end of an era

i phoned my dad this evening just to tell him that there was a good sale on Purex toilet paper at Extra foods (12 double 3-ply rolls for $4.96 - a steal!). i then asked him how he was doing and he told me that, after much consideration, he's decided to stop working.

he's been a physical laborer ever since we moved here 31 years ago and that's a long time to be thrashing your body around. he only had 2 years to retirement but he says that his company is going to start offering packages to people who are close to retirement. hopefully they offer him something good.

in the meantime, he's applied for disability. i asked him whether he could afford to do that, quit working, and he said, "what choice do i have?"

had my parents stayed together, he'd have retired with less worry than he has to now. he would have done it because he was ready, not because he physically couldn't work anymore. he told me he emailed my mom to let her know. i haven't had a chance to talk to her yet, but i'm interested to hear what she has to say.

i told him i would hire him as my dog walker and he laughed. i know he'll enjoy spending time with Luna, as well as having something to do everyday. it won't be much, but at least he'll be getting out. i told him he should look into doing it as a part-time job. at $10 a pooch, 5 days a week, he'd be just fine.

i really am getting older. it's weird. and really scary.