Review and Resolutions

This was my first full year retired (officially from January 3, 2023). There was so much to do! What did I do? Not do?

Learn Math

I wanted to take courses. I tried to enroll non-matric at Queens College, but turned out I had already matriculated while on sabbatical in 2013 or 2014. So they took me as a continuing masters student. I took one course in the spring, and two in the fall. Two of the three turned out well. I’m registered for Set Theory and Theory of the Integral for the upcoming term. I didn’t mean to get a masters, but that looks like where I’m headed.

I wanted to study independently. My idea was to pick a text and read it with a group. I had some takers, in theory, but in practice I ended up working with one person, Sue, on a text that she might need to teach with. We met intermittently for a while, then drifted. But in those meetings I was reminded how much more fun it is to do math collaboratively. This is worth trying again.

Purchases

I had planned to get myself a new car as a retirement gift-to-self. But my 25 year old car runs well.

I thought about moving to a better apartment, since three houses on my block got knocked down and replaced by buildings and spoiled my view (just of Mosholu Parkway, but still. And also the roof of the library in the Botanical Garden got blocked.) But have you seen rents and prices? I’ll try to travel and go out more so I’m not spending time staring at a wall.

Travel

Where do I begin? Probably with a ticket. But I haven’t bought any. No boats. No trains. A drive upstate for Juneteenth. One plane (weekend in Chicago). Spent a week on a pond in Maine (long drive). And that’s it. Why, now that I have time, has travel been a bust? Hell if I know. I should do better.

Books

I had almost completely stopped reading towards the end of my teaching career. Figured I would jump right back in. Wrong. It’s taking work. But I did read in the fall of 2022. Got starts on a few books. Didn’t finish many. And picked up the pace very slightly this year. 90% non-fiction. Some of it is math – but I like science and history and politics. And education.

I read Clara Hemphill’s new book. And a long book about the mummies of the Tarim Basin. And a collection of essays about a boarding school for Native Americans in California. That one was tough. Something older by David Montgomery about salmon. The best part was about what rivers look like if people don’t clear them and straighten them, at least that’s what I thought. Robert Meeropol’s autobiography. Chris Bonastia’s book about New York City schools and segregation. There were a few more, but not many…

Hiking

Now this has been great. 2023 was my best walking year since before the pandemic. And 2024 is already looking better. In 2023 I spent more time in the New York Botanical Gardens (practically my neighbor – I get to the closest gate from my apartment in 6 minutes) and in Van Cortlandt Park (almost my neighbor) then, well, pretty much any year since my unemployment of June 1994 – August 1995. I have also been hiking up the Hudson. And in northern New Jersey. And a little bit in southern Connecticut. And exploring parts of Westchester and Putnam. Did you know that there’s lots of little private “preserves” that are open to the public? And some are truly lovely. Oh, and I also went on a few marches, but saving that for another section. And also a few mushroom walks. I like those. The walks. And the mushrooms.

Blogging

Hey, I kind of leveled off. Well less frequent than 2020, but much more content than the years immediately preceding the pandemic. The story, not that interesting maybe, was that I’d dwindled to a handful of posts a year, and was thinking about closing shop. And in March 2020… In any case, I’d like to write more in 2024.

There’s also a new kind of blogging, sort of. I’m putting up YouTubes with Arthur Goldstein. Kind of a video podcast. We call it “State of the Union with Arthur and Jonathan.” I think we have four episodes up, it’s been about once a month. We should regularize SotU, and put them out more often. That’s on me.

And back to this blog – a lot of cool kids have switched to Substack. Maybe I should think about that.

Joining Stuff

I joined the NY Mycological Society. I’ve been on some of their walks, and a few of their dinners. I joined the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance. I’ve been to a few events, and volunteered once. I’d do that again. Also the Bronx River Alliance. Volunteered once. I’d do that again.

Activism

It’s now been over a year working with Retiree Advocate. We have a big election coming up this spring – challenging Mulgrew and the Insurance Industry for control of the Retired Teachers Chapter. I’m doing a lot of work… I don’t think I could keep up this pace forever, but a few months… sure.

Joined the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition. Really nice folks. They treat their supporters, well, like friends. I always feel welcome. And there is good work. I’m excited by their advocacy around the Kingsbridge Armory. Activism. That comes with food and matching t-shirts. These are good people.

Joined the Bronx Working Families Party. We will see. There’s not as much to do.

It’s been over 100 days of destruction of life, property and infrastructure in Gaza. The barbarity of the Israeli assault, fully backed by the US government, has shocked much of the world, and has opened many previously unopened eyes. Even many supporters of Israel have been stunned by the undisguised cruelty. I have done some “social media activism” which is not much, but have also been at protests in Brooklyn and Manhattan, honked greetings at protesters as far away as Hamden, Connecticut, been uptown, midtown, downtown, east side, west side, and was there when we shut down Grand Central Terminal.

