You might see long-time public servant Jim Tordiff out for a run or playing with his grandson, but the one place you won’t see him is behind the Ironton City Council bench.

Now six months after the end of his 30-year-long public service career, the former Ironton councilman, mayor and finance director said he’s having no problems adjusting.

“I still watch it on TV and read about it in the paper, it’s not that I don’t have an interest, I just enjoy not having to be involved in it,” Tordiff said.

Tordiff, who suffered from heart problems in the past, swore off the stress of politics before the 2005 council elections, when he was serving as chairman of the council.

Since he left office in December, Tordiff’s kept a low-profile, only weighing in at a council meeting once to push for a municipal fee that he had supported while in office. But that may be due in part to the fact that things are going in the right direction.

“I’m very encouraged by what I watch and read about down there,” Tordiff said. “I think there’s some council people right now that are doing their homework and trying to make a difference. I mean, there’s things popping up, but there’s always going to be things popping up. That’s just life.”

Tordiff said that in addition to keeping busy as the treasurer of the Dawson-Bryant school district, Tordiff’s been finding time for some simple pleasures, far from the hectic world of city government.

“When I get home from work, I either jog or take a long walk, I’ve gotten involved in a softball league, I’m spending time with my grandson, my daughter and her new husband,” said Tordiff, before adding: “I’m just trying to have a life.”

Although the new activities keep him pretty busy, he said he occasionally passes down a little advice to councilmen who ask for it; but that doesn’t mean you should expect to see his name on a ballot anytime soon … or ever, for that matter.

“I’ll never run for another public office as long as I live,” answers Tordiff with a laugh. “Well, I guess you should never say never, but I can’t imagine I’ll ever run for public office again.”