Retirement reflections

 May 19, 2025

Three years ago today, I walked out of the day job office for the last time. Or maybe I should say for the last time as a full-time employee. I've been back to visit the lovely young woman they hired when I announced I was retiring. She is a true gem. 

The woman who was my immediate supervisor when I retired is preparing to announce her own retirement. She's waiting until the moment feels "right" to her, and I support her thinking. I have told her a few times that she'll just simply know when she's ready. She was the best "boss" I had in my twenty-two years there and on a certain level, I hated to leave and not see her every day. We've stayed in touch, meeting for lunch at least once a month. 

My official retirement date was May 31, 2022, but I coasted those last few days on vacation time. I stayed on as an "administrative consultant" so the new girl could call me with questions and not feel like she was bothering me. She couldn't "bother" a person if she tried. She's that sweet. It's who she is. 

So have the last three years gone as planned? No. Have they gone as hoped? No. My beloved Ron died last year. I was supposed to have years and years of retirement fun with him. Instead, it's just me and a bunch of cousins and girlfriends having "fun." They're great company, but it's not the same. 

I had planned to do a lot of writing in retirement, but Ron suddenly needed more care. I was grateful to be home to be with him even though I lacked the energy to write. I've been struggling with it ever since. 

My days are full of taking care of my home, inside and out. There is a garden to tend, grass to mow, firewood to stockpile, autos and equipment to get serviced. Self-care is more of a priority now, as anyone who lives alone will understand on a gut level. The rosy retirement movie that played in my mind no longer exists. And you know what? That's fine! I'm making a new movie, one that shows a more independent and healthy me. 

I still need to gather in the threads of writing discipline and get busy. I have three WIPs to finish, and it's already the last part of May. If I want to publish them in this calendar year, I need to buckle down. I may never get back to being able to publish six or seven books a year, but maybe I can do four. 

No, retirement so far has not been what I expected, but I'm fine. Life is often full of the unexpected. We need to adjust, even if it takes a while, and keep going. That's my plan now - just keep going. 

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KC Kendricks
My home on the web- Between the Keys: 
http://kckendricks.blogspot.com
Visit my bookshelf at: 
https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/bookshelf.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@KCKendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, m/m romance, LGBTQ gay romance, contemporary gay romance, retirement, death of spouse, a writer's life, rural living, publishing, history, friends, cousins, equipment

R is for Rewind

Day 18
April 21, 2016

Thanks for stopping by Between the Keys as part of the 2016 A to Z Blogging Challenge. 

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I believe it was Jim Croce who wrote in song lyrics we never have enough time to do the things we want to do once we find them. I think that’s true. I was forty before I completely acknowledged I was at my core a writer and that’s what I wanted to do.

Oh, maybe I suspected it, or actually knew it on some level, but I didn’t actively pursue it. I’m not angry that I waited so long. I think everything happens when it’s supposed to. But do I sometimes wish to go back and rewind? Sure.

Maybe it’s knowing I can’t do a rewind in time that keeps me better focused on moving forward. I think of the time I spent on idle pursuits and I wonder why I did them. My only excuse is I was younger then.     

If I could rewind my writing career, would I be as happy with the outcome as I am today? What direction would I have taken?

Would I have made the same wonderful friends? I wouldn’t want to lose any of them. 

Would I have learned the same things on different paths? 

Maybe the universe is right to keep the rewind button inactive.

 KC Kendricks

www.kckendricks.com

www.twitter.com/kckendricks

*_*_*_*

R is for Ride Your Luck

RIDE YOUR LUCK

(Modern cowboy)
More info at https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/ride-your-luck-by-kc-kendricks.html

Regan Oakley’s luck ran out. After a stint in rehab, he’s putting his life back together without the booze. What he thinks is an old friend’s charity is really a plea for help. There’s trouble at the Bar RC Ranch and the friend’s son is in the middle of it. Regan takes one look at Wythe Carver and knows that young man isn’t the only one with his world turned upside down.

Wythe Carver’s life took a strange turn. Suspected of murdering the ranch foreman, he’s hanging on, one day at a time. The person who could alibi him has disappeared and Wythe can’t find him. To make matters worse, his prize stallion is loose on the range. Complicating his life even more, his father called an old friend to come help out at the ranch. One look at Regan Oakley is all Wythe needs to know it’s going to get hot at night. 

Regan sets out to find the truth of what happened that night at the Bar RC. He’s sure Wythe is innocent, and he’s just as sure he has no business getting involved with the boss’s son. With no solid proof to clear Wythe, Regan needs to ride his luck to get to the truth and keep Wythe by his side. 

RIDE YOUR LUCK

Contemporary gay cowboy

Amazon US: www.amazon.com/Ride-Your-Luck-KC-Kendricks-ebook/dp/B01E9TQ4YS

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01E9TQ4YS

Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B01E9TQ4YS

Apple/iTunes:  itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1098678927

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ride-your-luck-kc-kendricks/1122717097?ean=2940153211367

Rakuten/Kobo: www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/ride-your-luck-1

Universal link to additional booksellers: https://books2read.com/u/4XGyvm

Ride Your Luck webpage with more information and excerpt: https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/ride-your-luck-by-kc-kendricks.html

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 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne.html

Social media links:

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Life through the eyes of Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

twitter.com/kckendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

Very funny!

