Did you know that I have another website? It is based on my research of the historical origins of the Illinois State Police. I originally intended it to be, first, an avenue for me to make my paper/thesis available to anyone who was interested. I also planned for it to be a venue to publicly celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the Illinois State Police. April 1, 2022 was the centenary date. I was working with a couple active ISP sworn personnel early on. I had grand plans, and being retired, I had time to conduct some big things. I envisioned a series of videotaped oral histories of some of the oldest living retirees (sworn and civilian). I envisioned contacting families & descendants of some of the earliest department employees to see if they had artifacts, or diaries, or photos, or old ISP related materials that I could copy and catalog. My ISP rep & I discussed a yearbook, but then a dedicated coffee table book of historical significance showcasing, significant photos, artifacts, events, etc.
Best laid plans and all that… I did post the first chapter of my thesis, but support and enthusiasm from the ISP side evaporated. I guess I was “ghosted”. No explanations, no “thanks but no thanks”, no “sorry we do not have the time, resources, nor human resources to undertake such an involved project.”
Nonetheless, I am suddenly fired up again and have been talking to my buddy Glenn about how much I enjoyed digging through the State Archives when I was in research mode working on my thesis. He did point out that despite my INCREDIBLY busy old retired guy schedule, I could spend even 2 mornings a week digging in the archives and libraries, and still be able to drink coffee, listen to records, pretend to be restoring a couple old cars, etc… Any way, not making any resolutions, just bumbling along doing stuff that sounds fun in the moment.
Old Guy Walking 