​It has been a weird time to finish our careers.  Of course, I am talking about the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.  I would like to say that we are in the midst of the viral spread but we really don’t know if this is the beginning or the middle.  It is definitely not the end, unfortunately.  We are all just waiting it out but more and more we are being told to work from home and to limit our shopping trips.  This is not unlike what other countries have already gone through or are going through.  These are tough days for many and the concern for friends and family with weakened immune systems is well-placed and immense.

We, Mike and I, have been able to move through the pandemic with little impact.  We were already primarily working from home and we have boat provisioning habits that we have easily called into action (how to stock up cheaply and effectively can be an acquired skill!).  When we are not working, we are entertaining ourselves with hikes and Netflix.  We also have a car so are able to help out friends who are not faring as well.

And so it goes.

The weird part for us, the hard part for us, is the timing.  We have had to cancel retirement get-togethers, dinners and lunches – events that would have given us an opportunity for a last hug, a thank you and sharing a laugh about the good old days and an eye-roll about the stressful new days.  We will try to re-schedule of course but there is a sense that we may never get to say our proper good-byes.

It is unfortunate that we will not be able to have a final moment where we can truly thank our work colleagues for making a difference to us – being a work crew that made our jobs easier, better, just more enjoyable.  We will all go on to various things in our lives but we shared some great moments with some really wonderful people at CMHC and CRA.  Recently we read this great article about the importance of community and interactions in a sailing magazine about Antigua.  The author gushed over the beauty of the island, but what took his breathe away was the people.  He had met only kind and generous folk who impacted him with their small gestures – making his brief stay very impactful.  This is how we feel about our work communities that we will be leaving behind in the next week.  We feel very blessed to have had great careers and great work experiences.  To our work colleagues – thank you!  Thank you for being amazing work mates and friends and we wish you all the best.  Cheers and stay safe!

So, I will admit it.  The word “boatsizing” doesn’t really exist.  At least not in how I use it.  Boatsizing is downsizing on steroids.  It is the lean, mean, no-holds-barred version of decluttering.  And we are currently in the middle of it – big time.