ne thing that the wags are quick to point out is how much spare time I have in retirement. Yes, after thirty years of programming and management, I’m apparently lounging on a Nile barge, eating grapes, looking out over vast horizons and sighing. Or something like that.

Let’s see. Right after I retired, the world went to shit with Covid. During that time, I built a brand new layout (fundamentally different from everything). I also biked about 4000 miles. And I reffed a role playing game online, and hosted a Scurvy Dice game weekly.

Then, as Covid went into the second year, I got into Interlocking towers. This was for my new layout. There was a lot of research and design so that we could install a microcomputer into my layout. Also, even more bicycling adventures. And reading. And blogging. Yes, not a lot of time.

After Covid waned, there was the bout with cancer. Outside of freaking out, I also had to stay off the bike so I started walking three miles every day to keep mobile. Also starting hosting operations (speaking of which, during this year I realized that I was hosting or attending, on average, a train operating session every week). So blogging, walking, reading, and trains filled my time. During this time, my friend JW and I took on a new maintenance policy at the club, working to get the layout in shape.

After my cancer surgery, I found myself on the bike again. That was good. Still, I had physical therapy (first live, and then home-based) so that I wouldn’t pee in my pants every time I drank a cup of water. That is on-going for life. Also, I crashed my bike and messed up my shoulder. And now I’ve got even more PT. Some days the PTs overlap so I’m doing a pelvic floor set in the mornings, and shoulders in the afternoon. I still support the model train club as well as about every operating session between Palm Bay and Tampa. And blogging. And riding my bike (7000+ miles now).

And in the fall, there is a trip to Egypt.

I suppose what I’m saying is this – if you don’t have enough to fill your time, you simply are not engaged in your life and world. Make new hobbies. Make new friends. Retirement is the most fun you can ever have. As they say, youth is wasted on the young? Well, retirement is wasted on the old.

And now that the blog is done, and before I head over to the club, what else should I do around here?

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