Waiting to retire
I’m getting too old for this retirement lark.
They say retirement is all about taking cruises [not something that appeals, to be honest], joining the local bowls club [it’s miles away and doesn’t appeal either] or generally having a relaxing and carefree time.
I wish.
Things have been quite busy for the last few days.
Apart from one or two family crises and a couple of other completely unexpected events which involved a lot of driving, I had decided to redesign a website. The old design really pissed me off but I had been procrastinating for the best part of a year, so a couple of days ago I decided enough was enough, rolled up my sleeves and got typing.
I’m still not completely sure about the new design, but take it from me – it’s a thousand times better than the old one. It’s still far from finished but I put it live last night.
This morning I got up to find an email from a friend to say his website was down.
Now his website is nothing to do with mine. It’s on a completely different server so there could be no connection between his site and the new one I had tweaked? The two were on different servers so one couldn’t possibly affect the other? To make things even more confusing I could see his site perfectly but he couldn’t.
I actually found the problem and to put it mildly, it was really fucking weird. I won’t go into the details. I’m not being patronising with the assumption that you wouldn’t understand; it’s more a case of I don’t really understand. For the technically minded – I had to add a couple of A records to a DNS server. Simple? No. I’m confused too. It shouldn’t have made any difference, but it did.
Anyways, all sites seem to be running smoothly and the new one is up and running. All I have to do now is add about fifty pages.
And regarding the image at the top – yes I would!
The woman at the masthead of Curratech is pensive, has brown eyes, has carefree straggly dark hair – but she’s not a cantankerous militant auld wan. I can’t imagine her standing up for smokers and others being ground down by authority perverted by pseudo-expertise. I can’t imagine her chaining herself to the railings outside Dail Eireann and being hauled off to Dundrum Central Mental Hospital. Keep your mugshot and the winding Wicklow hills on your masthead Grandad. And keep blasting.
She’s ok but she likes sushi !! http://en.gravatar.com/msbrendabennett
Hah! How the hell did you find that? Google Image?
Damn! She’s Mercan. She’ll have to go…….
I’ve a good nose for ‘stock’ images. She didn’t look like old Sharon which made me suspicious!
Full marks! I wonder if I could get Sharon to pose with that dreamy look?
Good grief! It’s not a new design for here! It’s a little [!] sideline of mine to keep me occupied when I’m sober.
Now you had me wondering why I didn’t see what everyone else does.
I retired 13 years ago at the age of 52. It was the best decision I ever made.
I travel a lot as you might have noticed. I wanted to see the world while I’m still fit enough and it doesn’t get even more fucked up than it already is. I would suggest that if cruises don’t appeal then you’re looking at the wrong ships. I suggest this one and it’s two sister ships. The disadvantage of course is that if you take a zero off the number of passengers, then you add it on to the price per head. Personally I reckon for the trips I’ve done, it’s been worth it. I’ve done 31 so far and the 33rd is already booked.
I’ve been all over the world to places most people haven’t even heard off. I’ve been ashore on Pitcairn Island, explored the Kirils, been round the Kimberley, and circumnavigated Svalbard just to name a few. I reckon if Trump or Clinton is going to blow the world to hell in a handcart then I need to get out there while it’s still there to see!
The parallels continue. Took “early retirement” at 52 and started my own little business [as the “About” page says]. Wound that down a bit a few years ago but didn’t have the nerve [or the inclination] to shut it down entirely.
I have never fancied the idea of cruising. I’m very much a Terra Firma sort of bloke and the idea of being cooped up on a steel box doesn’t really appeal. River cruising I could take as I do love boats and at least would be within easy reach of said Terra.
Harumph! I’ve had to get here via NourishingObscurity’s link as Safari couldn’t find the server allegedly. Safari needs to update its frigging map unless its a new ploy to send me on an actual Safari over to UK and back to Eire. I blame Brexit! PS. Cruises are OK but as Dioclese says you’ve got to pick a good ship/cruise line or its hell afloat. PPS the scuttlebut on youtube alleged Hitlery Clinton is afraid if Trump gets in her and her backers and handlers will all hang. If only…. 😀
Couldn’t find the server? Please don’t tell me the site is starting to play silly buggers again!
I also heard a rumour the other day that the European Space Agency is thinking of sending a probe to America to see if they can discover any sign of intelligent life. Exciting times?
Worry not! It was some gremlins who caused a web outage which affected northern France, southern England, east coast of USA and other places. Google, Paypal and others were stuffed. Some banks in India allegedly buggered too. All seems to be working OK again today. Don’t know about the banks or the other lot I mentioned – got to have an interest to care?! LOL at your ESA quip!
They better send it soon then.
I also can’t imagine anything worse than being cooped up on a cruise ship with a bunch of boring old farts. I’ve managed to travel all over the world on my own steam, and I’ve been places you won’t see from a ship. Cruises to the Himalayas? The Great Salt Desert? Phnom Penh? Hanoi? Vientiane?
I love being on boats and ships, but I wouldn’t thank you for a cruise.
The trip to France is more than enough for me! I’m a three dimensional sort of bloke – I like my landscape to have ups and downs as well as left and right.
Nice and neat. Is it a Russki theme? Probably full of secret spy stuff that messes with A records whilst the real skullduggery goes on! 🙂
I haven’t a clue where it comes from. Probably is Russki. The A records actually had nothing to do with the site itself [told you it was weird!]
I think my being in North Wales at a symposium might have had an impact on the site. I think websites sometimes acquire properties more familiar in sub-atomic physics, where the behaviour of an electron in one corner of the universe affects another electron in a distant galaxy!
That could well be. Butterflies stamping and all that shit. I thought electrons didn’t exist unless you weren’t looking for them?
That’s chaos theory, it’s a doddle compared with quantum mechanics!
A lot of DDOS of late.
It wasn’t me. Honest. I swear.. 😈
Granddad, sorry for the ‘spam’ but I have been asked by Anne Raccoon to let everyone know that she is not a well gal atm and will be off games for a while. Her blog will be closed/comments turned off (amazingly Mr . G managed that!) for a while. As several of your readers also read her blog, i thought posting here might be a good idea.
Not spam and I’m very sorry to hear the news. Sending tons of Good Karma in her direction, and let’s hope it won’t be for too long.
Here is the conundrum, Granddad. I’m seriously thinking of retiring at the grand age of 62. This means I have the next 14 months to fulfill my tenure. My poor father died just three months before retirement- very sad. I would like a few years free of work’s absurdity and contemplate my navel, in my own free time. I’m thinking of moving to New Zealand’s South Island. Somewhere sleepy and quiet which suits my contemplative nature; nothing too busy or totally serene. In this regard I might have a problem. Regardless of where we hunker-down it will have to be within an hours drive of a major hospital due to my wife’s medical problems. Anyway, after working very hard for most of my life, I deserve a little time in the sun, until oblivion intervenes.
A common problem, I would imagine and one I have myself!