More from the “Comings and Goings” department. My departure from Mushroom FM

I love the line from John Lennon’s song “Beautiful Boy” that says “life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”. Life certainly takes unexpected twists and turns and for me, 2013 is the biggest example of that yet.

In 2010, I decided to do my weekly Internet radio show, the Mosen Explosion, on my own server, do my show each week, and have a peaceful life. 🙂 Quite unexpectedly, a few people came along for the ride, and Mushroom FM was born.

In the last three-and-a-half years, we’ve had an incredible ride. The station has grown steadily, we’ve put on some special events that have been truly innovative and enormous fun, and the station has meant a lot to many people.

Managing such an enterprise is a pretty full-on job. It involves being on call 24/7 in case there are server or other urgent issues. Of course it would have been a lot more onerous had it not been for Brian Hartgen in the beginning, and Gordon Luke after that, who provided plenty of operational assistance. I have really enjoyed working with Gordon over the last nearly 2-and-a-half years and have learned a great deal.

Everyone who broadcasts on Mushroom FM, and does any kind of administrative or managerial work, is a volunteer. People have donated not just time, but money as well, to keep the station afloat. When I started Mosen Consulting and didn’t have a steady income stream, some of the staff chipped in so the station could keep going, which is generous and kind.

So it’s been a rewarding, but time-consuming, full-on hobby, and the time has come for me to go. I’d like to do other things. I’m already thinking about getting back into Toastmasters which I used to love, joining more local community groups, and generally taking up a few more local activities that Bonnie and I can do together. I’m also looking forward to spending a bit of time over the Christmas holidays on my sisters’ farms in sunny Whangamomona, where there’s no cell coverage and no one will care.

While this blog is not a personal journal, I will just say that I’m happier now than I’ve ever been in my life, and I’d like to be sure I have the right work/life balance to keep it that way.

I know there will be questions about the future of Mushroom FM and I am still in negotiation about those, and I’m sure Mushroom FM will have more to say in due course. I’m sure that whatever happens, the personalities you enjoy will still be around, and I look forward to that myself.

I will not be doing the Mosen Explosion, at least in the immediate future. I may get back to it at some point, or Bonnie and I may do something completely different. But I am looking forward to weekends with no commitments that keep me around. Maybe we’ll get away a bit more.

Thanks to all the great people I’ve had the privilege of working with on Mushroom FM, and especially to everyone who has been kind enough to listen to my broadcasting efforts. Without you, it wouldn’t have been fun, and if it’s not fun, it’s not worth doing. I leave with head held high and pride in what a group of volunteers achieved through talent, discipline and teamwork.

And of course, always remember, the past is unalterable, the future is unknowable, so embrace the glorious present, and live.