In the words of Sally Fields after she won an Oscar, “I can’t deny the fact that you like me. Right now, you like me.”
I thought this was rather apropos, given the timing of my news and all, which happened on Oscar Sunday.
The outpouring of your sentiments: your love, your caring and your gratitude made me smile and cry. From folks I don’t know, to people I’ve known for years and years, there have been hundreds of messages, texts, phone calls.
The one that really hit me was a note from a fellow publisher, Tran Longmoore of The Saline Post. He and I embarked on this journey of publishing local news for our communities at about the same time. And we leaned on each other at the start — questioning our sanity for thinking we could do this and bemoaning all the things that go wrong when you launch a new venture. But, here we are, almost 14 years later, still going strong. He sent a link to Frank Sinatra singing “My Way” and the crocodile tears let loose. It could not have been more perfect.
To everyone who contacted me, the best words I can come up with are thank you. The shoe is on the other foot. Thank you for sharing your stories of how I touched you or helped you or kept you informed from your perspective.
I’m still trying to deal with tests, doctor’s appointments and publish Chelsea Update at the same time so it’s taken me a bit to read them all. So, like the personally written thank you notes I sent to donors throughout the years, I will get back to you – it might just take me awhile.
But in the meantime, please continue to send your press releases, information, photos, thoughts. I’m not done yet.
The good news is this week, at night, I’ve been able to sit down and do some stitching on my 2026 Chelsea Community Fair piece so I thought you might like to see it. Two pages to go, so it looks promising that I’ll have it done when I “really retire.”
Since my announcement, I’ve been asking around about this whole retirement thing. People love to say they’re retired, and, in Polly’s for instance, I always ask if someone behind me is in a hurry and would like to go before me? The retired folks waiting at the deli counter or the check-out line typically say, I’m retired; I’m in no hurry.
So over the years, I’ve asked them what they are doing in their retirement, and without fail, every one of them has talked about “jobs or projects” they are working on. Whether it’s house projects or still working to make some extra cash.
I thought the whole point of retiring was to do nothing, or whatever your heart desired? Most people have worked their whole lives, chances are for someone else, and now they’ve chosen to continue working? It’s all rather confusing to me.
That said, Chelsea Update will close its doors on Easter Sunday, April 5. But it won’t go dark, readers will still be able to key word search past stories and information — there just won’t be any new stories published there. But, I didn’t want readers to miss the scenes from the Kiwanis Club Easter Egg Hunt so Alan Ashley will be on site to capture all the bunny good fun.
I, on the other hand, will be showing Aidan in Ann Arbor, in not one show, but two – pushing the envelope competing in four classes in one day. Call it a mock trial for the Rally Nationals in July.
Then I’ll be coming home to put Chelsea Update to bed and to upload Alan’s photos for Chelsea Update’s last hurrah.
My “official retirement day” will be Easter Monday.
But will it?
