tedwords

"Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory." —Ed Viesturs

Wow, has it been 90 days already?

Better fill some of THAT gap in, I suppose. The past three months have been really busy, mostly with work, which keeps me on my toes. But another big things is: I am planning on directing a play in the near future--this June, as a matter of fact. A big product of Chess: The Musical, complete with a 25-piece orchestra and more than 40 singers. When I get back into theater, I don't fuck around.

I do think still that this may be my last trip round the moon with the Eldredge Players. Before the pandemic, I had planned to direct Mamma Mia, get that up and then travel to Greece, a metaphorical way of sailing off into the sunset with the group. This time around, three days after the show closes, I will be traveling with Corb and his mom to Norway and seeing the live ABBA exhibit in London. Since both Chess and Mamma Mia were written by the guys in ABBA, this form of sailing off into the sunset seems fitting, too.

Thinking the same about work, too. I had been laboring for the past few years under the misconception that my job has a "rule of 70": add your age and number of years worked there, and if you reach 70, you can retire early. I am two digits away from reaching this number. What I discovered this week is that if you are over 55 and have been with the company more than five years, you are eligible.

That changes things, for me. Mind blown. It means I can never been fired or laid off, ever again. Two things I have never been, by the way. But just knowing that the only option I face is early retirement is a bit freeing. It means that I am one step closer to fulfilling my goal to enter into my 60s and not get engaged in anything I am not completely passionate about.

I like that thought.

This past weekend, Corb and I traveled to New York City ostensibly to pick up a chandelier. Which we did, but on the way, we stopped in Manhattan, stayed at the Renaissance, ate at one of our favorite restaurants, Havanas, took some nice gummies, went to see the musical Six, and then climbed to the top of Rockefeller Center, a little high.

It was an exhilarating experience. I kept worrying while we were on the top that the building might come tumbling down. I clung to him as we felt the wind pelting against the building, taking a breezy photo and laughing hysterically.

Guess what?

It didn't. But it's nice to see some of final concerns about this life lived come tumbling down. I love the thought of traveling the country with Corb, locating lighting fixtures in need of rehabilitation and telling stories along the way. That to me seems a life well lived.

Every step, I get closer to the pinnacle.

And tomorrow night, rehearsals begin. It's going to be a hectic three months. Hopefully I will find time to write more during this period.

But once I get through to the other side: making the upcoming 60s something I feel passionate about. I truly like that as a goal.