Category Archives: Life

June 28, 2023

A Decade of Retirement

Today marks the ten-year anniversary of walking out of work for the last time. When I did, I thought I’d return for the occasional visit to see how old friends were doing. The reality is that I haven’t been anywhere near the place since. I’m glad to have at long last shed my corporate cloak, glad to have finally escaped.

I’ve very much enjoyed being retired. Finding something to do has never been a problem for me. Quite to the contrary, I’m delighted to have all the time to pursue my hobbies and interests.

And it’s done wonders for my overall mood and outlook on life. I’m a much happier person being out of the “rat race”.

14 Comments | tags: corporations, retirement, The Company, work | posted in Life

June 16, 2023

Under the Northern Lights

By Wyrd Smythe

I posted a while back about the summer fishing/camping trip to the “secret” middle-of-the-wilderness lake my buddy “Scott” (we’ll call him) and I took each year — along with anyone we could talk into joining us. It was our annual pilgrimage for almost two decades.

Three times during that era we vacationed somewhere else: a cabin on Lake Kabetogama (where I caught zero fish); a houseboat on Lake Vermilion (loved sleeping on the water); and that time on the Churchill River in northern Saskatchewan.

We were so far north we were under the Northern Lights.

16 Comments | tags: camping, Canada, fishing, Saskatchewan | posted in Life

June 11, 2023

Epiphanies

By Wyrd Smythe

There are four fledgling posts that have nested in my Drafts folder for many years. The first three are based on hand-written notes that go back even further. They’re very personal, so I’ve debated with myself whether to publish them at all.

But a key point of this blog is documenting my life — of leaving my scrawl on the internet wall. Kilroy was here! So was Wyrd Smythe! And it has not escaped my attention, based on page hits and comments, that readers generally enjoy the more personal posts.

These are all “light bulb moments” — epiphanies that gave me key insights to myself (part of the eternal search for who I really am).

18 Comments | tags: anger, self, self-awareness, sympathy | posted in Life

May 23, 2023

Walking the Dog

By Wyrd Smythe

Moar Treats? Moar Walks??

I had the unmitigated pleasure of spending last Thursday through last Sunday with my opinionated little canine “niece” Bentley. Fortunately, her opinions all involve walks and treats rather than politics (which she thinks is what happens when your parrot swallows a watch).

On the other hand, her opinions on walks and treats tend to be rather definite (and rather on the greedy side). She knows what she wants (all) and when she wants it (now). My giving in to her opinions on walks led to some unexpected yet interesting results Saturday morning.

Sadly, I didn’t have my camera with me to document those results but did take it along on two other walks to document the beauty of some local parks.

9 Comments | tags: Bentley, parks, trees, walking | posted in Life

May 7, 2023

Lonely Lament

By Wyrd Smythe

The loneliest number?

Sometimes being single gets old. The tragedy for some lonely is they told the world, “I want to be alone! Go away!” And the world shrugged, listened and did. But the lonely often hope someone sees them enough, and loves them enough, to cross the barrier. (Regrettably, sometimes those who do are drawn for the wrong reasons or are predatory — the lonely can be easy prey.)

This post is a buffer flush of things I’ve written over many years in those moments when the silence and emptiness marked itself. They go back, in some cases, decades. More recently, though, I’ve found the secret to my own happiness and don’t suffer from these feels much anymore!

And I’ve realized (and embraced) that I was always a hermit at heart.

20 Comments | tags: loneliness, poetry | posted in Life, Sunday Sermons, Writing

March 3, 2023

Apple: Strike Three

By Wyrd Smythe

Sour Apples!

Also, Fridays: Strike three! You’re out! I can only hope this Friday doesn’t bring another dark storm cloud. That would be four in a row, and the only hope would be to skip Fridays going forward. I’m retired (ten years this June), so it’s not like Fridays really mean that much anymore.

Realistically, of course, skipping Fridays is impossible (without a time machine), and at this point it would be almost as impossible to skip Apple Corporation — I’m too invested in my iPad and my iPhone (and my iPod). But most tech companies make me angry and depressed. Especially Apple tech support.

Warning: This is a rant, but I’ll throw in some winter wonderland pictures from our recent major snowstorm to lighten things up.

23 Comments | tags: Apple Corporation, Technology | posted in Life, Rant

January 15, 2023

2023: Now What?

By Wyrd Smythe

It’s hard to express how weird the year number 2023 seems. (I can go on about it a little because it’s Janus-uary, but I’ll try to not mention it again.) Honestly, I never expected to live this long. My lifestyle was never oriented towards longevity. I sought the brief exciting flight of the firework over the slowly dying coal ember.

Yet here I am, with 70 on the middle horizon, already outliving some of my peers, struggling to stay sane in a world that seems to have lost its way, and generally wondering WTF now.

I guess it’s like being permanently in recovery. One day at a time. Deal with today, let tomorrow come in its own time. And so, onto, into, and unto 2023.

14 Comments | tags: blog, blogging, Happy New Year, January, Janus | posted in Life

January 14, 2023

2022: I Hardly Knew Ya

By Wyrd Smythe

Well, it sure went by quickly! Time really does speed up as you age. I used to think it was due to the relative length of hours to your lifespan, but I’m forced to accept how much of it comes from the mind literally slowing down. Not a great feeling for someone who long placed much of their self-worth in their intellectual abilities.

But, looking back, that the year passed by so quickly and for the most part unremarkably, is what seems to stand out most to me. It was a year… that was.

It didn’t have much that struck me as notable, but I do have some charts…

9 Comments | tags: blog, blogger, blogging, Happy New Year, January, Janus | posted in Life

January 7, 2023

2023: I’m Not Ready!

By Wyrd Smythe

So. Here we are in 2023. Weird. Very weird. As I’ve said many times, I remember wondering whether the year 1984 would turn out to be anything like its infamous eponymous book. And the year 2001, also famous but more from the movie than the book, once seemed like the very distant future to me.

And now I find myself two decades beyond the very distant future. (And still no flying cars or Moon vacation resorts.) Down here on Earth, in Minnesota, our mild winter finally got its act together and gave us a proper winter snowstorm. (Oh, boy, did it ever.)

I’m still recovering from all the shoveling plus a full week with my pal, Bentley!

14 Comments | tags: Bentley, shoveling snow, snow, snow storm | posted in Life

December 29, 2022

2022: It’s a Wrap

By Wyrd Smythe

This is my last post of 2022. I’ll be picking up my little pal, Bentley, tomorrow and dog-sitting over the New Year’s weekend and maybe a little into the week. So, my annual look back and look forward posts will be a little late.

In the meantime, remember New Year’s Eve is amateur night, so best to stay at home and off the roads. Have a safe and happy New Year’s! Go forth and spread beauty and light!

10 Comments | tags: Bentley, Happy New Year | posted in Life