You’d think life would look easier once you are “over the hill.” Hardly a surprise, it doesn’t. So this morning as I awoke for my 14,610 day, I had to ask myself “what have a really learned so far” -- aside from a few hundred bad jokes and puns and inventory of geeky knowledge that is? Seems like anything else meaningful boils down to one of three things:
1. The actual whole always exceeds the apparent sum
2. The only easy day was yesterday
3. It is okay to be imperfect
There’s not much elaboration needed or, frankly, even possible on this.
But today is normally the day I make my “life altering” decisions for the year and it is time for me to go public with a few things. First, I owe a big debt of thanks to my life partner of the last ten years. Janell has been both a great influence and tremendous asset in my life. However, some relationships – no matter how loving or great – can’t weather the sorts of changes my life has taken in the last few years. Janell and I essentially parted our ways back in June of this year. She’s met somebody that’s ideal for her and is making plans to be with them permanently. I really couldn’t be happier for them. Sure, breaking up is hard and sad. Given my crazy travel schedule and that they have bonded well to her, we’ve decided that she gets to keep the Cats. While I’m sure I’ll miss Janell more than I will them, it was almost a non-decision to let go here. They’ll still get plenty of love and play in their new world to.
As for me, I wasn’t going to just sit on my butt and feel sorry for myself for long. Back in June I started using a few match making services. I’ve met some really outstanding people on each of them, but one has been an especially great match for me. I really feel like we have the makings of a great future together, Well, it was great while it lasted... Good luck Alison, and thanks for the good memories so I’m in the process of moving to a new city to be with her. That means leaving my home for the last decade. While I like Omaha, a change in latitude has given me a change in attitude and it is certainly for the better. It does mean that I’m going to be unable to be as involved in that technical community as much as I once was. At the same time, it seemed like I wasn’t making much of a contribution since I’ve not been around much.
There’s really one more thing I know: while I can’t know or control the future, but I can know and control myself and in that, I can at least influence the future.