Do I wish I had retired earlier? Yes, but I didn’t do the right things to make that happen. So here we are, a bit older but inspired to have an opportunity of a second chance at pursuing my artistic interests that I set aside early in life.

I didn’t put any restrictions on anything when I retired on the last day of 2023. I needed to unwind for a few months and take care of both financial and medical transitions. I was just going with the flow for the first 4 months of the year. I allowed myself to be lazy at times. I picked the pace up after that in both our travels and my hobbies. It’s not till recently that I’ve added some structure and dedicated time each day to move my hobbies along and exercise regularly.

The secret is to keep busy with them. When I run into a creative block or tire of one discipline, I move on to the next. Secondly is to do them every day. I’ve learned this with exercise. Trying to do it piecemeal I fail at it every time. If I don’t make it part of everyday it doesn’t happen.

With that being said, it’s not like I didn’t get a lot more active in these pursuits throughout the year. For instance, this blog. I will over double the number of views this year over any of the previous 10 years of blogging. By working on more content and hopefully better quality it might be on the way after a slow start.

I don’t put a lot of weight on stats so maybe it’s not completely accurate. It could be the volume of posts I’m making. The previous high for the year was last year at 404. With 14 days to go, I’m at 758 posts so far this year.

I’d like to think some of it was better quality, but I won’t make that leap of faith yet. I know I haven’t invested in being found except for WordPress. I don’t market or publicize my blog. Hell, some of my friends and extended family aren’t even aware of it.

Doing it helps me grow. It gives me purpose and goals. And when I create something, I like or that someone else likes the effort is well worth it.

Did I meet all my goals this year, not quite but I exceeded some and others I was a bit behind. I’m going to spend the next few weeks organizing for 2025. The list for home/yard improvements is complete for the first half of 2025. A lot of my personal goals for the year are done. I’ve got a fairly long list of state spots to visit and some out of state ones also.

I’ve completed the list for blogging goals and now I’m starting on my photography and woodworking goals. This year I’m also starting something new. I want to do something special with each grandchild. Something they will remember. Maybe a new tradition like a hike or and activity. Maybe a ballgame or two together or whatever Something new that would make that lasting impression on them.

It’s going to be another year ahead of change. One of my best friends might be moving further away. Family members are looking at homes also. We had a good bit of changeover in the neighborhood last year and there might be more this year.

Like they say, the only constant in life is change.