Gail, 65, retired four years ago after almost 37 years as a senior director at a university. She lives in a small community outside a major city in Ontario, Canada, with her husband, Al.
7:00am. The alarm goes off, which is not her habit. Normally she wakes when Al does. She set it on purpose because her daughter is visiting from England. Making the coffee is usually her first job of the day, but her daughter, up early and jet lagged, has beaten her to it.
7:15am. Shower.
7:30am. Coffee, then the couch. She checks her bank accounts and investments first, out of habit. Then the news, which she reads in a set order: a handful of Canadian, US and global newsletters and news sites she enjoys. She takes her time with them, and it is close to an hour before she looks up.
8:30am. A Tuesday treat. Today it is homemade rhubarb and raspberry muffins, made with fruit from her garden.
9:00am. Breakfast: yogurt with chia seeds, homemade granola and a few pumpkin seeds on top.
9:30am. Out the door. The courts are only ten minutes away and play does not start until 10:30, but at least two of her friends are always there early. They live in the area, though not close to one another, and since they are all going to the courts anyway, they use the time to catch up. It is about 45 minutes of talking before anyone picks up a paddle.
10:30am. Pickleball with three friends, until midday. It is social, not a league, four people who like playing together. Afterwards there is usually time to sit and talk again, but today it is only about ten minutes, because three of the four have somewhere to be.
12:30pm. Home, and lunch at the kitchen table with Al and her daughter. Chicken noodle soup, one of her regulars.
1:15pm. The afternoon is for a dress that needs altering for a wedding she and Al are going to next week. She steams it, pins the hem and works out the darts. On most Tuesdays the afternoon could go anywhere: errands, or a friend who lives further out. With her daughter home, she stays near the house, so it is a good day to get the dress done.
4:00pm. A forty-five minute walk on the trail, on the phone with a friend. She walks every Tuesday. Other days it is a Spanish podcast, because she is learning Spanish, or The National.
5:30pm. She and Al put dinner on. They each have a glass of wine while it cooks.
6:00pm. Dinner is ham, corn and scalloped potatoes. They eat at the kitchen table, which is where they always eat.
7:00pm. Outside by the fire with her daughter, talking. It is a nice night.
8:00pm. A second glass of wine.
10:30pm. Bed.
After the interview, Gail was asked how retirement is going so far, and whether it is what she expected. Four years in, she thought there might be some consulting or volunteering work by now. There hasn’t been any. What she notices instead is smaller: “I’m much more relaxed.” She sleeps better. She no longer lies awake the night before, thinking about tomorrow’s meetings, and she doesn’t have to lead them anymore, which she says was stressful.