“I spent thirty-six years as an editor at the New York Times....

“I spent thirty-six years as an editor at the New York Times.  There were so many rounds of layoffs, and so many buyout opportunities,  but I kept turning them down.  I was terrified of retirement.  I never wanted to ‘retire.’  The word sounded terrible to me.  It meant going to Florida and dying.  It meant sitting in a chair and watching daytime TV.  It meant not working anymore.  Not thinking anymore.  Nothing but play and relaxation.  And that wasn’t enough for me.  That’s not living.  You always need to have a goal.  Grandchildren are great, but they’re not enough.  You need something to wake up your brain.  A reason to focus.  A reason to get out of bed and use everything that you’ve ever learned.  I’ll never see myself as retired.  Right now I’m trying to become a fiction writer.  I love it because my brain is always working.  Some days I think about my work so much, that when I finally sit down to write, it just comes pouring out my fingers.  I’d love to finish a book one day.  Something that people enjoy.  And I’d love to have it published.  Maybe a hardcover from Random House.  That gets optioned for a movie.  And wins an Oscar.  Oh it’s exciting, isn’t it?  I could go on and on.”