’m certain that she thinks she is
protecting me from the evil forces of the world. And apparently doing a
very good job. If we go to the garden in the afternoon we will sometimes
take our walk around the boundary of the golf course. The last few years
I’ve found on the average at least one golf ball every time we have walked
the boundary. Some of these golf balls are worth $4.50 and I have found a
couple hundred. This could be a good part-time job. It reminds of when I
was a kid we lived next to a golf course and I made money reselling used
golf balls. After lunch I take the dog for another walk. In the winter the
afternoon walk is usually longer because it is warmer. The reverse is true
in the summer when we take a longer walk early in the morning to avoid the
high afternoon temperatures. Usually we get back home before my wife’s
violin students start to arrive. One of my dogs other responsibilities is
to bark at the students as them come and go from their lesson. It allows my
wife to judge when she needs to wrap up a lesson. As you can see a dog adds companionship and structure to your
retirement. But a dog isn’t right for everyone. Some people like cats, they
enjoy being look down on. Or Winston Churchill who preferred pigs because
it said the cat treated him as an inferior and dogs treated him like a god;
and only pigs would treat him like an equal. |
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