After 41 years of working as a power plant superintendent, maintenance superintendent, and a reliability engineer, I was glad to know there would be no more calls in the middle of the night after I retired.
Ah, yes, I remember it well, up at 2:30 to be in by 4 am and then the unmistakable chance to ‘work over’ 4 hours until 7:30 pm—with the chance of doing it all over again…….tomorrow !! ! !
Pluggers give up family for the job, kinda sad but that’s the old fashioned work ethic. Time catches you up though, when the time comes to retire.. change from paid to volunteering. And, bonus.. your “work” will be appreciated more. Almost 10 years in with drivehappiness dot ca
Unfortunately, some of us plugger-spouses are still on-call 24/7. During the ‘working years’, we got up first to feed the animals, get the breakfasts, get kids ready for school, and remind everyone what was happening that day. Then, we either went to work ourselves or stayed home, tending to the house and garden. Then we drove kids to after-school activities, ran the errands, came home, made supper, checked the homework, got kids ready for bed, and cleaned the kitchen and probably did a load of laundry. After everyone else was in bed, we got things ready for the next day and took some personal time [for school, hobbies, relaxing], before tending the animals and touring the house, checking lights, doors, and windows.
Now, in retirement, the schedule is pretty much the same — first up to fix the breakfast and feed the animals; no kids to get ready, but sometimes there’s a grand kid or two that need minding while parents are at work or when they are sick or have a day off from school. And we seem to be the keeper of the calendar — fewer kid activities but a lot more doctor appointments. We may even still go to work or to a class [lots of classes for retirees in my area] and we still straighten the house, tend the garden, fix the meals, run the errands, take grandkids to after-school activities, fix dinner. After dinner, we put the food away [hard to cook for just 2], straighten the kitchen and throw in a load of laundry. Occasionally, we get phone calls [or text messages] from the kids — sometimes asking a favor [can you take Jo to the dentist tomorrow?], sometimes exciting news, sometimes panicky parents, but always good to receive. Then, after the spouse has gone to bed [which is an hour to more earlier than it used to be], it’s time to relax, work on a hobby, read a book — personal time. Then, before bed, it’s time to tend the animals, and tour the house, turning off lights and checking doors and windows.
Middle of Sunday dinner, prime rib, sauteed mushrooms, baked potatoes, grilled asparagus, just opened a nice bottle of wine, whole family there for once, I get the Nextel chirp (remember those?) I don’t miss those days one bit.
Qiset about 2 months ago
Been there, done that for 30 years.
juicebruce about 2 months ago
Big part of why I retired ! Didn’t get paid for being “On Call” but I was ;-)
jhpeanut about 2 months ago
That was Dad, he was a Rigger at the steel mill.
Gent about 2 months ago
It always time to gets more picanic baskets!
ctolson about 2 months ago
After 41 years of working as a power plant superintendent, maintenance superintendent, and a reliability engineer, I was glad to know there would be no more calls in the middle of the night after I retired.
The Humanist Boss about 2 months ago
Retirement is boring I want to work and never retire.
'IndyMan' about 2 months ago
Ah, yes, I remember it well, up at 2:30 to be in by 4 am and then the unmistakable chance to ‘work over’ 4 hours until 7:30 pm—with the chance of doing it all over again…….tomorrow !! ! !
Alberta Oil Premium Member about 2 months ago
Pluggers give up family for the job, kinda sad but that’s the old fashioned work ethic. Time catches you up though, when the time comes to retire.. change from paid to volunteering. And, bonus.. your “work” will be appreciated more. Almost 10 years in with drivehappiness dot ca
GreenT267 about 2 months ago
Unfortunately, some of us plugger-spouses are still on-call 24/7. During the ‘working years’, we got up first to feed the animals, get the breakfasts, get kids ready for school, and remind everyone what was happening that day. Then, we either went to work ourselves or stayed home, tending to the house and garden. Then we drove kids to after-school activities, ran the errands, came home, made supper, checked the homework, got kids ready for bed, and cleaned the kitchen and probably did a load of laundry. After everyone else was in bed, we got things ready for the next day and took some personal time [for school, hobbies, relaxing], before tending the animals and touring the house, checking lights, doors, and windows.
Now, in retirement, the schedule is pretty much the same — first up to fix the breakfast and feed the animals; no kids to get ready, but sometimes there’s a grand kid or two that need minding while parents are at work or when they are sick or have a day off from school. And we seem to be the keeper of the calendar — fewer kid activities but a lot more doctor appointments. We may even still go to work or to a class [lots of classes for retirees in my area] and we still straighten the house, tend the garden, fix the meals, run the errands, take grandkids to after-school activities, fix dinner. After dinner, we put the food away [hard to cook for just 2], straighten the kitchen and throw in a load of laundry. Occasionally, we get phone calls [or text messages] from the kids — sometimes asking a favor [can you take Jo to the dentist tomorrow?], sometimes exciting news, sometimes panicky parents, but always good to receive. Then, after the spouse has gone to bed [which is an hour to more earlier than it used to be], it’s time to relax, work on a hobby, read a book — personal time. Then, before bed, it’s time to tend the animals, and tour the house, turning off lights and checking doors and windows.
SofaKing about 2 months ago
Middle of Sunday dinner, prime rib, sauteed mushrooms, baked potatoes, grilled asparagus, just opened a nice bottle of wine, whole family there for once, I get the Nextel chirp (remember those?) I don’t miss those days one bit.