On Friday, January 31, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. I walked out of my office looking forward to the weekend, much as I have done every Friday for over 37 years. But this day was not the same. This was the last time I would ever do so, with my retirement effective at midnight that very evening. February 1st began my official retirement. I jumped in my new Ford Bronco, a retirement gift from my incredible and beautiful wife, and I hit play on Apple Music as a I wheeled out of the parking lot. I don’t know what playlist I had going from the morning drive in, but the first song I heard is “Birth, School, Work, Death,” the classic 1988 song by The Godfathers. Oof, is that a bad omen? Will I go from work straight to death? No way, not me. I’m not superstitious anyway.
Let me back up a minute. I was born in Washington, D.C. in 1963 (Birth: check). I went to public school and after high school I went to the University of Virginia (School: check). I then went to work for a Virginia local government as an entry level planner straight out of college in late 1986. I stayed just shy of four years before meeting the girl of my dreams, quitting and running off with her. We returned a year later, got married and I got my old job back. I was soon promoted to Planning Director, a job I had for 25 years. Finally, I became the County Administrator for nine years and then retired at age 61 with 37 years and 3 months of service to the citizens of my community (Work: check). My sincere hope is that retirement will be a lengthy addition to the four stages of life that The Godfathers sung about in 1988. I don’t plan to check off the Death step just yet.
Some would say that 61 years old is too early to retire (I’ll be 62 very soon, does that help?). I have heard all the naysayers. You will be so bored, they tell me. You’ll regret it they say. Well, I don’t think so. My wife and I are the best friends anyone could ever imagine. We love to do stuff together. We travel a little and go to a good number of rock n roll shows. I dabble in a little golf, but not a ton. I ride a skateboard with regularity. I piddle around with crafts, making new creations out of skateboards found at my local landfill. I collect vintage skateboards. (I’m up to 150+ at this point.) I love wineries and breweries. I read rock n roll biographies and autobiographies like mad. I work out. I walk my dog. And I have plenty of house projects to do. Oh yeah, and I like to write for Pencil Storm. I think I have plenty to do, thank you very much.
The point is, I think that between work and death, there is an entire chapter of life that could be the best part. You’re born crying, school is at first awkward and then downright painful at times. Work, in my job at least, was very stressful. This last part of life is basically all fun, as long as you have your health, which is a damn good reason to get to it as early as you can, in my opinion.
I have to share one more part of my retirement story. The people I worked with were amazing and I do not plan to lose touch with them. If it’s a cliché to say they were like family, then so be it. They were like family to me. The night before my last day of work, they threw me a giant retirement party (thank you, Kim). The party was at a winery/brewery. My gifts included a new set of golf clubs from my Board and some skateboards from various employees. My favorite local musician, Robbie Limon, was hired to play some tunes. And a special beer, called Darkslide IPA, was brewed for me and bottled with personalized caps and labels featuring me on a skateboard. It was truly incredible—an amazing culmination to a rewarding career. I am a truly lucky man.
I fully recognize that I am far more fortunate than many people in this world, and I am grateful for it. I try not to take it for granted. But whatever your situation in life, I hope it doesn’t simply boil down to the four simple steps of birth, school, work and death. But I sure do love that song, and The Godfathers.
JCE, or John to his friends, lives happily in rural VA about an hour and half outside of D.C. His wife of 33 years says he’ll never grow up, and she’s exactly right. He attributes that to his lifelong love affair with all things rock n roll. He’s still skateboarding at 61 and considers himself the luckiest man he knows.