Enough people have let me know they are reading this blog that it seems necessary to post something this morning.
But today is a bit unlike some days have been in the past three weeks. Lots of meetings today, including:
10:30 a.m. — Coffee with a recruiter for Shelter Insurance. Not sure what I think of this, but it can’t hurt to hear him out.
Noon — Muscatine Center for Social Action board meeting. Anyone else see the irony in a guy who is out of work serving on the board for the fine organization that provides shelter for Muscatine residents with few other options?
1:15 p.m. — Lunch with a friend.
In between those appointments, I need to go to the bank, stop in at Stanley Consultants and go to the computer shop. Oh, and I’ll also spend some time at the Muscatine Community Y.
Hope everyone reading this has a good and productive day. Thank you for giving me a look this morning. Maybe I’ll be back later with more to say.
Today’s quote: The love that lasts longest is the love that is never returned. — W. Somerset Maugham, British playwright (1874-1965)
Brome Hill 
Meeting with my wife and me recently about our “second half” plan, our advisor John Beckey observed that he feels the term “retirement” is an unfortunate one because of its stereotypes and expectations. The word itself is to blame for some folks giving up on life before they should, he said.
Reading your post, Chris, I’d say the same of “job.” I understand when you call yourself “a guy who is out of work,” but I hope we’re all becoming better equipped to fight off such potent old pejoratives. Our language and the assumptions it represents really are limited in this regard.
I mean, really, haven’t you done some of your best “work” ever in the past three weeks?
Thanks, Dan. And you, too, Sharon.
I’m not sure I’d call what I’ve done here my best work ever. But I have done some things here that show I still have plenty to offer. And I’ve had some fun here, exercising my writing skills, while I figure out what to do next.
Was great to see you at the meeting today and especially great to see you smiling. It is my view that jobs don’t bring value to the man but the man or woman has the value and brings it to whatever jobs he/she choose to do. I agree with Dan. Some of our most important work or jobs do not occur in what is normally defined as ‘ the wonderful world of work’.
Thanks, Sharon. I’ve kind of decided it was wasting too much energy to be angry about what happened. So I guess I’ll keep smiling even when I don’t feel like it. I’d rather try to approach this chapter in life in the optimistic way I’ve always tried to approach everything else.