Day one of retirement...

[rayinpenn]

4:50AM: The old dog scratched so hard at the front door she knocked the dog bell that hangs on the handle off the door and it woke me. I know this because, as the obedient servant I am, when I got up to walk her and I found it on the floor. I last walked her around 10:45PM and went to bed- Late for me but the Mrs is battling a bad cold and retired early. She’s been giving the pooch her last walk lately. The later she gets walked the more likely we are to get a late, undisturbed morning like 6:45AM.

The old gal took fifteen quick steps and did her business. It was then when we heard it. Somewhere down the hill. First allow me set the scene for you. There are no street lights here. A couple houses do have a few night lights but they seem to be swallowed up by the cold and gloom. One acre properties and woodsy. The low wattage landscape lights that light up casa RayinPenn like Bali High have yet to come on (around 5AM). It is 30 degrees out. I believe to the uninitiated the sound it would safely be described as the unnerving loud whaling of a banshee. Its the kind of noise that you hear in a sci fi movie before someone dies- usually the person who went out there after being told not too and we all think dont!. The dog did not like the sound and started barking and there was no stopping her. My 4:50 AM fuzzy brain thought OMG something is hurt but the manly man in me said maybe its coming this way. I hustled the dog into the house. I turned off the porch light, locked the door, turned on the alarm, turned on the heat and sat in my easy chair, threw my giant ‘blankie’ the Mrs made me over me and hoped <strike> and prayed</strike> it wouldn’t come our way. Of course 20 minutes later it did. The dog didnt like the noise any better and starting barking again. Finally the fox moved off, the dog calmed and I decide to get up and have coffee.

Retirement life is grand for a manly man.. Im thinking it is going to be a nap day. I need to go find my fuzzy slippers first.

 

[jcretire77]

Loved your post. Sounds like a good first day. Enjoy many, many more.

 

[Bamaman]

My Rottweiler often gets me up at 3:00 a.m. like clockwork. I have to go outside and hurry her along.

I come back inside and get online to read a few newspapers. Then I get the wife and DGD up in order to get to school @ 7:45. Then it's time for the morning nap.

The 4:00-5:00 p.m. nap is often quite good too.

 

[Jerry1]

Well, you got back into the house safe. That’s a good day. You’re off to a great start. Sounds like you’re also well prepared/equipped for retirement with the blankie and a nice easy chair for nap time. Congratulations on the start of a new phase of life.

 

[pacergal]

Love your stories, Ray.
DH laughs at me though, I leave our outside lights on 24/7. I want to see what's outside my door from the safety of my house! We do have coyotes around here.

 

[Pellice]

I'll bet you were hearing an owl. The barn owl has a terrifying scream, but is somewhat rare. Have you ever heard eastern screech owl? They should be common in PA. They are much louder than you think a small bird could be.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Screech-Owl/sounds

 

[audreyh1]

Loud wailing of a banshee - bet it was a barn owl. They really sound like the kind of screaming you expect from a haunted house, which is probably why abandoned old houses were thought to be haunted in the first place.

 

[Red Badger]

Congrats Ray! You're off to a grand start.

Day 1 for me was lying in bed with salmonella poisoning (self inflicted) while a lawyer represented (successfully) my sorry @ss in court for a speeding ticket. I was really, really worried that that day 1 could be a harbinger of retirement. Luckily, it wasn't. Once the food poisoning cleared up, it's been smooth sailing on the high seas of blissful freedom!

 

[mystang52]

Great start for Day # 1. Enjoy the remaining ones!

 

[kimcdougc]

Exciting first day of retirement. Look forward to hearing about your exciting future retirement days!

 

[imoldernu]

Exciting first day of retirement. Look forward to hearing about your exciting future retirement days!

