Eulogy for an Old Friend

Well, after almost ten years it’s time to say goodbye to an old friend. Eddsaid is about to be put to rest.

My very first post, some political nonsense about John McCain, was written on August 29, 2008. Even though the writing wasn’t stellar, at least right out of the gate I demonstrated a lack of shyness about expressing an opinion.

Over the next year and a half eddsaid had no purpose other than my own amusement. Random musings, recipes, even a favorite children’s poem I wrote were published whenever the mood struck me.

We were going through frighteningly harsh times back then but I wasn’t comfortable sharing any of it. The blog was for me a temporary escape from the difficulties we faced. No jobs--dwindling savings--Cynthia’s breast cancer--we were living this hell on earth, so writing about it would have only magnified the problems.

In the first volume of Mission: Rescue Your Retirement called “Leap of Faith,” I open up about all of these issues publicly for the first time. After this many years I’m at last comfortable revealing the ugliness going on behind the scenes of those cheery, chirpy posts. You’ll have to read the book to even believe it.

For reasons I can’t begin to remember I chose not to even share news of our impending move to Ecuador until only a couple of months before our departure. But from that post on March 16, 2010, called “America--Love It and Leave It,” my blog found a voice. And a purpose.

We had hopefully discovered a remedy for our dilemma and I wanted to chronicle everything about our new beginning in Cuenca, Ecuador. And apparently a lot of you wanted to come along for the ride, because the popularity of eddsaid exploded.

Out of nowhere my blog had attracted thousands of fans in over thirty countries! Your surprising interest and support meant so much, and inspired me to write even more.

And, oh, what adventures we shared, dear readers. Cynthia and I found ourselves in countless crazy situations. We went to so many parties. In spite of the frustrations adjusting to expat life we had not merely survived--we were thriving! We relished the fun and freedom of our stimulating new world.

The whole circus of those insane first two years is captured in Volume II of Mission: Rescue Your Retirement, “Letting Go.” And, boy, did we ever! Not only had we said farewell to the myriad problems that had dogged us in the States. Both of us felt like Pinocchio on Pleasure Island, and we never wanted it to end.

But that level of white-hot intensity was ultimately unsustainable, and our repeated resolutions to dial things back finally stuck. We began saying “yes” to our health and well-being instead of every social invitation that came our way.

Grandchildren had magically begun to appear, altering our “exotic travel plans” into regular visits to New Jersey and North Carolina. I started writing for local publications, became a correspondent for an international magazine, and Cynthia and I were invited as featured speakers to their conferences. We even appeared on Diane Sawyer’s national nightly news show!

In short, we once again reinvented ourselves, this time into more stable, grounded individuals. While we were no longer stumbling and bumbling through daily life, that doesn’t mean the fun stopped. Volume III of our trilogy, “Living the Dream,” follows this transformation with both wit and wisdom.

Alas, Geoffrey Chaucer was correct when he wrote, “All good things must come to an end.” Six months after we arrived in Ecuador I lamented that eddsaid was becoming too “bloggy.” More than once thereafter I apologized to you for lack of quality and quantity in my posts.

With your encouragement, against all odds, this blog has kept going for almost a decade. Now the time has come for its long and fruitful life to conclude.

How bittersweet these words are to share. On one hand I feel like I’m saying goodbye at the bedside of a dear and faithful companion. To our continued astonishment eddsaid opened so many doors for Cynthia and me, and we are eternally grateful for every opportunity that has come our way since its inception.

As I have told you, we are now moving in an exciting new direction, yet I am mindful that where we are headed is still deeply rooted in that little journal I started writing for fun years ago. Thus just as Cynthia and I begin yet another metamorphosis, so too the spirit of eddsaid will live on in our new blog.

There is so much great news we have to share with you in the coming months and we don’t want you to miss anything! If you haven’t done so already, send us your email address to eddsaid@gmail.com and we’ll make sure you continue to be subscribed. Our website, www.eddandcynthia.com, is now live and the first new blog post is there waiting for you.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your friendship. We can’t wait to begin our new journey together with you!