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I am retiring in just a few weeks and will be leaving this community at the end of this week to concentrate on what I need to get done before retiring. I have no plans to continue to contribute after retirement. I'll be concentrating on volunteer work, photography, creating art and catching up on 40 years of missed sleep.

And frankly, this place is not very much fun anymore. I think we close perfectly answerable questions way too quickly and drive people off. I am tired of having an answer half written when I can no longer post it. And I am so stressed by the current political environment in my country and a friend dying of pancreatic cancer that I am too hair-triggered.

So I wanted to say goodbye. Didn't want to disappear with no note to tell you what had happened.

Hopefully through the years, I have have helped some people. Hopefully others of you will continue to help while I enjoy doing something completely different with my life. Maybe I will stop in occasionally. But I suspect I will be busy enough that I won't feel the need.

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  • 16
    Perhaps you may be interested now in Photography.SE, given that you are planing on venturing on photography :) – DarkCygnus♦ Jul 2 '18 at 22:00
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    Good luck, but never say never. 132k rep means there are a lot of people who respect your input. – camden_kid Jul 10 '18 at 8:14
  • Things change, and your health is important. – SaltySub2 Jul 15 '18 at 3:47

15 Answers 15

Active Oldest Votes
30

Oh no! I'm sorry we are losing you, and I'm sorry for the negative reasons that are contributing to that (especially your friend). Thank you for all the great contributions you have made to our site, and I hope that someday in the future you'll look in on us and decide that you have time and spoons to participate again.

Congratulations on your upcoming retirement!

(I upvoted the question to signal "thanks for letting us know", not because I want to see you go.)

Thank you all for the nice words.

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  • 1
    "Spoons?" What? – Wildcard Jul 5 '18 at 20:49
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    @Wildcard see spoon theory, which in my experience has broadened some from its disability origins. (I'm certainly not implying that HLGEM has such limitations! More that there are things that are demanding more of her attention, so we get less.) – Monica Cellio Jul 5 '18 at 20:58
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    I thought it was because of the Spoons card game... – DarkCygnus♦ Jul 6 '18 at 17:24
23

Well, we've disagreed on just about everything, but I can say without fear of contradiction that this is a great loss to the site.

I have a great deal of respect for you, despite the fact that we've bumped heads numerous occasions. You provided a unique perspective which often ran contrary to what many others posted and/or believed. This kept the site honest.

I agree, too many questions are closed and we recently had a meta about that.

My brother just died of liver cancer last September, so I can understand what a time you are having. I know that there are no words that can be of any comfort to match what you are going through, all I can offer is my deepest sympathies. Maybe I should have stepped back, maybe I still will.

But let me end this by saying that praise from those you've had difficulties with is the highest praise of all.

Fare well in your life's journeys. May you be of great comfort to your friend, and may your friends offer you even greater comfort.

Know that you leave here with the love and respect of all of us, even from those of us you may not have expected.

Good luck, and God bless. You will be missed.

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Thanks for letting us know and thanks for being a great role model. Wishing you all the best in retirement.

8

I'm really sad to see you go, you have been such a solid contributor and important part of the community for the whole time I have been here. We will miss your insightful answers, but as with all things, real life must take precedence.

I wish you the very best wishes for the future and that your world settles down around you after retirement. You are always very welcome to be a part of the community if the desire and the time arises, and I hope that we will see you again sometime.

Thank you again for everything you have done to help make this community more than it would have been without your presence.

8

You will be missed. You've been a major part to this site over the years (over half a decade now!). Speaking just as another fellow user who has learned a ton, thank you for all of your mentorship through this site to those of us who have been here for years now.

However, your profile says that you have impacted ~8,200,000 people through your efforts here - and that number will always go up. If only a fraction of those people have learned something, been encouraged, or otherwise benefited, you have helped thousands upon thousands of people.

Thank you, take care, and enjoy retirement :-)

6

A well-deserved retirement it seems after 40 years.

So sorry to hear about your friend... Your thoughtful and thorough answers will surely be missed, but there are more transcendental things to take care of, like Real Life for example :)

I also hope that when/if you return the current issue with the fast closing and scaring off new users is back to a reasonable level.

Good luck with your ventures!

5

Best of luck in your retirement! I can tell you from personal experience, that it can be a lot of fun on that side of a career!

I share most of your feelings about The Workplace.

But consider taking some time off and checking back in once in a while. You may find that after de-stressing for a while, the shortcomings here are more tolerable.

Your insight and wisdom will be missed. I know your words have helped me on many occasions and I hope you know that your contributions have been appreciated. The Workplace will be poorer in your absence.

-joe

4

First, I am very sorry to hear about your friend, you have my condolences.

Personally, like many here, I got excited when I saw that you posted an answer as I knew I was in for a treat of quality writing and content.

I hope the political climate in your country simmers down and you are able to fully enjoy retirement, and maybe, just maybe down the road you may feel like contributing again.

Best wishes.

3

I'm sad to see you leave the site. The Workplace will never be the same without you.

Thank you very much for your contributions. I have personally benefited immensely from them.

Wish you a happy retirement and good luck for your future endeavours.

3

Thank you, HLGEM, for all the insightful questions and answers from you that I have read. Good luck in your next adventure, even though us Internet strangers are not part in it.

Cheers

2

Although I haven't been as active here as in the past, I've always liked your unique perspective on questions and found your answers to be overwhelmingly helpful. It'll be a great loss for the site to see you go.

Good luck and great enjoyment in your future endeavours. May your retirement be comfortable and peaceful.

2

It's a great loss for this site if you are no longer answering questions. I don't know you personally, but I always enjoyed reading your thoughtful answers, and in my opinion you contributed a lot. Thank you for your contributions, and sad to see you go!

I hope you can enjoy your retirement, despite the sad events in your life. And if you ever feel like stopping by here, I'm sure you will be very welcome.

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I've just started writing "answer", submitting that and then editing it afterwards when I see a question get a close vote.

Anyway. I digress - I enjoyed reading your posts, they were well thought-out, considerate and weighed with experience. I wish you the best for your future, and all the happiness in the world.

I'm sorry to hear of your friend, and the situation in the US.

All the best.

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A little dramatic, but I too am sad to see you go.

Workplace.SE had a rough start, but @jmort253 fixed the culture, and now things are humming.

Take care. I wish you luck and health outside of Stack Exchange. Bye for now.

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I have not been active in this community, but I can feel what the OP feel, and appreciate everything the OP has contributed here.

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