This site has languished for over four years since my last post. It has been completely ignored to the point where it has spent months at a time completely inactive due to PHP errors or failed plugins that blew up the site without my knowing because I just never come here anymore.
Denis came over here to look at our DVD list (which is now woefully out of date) and saw it wouldn’t load, so I logged in to dust everything off and fix it. I figured since I was here I’d go ahead and post!
For anyone that comes here, and is not friends with my IRL on Facebook or Instagram, here’s the downlow.
- Denis and I get to retire in about 5-6 years. Meticulous focus over the past few years as well as a meeting with a trusted financial advisor let us know that we are on track to retire earlier than originally expected, and still maintain a good quality of life. We are very excited as we move into this final stage of our careers with our view on the horizon of our working life.
- CootieGirl tried college and found it was not for her. She completed the equivalent of two years and opted to just work instead. She is a manager at a local shop in town and trying to figure out how to break into a true career outside of food service or retail. It’s slow going, but I know she’ll get the eventually. At 22 years old she’s got time to figure it out – and I admit I was the same in my 20s, floating from job to job without really focusing on a career. And really, my career pathway didn’t really begin until I got married and moved to NYC and had to get serious about it. I’m not saying I’ll be happy if she doesn’t figure it out until she’s 27, but I try to be both encouraging but also determined in my messaging to her about her future. lol
- CootieBoy is in his last full year at the University of South Carolina. He opted to study Computer Science and hopes to work in 3D modeling/animation, if possible. He went to a local community college to try and get all his core classes out of the way for cheap, but it was a disaster and resulted in several classes not transferring at all, so he has to attend an extra semester, which sucks big time. But he’s mostly enjoying his college experience and learning valuable lessons in living independently and with roommates. He’s discovered he’s a clean freak who hates having dirty dishes in the sink He’s just like his father.
As for me, my career has flourished over the past four years – I was promoted to a southeastern regional leadership position and then my region expanded to the entire east coast. It is a challenging role but one I mostly enjoy since I believe strongly in the power of mentoring and coaching. Not to sound pretentious, but I count it a privilege to be able to be a mentor/coach to people, and hope that more people than not find my presence in their work life to be helpful versus hindering. I know I don’t have 100% buy-in from the people under my purview, and I’m okay with that. I’ve made mistakes along the way and always try to take ownership of those mistakes when they occur, but I know that for some people those mistakes are reasons why they have decided to write-off any advice or leadership I try to provide. All I can do is continue on and hope that one day they’ll change their mind about me and the value that I might bring to them. In the meantime, I love the company I work for and hope to be here until I retire (which is in just over 2,000 days, but who’s counting?).
In my personal life, I have left Hallmark behind in favor of something much more fun and engaging. A few years ago CG introduced me to kpop music, which led me to revisiting kdramas, which I had dabbled in back in 2019. I now pretty much only watch Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Thai programming. I also dove headfirst into Korean cuisine and found that I love it. Tteokbokki, gimbap, sundubu jjigae, kimchi, bulgogi, japchae – you name it, I’ll eat it. This discovery of all things Korean in 2023 culminated in CG and I taking a trip to Seoul, South Korea this past spring. It was a magical trip and we were so lucky to be able to go. I’m hoping to go back in 2028 and explore more of the country outside of Seoul.
And that’s it in a nutshell. We are busy and yet not busy. Life goes by in a blur and yet each day is slow. To anyone that reads this, I hope life for you is not so fast that you can’t enjoy it. If it is, slow down and take a breath – you deserve it!
