I’m not quite sure what I thought “retirement” was going to be, but I lasted six weeks! Reading my previous blogs has made me realize that I thought I was ready to enjoy endless days of bonbons, reading novels, being amused by the police reports of a retirement community and watching nature.

But in truth, how many times can you watch a rabbit hopping through your hedge? After a few weeks, even an early morning bobcat prowling the backyard or a 6-foot invasive iguana on the other side of the creek didn’t get my blood racing.

I dug out my racquet and headed to the community tennis facility to take up the sport again after thirty+ years. The pro took my racquet and asked, “Did you ever ski?”

Not knowing where this was going, I replied, “Not recently.”

He continued, “Were you ever in a ski lodge?” Yes.

“Did you ever notice what was above the fireplace in the lodge?” Old skis.

He handed the racquet back. “Do you have a fireplace?”

I loved his humor and got the message that I should upgrade my equipment! So I bought a new racquet and joined a tennis team.

Weeks later, my body was moving, but my brain was getting mushy. I could guess “who done it,” after the 3^rd or 4^th chapter in a book. I contacted a friend, who called a friend who offered me a job as a contract writer for FranWise, a company that produces manuals for franchised businesses.

I absolutely love my job! It combines my love of language, my experience in franchising, and my desire to learn about new things. (It also keeps me from foraging in the refrigerator!) I have explored diverse business concepts, ranging from QSR (I used to call it “Fast Food,” but it’s now “Quick Service Restaurants”) to eyelash salons. I have flirted with AI. I’ve learned to write in gender-neutral pronouns, although I admit that it’s tough to type “They is…”

But even with tennis and contract writing, I still had way too much extra time. When Perk and I went on a tour to China in 1979 (our only organized tour), he was the photographer. I was the pack mule carrying lenses, film, filters, and tripods. On that trip we learned that we see different things, and I drove him nuts saying, “ Did you get that? … Oh, take that picture! … Oh, no, you missed the shot of the baby in the embroidered jacket!” I was so annoying that one of the other travelers said, in a snide voice, “Did you ever think of getting your own camera?”

Thirty+ years later,  I got a great camera. I have learned that I love photography far beyond “recording the event.” I love seeing what others don’t see, looking for new angles, catching the light, and creating new art by combining elements of several photos. I have them printed on canvas, giving the pictures the look of paintings.

I often tilt over a pier to get an aerial view of a heron fishing in the shallows below; people step over me as I lie on the path photographing a lotus dewy in the morning light, or frown as I sneak too near an alligator sunning on the shore or a horned owl standing sentinel on the creekbank.

I’m thinking of renaming this blog “Pictures, Predicaments, and Perk,” because he’s the one who holds my camera bag and extra batteries, grabs my shirttail when I lean too far over the rail, and hoists me to my feet when I’ve been lying near a lotus pond.

But the best news is that a fun retirement hobby has turned into a mini-business! I’ve won a couple of prizes in a local art show, and have sold several pieces of large custom wall art. I’m the Grandma Moses of Photography!!

Click here to see some of the photos that I love most!