Retirement; Day One

 Yesterday, I officially retired. Coincidentally, I also received an invitation for a COVID-19 jab. The two were unrelated.

For the last fifteen months (since COVID-19 - perhaps they are related, after all), I have largely been working from home with occasional trips into the office to touch base and attend meetings. 

A morning tea had been arranged, so there was no possibility of slipping quietly out the back door.  Although I had been dreading the event, it turned out to be a lovely affair and people said some very kind things.  I am getting much better at not being internally dismissive of personal compliments; it's healthy to be aware of my own weaknesses, but there are times when I need to take heed of what others have to say. I think this was such a time.

As I left with card and gift in hand, it seemed no different from any other day. The fact that I would not be returning again didn't seem to have sunk in. That all changed later that evening when my work email account was deactivated. It's weird how it's the smallest of things that sometimes speak the loudest. No more "printer busy for the next 30 minutes" messages, or "has anyone got the keys to NJL 798" pleas. I'm not a part of that anymore. Ouch!

The other "ouch!" was the COVID-19 jab. Not that I have had it yet. It was ouch when I found the booking website was broken - apparently, if there is no vaccination centre in your exact postcode, you are told there are no appointments available and you don't get to book. The rather bored lady in the call-centre had the same problem and I had to tell her some nearby towns so that she could look them up. Eventually, I got an appointment booked in Rangiora (35km away) for the 2nd August (1 month away) double-ouch! Let's hope the jab is less painful than the booking process.

There were, of course, other, more pleasurable aspects to my first day of retirement:

Farewell, 2020

While a good part of the world still wrestles with COVID-19, New Zealand paid its price early with lockdowns, job losses and compulsory working from home. Now, we are able to live lives of relative normality, albeit without international tourists and the money they brought. Despite our country being one of only a few COVID-19 success stories, there are still plenty of New Zealanders ready to hate on 2020 and classify it as the 'worst of years'. 

Admittedly, if you were in love with the old, 2019 normal then 2020 will not have been good. But, that old normal is gone - and it's not coming back. What we are doing now is creating some new sort of normal - a 2021 that isn't a carbon-copy of 2019. 2020 delivered us the opportunity to reinvent aspects of our lives both individually and as a society. 

That is not to minimise the personal tragedies that 2020 brought, including sickness, loss of loved ones, loss of employment and general hardship - all of those things were real and painful enough. Life delivers a constant diet of crap breaks - even the British Queen had her "annas horribilis" a few years ago. It's part of the human condition; no one is immune. 

What was unique about 2020 (in my experience) was that we all got to go through the crap at the same time. In New Zealand, that got most of us onto the same page, singing from the same song sheet (as it were). As a society, we all got to do daily life differently and we found that we could - without our world coming to an end.

There was a 1960's West End show called  "Stop the World - I want to Get Off" - perhaps our 2020 felt like that. But, wrapped up in that show, was a song "Once in a lifetime":
"Just once in a lifetime
There's one special moment 
One wonderful moment
When fate takes your hand
And this is the moment
My once in a lifetime
When I can explore
A new and exciting land"
2021 and going forward, is our 'new and exciting land'. The year 2020 and a pandemic have delivered our once in a lifetime opportunity to reimagine our future; both individually and as a society. 

The first day of 2021 - still clouds, but the sun is breaking through

Perhaps we don't see it; perhaps the silver lining to this cloud is still invisible to us. But one thing that seventy-odd years of living has taught me is that looking back, I would not wish away any of my life's personal disasters (and there have been a few). Each one has lead to a new tomorrow. Each one is a part of who I have become. Each one has been indispensable to my 'today'. 

So, 'worst year ever' or was 2020  your 'once in a lifetime' opportunity? I think we each get to choose which one we are going to fly with. I know which one I am choosing.

COVID-19 Life (1)

After only two days at alert level 2, the number of NZ infections has now reached 102. Today, the government moved us to alert level 3 and gave notice that we would move to alert level 4 (the highest level) on Wednesday.

At level 4, everyone has to stay at home, all non-essential businesses, schools, and public gatherings are banned and only essential service personnel are allowed to attend their workplace. The level 4 restrictions will be in place for at least four weeks. I believe that the majority of New Zealanders are behind these measures and understand the need for the vast inconvenience that they will cause. Some, of course, take this opportunity to flaunt their stupidity and selfishness by trying to empty supermarket shelves at ten times the usual rate.

I am not sure how I feel about the next four weeks. On the one hand, the thought of being at home for four weeks sounds attractive. On the other, I can’t help but wonder whether, after four weeks of virtual house-arrest, we might all get a little stir-crazy. We are allowed out of the house for exercise, provided that we keep our distance from others, but we are being encouraged not to travel further further than “local”. I guess that a ‘Sunday drive’ isn’t out of the question, provided that we stay in the car and don’t handle a petrol pump.

It is worth remembering though, that shouldering a little inconvenience is nothing compared to the five-year sacrifice made by my parent’s and grandparent’s generations. If I catch myself grumbling at any point, I hope I remember that.