Off To That Great Bus Yard in the Sky

Here's a bittersweet story from CNN.com which takes the idea of being dedicated to one's work to a whole new level:

Less than a month after retiring on his 100th birthday, longtime Los Angeles County transit employee Arthur Winston died in his sleep, his family said Friday.

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Winston missed one day of work in over 70 years, and that was to attend his wife's funeral in 1988. In 1996, he received an "Employee of the Century" citation from President Bill Clinton.

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Winston worked at the MTA and its predecessor agencies for 76 years. For decades, Winston reported to work at a bus yard at the crack of dawn to supervise a crew of workers as they cleaned and refueled the region's bus fleet.

Two thoughts on this inspirational story.  Fist, Winston must have been one of the healthiest people ever or one of the most dedicated to only miss one day of work over all those years.  And to think, my students sometimes can't find it in themselves to attend class 3 or 4 times a semester. Clearly, Winston and his work ethic were from a different era. 

Second, this story provides additional anecdotal evidence that the idea of retirement is certainly not for everone. Recall my recent post about a study which indicated that more ane more employees were thinking of never retiring. Of course, Winston, may he rest in peace, took that idea to a truly amazing extent.

PS