What will semi-retirement look like in 2026? Hopefully like 2025.
Posted By RichC on December 16, 2025
It is the time of year that I do my best to reach out to my existing Consolidated Printing and Publishing Co. customers that I’m still serving. The gradual slowing down of my nearly 40 year old business continues and I’m still doing my best to keep loyal and long time customers satisfied. Is maintaining a handful of printing orders, domain services and web servers worthwhile? Probably not … but I’m not ready to stop just yet.
That said, keeping things going isn’t really all that taxing as usually I spend most of the day with a phone at ready and am usually in my home office (focused on trading and investments). The old days of sales calls and travel are nearly non-existent these days and are a far cry from weekly trips to NE Ohio … or long nights in the building finishing up printing jobs to hit a deadline.
I’d like to believe that the daily 8:30 to 4:30 schedule keeps me mental stimulated which will hopefully keep my mind sharp. This past year hasn’t been great for my physical health though and perhaps I can make exercise the highlight in my New Year’s resolution once my foot returns to normal? For now, and as long as Brenda is happy with my schedule, I’ll continue this semi-retirement lifestyle for another year (or at least until I can hire a Tilly Norwood to take over for me). 😉
Who is Tilly Norwood?
Norwood is a fully digital, AI-generated character designed to appear as a realistic human actress. Her creator, Eline Van der Velden, developed her as part of a creative experiment to explore new storytelling possibilities using artificial intelligence. The team behind her produced approximately 2,000 variations to achieve a “girl next door” aesthetic, prioritizing authenticity over idealized beauty to foster emotional connection. She has appeared in a short comedy sketch titled “AI Commissioner” and maintains an active social media presence, showcasing her “reel” and promotional content.
What is the controversy?
The primary controversy stems from the perception that Norwood represents a threat to human actors. SAG-AFTRA has stated that she is not an actor but a computer-generated character trained on the work of real performers without their consent or compensation, calling the use of such synthetic performers a violation of human-centered creativity. High-profile figures like Emily Blunt, Melissa Barrera, and Luca Guadagnino have voiced strong opposition, describing the development as “terrifying” and a potential end to the industry as it is known. The backlash intensified after Van der Velden revealed that Norwood is in talks with talent agencies, a move seen by many as a direct challenge to the human actor workforce. Van der Velden has defended the project as a form of artistic expression and a new creative tool, not a replacement for human performers, emphasizing that the goal is to expand storytelling possibilities rather than displace real actors.
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