October 11, 2015

A friend sent me this and it's the funniest joke I've read in a long time. I must share it. Enjoy!

Y is for Yard Sale

April 29, 2014

2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge

A Rural Life

Day 25

Y is for Yard Sale

I’ve had a great time getting this far and must confess I’m quite pleased to be on the verge of completing my fourth year of doing the challenge. This year, 2014, I’ve been blogging about My Rural Life. It’s sort of like Walton’s Mountain meets the big city. It’s my life and the forces that come together to make my unique world. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed the 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge as much as I have. And remember - tomorrow is the last day, so check back!

_*_*_*_*_

Step into the Way Back Machine with me for a moment. The year is 1977. Early summer. I’m driving my 1969 Camaro through town as a girlfriend and I head for the new shopping mall. We pass a large, hand-painted sign that declares YARD SALe for the world to see. Yes, that’s a small e since they ran out of room on the piece of plyboard. My friend and I agreed someone didn’t plan their sign very well and then we pondered the meaning - what the heck is a ‘yard sale’?  Being 1977, this was something new to us.

We rounded the next bend and there it was - the yard sale. These people had tables scattered all over their front yard. Clothing hung on ropes suspended between the pillars of their front porch. Naturally, we stopped and shopped. I remember getting no less than four cassettes of popular music for a dollar but not much else. I recall this because at that time 8-tracks were the thing and finding cassettes was difficult. No Amazon in those days.

Anyway, my friend and I decided we should have our own yard sale and her yard was in town and on a busy residential corner. We invited a third pal to join us, picked a Saturday, and prayed for good weather. I raided my belongings, my mother and grandmother tossed in a few things they wanted to get rid of, and off I went.

We had a blast. I made about $70, which in 1977 dollars was almost a week’s wages. I didn’t have a lot left to take home, either. None of us did. We agreed we’d love to do it again, but we lacked enough “stuff” to make it a success.

So we pocketed our money and met up the next weekend to search for more yard sales with bargains on things we might need or want. And what did we find? Some of the very items we’d sold were priced for sale a nickel or dime higher on someone else’s tables.

We still laugh about it.  

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You didn’t really think you’d get away without a brief book promo, did you?

Y is for YOUR WHISPER IN THE DARK


Your Whisper in the Dark is now available at Amazon, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, Kobo and other online book sellers.

Book four of the Men of Marionville series. 

KC Kendricks
http://www.kckendricks.com
http://www.twitter.com/kckendricks
http://www.facebook.com/kckendricks

T is for Tea Time - 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge

April 23, 2014

2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge

A Rural Life

Day 20

T is for Tea Time

We’ve reached the last full week of this year’s blogging challenge – and only a week to go! As much as I enjoy this yearly test of personal resolve, I’m at the point where I’m eager to get to Z and take a little blogging break (as if such a thing were possible!).

Thanks for visiting my corner of the 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge.

 _*_*_*_*_

If there’s anything I envy about the Brits, it’s concept of afternoon tea. I love the idea of slowing down for a few minutes in the afternoon and taking a break. It would be a pure indulgence to have a place in the town where I work where I could go after work and before I go home to unwind with a friend and have a cup, or glass, of tea.

It feels a little un-American to say that. After work I should exercise. I should do volunteer work. I should have a second job. I should participate in a sport. I should write a letter to Congress and lobby for my special interest group. We Americans don’t have time to waste on something as inconsequential as TEA.

The hell I don’t.

Between my responsibilities on the job and those at home I SHOULD take a few moments to relax every day. Maybe it should involve tea and scones or maybe, in the summer, the occasional Dairy Queen Blizzard. Maybe I could even go for iced tea and an apple. It doesn’t matter what the snack is, what matters is that I take the time to relax and collect my thoughts.

Does the notion feel like a guilty indulgence? On the surface it sure does. But I think it’s a small thing that could benefit my life in big ways. So here’s to Tea Time done my way. A few minutes of relaxation and quiet that is a gift - from me to me. I feel better already.

KC Kendricks

website: www.kckendricks.com

blog: http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

http://twitter.com/kckendricks

  

_*_*_*_*_

You didn’t really think you’d get away without one more brief

book promo, did you?

T is also for TAMING TRITON, the second book in the Southern Cross series. For more information please visit my website at http://www.kckendricks.com/TamingTriton.html

Taming Triton is available at Amazon at

www.amazon.com/Taming-Triton-Southern-Cross-Book-ebook/dp/B01FJ389AU?ie=UTF8&ref_=asap_bc

A little help from a friend

August 25, 2012

I love Saturday mornings. I get up at the crack of dawn and settle in for some serious writing time. The world is quiet....if my partner isn't snoring in the next room. My two boys always keep me company. The dog flops down behind my chair (he snores, too) and the cat... well, the cat does what he damn well pleases. This morning, he thought he'd give me an assist.

