Napa Journal: Is Kevin Courtney tough enough for retirement? | Lifestyles

Lacking purposeful activity, I jumped at the chance to help Cheryl unload after a trip to Costco. Ignoring her advice, I single-handedly hoisted a big cooler filled with groceries from her truck and staggered through the garage, across our backyard and into the house.

Quite the physical feat, you would agree.

But as I discovered the next morning when I went on my run, I’d wrecked muscles, ligaments and maybe even tendons in my legs.

It’s been three weeks. I’m still recovering.

Let me pause to sing the praise of the newspaper office. No poison oak, no ergonomically inappropriate computers and never did I lift anything heavier than a ream of copier paper.

But that was then and now is now. I must gamely plug on.

For example, Alfred Hitchcock. His suspense movies are quite the treat on a hot afternoon. Despite twinges of guilt, I’ve watched “To Catch A Thief” and “Rear Window” and am planning more Hitchcock forays from the 40s, 50s and 60s.

Thank you, Napa County Library.

Another way to perk up unstructured days: Coffee with old friends, old associates, old anybodies.

These social gatherings are The Best. Two or three times each week I’m out of the house. I’m connecting. I’m not being attacked by poison oak.