+1

 

[Calico]

.....My 4:50 AM fuzzy brain thought OMG something is hurt but the manly man in me said maybe its coming this way. I hustled the dog into the house. I turned off the porch light, locked the door, turned on the alarm, turned on the heat and sat in my easy chair, threw my giant ‘blankie’ the Mrs made me over me and hoped <strike> and prayed</strike> it wouldn’t come our way.....Retirement life is grand for a manly man.. Im thinking it is going to be a nap day. I need to go find my fuzzy slippers first.

These are exactly the steps I would take under the circumstances to protect my homestead! Thanks for the laughs. I enjoy all your stories and hope you keep posting them now that you are retired.

 

[SumDay]

Thanks for the laugh!

Remember how awful it was when you were w*rking and stuff like this happened, and you couldn't take a nap? I tell ya', those naps are truly a gift. Just one of the many great things about retirement.

Enjoy your new life of leisure, and those naps!

 

[Scrapr]

Exciting first day of retirement. Look forward to hearing about your exciting future retirement days!

I'll tell you what Day 2 is going to be. that darn dog is going to be at the door at O dark thirty. Rinse & repeat.

*source...have same problem

I just say it's good for me to get up & moving

 

[street]

LOL >>> never a dull moment in retirement.

 

[CaptTom]

Fishers (sometimes incorrectly called "fisher cats") are reported to make that loud sound, like the strangling of a small child. It's pretty horrifying, and you'll know it when you hear it. Some experts say, however, that it's often foxes, not fishers. So that might have been it in your case.

Welcome to retirement! Even if you don't sleep in, just knowing you could will probably be a huge weight off your shoulders.

 

[Revlefty]

it was 3:15 a.m. two weeks ago. I was going to leave at 7:00 a.m. for the road trip to snowbird heaven. Rocky, the pug, decided he needed to "go outside." As I let him out the back door, I noticed that a neighbor's motion sensor light was on. I wondered what might have been wandering through his yard at that time of night, when I saw a skunk wandering through OUR back yard. Rocky is doing his business not ten feet from the skunk who had his tail standing straight up. Rocky was barking softly and the skunk was moving past slowly. I didn't want to go outside or that would have definitely set off the skunk, so I stood at the door praying nothing would happen. Thoughts of "Where can I find tomato juice at 3:00 a.m.?" and "how can I leave a dog in the back yard at this time of night?" raced through my head. FORTUNATELY, the skunk made his way around the corner of the house and I hustled the dog back inside. Rocky went quickly to sleep, but my mind was way too much awake to sleep for a long time.

 

[rayinpenn]

it was 3:15 a.m. two weeks ago. I was going to leave at 7:00 a.m. for the road trip to snowbird heaven. Rocky, the pug, decided he needed to "go outside." .... FORTUNATELY, the skunk made his way around the corner of the house and I hustled the dog back inside. Rocky went quickly to sleep, but my mind was way too much awake to sleep for a long time.

I often tell the kids ‘nothing good happens after 1AM’.. what is unspoken ‘and before 6AM.’.. you got lucky!

 

[Christine]

Well told! And congrats with a nice start of your retirement days.

 

[Sue J]

Congrats Ray! You're off to a grand start.

Day 1 for me was lying in bed with salmonella poisoning (self inflicted)

Ok, tell us how that happened. I hope you are all better now.

 

[Rianne]

rayinpenn, you'll always have this post to look back on. The simple life is the best in my book. Blankies, comfy pants, what to have for snack, dinner, dessert and what toy to buy my Mun (yellow lab in avatar) have become the big decisions of the day. Beyond that, what's the weather like today?

 

[Red Badger]

Ok, tell us how that happened. I hope you are all better now.

I believe that I ate under-cooked chicken Friday evening. By Sunday afternoon, my life was a living hell until sometime Thursday. That Monday (June 3, 2017) was my Day 1 of retirement. My fever was 101-3 and I had violent shaking. The digestive issues? TMI for the kind forum members here, but very violent as well. I was "iffy" for several more days.

