The Road to 40 Day 181/365: A Post-Retirement Life Preview

No, the cover photo is not where I am right now. It’s actually the morning view of where Vino is on this day.

The kids are not allowed to bring gadgets with them to the residential trip, but the school gave a link to a chat thread where they would constantly give us updates.

Meanwhile, Che was still not feeling well. We planned on getting a massage after her work, but she decided not to go to a workshop she was supposed to attend and stayed home to rest.

She normally doesn’t eat breakfast, but it’s just the two of us, and we got up late. Among the groceries I got the previous day was gourmet tuyo, which we probably wouldn’t have for breakfast if Vino is around because it’s a bit spicy.

I cooked garlic rice as well because we didn’t eat the rice I made the night before. We got some of the fresh kimchi from Korea as a side dish as well.

We had breakfast and continued to binge Our Movie on Disney. The heavy breakfast meant we could have late lunch, and it was by design.

I had to bring two of our luggages for repair in Suntec. According to the website, they could get it done in an hour, so I thought it could be a good lunch date opportunity. However, Che felt she needed to rest more, so I headed off to Suntec myself while she tried to get some sleep.

As expected, the shop said I could wait for the repair and come back in an hour. I had to burn time, so I just walked around the mall aimlessly. I went window shopping in Uniqlo and just walked around the area. I didn’t want to eat because I knew I’d be eating with Che at home.

Before it was time to go back and pick up the luggages, I decided to order BHC Chicken. It’s been here in Singapore for quite some time, and I actually ordered from it before. I played it safe by ordering the original and the soy garlic flavors.

When we were in Korea, Che and the kids all enjoyed the Bburinkle/Purrinkle flavor – which was a BHC exclusive. I got a half chicken of that and some rose tteokbokki.

After having our fill, we moved to the room where I battled my nemesis – the clothes to be folded.

We still had plenty of laundry to be done, but I do it one battle at a time. For now, it’s a mix of clothes from the trip and some clothes that we’ve used.

Later in the evening, we ordered in some bah kut teh as a hearty soup. While waiting, we watched the fourth-ranked movie on Netflix, A House of Dynamite. It was a 90-minute waste of time.

We then retreated to the bedroom again until we fell asleep.

Vino will eventually move out when he’s older, and it’ll be just me and Che in the house together when she retires. I feel like this was some kind of preview of the life to come.

It was an opportunity for a date getaway that we normally couldn’t do because we had to pick up Vino from somewhere, but circumstances dictated that we stay home instead. It was nice to just cuddle up and watch together, and I get to let her rest without worrying about the dishes and whatnot.

There are times when she says that she only needs me on her side, but I feel helpless sometimes when I don’t have any tangible contributions to her well-being. On this day that I see her being able to relax and not be stressed by the mess at home makes me feel like I’m doing my part well.

While this was a nice experience, it was due to her not feeling well. The hope is that post-retirement, we would both be healthier and enjoy more activities and see more things together.

Vino will be back on Friday, and we’re both eager to hear all about his experiences from the trip.