And so, as they say, today is the first day of the rest of my life. My retired life, that is.
My last day at work (yesterday) was, as one can expect, bittersweet. There were hugs all around, and carrying those personal effects to my car at the end of the day definitely felt weird.
But it was time. And not a day too soon.
I’ve said all along that I planned to leave “before the weather changes” so I would no longer have to make that long commute in wintertime. As luck would have it, yesterday brought the first snowfall. Not a lot of snow, it barely covered the ground. But it was icy, there were traffic accidents overnight because of the weather, and I am sooo very happy to be at home with no real need to go anywhere today.
Now it’s me and Puppy Cody, all day, every day. She’s especially happy about that!
Poor Cody has had some health issues recently. As her vet said, “It’s rare for a 10-year-old dog to become infested with three different kinds of parasites.” Ugh. She’s always been on a monthly medication for heartworms, which also supposedly controls hookworms and other parasites, but the vet thinks she keeps reinfecting herself. How?, you ask.
Well, the silly dog just loves to forage the back yard for all those little “gifts” the bunnies and squirrels leave. In the process, she’s probably also picking up bits of parasite-infected soil. Double-ugh.
So, now she’s just finished two courses of antibiotics and deworming – and, because she’s a bad dog who just won’t listen when we tell her to get away from that!, whenever we take her out back, she must wear a mesh muzzle which prevents her from even getting her tongue out. Don’t worry, she can still breathe, bark, and chase those squirrels and bunnies, but she can’t eat or lick anything she’s not supposed to eat or lick. (As a plus, should she actually catch one of those critters, like she did a few weeks back, she won’t be able to bite it.)
BTW, I just realized that if one dog year equals seven human years, then Puppy Cody is now the same age I am! I’m 71. She’s 10 in dog years – which, for those of you who can’t do the math, would be 70 in human years. No wonder we’re both becoming somewhat decrepit!
Hope all is well with all of you and yours. Should you ever be in the Western New York area and want to meet Cordelia’s Mom, send me a quick email (cordalismom2012@yahoo.com). I can’t afford much on only Social Security, but I’m sure I can manage an inexpensive lunch and the gas to get there.
Unless, of course, it’s snowing. Then I ain’t goin’ nowhere.
Hugs, all.
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I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Twitter page, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com
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Image by Cordelia’s Mom/TeddyRosalieStudio
Cordelia's Mom, Still 
Congratulations on finally being retired.!!!
I’m sorry you are struggling with Cody and her health, hopefully she gets sorted out soon.
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The meds worked and Cody is free from parasites at the moment. Hopefully, we can keep her from reinfesting herself, the little devil. Of course, yesterday’s snow covered most of the “gifts” in the yard, so there’s that little bit of relief.
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Glad she is better, hopefully she’ll learn her lesson over the winter. If not, at least you are aware of her nasty habit…
We are struggling with our big girl, at 14½ she is in so much arthritic pain, we have had to set a date for her to be put to sleep.
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Aw, I’m so sorry to read this. It’s so hard when they get old and are suffering. You’ve made the right decision. We’ve had to do that several times, and it never gets easier. Hugs to you all.
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Enjoy that retirement! Now is the time to do what you want, crochet, read books, nap, enjoy Cody – and do as little as possible of the household chores.
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LOL, I especially like that part about household chores. I figure I’ll mostly sleep the first couple of weeks and then start figuring out how I really want to spend my days, considering I won’t have any expendable income to entertain myself with. Still, it’s worth it.
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yay! Lovely to have all that time with the dog and to do what you want to. Since we retired, we never seem to have enough time to do everything we want! Congratulations and enjoy!
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Thanks. Right now it just feels like a few days off. I’m sure reality will hit me next week, when I don’t have to leave the house on Monday.
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It is a lively feeling.
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Well done you you made it to retirement! You can expect some mixed feelings! But soon you will be wondering how on earth did you find time to go to work! Cody will love having you home. I hope she improves health wise very soon the muzzle will definitely help! Be safe and well and I wish I loved nearer! 💜😀
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Thanks, Willow. Cody has already improved, with the meds. We took in another stool sample last week and it was clear of parasites. Now if we can just keep her from reinfecting herself!
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That’s good news and the muzzle will definitely work 💜💜
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Happy retirement, CM! It’s time to kick back and enjoy! Hugs to you and puppy Cody! 🤗🤗🤗🌈🌈🌈
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Thanks. Good to see you over here. I plan to spend more time viewing everyone else’s blogs now that I have more time. I’ve seriously lost track of everyone, but intend to make up for that.
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Congratulations on your retirement – you’ve certainly earned it!
Hugs to Cody, I love elder dogs.
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Thanks. (Cody enjoyed her extra hug, and thanks you for it.)
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