Looking Back / Planning Forward

I'm very nostalgic these days. Planning for the "next" retirement has me in a swirl of memories mixed with future planning. My entire life, from the summer after high school graduation to the present day, has been geared to "The Job," with very few exceptions. There was a nearly six-week period in 1966 between quitting the school board secretarial job to claiming the executive secretarial position at Emporia State College. I WAS starting to sweat a bit, as I had made the claim when I left the school board after 6 months that I would have a better paying job within 6 weeks! It was rewarding to my psyche that, after doing well on the Clerk Typist test, I had the choice of two jobs--data input at the county mental health facility (what fun would that have been?!) or Executive Secretary to the Head of the Art Department at the College, both of which paid considerably more than the school board.

The four years at the Art Department were certainly a ride. In addition to dealing with everything required by the charismatic Head of the Art Department (from his correspondence, monitoring his schedule, to promotion and arranging shipment of his art shows), I supervised all manner of correspondence, schedules and reports for 12 faculty members, all creative creatures requiring various sorts of handling. On-campus paper work could be done by student interns, but anything going off-campus was to be done by me. After four years at this high-maintenance job, I discovered the "cap" to my Clerk-Typist I salary was an astonishing half of what it was for Printer! I visited the printing department to see what they did for so much money, and discovered it was primarily typing. Since I have typed like the wind since high school, I campaigned to transfer. The personnel director tried everything he could to keep me from doing so--said he had never had anyone score 100 on the Clerk-Typist test before! I persevered, however, telling him, "But it doesn't pay!" Thus I became a typesetter, which was my career for the next 29 years.

When I retired at 64 in November, 1998, from G&S Typesetters in Austin after 23 years, and moved to Seadrift, I spent the whole of 1999 actually "retired," struggling a bit with the concept that my time was my own. It was an adjustment for sure, as I had the disquieting feeling that surely vacation was over, and I should be returning to the job!

In 2000, I worked 6 months with the Census. In 2001 and 2002 I held down a couple of part time jobs (not enough money, not much work) followed by 9 months co-managing a Port O'Connor motel (good money, too much work!). When the bloom was off the rose with that last job, it coincided with the Seadrift librarian being ready to retire, and the job at the library was, as Goldilocks says, just right.

Now, after eight years and 6 months as librarian, manager and chief cook and bottle-washer at the Seadrift library, it's time to put finita to what is surely my last stint as an employee. I fully intend to pursue my writing in numerous online venues. I've neglected my photography in the last couple of years also; road trips around Texas will get my camera in high gear once again. I will be able to make more trips to Yoakum to visit my friend in the nursing home. I look forward to longer visits to Kansas and family, and my own version of Sleepless in Seattle will be enabled.

At 76, nostalgia is, of course, a big part of my days. So much to look back on and relive, MOST of it positive and rewarding. A movie I watched on TV recently had our heroine musing at the end: "You can't go back to who you were before what happens to you." It's true. You either grow stronger, wiser, OR you spiral off into disaster. What makes the difference? If I knew that, I'd be the author of a best-selling book and rich to boot. The trick is, of course, to not let the spiraling off into disaster happen. I don't know how I escaped it myself.

Most of my trials, some of which involved life-threatening events, left me mad as hell and I wasn't going to take it any more! (again?) Wherever I worked and lived, I always developed a network of loyal, supportive friends, that leapt unfailingly and unflinchingly to my defense and aid whenever needed. If one does not have that, I'm not sure how one would cope.

Now, with this new era of my life beginning the first day of October, 2011, I'll just gear down a tad, and see what mischief I can get myself into, without the structure of a job to rein me in. Look out, World!

CJ, who's still Livin' on the Bay

A Seadrift Christmas is a Day at the Beach

Or, as some say, a piece of cake? a slam dunk? Or, well, whatever homily you use to say something is easy to do. Certainly, without a gathering of family (wonderful and much-loved tho they may be) with which to coordinate for the Christmas festivities, it is fairly stress-free to schedule what I’ve come to refer to as CJ’s Holiday Tradition.

Once I was divorced and on my own living in Texas, I devised my own version of a Christmas celebration on those occasions when I was not going home to family in Kansas. In the Austin days, it meant baking pumpkin pie and peanut butter cookies, roasting a turkey breast, and packing a picnic thereof and heading for Lake Travis. Central Texas Decembers usually were not of a nature to inspire a dip in the lake, but a repast spread on a picnic table in a park, under a live oak tree, beside the sparkling water, was a worthy commemoration of the coming of the Christ Child.

For more than half of those 25 years in the Austin area, I was accompanied by my miniature dachshund, Gretchen, on jaunts of this nature. She was consistently at the ready to assist with any challenges regarding left-over turkey or pie.

These days, I’m living my dream of palm trees and Big Water on San Antonio Bay. Kansas and family, unfortunately, are even farther away. CJ’s Holiday Tradition continues, however, with that celebratory dinner at the beach. A 30-minute trip has me ensconced amid sand and shells, with lapping waves at my feet. Texas weather being what it is, enjoyment of Christmas Day at the beach sometimes requires remaining in one’s vehicle. Waves are waves, tho, and they come rolling in regardless of the temperature. A storm makes them even more picturesque. A mug of hot coffee from a thermos, a thick-sliced turkey sandwich, a wedge of pie, and hot-diggity-dog, it’s Christmas!

Staying in almost daily communication with my lovely family has been greatly enhanced the last few years with e-mail. My Big Sister, and 9 of 10 nieces and nephews are e-mail advocates, along with uncounted great- and great-great-nieces and nephews. Far-flung friends, as I call them, also stay in touch this way. No fear of ever feeling alone!

I get together with two couples, that I have called friends for 40 or 50 years, to toast the season, our friendship, and everything in-between. Boy, do we have lots of memories from those years.

So, here you have it, my Christmas Letter. You didn’t read about every single thing I did or that happened to me this year, but you already knew all of that anyway, communicator that I am. I wish you a very happy, Merry Christmas. May you feel the peace and love that is Christmas.