March 14, 2026 | WALLS 102

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Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

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I was given this job in July 1948. You’d think I would understand the basic duties by now, right? This living life thing should be easy.

Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

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Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

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Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

I am self-employed now. At least that’s how I must look at it.Getting ready for work is not like it used to be. The dress code is gone. No ties required or even collared shirts. And I really don’t have to shave every day. But I still have to show up to work ... to do the job. And my job now is life. Living. And sometimes that’s hard work.This new job is my focus now because I am retired. I’ve been doing this new job since 2014, so I should have mastered it by now. But ... don’t be fooled by the job title. It isn’t easy doing whatever I want to do ... every day. Now it might seem easy to the inexperienced. Because I often don’t have to leave the house, or never have to turn in a time card. (Although some might question how I use my time.) But I do have to get the job done every day. The job of living, that is.Like any job, that means showing up. And being reliable ... so the boss can count on me. And being self-employed means the boss, of course, is me. I can blame others if the job is not getting done properly, but in the end, I am the guy, the man in charge. I have to take the responsibility. So, yes, showing up is pretty important. Probably the most important part of the job. Which is why I need a reason to get up every day. Right? Like any job, it won’t get done unless I clock in. And it’s a daily obligation. This job, of course, requires my attention on weekends and holidays, too. That’s the thing about life. It keeps chugging along. It’s kind of been that way since I was born. Yeah, the job never stops. I admit there are days I don’t feel like doing the job. By that I mean I’m not driven all the time to give it 100%. I do like the job in general. It has lots of benefits, but at times I can find myself asking, “Why bother?” But then ... more life happens. For example, the dog will moan. He is standing in the bedroom doorway, sad brown eyes staring at me. He’s reminding me of another important part of my job, this job of living. I don’t work alone. I have a crew helping me out now and then. That includes Tucker, who wags his tail when I pet him and sleeps at my feet when I’m writing. (As he is right now.)I do have a good crew that is centered around my bride of 40-plus years, plus three sons, a close family and good friends. I would have a tough time with this job of living without them. Their advice and many contributions make the job a lot easier.You might be wondering why I see this job of living as a relatively new thing. I hinted earlier that it’s been my new job since I retired more than 10 years ago. Which is true, but I didn’t think about it much until recently. Now I think I need to focus more on the job at hand. I need to pay more attention to some of the little details of the job. That’s the important part ... those little details. I was given this job in July 1948. You’d think I would understand the basic duties by now, right? This living life thing should be easy. But ... like many jobs ... it came with challenges. There’s a learning curve, and then there are changes. You adapt to changes or dodge them. Not always easy.So here I am thinking about the changes I’ve seen with this job. Especially in the last few years. Society calls it aging. What that means is the job gets tougher as you get older. Which brings me back to those little details that have always been important to the job. I just tended to ignore them more when I was younger, busy growing up. Little things like ... how I treated learning and school, friendships that have come and gone, what I said or did to other people ... or did not say or do, and how I fed and maintained my body, an important tool for this job of life and living. The list of such things goes on as I concentrate on them more. I understand better now. The 9-to-5 was a routine. Life is the real job.• Lonny Cain, retired managing editor of The Times in Ottawa, also was a reporter for The Herald-News in Joliet in the 1970s. His PaperWork email is lonnyjcain@gmail.com. Or mail the NewsTribune, 426 Second St., La Salle IL 61301.

Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

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Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

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Paperwork: I had to retire to see what my real job should have been

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Veteran St. Bede baseball team looks to be playing its best in June

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Veteran St. Bede baseball team looks to be playing its best in June

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Veteran St. Bede baseball team looks to be playing its best in June

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