A Day In His Life

He Lives by the “If You Don’t Move, You Rust” Motto

Bill Dennis says he feels fortunate that he was able to work in two distinctive fields that he enjoyed. For 22 years, Bill worked for the Western Electric Company. “I loved it because I was working with machines and engineers,” Bill says. “I was lucky enough to work on prototypes, and that was great.” When Western Electric closed, he moved on to a job at Home Depot, where he “ran a delivery department for close to 10 years.” He loved that job, too, and now Bill is finding many reasons to love his retirement.

A native of Massachusetts, Bill and his wife Jo-Anne moved to Louisville to be closer to their son and daughter, who live locally, and their two grandchildren. The Dennises are also enjoying their move to Louisville because of all the city does to keep them out and active. “We’ve always been into walking and going places,” Bill says. This is why he and his wife are taking advantage of Louisville’s wonderful outdoor spaces. “We go to all the parks that are around here, which is great!” Bill says.

In order to explore more of the great outdoors, the couple invested in a pair of electric bicycles. An electric bike works the same as a regular bicycle, except that it makes obstacles like hills more manageable. You can also go longer distances without getting tired. “You still have to pedal, but it’s like having an extra jolt,” Bill says. They’ve ridden their bikes several times at Waterfront Park, and they’re planning to ride most of the bike trails in the Louisville Loop.

Along with biking, Bill is always ready for a family outing or a household project to keep life fun and interesting, “My wife and I move around. It’s like the old saying, ‘If you don’t move, you can rust.’”

AROUND 6AM: UP WITH COFFEE AND THE ANIMALS

After making coffee for himself and his wife, Bill feeds the pets: two small dogs and two cats, and catches up on the news. “Everyday Jo-Anne and I take the dogs for a walk. Then if we have something to do, we take off and do it.”

MIDDAY: PROJECTS & CARS (IN A GARAGE!)

Bill works on projects around the house, but he also loves to work on cars, and always has. “I never had a garage, so Jo-Anne and I planned ahead so we could do some of the things we always wanted to do in our retirement. Now, I have a garage, and I can work on my cars. I always wanted a certain car, and I recently got it. It’s a 1969 Camaro convertible. That’s my next project, working on that car.”

7PM: GAMES ON SOME NIGHTS

Bill loves to play games with his family, including two grandkids — a 10-yearold granddaughter and a 7-year-old grandson. “I’m into cards, and I’ve taught the adult kids how to play, so we play cribbage. You have so many things that you have to remember in that card game, and one of the hardest things is the math. It can get kind of wild when everyone is talking back and forth, but it’s a real fun game to play.”

10PM: BED, UNLESS WE ARE WATCHING A REALLY GOOD SHOW

Bill and Jo-Anne go to bed around 10pm unless they are binge-watching a series on Netflix. “You know, you get caught up. Jo-Anne loves the Downton Abbey-type series and the detectivetype series. I’m in the middle of The Expanse — it’s a sci-fi series that’s really good.”