No, gentle reader, this is not a philosophical ´light bulb´moment reached after my having spent three hours/three weeks/three months pondering my navel.
Nor
have I cleared off my credit card debt. (There is none to
clear off. Thank God.) Nor have I made a determined effort today to give up the
cigarettes/booze/horses/dogs/toyboys 😲/tea 😲😲.…
While all of the aforementioned are excellent, noble - indeed courageous reasons, to make a given day the first day of the rest of one´s life, they do not apply to me.
Today is the first day of the rest of my life because today I gave up the day job! FOREVER.
Yes, today Monday 31st of August 2020 is the first day that I do not have to go to work here in Germany, and I NEVER have to have a permanent job again for the rest of my life!
YA HOOoooooooooooo
You see dear reader, I am soon to join the ranks of the ever enviable. Namely: The retired, who are still healthy, who have managed to save a few Euros and who have a long list of exciting, wonderful, fun adventurous life to do´s that they now have time to get done. And now, not only can they afford it all - it is legal! Well... mostly!
And let us all hope we may be blessed with the precious gift of health for a nice long time to enjoy doing things on that nice long exciting ´to do´ list!
Before I continue I will pause and enjoy this moment of awareness of my new status.
.... Several minutes of navel pondering later:
I realize, there is not much to add to this happy blog posting; what can one say to one improve on all this happy!
Yes, there is one thing
I can add: 
Since
I left work on Friday last, I have caught myself at least
three times saying,´ oh I am glad I am free on Monday´.
Then I pause and remember `Hey you have forgotten again; you
are not just free on Monday - you do not have to work ever again in a permanent job EVERYDAY - FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!
How cool is that then!
Above: Self waving to my dear friend and former co-worker Uli as I left work in Germany last Friday for the last time .....
Below: Uli calls out goodbye as I ride off on my little mofa into the future.....
(Danke liebe Uli; als ich Dich bei der Arbeit lachen hörte, war ich immer glücklich. Wir bleiben in Kontakt!)
