Old Bones

If you come across this scene on your way to visit us in Oroville, you will know that you are very close.

My intention for this blog has never been to use it as a vehicle for catharsis but I believe it happens anyway, inadvertently. As the rains of September have returned today (I am writing this on the Saturday of the Labour Day weekend) it has put me in an introspective mood and has also triggered some self pity. There is an inherent sadness in the Autumn season as the days grow shorter, the flowers fade, the bright sunny fun days at the lake are over, and one settles down to a routine that leads to winter and the grey days that we will eventually try to escape. Perhaps the sadness stems from regrets. Regrets that another summer is passing and we may not have taken full advantage of the long days and many activities that are at our doorstep. Regrets that we are getting another year older and there may have been something we could have done this summer that we will not be able to do next year. I am certainly feeling that this year, as I have been restricted in my activities to the point where we have more or less stayed home all summer. It has always been a yearning for me to travel in the fall when the colours are ever changing, the days still warm and sunny, and the air a little crisp and cooler. Photography, for me, in the autumn, is a pure delight and there are places I have never been too in the fall. Again this year, that yearning will be put on hold. Although the progress with the sore hip is very slowly going in the right direction, it still limits me to only a few minutes at a time driving a vehicle. There is another pressing issue. There seems to be a lot of work this fall as folks are trying to get their home renovations done before the deadline for the tax credits arrives. I have to keep in mind, now that I am over 60, that there may not be many years left when I can earn decent money and put in a long day. So, as the expression goes, I will make hay while the sun shines. Since age 35, I have been planning, saving, and investing for my retirement. Things have gone a little askew, but there is still hope. And as long as there is still hope, I can look forward to next year. In the meanwhile, I will lay me down by the window and watch the rain come down, and try to count my blessings and not my losses. I am, really, like a spoiled child who has no idea how well off he is.
There. Now I feel much better.