My Sixth Month Retirement Review
I left my full-time job of 30 years on December 31st with a crystal clear idea of how I wanted to spend the next 30 years – or at least the next few. Now that I’m six months into what I called my “Year of Yes,” I’m ready to start analyzing what has gone according to plan and where I’ve fallen a little bit short.
Of course, I don’t think it’s 100% fair to make an assessment so soon into the process – some of the successes and/or failures may not be evident for months or even years to come. Still, by cataloguing what I’ve done in approximately 180 days I make myself accountable and perhaps will give others ideas on how to live their dreams.
Retirement Finances
Let’s start with a note on what I consider the least sexy part of this analysis: financial stability and gains. Hanna and I are super-conservative when it comes to saving and spending, and to a lesser extent in our investing. We would not have retired if we didn’t think we could live at the standard we desire. So far, I think we are fine – we have my modest pension, Hanna worked until mid-May, and we have our writing and travel income.
To be honest, though, she’s much more on top of our numbers than I am. I know that she checks our “number” with our financial advisor semi-regularly and would tell me if something was amiss.
I set a writings earning goal for myself at the beginning of the year. On a dollars-collected basis, I am falling somewhat short of it now, but it’s hard to figure out where things will land at the end of the year. On the one hand, the Bassmaster schedule is front-loaded, so my tournament coverage will be reduced over the next six months. On the other hand, I have several clients who I bill once or twice a year who owe decent chunks of money. Obviously I hope to meet or exceed the goal, but if I just come close it’s not the end of the world.
Travel
A big part of my “Year of Yes” entailed being able to be on the ground at various tournaments, fishing lodges and media events. With limited personal time off at my past job, I simply had to say “no” far more than I said yes. So far in 2026 I’ve been away from home 109 days and 95 nights. Those nights were spent at the following locations:
55 in hotels
20 in fishing lodges
9 with friends and family
9 at Airbnb or rentals
2 sleeping on planes
As I’ve detailed before, I’ve also driven my new Suburban all over the place. Those include the following destinations:
Chicago
Alabama
Tennesee
South Carolina (2X)
North Carolina
And a long road trip to Kentucky, then Oklahoma, then Missouri, back to Oklahoma, a night in Arkansas, another in Tennessee and then home.
Hanna is very proud that I only stopped in Buc-ee’s three times despite passing them about 20 times. I also only went to Bass Pro Shops twice (once for Bassmaster Classic Media Day) despite passing at least 20 of those, too.
I’ve spent less time on a plane than I expected, although I still flew to the following locations:
Guatemala
Columbus, Mississippi
Panama
Southern California
One thing that I did well was to make time for my friends around the country who I rarely get to see. I stayed with my childhood best friend’s family in Louisville, had dinner with OT Fears in Oklahoma and stayed/fished with Kevin Short in Arkansas. At Grand Lake I hung out for the “off day” with Clark Reehm and Ish Monroe. I also sidetracked to semi-touristy sites like Mickey Mantle’s boyhood home. That was one huge advantage of driving rather than flying to the Elite events. In June, while we were in California we had dinner with my best friend from law school who I hadn’t seen since my wedding nearly 21 years ago.
The only sticking point of all that is that Hanna wasn’t able to come with me for much of it and I enjoy her company. Next year she’ll likely join me much more often.
Work — Not Really “Retired”
Once I knew that I was leaving the legal profession, I reached out to all of my editors and told them to fill my calendars and that I’d take on just about any writing they could offer. They have been exceptional in helping me to reach my goals. In particular, my editors at BASS have been generous with the assignments and opportunities. With respect to tournament coverage I’ve been to the Classic, five Elite Series tournaments and an Open. I’ve also covered a BASS Nation and Jr. and HS events remotely.
I’ve also continued my blogging at Yamamoto’s Inside Line and have consulted/written for multiple tackle companies, as well as writing features for Outdoor Life and Western Bass.
And this website, Half Past First Cast, remains my passion project. I’ve written well over 100 articles for our readers and I’m trying to increase my YouTube output.
I also worked three trade shows — the TTHA (Dallas) and SCI (Nashville) for Sport Fish Panama Island Lodge and the Chicagoland Fishing & Travel Show with a booth of our own.
I have been energized by my opportunities and the fact that I often have more time to get the pieces done allows me to produce them more thoughtfully.
Disappointments and Failures
I am extremely happy right now. I wake up every day – well, almost every day – excited and energized by what I have in front of me. Nevertheless, it hasn’t all been fun. There has been some heartbreak along with some mistakes along the way.
The biggest piece of unhappiness was the loss of our Australian Shepherd Rooster. He got really sick while I was at the Santee Cooper Elite Series tournament, so much so that I almost came home early to put him to sleep. He briefly turned a corner for the better, but ultimately did not recover from multiple illnesses. I cried like a baby – the first time I’ve done so since 2013, when we lost our prior Aussie Riley. There’s never good timing for something like that, but the shit hit the fan the week that Hanna retired. On the one hand, that allowed her to spend ample time and thought in making the right decisions. On the other hand, it sullied what should have been a joyful celebration of 20+ years with her employer.
I thought I would fish more in retirement than I did when I was working, but at least so far I have not. I simply didn’t fish that much when I was home for a variety of reasons – workload, water conditions, fatigue from being so busy. We did enjoy our best trip to Guatemala (90+ sailfish landed in three days) and I fished nine super-productive days in Panama. I also made casts in Missouri, Arkansas and California, so it’s hard to complain, but next spring I want more leisurely days on the water during prime time.
Finally, I did not do anything toward my goal of improving my physical fitness. In fact, I likely backslid as I did not make an effort to eat well or exercise on the road. I was home so infrequently that in mid-April I put my gym membership on hold. It started up again when we returned from California in late June and I really intend to be better. I’m sure Hanna will hold my feet to the fire on that one.
Next Steps
The second half of 2026 should be busy, but not quite as insane as the first half. Here’s a rough schedule:
July – ICAST – Hanna’s first and my first since 2007.
August – Leading a big group to Alaska
August — Covering one Open and one Elite in NY
September – Bass Fishing Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
November – Mexico
December – Leading a big group on our inaugural trip to Argentina
That’s not quite as sparse as it seems. We’re also trying to figure out where we’re going to move next year and we have seven or eight locales circled on the map. We plan to spend some time in most or all of them seeing if they’re the right fit. If and when we decide, then we’ll need to start preparing our house for sale and boxing up 20-plus years of life to take with us.
We also really hope to catalyze the growth of our travel business. We may be adding more trips and more locations – news to come. If you’ve never been on one with us, let us know what might convince you to join us. We’re looking forward to broadening our footprint and taking new people on their dream vacations.
I also might relax for a bit. I need to read more, be more appreciative and find additional positive outlets for energy. So far it’s been great.
