Retirement Thoughts

I ran or jogged this morning; first thing after getting up. I plan to jog every Friday to Monday for less than 20 minutes. It is an easy task going around the neighborhood block along a very short stretch of a path with tall trees alongside, offering a brief interaction with nature. I read the jogging or running is good for keeping one's cognition especially executive function which I feel I need to preserve as I move into my middle years. This exercise together with other strategies like using tDCS devices and going to the gym and meditation will help me face the challenges at work.

I registered to be a task leader at a volunteer group and be engaged with the community and meet people not form the office. I look for other activities outside work such as Toastmaster and competing in 5 k races to have experiences that fulfill my urge for more variety in my life. I always have this urge to be different by learning new things such as creating AI photos. I am intrigue with all this development in AI that I plan to use these tools and be an expert on them.

After my morning run, I sous-vied sirloin and rib-eye steak and my wife cooked seafood spaghetti, asparagus and tomato salad and sweet potatoes for our Thanksgiving dinner. I watched a documentary on Angela Merkel and another documentary about right wing alternative reality to facts. Merkel is a refreshing glimpse of a good leader amidst the current turmoil in American politics and the confusion of alternate facts that causes anxiety and stress. One does not have a firm grip on reality these days.

 Aside from my jogging, I have made a goal to write a novel or at least to have a daily writing habit such as this blog to keep the dream alive. I have read several books on writing that suggest that one should just write daily even for just 10 to 30 minutes, without though of writing the great American novel and just put thoughts to paper and see what comes out. Good advise to avoid the stress that one gives oneself but also a practice of focus and meditation.

I do not get to do my daily mediation in the morning whenever I run but I listen to Gregorian chant during my jog around the neighborhood and have the same meditative feeling. Keeping one's mental calmness by listening to Gregorian chants is a form of meditation instead of hearing commercial music that agitate the mind and heart. At noon, I swam for 30 minutes, soaked in the hot tub and spent about 10 minutes in the sauna. I will miss the gym and these self-care facilities when I retire and stop my gym membership. 

I plan to continue my daily run and use the community pool to keep healthy but I need to buy an inflatable hot tub so I can continue to enjoy the benefit of soaking in warm water. I already have an infra red sauna blanket for me to sweat in. I also have a Maxi Climber and rowing machine that I use from time to time but will use more when I stop my gym membership when I retire.  I will turn 62 next month and I have more thought of retirement and what I plan to do to keep busy.