Welcome to my Blog, and to a New Chapter in my Life! -6/4/25

Well, here it goes. Welcome to my first blog post, written from the comfort of the home of my wife, daughter, and I, in the countryside of Vermont! I never thought in a million years that this would be the next phase of my life, but here I am. I find it interesting that the more the years go by, the less I want to post my private life to social media (because really, does anyone NEED to know what’s going on in my life, especially regarding all the wonderful food I used to post about?). But…I’ve enjoyed writing since I was a teenager and I love living where I grew up in Vermont, not to mention that at this point in my life (I am a mere 46 years old), I’m looking for a slower pace of life. So, I found myself leaving my 100,000k nursing job of 7 ½ years, and essentially the traditional workforce altogether, to try something different. The weather has been getting warmer here, and that means new beginnings.

It’s funny to write that I’m looking for a “slower pace” when I already live in Vermont, which automatically evokes thoughts of a slower pace of life. In fact, a new slogan has emerged here in recent years that you now see on clothing products, refrigerator magnets, etc., and it goes: “Vermont: what happens here, stays here, but nothing ever really happens.” This is so true. When I was a teenager, my friends and I would have to drive at least half an hour to get to the movie theater or to get to the CD store (those still existed back in the 90s). I probably didn’t appreciate it as much back then, but as an adult, I’ve learned to soak in the countryside scenery on my drives instead of taking it for granted that I live in a visually beautiful state. That and it’s fun to just drive to far-off towns in Vermont to do just one thing, and admire the houses along the way as I practice “the art of moseying,” as my wife puts it. We’ll go on drives together when our schedules allow, but starting now, I have much more time to figure myself out a little more!

I have many ideas on what to write about in future blogs, from maple syrup, to parenting, marriage, cribbage boards, my previous life as a nurse, cooking, finding the best pizza places and burgers around Vermont, the tick uprising, flannel, my growth as a human being, my poetry book which just went live on Amazon (yay!), and many other stories. Some blogs will be informational and others will be very subjective. I don’t see the need to confine myself to one box when I and others love variety in their lives. And not everything will specifically be about Vermont, so some topics will be in the broader scheme of things that I would love to talk about. I have a comments section on each of my blogs, which I’m hoping will allow for different perspectives (from you as the reader) on what I’m writing about. I love to hear what other people have to say (so it’s not just me talking), because even though I consider myself to be very open-minded, I still have my singular point of view. Please be mindful about trying to keep your comments as positive as you can while still getting your point across. I also have an email in the link below if you ever feel the need to write me privately. I promise I will not ignore you!