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I’ve started this post at least a dozen times this year
alone, and every time I delete it and tell myself things will get better, I
will feel better, and I will find the space to think, dream, research, and
write. The truth is, and this is clearly well overdue, this chapter that has
been the Main Street Gazette for the past fifteen years has come to a close.
My constant companion of Rheumatoid Arthritis has left me
little in the way of spare time beyond what energies I need for my traditional
job and daily maintenance around my house. I do not wish this pain and
crippling exhaustion that has sat by my side for the last eight years on
anyone, but I do wish I could express it in words you would all understand.
That said, I want this to be a day of celebration and looking forward.
I want to reorganize what is still here on the Gazette,
delete obsolete and murky items, plus what I can, and give it a forever home so
that you can find it when you’re looking for something years from now. For many
of its fifteen years, there were posts here daily. Mostly these writings were
from myself, but occasionally from a dear friend, or group of friends. Even
when I was on trips, and before the advent of things like Instagram, I would
send back horrible, horrible cell phone photos, just to slip a little something
special into your day.
I still have stories I want to tell, histories I want to
uncover or rediscover and share with you, opinions that I think have a space in
the world of Disney travel, and photos that aren’t stellar, but are better than
average, that I want to put out there to remind you all of the beauty of
created and cultivated spaces. I don’t know what form that will take. My form
of expression is writing and that isn’t the most popular form of quick
entertainment for many folks these days, so who knows where I go next. Maybe
guest writing somewhere else, maybe longer items on a social media outlet, a
book is never out of the question, perhaps returning to some magazine writing
or a podcast here or there, or something I haven’t considered yet. I’m smart
enough to know what a wonderful avenue is when it is presented to me.
The Main Street Gazette has created so many opportunities
and brought so many wonderful people into my life. Some have come and gone,
some are at great distance but I feel I could pick up where we left off with
just a phone call, and some are still as close to me as family. I cherish every
memory and moment it the past fifteen years of magic have given me. That
includes you. You may have never reached out, never connected with me, but you
were there, and for that I can only thank you. Each of you has meant the world
to me, and I can truly say I am a better person because I have had you in my
life. I was a shy, reclusive young man who thought he had enough knowledge and
insights that he could help people have better trips, that he could provide
some understanding of what had come before. Now, I know I will never know
everything, never be able to help everyone, but strong enough to be there for
those who need me, when they need me, and provide a glimpse of insight. You
gave me that strength, you helped shape me. Thank you.
I hope you have found a friend, a bit of knowledge you
didn’t have, something that made you chuckle, or a dish you wanted to try
because of the time you spent here. I hope I was able to give you something for
your investment of time in perusing through my blathering. This has indeed been
a wild ride, one that we have undertaken together, and I cannot wait to see
what you do next, and what is next for me.
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