Emeriti

Stan and Bob eating pancakes this morning at Perkins.
(Note Stan's mock turtleneck honoring Steve Jobs.)

It was sort of what it might be like having breakfast with Andy Rooney.
Robert M. Shaw, 90, is the Manager Emeritus of the Minnesota Newspaper Association, which means they retired him years ago but he gets to keep the title. He prefers being called "curmudgeon."
Stan is the Publisher Emeritus of the Chaska Herald, which means they retired him years ago but when the Herald celebrates its 150th birthday next year, he gets to organize the antiquities. Last week, the curator of the Chaska History Center volunteered Stan to put together a display to tell their visitors something about ancient history at the local paper.
So Stan called a breakfast meeting today of the newspaper Emeriti. Notes were taken, ideas exchanged, stories told. And some planning actually occurred.
Bob's wife died five years ago. He now lives alone in a high-rise Edina cooperative. He gardens, runs and writes. He's always written stuff. During the 70s, Stan used to read his occasional "Think Piece" in the newspaper association bulletins, always inspiring editors to keep their standards high and publishers to meet the new industry challenges. Good stuff.
He just finished writing "The Bachelor Slob in the Kitchen," a paperback which hopes to guide the clueless widower through new challenges. "Gentle assistance and counsel for persons who are retired, are not independently wealthy, loathe the preparation of food, and despise housekeeping in general." Hmmm. The cover boasts, "This precious little book is just jam-packed with useful information for people who live by themselves."
We scanned the contents and found this advice under two photographs of the author with his foot in a wastebasket:
The right and the wrong ways to stomp a wastebasket are shown in these two photos. The man on the left is doing it incorrectly; he is unanchored. When the wastebasket slips and falls to the side, he will have nothing to prevent his own fall. He will strike his head on the floor and die. His body will not be discovered for a long time. The man on the right is doing it correctly: grasping an immovable object for stability.
The author bought breakfast. Stan bought his book. It is 15 bucks and has already made Kathleen laugh out loud and lose her breath.
Now Bob is scratching his head over a short story about a publisher confronting ethical problems in the age of the dwindling advertising dollar. Still in manuscript form. Should be good.

Not a professional cover model. It's Bob.
 Much cheaper this way.

Bob is 90 years old. He tended three co-op garden plots this summer. Exercises daily. Writes books. Keeps up with his family. Serves on a co-op board. Leads volunteers during the State Fair at the Newspaper Museum. Worries constantly about the future of newspapers and our country. Feeds himself and keeps house. Helps others.
No, Bob wouldn't want to hear this, but he certainly is no curmudgeon. He is an inspiration.