January -- eight years later

It was at the end of January 2015 that I hung up my ATC headset and retired. A week or so ago another ATC retiree posted all of his many accomplishments and a list of projects, jobs, and stuff he's done in his retirement. My list is pretty short.
I heard that retirees are so busy that it's hard to imagine there was ever time to go to work.
I haven't really experienced that.

I haven't been bored.
I don't miss going to work.
I don't miss doing magic shows for kids' camps.
I don't miss doing kids' camps as camp pastor.
I don't really miss traveling to churches as an itinerant evangelist/revivalist.
And I don't miss the daily interaction with people.

I enjoy my simple (now our simple) retirement.
We have a nice new home that takes a bit of time to care for in the spring and summer.
We get to do a little traveling.
We can afford to eat out often, but also enjoy cooking and eating at home.
Although we have pretty much quit actually going to church, we still get together with a small group of church friends for dinner on a monthly basis and enjoy those friendships.
We do a little bit of volunteer work from time to time and occasionally work with different groups that help in the unsheltered community.
But mostly I sit on the deck, listen to music, read books, and smoke cigars. It's a pretty simple and non-productive life.

Two gifts that I got from a couple of co-workers when I retired were some good cigars and a bomber of a barrel aged stout. Every year, sometime around the end of January, I treat myself to a good smoke and a barrel aged stout. This year it may be the end of February before it's warm enough to sit outside for a couple of hours to enjoy a smoke, but I've got a bottle of 2022 Bourbon County barrel aged stout and a 95 rated CAO Flathead 660 ready for the occasion. It should be a fine pairing!
In case you were wondering - retirement does not suck.

John