Mixed Passages - Now I'm 64

          The Winter has brought travels to the Land of Snow and thoughts of things to come. Now I’m 64.  http://contrariat.blogspot.com/2010_02_01_archive.html.

           In the Land of Snow of course the plow guy comes to do the heavy work, but preparing for the plow guy is like cleaning up before the cleaning lady, and getting out before he comes means removing the plow-in at the end of the mercifully short driveway.  

           The shoveling brings on a lot of heavy breathing and other effects which, if  researched at Web MD would likely be labeled as precursors of something bad, but I don’t believe it, don’t know what shoveling is “supposed” to feel like, don’t know what anyone else feels like and simply cannot/will not accept that one day it will be poor judgment to shovel the driveway.  In the Land of Snow it’s what happens, and we can’t stop doing what we do.

           The reward of the effort is to get to the ski slopes.  I started skiing very late and always badly, but it seems now that my skill decreases annually.  What 10 years ago was covering all the blue trails and the easiest black trails is now most of the blue trails and gratitude for the greens.  On the other hand, I guess there just aren’t that many guys my age skiing at all, so maybe it’s all good.

           Back at the lodge the trifecta is that fiscal logic compels the conclusion that Trophy Wife should shortly claim Social Security benefits.   Putting aside the absurdity of the government writing us checks we don’t need with money it doesn’t have,  the matrix of calculations indicates that it is to our advantage to start taking the benefit.   If I am hesitating it is not out of some higher moral conviction against taking it but out of some distaste for the “senior citizen” label.  The AARP card and $2 off at the movies are a lark, but The Check is something else.