Stages of Retirement - My First Retirement Snow Day

Photo from 2019 - Patch Staff

I'm watching the first snow of this winter season in my corner of the Mid-Atlantic US.

This is also my first snow as a retired person.  

You may be asking yourself why is that important?  Because if this snow was happening in a work morning pre-pandemic my feelings about it would be totally different.  

I would have set my alarm for 6am to check my employer's website to see if we were closed and had a snow day today.  If we had a snow day I would have gone back to bed.  If the website said we had a late opening, then I would watch the snow worried we would have a mix of snow and ice that would make commuting dangerous.  If my employer thought there wouldn't be any big snow accumulations and the office was open, then I would have gotten ready to clean my car and drive to work in fear as the snow came down.   

Snow looks pretty coming down, but I've never been comfortable driving in it.  In my neck of the woods we would have a couple of big snows most years (anything over 4 inches for us), but not enough to practice and know how to drive on slick roads.  

The difference this morning for me as a retired person is that I don't have to worry about it. I can just look at the lovely snow coming down and not worry.  

And because we're locked in at home for COVID-19 for our health at my age, I probably will wait for the snow to melt and just leave my car in the parking space.  Thanks to grocery deliveries I also don't have to worry about going to the store in the snow, as I used to.  It always helped to have a store I could walk to. 

I'm also lucky I live in an apartment building, so building maintenance will clear the entrances and sidewalk, and parking lot.  Though the plows throw the snow behind the parked cars and you end up having to clear a snow mountain.

Yes, I know I'm lucky that I was able to retire after 40 years in the workforce.  I'm grateful for that this year.  

LET IT SNOW.