There's never a dull moment in Carl's interview with the one and only Gary Saunders. Gary had a long career as a general manager and exec for many Minor League Baseball teams as well as the University of Mississippi. But Gary is far from done. At 66, Gary is now a sound engineer for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization and popular radio personality with the very cool handle of "HoDad". Plus an array of interesting other part-time jobs he loves while experience a very unique (un)retirement.

Gary and his two brothers grew up in Virginia. His father was a real estate developer and his mother was a stay-at-home mom. As a teen he worked as a laborer for his father on construction sites and quickly learned that focusing on his studies would be a better path. Even in college at Virginia Tech, he knew he wanted a career in sports and dove into sportscasting for various college teams.

After college, Gary applied for a position with the St. Louis Cardinals, only to be discouraged by the sheer number of applicants and the low wages. But a man walked up to him, gave him his card and offered him a job as a Sales & Marketing Director of a minor league team, for about $200 per week. He jumped at the chance and it really kick-started his successful career in baseball. "Many things in life wouldn't have happened without the support of my wife, Eileen. She's my biggest fan," he tells us.

Gary ended his career in December 2020 and he and his wife moved to Florida. "Honestly, my plan was to lay on the beach, go out to lunch, swim in the pool....but after a year as a beach bum I felt very disconnected from real life. I felt like I had no purpose." Gary approached the Pirates minor league team about some sort of part-time job. They offered him a position managing the sound effects and music at the games for the team. "Oh man, it was my dream job!" he says. "I couldn't wait to sign up fast enough!"

When the baseball gig ended in the fall, he didn't want to go back to being a beach bum and decided to focus on getting a winter job too. You'll have to listen to the podcast to get all the details on Gary's job at a fitness resort, writing the "Home Plate Cookbook", jumping at an opportunity to become a radio host, as "HoDad" on the Longboat Luau show, and even a butler for a St. Regis hotel. "I've found it interesting and rewarding and I've met some really great people. All these different jobs and activities come with different tribes of people. They become like a second family. It has really enriched my life!"

Gary's (un)retirement observations:

• "I think I'm the poster child for staying busy in retirement. Target jobs or activities or volunteering that puts a smile on your face and make you feel better about your role in life."

• "I strongly urge people not to think about retirement as sitting on the beach all day. Because you will get tired of that and I know a lot of people think that sounds crazy, that "No way, I'll never get tired of that." But you will. You'll feel like you're no longer part of the real world. You're not engaged and you're not meeting people and you don't have a purpose for getting up and getting dressed every day."

• "It's important to find a thing or multiple things that make you happy and convert that in some way to a part-time job in retirement."​​​​​​​

• More about Gary Saunders​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

• Feature about Gary Saunders

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Diana Landau is the Content Wrangler for Pickleball Media. After 15 years in corporate marketing, in 2012 she pivoted to write and wrangle content for Niche Media's weekly blog. She now manages the "I Used to be Somebody" blog

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Tags:    blog   unretirement   radio   baseball   radio personality   part-time job   radio host  

This month Carl has a conversation with popular public radio host and talented interviewer Donna Apidone. After four decades in radio and most recently 21 years as host of CapRadio's Morning Edition, Donna is exploring her next stage of life on her own terms by writing and producing national content for "America's Heartland" and Next Avenue.org. Donna is also the author of two audio books, "Drive-Time Meditations" and "TransForMission", both on Amazon. She teaches classes and speaks to community groups on finding purpose. (We're still not sure when she sleeps.)

Donna grew up in Cleveland and by the time she was a teen, she knew she wanted a career in radio. At Ohio University, she worked at the student radio station, honing her skills and stoking her passion. After graduation she pursued her dream and eventually moved to California. She had a respected career in radio for 40 years and along the way interviewed Madeleine Albright, Linda Ronstadt, author Frank McCourt and more.

Her commitment to her work became a lifestyle, waking at 1:30am and getting to the studio by 3:00am. "You get used to it and once I stopped, trying to unload that schedule was just as hard as when I started doing it 21 years ago," Donna tells us. Now moving onto her new work path, she says, "I love interviewing people. It's my favorite thing to do."

Taking listeners around the country and the world with two hours of multi-faceted stories and commentaries every week can be all-consuming. Donna became drawn to meditation. "Meditation was not a way to escape but to keep me feeling grounded and I wanted to convey that to the listening audience." In addition to public television writing, teaching meditation and speaking engagements, Donna is also developing a new podcast around helping people find their core purpose. She says the best part of this new phase of life is "...living who you are in a way you've never been able to do before. I'm excited to see what's next!"

Donna Apidone's next stage life tips:

• Retiring/transitioning: "Don't be afraid--there's so much out there that I hadn't even thought about doing and now I can explore it."

• Timing: "Do it now, do not put it off for any reason. Life is short. We always say, some day I'll do that, in five years I'll do that."

• Travel: "I love solo travel. Sometimes there are places and things that only I want to see and do. I put together my own trips and I always meet interesting people along the way. It's a great way to get to know yourself and what you are capable of doing."

• More about Donna Apidone

• Sponsored by How to Retire and Not Die

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• Sponsored by Mike Ownbey, COMPASS

Diana Landau is the Content Wrangler for Pickleball Media. After 15 years in corporate marketing, in 2012 she pivoted to write and wrangle content for Niche Media's weekly blog. She now manages the “I Used to Be Somebody” blog.

Tags:    Blog   pickleball   NPR   Host   Donna   Apidone   Interview   UnRetirement   Hot to Retire and Not Die   I Used to Be Somebody   Carl   Landau