{"id":193,"date":"2026-01-20T00:17:40","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T06:17:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/?p=193"},"modified":"2026-02-20T00:19:31","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T06:19:31","slug":"livin-the-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/2026\/01\/20\/livin-the-life\/","title":{"rendered":"SPRY MASTER <br>Chief Nerd Officer <br> (CNO)"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Steve Bellinger<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n<div data-video-id=\"\" class='wp-block-html5-player-video html5_video_players' class=\"wp-block-html5-player-video\" data-nonce=\"\n    5cc0a13087\" data-attributes=\"\n    {&quot;provider&quot;:&quot;self-hosted&quot;,&quot;imported&quot;:false,&quot;clientId&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;uniqueId&quot;:&quot;h5vp1&quot;,&quot;source&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.pcbeeusa.com\\\/video\\\/Spry%20Steve.mp4&quot;,&quot;poster&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.pcbeeusa.com\\\/spry\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/26\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/CNO-Steve.jpg&quot;,&quot;options&quot;:{&quot;controls&quot;:[&quot;play-large&quot;,&quot;play&quot;,&quot;progress&quot;,&quot;mute&quot;,&quot;volume&quot;,&quot;fullscreen&quot;],&quot;settings&quot;:[&quot;captions&quot;,&quot;quality&quot;,&quot;speed&quot;,&quot;loop&quot;],&quot;loadSprite&quot;:true,&quot;autoplay&quot;:false,&quot;playsinline&quot;:true,&quot;seekTime&quot;:10,&quot;volume&quot;:1,&quot;muted&quot;:false,&quot;hideControls&quot;:true,&quot;resetOnEnd&quot;:true,&quot;tooltips&quot;:{&quot;controls&quot;:true,&quot;seek&quot;:true},&quot;captions&quot;:{&quot;active&quot;:false,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;auto&quot;,&quot;update&quot;:true},&quot;ratio&quot;:null,&quot;storage&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:true,&quot;key&quot;:&quot;plyr&quot;},&quot;speed&quot;:{&quot;options&quot;:[&quot;0.5&quot;,&quot; 0.75&quot;,&quot; 1&quot;,&quot; 1.25&quot;,&quot; 1.5&quot;,&quot; 1.75&quot;,&quot; 2&quot;,&quot; 4&quot;]},&quot;loop&quot;:{&quot;active&quot;:false},&quot;ads&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:true,&quot;tagUrl&quot;:null},&quot;urls&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;download&quot;:null},&quot;markers&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;points&quot;:[]},&quot;preload&quot;:&quot;metadata&quot;},&quot;features&quot;:{&quot;popup&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;selector&quot;:null,&quot;hasBtn&quot;:false,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;poster&quot;,&quot;btnText&quot;:&quot;Watch Video&quot;,&quot;align&quot;:&quot;center&quot;,&quot;btnStyle&quot;:{&quot;color&quot;:&quot;#fff&quot;,&quot;backgroundColor&quot;:&quot;#006BA1&quot;,&quot;fontSize&quot;:&quot;16px&quot;,&quot;padding&quot;:{&quot;top&quot;:&quot;10px&quot;,&quot;right&quot;:&quot;20px&quot;,&quot;bottom&quot;:&quot;10px&quot;,&quot;left&quot;:&quot;20px&quot;}}},&quot;overlay&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;items&quot;:[{&quot;color&quot;:&quot;#ffffff&quot;,&quot;backgroundColor&quot;:&quot;#333&quot;,&quot;fontSize&quot;:&quot;16px&quot;,&quot;link&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;logo&quot;:null,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;position&quot;:&quot;top_right&quot;,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;logo&quot;,&quot;opacity&quot;:0.7}]},&quot;endScreen&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;End Screen Text&quot;,&quot;btnText&quot;:&quot;Visit&quot;,&quot;btnLink&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;btnStyle&quot;:[]},&quot;thumbInPause&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;default&quot;},&quot;watermark&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;email&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;color&quot;:&quot;#f00&quot;},&quot;passwordProtected&quot;:{&quot;enabled&quot;:false,&quot;errorMessage&quot;:&quot;Password didn&#039;t matched&quot;,&quot;heading&quot;:&quot;It&#039;s a Password Protected Video. 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}\n\n            .preload_poster {\n                display:\n                    block            }\n        <\/style>\n        <div class=\"preload_poster\"\n            style=\"overflow:hidden;aspect-ratio:16\/9;background-image:url(https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2026\/02\/CNO-Steve.jpg)\">\n            <svg width=\"24px\" height=\"24px\" viewBox=\"0 0 15 15\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n                <path\n                    d=\"M4.79062 2.09314C4.63821 1.98427 4.43774 1.96972 4.27121 2.05542C4.10467 2.14112 4 2.31271 4 2.5V12.5C4 12.6873 4.10467 12.8589 4.27121 12.9446C4.43774 13.0303 4.63821 13.0157 4.79062 12.9069L11.7906 7.90687C11.922 7.81301 12 7.66148 12 7.5C12 7.33853 11.922 7.18699 11.7906 7.09314L4.79062 2.09314Z\" \/>\n            <\/svg>\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">When I was in my twenty-somethings, I worked as a cable TV technician. There was this guy named Jay, who was just this side of retirement. I would guess he was close to 70. Anyway, even though he sometimes had trouble keeping up with the newest technology, he was an expert on the basics; the stuff that doesn\u2019t change. We\u2019d run across some weird problem and he would know the answer, right away. He was an expert because he had over 50 years of experience. I recall watching him work and wishing I had his knowledge.