I joined Jewish Voice for Peace a few years ago, and have been involved in some of their activity. I have signed onto Educators for Palestine, and marched with a few of them last week.

I used to go to lots of protests, even organized some, but I’m out of practice. I think I’ll keep at it. That’s not a resolution, it’s just what I will do. Because it is important. Because the demand for a ceasefire is completely appropriately. Because the demand is made of our government, our government which prevents a ceasefire, prolongs the bombing and killing, indirectly, and directly, with exports of weapons and ammunition.

Food

I started avoiding beef just before the start of 2023. And for some metabolic stuff, I reduced bread and pasta, a lot. I cut out desserts, almost completely. Tried to eat less fried food. No fruit juice. And absolutely zero soda (excluding seltzer). Whole grains yes – especially faro, barley, buckwheat (kasha). More vegetables. Less other red meat (with beef 99% gone). More fish. Nuts and dried fruits for snacks. Kim chi. More cooking at home. EVOO. Smaller portions.

I don’t know if I cured anything. But I feel better. People say that I look better – and I should choose to believe them! (one person, I thought they were hitting on me. And after embarrassing myself I learned, nope, that wasn’t it, they just thought I looked better. I should have believed them!) Blood pressure is better. Doctor warned me not to go too hard, so I’m easing up. But some of these adjustments are sticking.

Teaching Math

I worked at a math summer day camp for rising 7th graders. And I did Saturday enrichment with 8th – 12th graders this fall. I like this. Low stakes. Interesting material. No test prep. I’ll keep doing this work. It’s exactly what I wanted to do. I’m going to try working with student teachers this spring – I’ll see. It could be cool. But the work with kids could turn out to be enough.

Being a Tourist

So I’m in New York, a world class city, and I have time… more time than I did when I was working full-time. So, I reasoned, I want to go out and be a tourist. Museums. Restaurants. Sights. Ferry rides. All of it. And… I did a little… but very little.

With my IDNYC (New York City ID) I can get free one year non-free-renewable memberships to a bunch of things. So instead of trying a bunch of different things, I signed up for a one-year membership to the Wildlife Conservation Society. That covers the Bronx Zoo. Queens Zoo. Central Park Zoo. Prospect Park Zoo. And the New York Aquarium.

Resolutions

A resolution should be something that 1) I can do and 2) I really have control over and 3) whose success matters to me and 4) that I can reasonably achieve. There are a lot of things I want to do, or to do more of, or to do better. But most of them make lousy resolutions. I don’t necessarily have good control over them. Or they are things that are good ideas, but I know they are difficult for me. Sometimes I know what I want myself to do, but have trouble making myself do those things.

It would be easy to resolve to read more, travel more, eat less and better, start a math book club, hike more, lose weight, blog more, make more “State of the Union” episodes, and visit more cool things in New York. But as well-meaning as each of those resolutions are, I don’t think making them is meaningful, not when we know in advance that good intentions might not play out. Resolve not to be late anymore? Well, I would like that, but I know this is very difficult for me. It’s not just about trying harder. Instead, here are my resolutions – doable, and pleasing – for 2023:

1. Log my hikes. I won’t resolve to hike more (even though I mean to). I will resolve to record them though, in my “Hike Book” – a black and white cover bound composition book.
2. Say yes to more social invites. I was out last weekend – at the sort of thing I usually miss – and it felt good.
3. Visit all the NYC zoos. And the Aquarium.
4. Log my books. I won’t resolve to read more – see above – but I am recording my reading, whether a whole book or part of a chapter, in my “Book Book” – a black and white cover bound composition book.
5. Reread my advice to myself. I think kids asked for advice for a yearbook quote. And this is what I came up with, here: “Speak the truth.   Work for Change.  It’s not about you.” And expanded here: “Act against racism. Act against anti-immigrant bigotry/hatred. Act against sexism. Act against homophobia. Act for fairness. Act in solidarity. Looking away = acquiescence (and is absolutely unacceptable)” Figure this will drive what I do/say about Gaza, and about preserving medicare.
6. Keep flowers in my apartment. I may grow some. I may buy some. I may buy plants that flower periodically. But this is easy, and flowers make me happy.
7. Track my vitals. Won’t promise to lose weight or get more fit. But I resolve to pay attention.
8. Ride as many of the NYC ferry lines as I can. Even Rockaway.
9. Do not download games to my phone. I deleted all of them, one at a time, last summer and fall. I miss them – but like withdrawal – not like nostalgia. My screen time dropped immediately. Stay the course. Solid resolution.
10. Have a good birthday! I needed one resolution that felt like a resolution. And three score is a lot. I should have a day or two to smile about it!