After yesterday’s dark post I feel I should write something uplifting. But I can’t think of anything. I’ve had a headache for a couple of days.
I’m still on holidays until Monday. I have a great big To-Do list, and I’ve been slowly whittling it down. One of my favourite things in the whole wide world is staying home and puttering, and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. I love being productive, but in a leisurely way. I’ve been sorting through boxes, taking down the Christmas stuff, cleaning things, organizing things, painting things, writing things, and playing Snood.
I’ve known people who dreaded retirement because what would they DO? I have a friend who couldn’t wait for holidays to end so he could get back to school because he was bored. Me, I’d have no problem finding things to do. I almost never get bored. I wish I could live forever.
Here’s a question for you: If some all-knowing creature were to appear before you and offer to tell you the date on which you will die, would you accept the offer? I would. Usually when I ask people this question they say no, but after some discussion they sometimes change their mind. I could plan my life better if I knew how much time I had left. If I knew I was going to die in 2009, for example, I could afford to retire now. I could fast-track my priority list, and squeeze all that last-minute living into the next two years. I could burn my journals, learn to scuba dive, and travel to Fiji to check out the coral reefs. That would be so much better than slogging away at work for the next two years only to be ambushed by the Grim Reaper.
I think that I would want to know when I was going, but I don’t think that I would want to know when anyone close to me was going to go…like my kids or Rob or you. You could tell me shortly before your expiration date and we could do something then, but I wouldn’t want to know for two years prior and wait for the date to arrive.
I think I would like to know, but only if the date was absolutely fixed with no possibility of change. And that’s probably mostly for financial reasons – the savings account would be depleted in proportion to the number of days left.
Interesting question. I would like to know if the date was absolutely fixed. Like you, I would like to have some time to burn my journals, take a few trips and visit the “must see destinationsâ€, say my goodbyes proper (throw a party or something) and spend all my money.
Being 67, I am closer to that fateful day than most of you (I assume). I worry that when it comes if Merle will have enough money to get by on. Knowing the date would just cause me to worry faster. Now, if I knew the date that she was leaving we may consider Fiji as well:))
You play Snood too?!?! Wow! I’ve been a Snood player for years!
Deb, okay, we’ll make a pact to keep our expiry dates secret until two weeks beforehand. Then we’ll do something wild and crazy together.
Linda and Dakota, I like your pragmatic approach. Ideally we want to time things so that our money and our time run out simulatenously.
Dad, does this mean I shouldn’t count on an inheritance from you? Damn, I was planning to use that money for Fiji!
(Welcome to my blog, by the way.)
Greencolander, I used to play Snood years ago, and then took a long break, only to rediscover its addictive powers over the Christmas holidays. Have you ever won at Armageddon level?
I don’t think I want to know. I already know its most likely sometime in the next 50 years. Not knowing gives me the feeling of some kind of immortality really, don’t you think?