Farewell to the Ranch

About a month ago, I wrote about my upcoming retirement and why I was retiring. This last week was filled with both trepidation and anticipation. Last Wednesday, I was treated to a wonderful “farewell” party where I heard such kind words and reminisced about my career at Circle A. I also received a lovely signed photoboard that included a picture of the only building that deserved the title of A1 (unlike A9, which is really A1′). Friday, my penultimate day, cemented the fact that although the people would love me to stay, the universe thinks it is time to go. I got to work only to find that someone had moved into the space I had reserved for hoteling; in fact, that space which I had reserved for Friday and Monday as no longer available for hoteling. So I decamped to my old office (A1/3034) and was able to work there, and reserved the only hoteling space on the 2nd floor for my last day. The traffic in both directions made the commute even worse. The universe was saying, “it’s time. You gotta get out of this place.”

There’s a whiteboard outside the 3^rd floor elevators in A1′ (nee A9) where people add their “song of the day”. Most of the songs I didn’t recognize, although someone early on added Frank Mill’s Music Box Dancer. Friday I added two songs to the list: (1) The Animal’s We Gotta Get Out Of This Place, and (2) So Long, Farewell from The Sound of Music. The juxtaposition of “We gotta get out of this place / If it’s the last thing we ever do” with “So long, farewell / Auf Wiederseh’n, goodnight / I hate to go / And miss this pretty sight” truly expresses my feelings. I wonder if any of the “kids” will get it, or will have even heard from these two songs that were popular in 1965.

Which brings us to today, Monday, June 30, 2025. Today I retire from Circle A Ranch. Thoughts and memories have been running through my head over the last week, and I wanted to get them down on virtual paper. This is (essentially) the close of a 40+ year career in cybersecurity, although I’ll still be involved through ACSAC for a few more years, and might be back as a retiree casual in 2026 (as long as they don’t require a substantial on-campus presence, and primarily to support my long-term unclass project).

( Read more... )