Ruminating

If you are thinking about a quick noodle dinner, could it be called Ramenating?

Not in this case, because what I was actually thinking about was cheating on my wife. No, not that way. I'm happily married, conventional as that may sound, and I wouldn't want to change anything about it. I like being married, and I like the person I'm married to, and I like the result of that marriage, though the idea of her actually dating terrifies me. But thats not what I was thinking about.

Here's the deal. I started writing this blog because I wanted to see what it was like. It's the equivalent of writing in a diary, except that people get to comment on it, and over the years, a number of people have. I like that - like 'meeting' these people (and actually met one of them, a person who amazed me by stopping by, visiting with people she didn't even know, and then, second time, stopping by even though she knew that my wife wasn't going to be here -- I was pleased that she did, but still, wow. I had to make conversation, which I'm not really that good at unless I've known you for a while). Over the past year, the number of people who've left comments here has dropped -- I can't say significantly, because there were never really that many, but still, a lot. I miss that, to the point that I've contemplating putting in Google Analytics to see what brings people, but as I tend to be a solitary, somewhat introverted person, I can live with it.

Over the past two years, since my surprise retirement, I've been more or less alone a lot. My mother lives with us, but she's downstairs, and I don't actually see her all that much. My daughter's usually at school, or at color guard, or now, karate, and my wife's usually in at the office. She does work from home on occasion, but not all that much. Again, it's not that big a deal -- I spend a fair amount of time reading, or baking, or surfing the net. I do wonder, on occasion, what it will be like when my wife retires, because I'm sure I will have gotten -- have already gotten -- into a rut of this is how I do things, ranging from cleaning methods to making dinner. I don't particularly think there will be many collisions of routines, but I'm sure there will be some.

This evening, we went to a cookout that was organized by the woman who's my daughter's karate instructor. There were a fair number of people there -- perhaps twenty, plus their kids, and Maclain, the fierce-looking German Shepherd crossbreed who's as curious and gentle as they come -- and I had a pretty good time. Of course, for me, having a pretty good time at a party means finding something to eat and then standing around while other people, for the most part, talk. As I say, I'm a bit of an introvert. Thats why I bring my wife to these things -- she could have a pleasant conversation with Kim Jong Il. While I was there, I thought that this was the kind of thing we try to do when we have our annual party in January, and offer some holiday treats, music, and conversation. It's nice bringing people together, and it almost makes me wish that I was better at talking to people than I am.

I know that every day, there are housewives around here who don't work -- they are the classic Stay At Home Mothers, taking care of kids. I found myself thinking about an article I read, years ago, about a Stay At Home Father who said that he got into the habit of dropping by neighbors houses, and they at his, just for the occasional bit of coffee and conversation. It helped the days go by, and it helped him keep his sanity. I thought that this sounded like an interesting idea. It would certainly be fodder for joking at home -- I already kid my wife that my needs are handled nicely by the 'neighbor ladies' -- and might be fun.

I just don't know how to do it. As I understand it, you would start by actually talking to people -- and that, I'm not so good at.

Maybe this cheating thing isn't such a good idea.