My Writing Journey Started in the Trash Can
January 26, 2024
I did not always consider myself a skillful writer. In fact, back in my high school days, I can recall having the impression that I wasn’t very good at all, and that no one looked forward to reading my thoughts on paper. That impression was certainly reinforced by a singular experience in my senior English […]
Aristotle / Catholic High School / Father Tribou / Maryanne Wolf / retirement
Glory Days, Rear View Mirrors, and Windshields
October 27, 2023
And I hope when I get old I don’t sit around thinking about itBut I probably willJust sitting back, trying to recapture a little of glory, yeahWell time slips away and leaves you with nothing, mister, but boring stories of Glory Days Bruce Springsteen’s Glory Days has always been one of my favorite songs. It’s […]
retirement
Failing at Retirement – Parts One and Two
June 30, 2022
I have loved not working. Transitioning from a 60 to 80-hour work week to a 0-hour work week was easier than I ever imagined. I have rested, lost weight and become healthier overall, organized my life, increased my time spent on hobbies I love, and avoided being such a pain that my wife wanted me […]
El Segundo Unified School District / ESUSD / PYLUSD / retirement / top
In Search of Downshifting, or How to Be More Like My Dogs
April 28, 2022
My first two posts in this series on living a long and healthy life focused on moving naturally throughout the day and holding a strong sense of purpose. This week and for Part 3 of this series, I am focusing on downshifting. The Blue Zones research suggests that people in the longest living societies find […]
Blue Zones / retirement / Sleep / Superintendent / Teaching
Is Retirement the Life for Me? (Part 2)
April 23, 2022
First of all, thank to all of you who read and commented on my last post via Facebook, Twitter, and the Blog Site. I love the conversation and I appreciate the wisdom even more. This is Post #2 of Evaluating my Quasi-Retired Life using Dan Buettner’s Blue Zones research. As a reminder, the nine Blue […]
Ben Dale / Blue Zones / Dan Buettner / Fear of Retirement / Purpose / retirement
Is Retirement the Life for Me?
April 16, 2022
If you started singing the theme song from Green Acres when you saw that title, you may (1) way too impacted by afternoon tv in the 1970s, and (2) also be considering this question. August 31 was my last official day at work in my job as a school superintendent. For almost eight months, I […]
Animal House / retirement / Sitting is the New Smoking / street musician / Superintendent / top
Sing It With Me! Don’t Let the Old Man In
February 3, 2022
I was talking to my friend Kevin last week. Kevin and I have ventured through our public education careers with similar jobs as teachers, high school principals, and finally as superintendents. He has been a mentor and a friend for over 30 years, and I truly appreciate our bond and understanding of one another. Kevin […]
aging / cathy applefeld olson / chris crowley / clint eastwood / don't let the old man in / eric charbonneau / in-n-out / perpetual youth / retirement / Risky Business / the mule / toby keith / top / younger next year