One Danger in Dealing with Retirement. Or even the Expectation of retirement.

 

I'm a sucker for clouds. Puffy ones stuck in contrasty blue skies, especially. 

After the painters got started B. took over managing our painting project today and I grabbed my camera and headed out the door for breakfast, a morning walk and a respite from over-prepping everything. The easiest destination was my current default, South Congress Ave. Shopping haven for the South side of town...

I was amazed to find convenient, on street parking just a few blocks away from a long time coffee favorite, Jo's Coffee. You've seen many images from Jo's; especially in the last few months. But today I went there for their breakfast tacos and a cup of drip coffee. They used to bring in other people's tacos to sell but they now make their own and they are delicious. Today I went for bacon, egg and cheese on whole wheat tortillas. Jo's seating is all outdoors. If you want to eat at Jo's or meet for coffee at Jo's you'll be doing it along with whatever weather Central Texas wants to provide in the moment. Today it was clear, clean and in the 70's. Yes, that's Fahrenheit. Perfect for coffee outside.

I'm still getting fully checked out on the Leica M 240. My biggest stumble today was forgetting that 1/4,000th of a second is as high as that shutter is going to go. I'm used to cameras that can crest 1/16,000th of a second and I keep wondering why, when I've got the exposure compensation set to minus one stop, my photos are still coming out overexposed. Duh. Maybe I should pay attention to the flashing 1/4000th in the finder and select a smaller aperture. It's a thought at any rate. 

I have a similar weakness for photos of clouds floating in fields of blue done in color. Not as edgy but....blue is universally peoples' favorite color.

When I got back to this week's temporary office (vacant bedroom now filled with much crap from the studio) I checked messages and saw two from friends. One is a fellow photographer who was inviting me over to his place for a late afternoon "happy hour" tomorrow. He's recently had both knees replaced so I'll probably go by my favorite Mexican restaurant and pick up some really good Queso and a bag of freshly made chips. Try to take the work out of entertaining. He's always fun to talk to, has a big, sprawling place with gardens all around and a lovely patio on which to sit and watch the sunset. And generally surrounded by artists and authors; a few of whose names you'd recognize...

The next message was from a long time friend and the former CFO of our advertising agency from back in the 1980s. She was calling to see if we could schedule a "happy hour" for Wednesday afternoon to celebrate both of our recent birthdays and to catch up. She's always been a financial mentor for me and is probably one of the real reasons I live in a nice house and can afford to hire painters instead of sitting alone in a tiny apartment covering cracks in a dirty wall with old, free posters from bad concerts. Her persistent mantra, early in my career, to save, save, save was delivered into much resistance. So I am in awe that her persistence is what carried the day.

We'll meet at a favorite neighborhood restaurant to share a bottle of wine and a plate of cheeses and charcuterie. And to talk about kids, retirement, writing and what to expect from this crazy economy.

The danger of having a bunch of friends who are slightly older than me and who have plunged into the adventure of retirement before me seems to be that the happy hour is gaining, week by week, in popularity. I tease a bit. We're all pretty mellow at this stuff. Two glasses of wine and we're usually happy enough and ready to head home. Still, it's habit forming and not the best thing if you are planning to swim hard the next day. A balance between social engagement and possible excess...

Hmmm. A photo project about America's fascination with happy hours. That might be fun. 

It's mid-afternoon and the painting is coming along well. We're about to see a second coat of white paint on the ceiling. Amazing how white a white ceiling can look when it's revisited and re-coated after two and a half decades. 

So, what's after all this painting? you may ask. Ah, well, then it will be time to replace the hardwood floor in the living room. And start on Winter landscaping. And re-visit the interior touches in my office. It just never stops....

Buying cameras is a lot more fun but it actually is nice to see fresh paint and it makes everything seem clean and new. And, I think for B. it is a lot more fun than buying cameras. Good to compromise from time to time.