That's A Wrap

It was 1973 that I first had a job that shows up on my Social Security earnings record.  I now have 26 years credit in Social Security, and another 14 years credit at the University of Illinois.  All told, that's 40 years of what society deems to be gainful employment.  

My UI time includes working on the PLATO computer system around 1979, the Imaging Technology Group at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science & Technology in the early 2000s, and the Cybersecurity Directorate at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications around 2009-2011, before 9+ years at CITES/Technology Services.

There were bumps and detours (and working for myself for a few years) along the way, with layoffs, and venture funding that evaporated.  But it seems if you get up and go to work every day, eventually you've got something to show for it.

Today I worked my last day for the UI, turning in my office keys and my laptop.  I'm satisfied with my career.  Tomorrow my retirement officially begins.  But I'll only be semi-retired for the next 6(?) years or so; I've been teaching TaeKwonDo for 6 years in Monticello, and I'll see where that takes me.