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">50 years later, I was a computer technician, the oldest member of the team. Myself only a few years from retirement. All of the technicians and engineers on the team were bright and capable. But a few times, something would come up that would be a head-scratcher. And often, it would be something I had experienced before. And I would come up with the answer. Much to their surprise.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">I had become the old guy with all the experience and answers. Just like Jay.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">I was sitting in the lounge at Union Station in Chicago, waiting to board a train to Grand Rapids. As I waited, they announced on the PA system that they were pre-boarding seniors and handicapped riders. It wasn\u2019t until the third time they said it that I realized they were talking about me. What did I do? I got the hell up and got myself a window seat.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">Yeah, I am finally that old guy that everyone looks up to, that everyone admires and nobody wants to be. I mean, what self-respecting 20- or 30-year-old would want to change places with a septuagenarian?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">Well, I don\u2019t feel old. Oh, I can\u2019t do all the things I used to do when I was a young man. I can\u2019t bowl 10 games in one night, I can\u2019t beat everyone in the bar at table tennis, and I can\u2019t do a 50-mile hike on my bike. But I still go bowling. I still like to play table tennis. And I still ride my bike\u2014just not as far.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">But new challenges and achievements come with advanced age. I was 65 when I my first novel was published (an award-winner!), I got married (a second time) at 57. I started writing screenplays at 70. And now at 75, I\u2019m embarking on a new venture; the Spry Society. A chance to help other people at, near, or over my age to start living again.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">Probably the coolest thing that has happened to me as I became a senior. I stopped giving a fuck. As a young black man who loved classical music, my soul brothers would ridicule me. I would get teased when, as an adult I would be caught watching Bugs Bunny, or The Three Stooges on TV. Now I don\u2019t care what other people think. I watch what I want on TV. I\u2019ll go to the movies to catch a kid\u2019s animated feature. Hell, I sat through Bugs Bunny at the Symphony, where the Warner Brothers Orchestra played the music while the cartoons ran on a big screen. And I loved it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">I embraced my inner Trekkie. I attended conventions, wearing my Starfleet uniform while getting autographs from the stars.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">I am doing now what I should have been doing when I was 20 or 30. But that was then, and this is now, and I am enjoying life, more than I did then. No more angst or peer pressure. If I want to watch re-runs of Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, then that\u2019s my business.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">I\u2019ve learned to meld my past with the present; The Three Stooges look pretty cool on my 70-inch TV.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">The lesson here? Wherever you are in life, just live it. If you can\u2019t do the things you enjoyed as a kid, find something else. Make friends, young and old. Do the things you\u2019ve always wanted to do. My wife, who is\u00a0 70, is planning on going skydiving with our daughter.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">And I\u2019ll be right there&#8211;on the ground&#8211;cheering them on.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #000000;\">&#8211;Steve Bellinger, CNO<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/stevebellinger.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\">stevebellinger.com<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Steve Bellinger &nbsp; When I was in my twenty-somethings, I worked as a cable TV technician. There was this guy [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":194,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nerd-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=193"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":564,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/193\/revisions\/564"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/194"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=193"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=193"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pcbeeusa.com\/spry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}