I think this fellow wants his face on another book cover. He clearly wants something I'm not currently providing. I guess I'd better figure it out or I'll never get any more work done.

Ya Gotta Have Friends

March 1, 2011



One of my friends sent me this. She knows I get a kick out of these 'inspirational' posters.

I think I've seen it before, but I still laughed when I opened the email.

Thanks, girlfriend.

Don't forget I have your email....

KC

Vacation clutter

Listen... Do you hear it?...

It's the blissful silence of a Saturday morning. Man, dog and cat are all sleeping. I would be, too, but my messy desk needs some attention. Like it's getting it while I blog, huh? In a way, it is.

I've been on vacation from the day job this past week, and it didn't turn out to be the week I longed for. Lesson learned: leave home next time. Alone.

But that's beside the point. Organization and orderliness flew out the window this past week, and I need to sort through all this...crap...and get ready to get refocused on business. What better way to collect my scattered thoughts than to put them down in writing?

What doesn't belong on the desk? There's the pile of birthday cards, the Kindle, Kindle case, Kindle charger, camera, cell phone, jump drive, hand lotion, four ink pens, my contacts case, a new contract which should be in the mail, two WIP file folders, a quarter, a dime, a bottle of vitamins, and a set of batteries that need recharged. Okay, maybe it's not so bad, but it's clutter and represents some half finished thoughts and/or actions.

The Kindle should be INSIDE its case and the cord stored in the drawer with all the other gzillion chargers. Camera and cell phone should be in my purse, in their proper little pockets. The jump drive should be in the USB port where it can actually receive data. You get the drift.

Maybe it's a good thing to occasionally allow a little clutter to creep into our lives. Perhaps a vacation from inside responsibilities is as important as one from outside responsibilities. Looking at my desk this morning gives me an appreciation of the old saying, "a place for everything, and everything in its place." But you know what? They sky didn't fall because I didn't put two file folders away and put a little spare change in the old Jack Daniels bottle I use to collect coins. Even the Kindle lies in relative safety on top of its case far from the edge of the desk.

I'll finish this blog, pour another cup of caffeine, put everything away, and Swiffer the desk top. A symbolic clean sweep to end this "vacation." And those birthday cards? I'll save them for last so I can re-read each of them and say a little prayer of thanks for the sender, and what they mean to my life. I may just keep them on my desk for a few more days to keep my friends close in my heart. That's the kind of clutter I can live with.

KC Kendricks

Tending Our Garden

April 26, 2009

Yesterday evening, my partner and I visited with friends to celebrate the purchase of their first home together. Being from the South, we didn't go empty-handed. The new place is sorely lacking flowers, so we dug the first clump of hosta and took it along. I have more perennials to give them: daylily, astilbe, sedum, yarrow, peony, iris, poppies, Tigerlily. Next spring, the border along their back fence will not be so bare.

Along with the flowers, my hubby made a few birdhouses to give them, and a wine bottle incense burner for their new deck furniture. I think he should make them a bat house, too. I'll even paint it for him. (No need to make bats in belfry jokes. I took care of that 'long about dusk.)

It was nice to sit with them and feel their happiness. Starting over at fifty seems daunting to me, but sometimes it's the only choice a person has. Maybe that's one of the reasons why we like our 'happily ever after/happy for as long we can be" endings. The constant starting over in new relationships, while exhilarating, is also draining.

But having to start over when you've passed those milestone birthdays also gives a person a different perspective. You know yourself a lot better, and so does your partner. "Who's the boss?" no longer matters as much, if at all. You learn to carefully pick and choose your battles, and a pair sneakers and dirty socks left by the recliner for one night is hardly worth noticing much less starting a fight over. (Besides, in my house, if you leave things lay it's at your own risk. We have a Lab and he can't resist old socks.)

I think this is why so many of my characters are a bit older than the norm, more mature. They've pared life down to what is really important, and the cap on the toothpaste ain't it. A pair of socks not making the hamper for six hours while everyone, even the dog, is asleep ain't it. With maturity comes the desire to tend those things that feed the soul - acceptance of others, caring for those you love, kindness in small things, tolerance of the human condition, and most importantly, love.

So this morning I'm going to show a little love and rescue my partner's socks from the dog. Maybe they won't be full of holes, maybe they will be. Whether they end up in the laundry or the trash doesn't matter. What matters is I tend the garden that is our life.

And if I'm ever too tired to get my socks to the hamper for one night, maybe he'll spot them before the dog does and remember that at least I tried to save his, and save mine.

KC Kendricks
My home on the web- Between the Keys: http://kckendricks.blogspot.com
twitter.com/kckendricks
facebook.com/kckendricks
pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards
instagram.com/kc_kendricks
My country life at Holly Tree Manor