This is it. I am pulling myself together before I head out the door for my last day on the job. More to follow.

Belated Christmas Greetings and Wishes on the Day After the Day After!

I'm not sure why I held off with a Christmas posting until today. Could it be that I was thinking like the true believer, who held off sending out Christmas cards until today, thinking that he would save on the cost of postage, if the rapture occurred on the 25th?  I think not. It was the occasion of Christmas, that is, having children, children-in-law, and grandsons home for the weekend that put me in the mood to post a proper entry. It really was, guys!

I received high praise from a neighbor on the simplicity and the appropriateness of my outside decorations. Even though they were the product of my planning and implementation, he took care to thank both my wife and me. Since he is a long-married man, such as I, I figured he was playing it safe by complimenting both members of the household. It is always better to over-estimate rather than to under-estimate those responsible for a job well done in the areas of home maintenance, lawn care, holiday decorations and, for that matter, even the way a married guy dresses. I would include a picture of the outside decorations, if I owned a digital camera. That upgrade will come in the future--probably not before the seasonal decorations give way to the timelessness of the usual display of old stuff. Hey! There's a nail there--might as well hang something on it year-a-round. It is too far from the door to use it as a coat and hat hook.

The closer I get to the final day of gainful employment before retirement--December 30, 2011, the more I find myself questioning if my experience will be of any real value in addressing what lies ahead.

This is the picture that I referenced in my entry of December 9th.

I have given some thought to revising the free verse with which I captioned the picture.

Here's the latest version.

a helpful map

a sound canoe

adequate provisions

a strong bow paddler

skills sharpened by experience

if there be dragons

 

i be ready

The first Christmas card of the season is ready to be posted in the morning. The first Christmas card that we receive each year is sent by a former co-worker, whom I first met as a student intern (fieldwork student in social work language) in 1976 give or take a year. We worked together for some eight years before I changed jobs. It seems as if I can take the preliminary steps associated with the Christmas card venture, but the first card and letter does not get written until Jeanie's card arrives. As called for, the first card that I prepare for mailing is in response to Jeanie's. As would seem most appropriate. With the weekend upon us, I plan to have several more cards ready for posting come Monday morning.

With three weeks and one day remaining before retirement. I have decided to tape a picture to my office door with a bit of free verse. The picture was taken by my daughter on a father-daughter canoe trip. I am at the end of a portage facing away from the camera; the canoe has been reloaded; I am checking the map as an expanse of open water lies before me; the distant shore is just that--distant. My attempt at free verse reads:

a helpful map

a sound canoe

adequate provisions

a strong bow paddler

skills sharpened by experience

i be ready--even if there be dragons!





As Christmas plans are being crafted, thoughts of my impending retirement on December 30th are being overshadowed. I am not sure if that is a good way to ease into and through the transition or if retirement will explode during the final days of the final week of December 2011.
. . .
Yesterday, I met with my supervisor and her assistant to talk about the future of the position that I currently hold in the agency and what is to be done about a successor. I am curious to see how this process will eventually work out over the next month. I made a comment that I thought or hoped would be insightful and which seemingly was met with agreement by others in attendance, that is, I suspect there are forces at work within the agency under my radar, at least, trying to influence the design of my position and the selection of a successor. As a result, I expect my comments will play only a minor role. The final determinant may well be the nature of the folks, who express an interest in the position and actually submit an application.