My priority for 2018 has been my health. A year ago my prostate cancer appeared to recur. I must confess, this was on my mind when I elected to retire. Fortunately it has resubmerged, to the puzzlement of my urologist. Something might be going on down there, but we don't know what and our approach is wait-and-see.
For the knee with torn cartilage, I've been doing physical therapy three days a week in a pool. I'm also taking chondroitin and glucosamine although I don't know whether they work. They are inexpensive, they carry very low risk, and I've had very good results from a related topical medication Movelat available in the UK but not the USA. The knee is 70% back to normal… encouraging.
And lastly on the health front, I've dropped weight and improved conditioning. My allergies resolved immediately after I quit flying to Europe and Asia so often, and I'm no longer constantly fatigued by jet lag and round-the-clock emails. It seemed like I slept the entire month of January.
My former employer asked me to help with a project in Latin America, and that takes some of my time. I enjoyed my job and the people I worked with, so this is a source of satisfaction.
I remain the Secretary of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. The position requires one day per week on average, but it comes in spurts that now are easier to cope with.
The two books I intend to write are still on my mind. I haven't written any words yet, but I have done initial research for one of them.
And then we get to ham radio, the biggest increase in my use of time. I'm having a blast with it. Besides making a new set of friends in the local area, I'm regaining competence in electronics and using some leading-edge software for "weak signal" propagation.
Overall, I am about as busy Monday-Friday 8-5 as before I retired. The big difference is evenings and weekends. Before retirement, evenings and weekends were hectic with to-do's. Now I can do those during weekdays, leaving evenings and weekends for leisure. That's grand.
