I’ve Turned into a Grumpy, Miserable Person

Or maybe I always was. I just have more time now to notice.

Photo by RepentAnd SeekChristJesus on Unsplash

I was forced to retire 4 years ago, when I moved from upstate New York to the Sandhills of North Carolina. I applied for every part time English professor job that was open at 7 different colleges, but no one was interested in a Yankee with a Masters degree in English Education and 34 years of teaching experience. My being 66 years old at the time shouldn’t have mattered. Maybe it did.

So I settled into a routine of staying home. I had expected to meet people and enter the community through my job. That didn’t happen, and then along came Covid, further shutting down my opportunities to get to know people down here.

My routine is fairly fixed. I get up when I feel like it, because I don’t schedule doctor’s or dentist appointments in the morning. I take my pills, and then I open my notebook and check my e-mail. I check Medium, then watch some news on You tube, preferring to get it from Steven Colbert or Jimmy Kimmel or whoever is hosting “The Daily Show” this week. I like my news with a grain of humor. Several grains. A ton if possible.

Then I take my shower, take the dogs outside while I drink my morning Boost, and then sit down to read and have lunch. Around 2:00, I call my sister or my cousin…