Bits of This and That

I had a chance to talk with a couple of friends yesterday. One retired last year and one just recently with me. We all talked of the differences in what we are doing, but something stood out.  All three of us commented on how easy it was to disconnect from our former job. It may be the school we taught at or maybe it was just the job, but we all are mildly curious what is happening, but all thoroughly happy not to be there any longer.

I have cleared my room of my personal items and have been helping the new teacher in the Crafts shop. He, like myself, is a long time English teacher who is being moved into Crafts. I filled two and a half dumpsters when I moved in and I hope he doesn't have to do the same. I also know it will be a strange transition for him.

The farmer's market days are going well. I find that the time at the market is a nice break to talk to people and engage others, but it's easier to disengage and be solitary than teaching. While selling you're on stage like teaching, but while away from the market I don't run into buyers in the same way I interact with former students. I can be more anonymous. Not a bad thing.

We are having some successes and failures in the garden this year. The biggest failure for me is that I'm not as engaged as I want and should be. One of the perceived benefits of retiring is I can do more in the garden and help ease the work load for Maureen. We realized that by the time the school year was over, most of the current garden is in already. The thought now is that the fall/winter garden is when the help will be better realized.

We tried corn this year and it has been a success so far. One bed has tasseled and ears are forming and the second is up and growing well. That's food because the tomatoes aren't doing well. They are a frustration. Big beautiful plants and little fruit. The Suncrest peach has good fruit this year though small in size, and it tastes good for the most part. We still have aphids and are trying to combat those pests.

The transition to non teaching is subdued in that it is still summer and life during the summer has always been a bit strange. There is no "old" routine and any "new" routine is only temporary until school starts again. So the new "new" routine will start in August when school starts again.

A big project now,and will be for a time, is the organization of Stuff. I kept some of our possessions at school because I used them or I had more room there. No longer will my room be a storage facility.  My classroom materials also have to be dealt with.That hasn't been as hard as I originally thought.  I've been purging for a few years already, but this is the final tossing in many ways. I'm learning sentiment should play little part in deciding what to keep. Let's hope I can keep that attitude.

To go with that, we're upgrading and fixing many things around the house with the money at hand. One fiasco we've found ourselves in while upgrading our computer is the PC vs. Mac battleground. We currently have an older PC that needs much help, if not destruction. Our children use Macs and, like most Mac owners, love them. We also have realized with me home most of the time now, we could use some form of two computers. We're looking as fixing and upgrading the PC and getting a laptop. One option is to upgrade the PC and get a Macbook. Yes, straddle the fence.  It would allow us to keep something we know and can use and at the same time, move into a new world. When we mention this, the uproar became an outrage. In my mind it really is a money vs. convenience issue. the PC route is cheaper and the Mac will eventually be some what more intuitively convenient. Or at least that is what we're being told. We're going to tryout a son's Macbook this weekend and get a better handle we hope.

I'll leave you with a picture of the makings of pickle relish. Good Stuff.