Sometimes life takes odd turns. My life seems to make an endless series of odd turns, which is what keeps it interesting. At the moment, it means that this monthly column may need to take a hiatus.
I had not taken much vacation in the last year (a few days trekking about in northern Catalonia in August, a cross-country ski trip in Austria over the new year, the odd long weekends here and there). After not being in the US for almost a year, I found myself making three trips in two months. The last of those trips was for over two weeks. With all the travel, I was not in a position to write, although I did find enough rowing-related topics to keep my brain humming.
Then, in mid-May, I returned from the United States and resigned from my job. I have now accepted another position elsewhere. For the first time in my life, however, I will be living in a place without rowing (Pristina, Kosovo). In fact, I do not even believe there is rowing anywhere in the entire country. This is a somewhat traumatic concept for me.
But as I prepare to move to a land without rowing, it also is becoming apparent that I will be lacking the raw material on which to continue writing these columns on a monthly basis. I also was reviewing the myriad of topics I was collecting on my recent travels to see what I might write about before I move off to Kosovo. Most of these topics have been covered to some extent in previous columns. Although I could always add new twists, I am not sure how original I could be. Since the original idea of these columns was to provoke thought through original perspectives and ideas, I am not sure what can be gained from repeating myself.
So I will spare my readers new twists on the same topics I have discussed at length previously. And without source material in Kosovo it may be hard for me to develop new topics.
Does this mean that this column is over? No, not necessarily. I will still respond to e-mails. And if I do come up with a good original topic (which often comes when I receive particularly interesting e-mails from readers), then I will be happy to share these new ideas. So watch this space for updates, even if I cannot guarantee how often I will update.
Hope to see everyone at the races again soon! If anyone will be in Luzern for the Rotsee Regatta this year, drop me a line and we can go grab a drink (my schedule is exceedingly flexible since I do not have an office job at the moment). And if anyone knows of any opportunities to get involved with rowing in Kosovo (I'll be learning to speak Albanian), I am interested.