I have always used proper kitchen / sanitary protocol for meat, poultry, etc except for diligent and verifiable temp monitoring. Since then, I have never cooked meat or poultry without using a quality instant read thermometer. Some lessons are much more expensive than others. This one was, but it worked very, very well.

 

[rayinpenn]

Red Badger One I am familiar with the symptoms.

The suite had 4 rooms, 8 guys, Looking back, there is no denying Ogre would appropriately yell “Nerds”. At least the hockey team next door might. 3 goyim, including me and 5 Jewish guys, all friends. I mention the religion because it was the first time I ever experienced religious harassment. Someone thoughtfully posted “Jews” on the cork board in the hall. I thought Wow! religious discrimination is real. - give me a break I didn’ think like that.

I grew up in a house with 5 kids, you ate what was put in front of you and you did so quickly. We all the ‘nerds’ usually went to Dinner together and my roommate and I were often first in line. This particularly day was just before Thanksgiving. We stood in line and you they served it up. My roommate and I got the last of the stuffing in a the big tray. Another tray was retrieved and rest of my roommates were served from it. Did you know stuffing at too low a temperature is the nearly perfect medium for bacterial growth. My five buddies were about to get a lesson in that.

All the moaning and running to you-know-where and the infirmary it was horrible. My roommate and I hid in our room and just listened to the carnage. I remember looking out the window at an ambulance taking a student away thinking there are other victims out there. It turns out a friend was walking past her room and heard her weakly calling for help. Yikes!

My closest friend stomach never really recovered and he has carried pills ever since.

 

[Rianne]

Congrats Ray! You're off to a grand start.

Day 1 for me was lying in bed with salmonella poisoning (self inflicted) while a lawyer represented (successfully) my sorry @ss in court for a speeding ticket. I was really, really worried that that day 1 could be a harbinger of retirement. Luckily, it wasn't. Once the food poisoning cleared up, it's been smooth sailing on the high seas of blissful freedom!

Also had food poisoning from shrimp. Deathly sick for about a week. After I recovered, a friend of mine (a nurse) said always go to ER. They will hydrate you intravenously. Dehydration can be dangerous, along with everything else.

 

[Red Badger]

Red Badger One I am familiar with the symptoms.

The suite had 4 rooms, 8 guys, Looking back, there is no denying Ogre would appropriately yell “Nerds”. At least the hockey team next door might. 3 goyim, including me and 5 Jewish guys, all friends. I mention the religion because it was the first time I ever experienced religious harassment. Someone thoughtfully posted “Jews” on the cork board in the hall. I thought Wow! religious discrimination is real. - give me a break I didn’ think like that.

I grew up in a house with 5 kids, you ate what was put in front of you and you did so quickly. We all the ‘nerds’ usually went to Dinner together and my roommate and I were often first in line. This particularly day was just before Thanksgiving. We stood in line and you they served it up. My roommate and I got the last of the stuffing in a the big tray. Another tray was retrieved and rest of my roommates were served from it. Did you know stuffing at too low a temperature is the nearly perfect medium for bacterial growth. My five buddies were about to get a lesson in that.

All the moaning and running to you-know-where and the infirmary it was horrible. My roommate and I hid in our room and just listened to the carnage. I remember looking out the window at an ambulance taking a student away thinking there are other victims out there. It turns out a friend was walking past her room and heard her weakly calling for help. Yikes!

My closest friend stomach never really recovered and he has carried pills ever since.

I learned about stuffing years ago. Since then, only "dressing" cooked separate from the bird.

Sorry about the harassment. A good friend of mine that I met at the soup kitchen is Jewish. She a lib; I'm a conservative leaning libertarian (Christian). But we stand in solidarity of religious diversity, respectful political discourse, and of course, serving others.

Hate groups are comprised of stupid people. Ignorance is a knowledge deficiency that can be overcome through education. Stupidity is a willful choice to close one's mind.