Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “starts with or contains ‘cel.’” Find a word that begins with or contains “cel” and use it in your post any way you’d like.
Well, that popped in right away: I’m celebrating my 70th birthday on Wednesday. I’m not having a huge celebratory event, but I am celebrating how lucky I am at 70 years old to be living the life I’m living.
#1 thing I do not take for granted is my health. I look after myself with healthy eating and exercise but I’m not pristine. I smoke pot and eat too much sugar which kind of go hand in hand, like cigarettes and alcohol. both of which I gave up decades ago. Alcohol was a problem for me and I’m happy that I’ve never fallen back into it.
However, I have met plenty of people who looked after their health and lost it from no fault of their own. A bad fall can change the course of our lives at this age. Cancer, heart attacks, strokes. . . it can happen to seemingly perfectly healthy people.
Last week, I jumped the gun and changed my title to Monicle’s Chronicles. When I started this 10 years ago, I was sixty, single and surviving. The reason I was merely surviving is I left an abusive marriage which meant also losing my job and home. I started all over again not even knowing who I was anymore. I bought a house with my settlement but had to work to support myself to keep my house and car.
And I fucking did it! I worked in that goddamn grocery store until I turned 65. I kept thinking “I don’t care how little my old age pension is: I am going to live on it and quit this fucking job.” Sorry for the swearing but it conveys how strongly I felt and how much I hated working there. I was counting the days. When I found out that my pension was going to be more than I made at that store, I danced up and down my hallway hooting with joy!
I don’t have enough money to travel and even if I did, I would use it for renovations. But I have enough to live on, I’ve saved up for the propane I’ll need this winter. I put up two dump truck loads of firewood. This makes me happy. I can see if from my bedroom window. It’s immensely satisfying! and WARM!
I love my lifestyle, I love where I live, I love my house. Even though I suffer from bouts of depression and anxiety, I’m generally happy: I have found the tools to deal with it when it comes. Still single but happy with that, too. I don’t want anybody living in my house with me! Although I could use a nice rich boyfriend with his own house. But, hey! You can’t have everything!
An earworm has taken over my stream of consciousness. “Celebrate! Celebrate! Dance to the music!” But I’m 70, I can’t remember the song or the group. Chicago? I’m not going to look for it.
So, I am now Monicle’s Chronicles. I looked up the definition of chronicles and it generally means something written in order of time. However. starting at this point and writing ahead isn’t going to work. I have a lot of great memories, stories and opinions to share so it will be like those annoying shows “3 months ago” “2 years ago” but more like ” 50 years ago . . . “
Celebrate with me! 70 years old! woot woot!
monicle's chronicles 