The Retirement Diaries - Paperback

by Gwynneth Mary Lovas (Author)

Absolutely hilarious, and filled with thought-provoking observations, The Retirement Diaries makes two things clear; there really is such a thing as "too much" spare time, and retirement should come with a warning label: "Some Assembly Required" At sixty years of age, with her children grown and gone, a suspicion that "bad lighting" had been following her around for decades, and a deepening desire to call in "sick" most mornings, Molly Olsen decided that it was time for her to retire from the practice of law. She imagined that retirement would be like a never-ending summer holiday; that every night would feel like Saturday night. Or that at least she would finally be able to "sleep in". She couldn't have been more wrong. What she discovers is that the reality of retirement bears little resemblance to the dream, and that an idle mind is the devil's playground. Along with chronicling her obsession with Obituaries, Netflix addiction and speculation that "sudden-onset ass expansion" (repente impetus incrementum asinum) might be an actual medical condition, Molly's diaries demonstrate that retirement is probably more akin to a vacation with the kids that goes on just a little too long than an endless string of fascinating Saturday nights. She even gives serious consideration to signing up for Magician lessons when her husband tells her that she has the power to make money "disappear", and suspects that her German Shepherd Dog, Lucy, may be "losing respect for her". So, will she find her equilibrium? Or will she actually reply to the Want Ad she discovers for "people with valid driver's licenses" to deliver newspapers?

Author Biography

Gwynneth Mary Lovas has been a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada since 1982, and spent the last twelve years of her legal career as a Department of Justice Senior Counsel providing advice to the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces. She currently works as a writer, lecturer and consultant, and is the author of "Canadian Military Law: Morale and Welfare Operations" (Carswell, 2013).