Although I wasn't, initially, entirely enamoured with the idea when it 'hit' me, I'm just about getting used to being fully retired. One of the reasons I had been reluctant to try it out was the suspicion that, once you stop working, everything would grind to a halt. So, on that basis - and in order to eliminate the problem before it starts - I've set about finding things to keep me occupied.

I have to say that I've been extremely fortunate In that respect because my wife has been very supportive. She has started to teach me how to operate things like a vacuum cleaner and has subtly introduced a regime of remedial excerises such as cleaning windows from time to time and something called cooking. I dont want to sound too cocky, at this early stage,  but I've already learnt how to prepare cup-a-soup and I'm well on the way to mastering the techniques involved in making toast.

At the same time, I've tried to keep my mind occupied and I'm in the process of reorganising this web-site. I've already set about putting the Delivery Work content into the past tense, added some photos to the Military section and I'm incorporating a couple of travel journals I wrote some time ago (USA & Patagonia & Peru) into the site.

I've also decided to take up the accordion again. I did try my hand with the instrument about twenty years ago when my elder son gave me one soon after he went 'solo'. However, although it had been good enough to appear on TOTPs, it wasn't ideal for anyone wanting to learn from scratch and I was persuaded to buy a more suitable (and more expensive) one. However, although I was starting to become moderately profficient, my work at that time wasn't condusive to having 'regular' lessons and I put the instruments away - with the avowed intention of resuming the interest when I 'retired'.

So, having reached that milestone, I dug them out of the wardrobe in which they had been incarcerated only to discover that the 'new' one hadn't enjoyed the experience very much at all and would cost almost as much as it was now worth in order to put it back into working order.

Fortunately, my brand new friend, Mr Allodi,  agreed to take it in part-exchange for a more robust model and I'm going back to basics by re-learning scales and the principles associated with the bass buttons. Paradoxically, the Commotions's model emerged seemingly unscathed and, since there really isn't much point in having two, Lloyd and I are toying with the idea of selling it - possibly, by means of the new web-shop in his web-site.

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