18 month anniversary

It's been 18 months since I started this blog.  It's been 18 months since I stopped working, retiring from my government job.  It's time to take a shot at describing what's happening for me now, and how it is different from when I first stopped working.

I can tell that things have changed.  I have a sense of comfort with myself and my new lifestyle.  I have some daily routines that I enjoy.  Daily activities like meditation and exercise.  I play music.  I focus on maintaining a healthy diet.  I do housekeeping.  I attend social events.  I meet and talk to friends.  I'm happy.  I've been happy, but now there's an elevated sense of comfort, and peace with this new environment.  Sometimes, I have some tremendous feelings of joy and satisfaction.  18 months is not a long time.  I still feel a sense of withdrawal from a couple of work related things.  The levels of urgency and a need to keep myself occupied has leveled off.  It hasn't gone away completely, but it's leveling off.  I make efforts daily to just "be".  There's also a sense that my particular work environment was not entirely a healthy environment.  I still feel inklings of withdrawal from the hostile work attitudes.  I felt angry today reading about a new law being considered in NY state.  It would make lawsuits against hostile employers easier to file.  Though I didn't think to file some such complaint, I thought about the incidents of workplace violence I'd witnessed.  Now, I just feel sad about it.  So that part of withdrawal from work related issues does surface from time to time.  At least I don't think about the workplace itself during the day.  In the beginning of my retirement, being able to see the building I use to work in from home and from my exercise route bothered me.  At least that doesn't bother me anymore.  I'm sure all this will pass on altogether before long.

Today I watched a DVD of the movie called Julie and Julia.  The story involves writing and the birth of the two main characters as writers.  The movie also developed the idea that one can remake one's life.  And that being passionate about something is all one needs to pursue and that success will come if it is meant to be.  But the important thing is that the effort be directed at something one is passionate about.  One character was a daily blogger.   I was inspired by that character to do some more blogging.  Let's hope that continues.