Crush of Activity

 I had hoped that as Chris and I returned to Florida, our level of activity would moderate.

I was wrong.

We are incredibly busy unpacking and trying to fit our Maryland belongings into our already complete Florida home. Today's project is to find a storage unit to hold the excess. And there are is lot. I had no idea we were bringing as many wall hangings as we brought. Art prints, mostly. And there are multiple boxes of pictures--many of family historical significance.

And Christmas decorations. I think we have six containers of Christmas. 

We are also blessed with too many plastic containers. Some of them are too large to be fully useful. I wonder what we are going to do with them? 

Maybe I will get to watch some football today! It is opening Sunday. Otherwise, I will be slinging boxes around.

Moving sucks! Just saying.

P.S. It is Patriot Day the remembrance of 9/11. Where were you?  Say thank-you to a First Responder.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Hitting the Streets

 

After making three trips to the PODS during the past two days, about two-hours roundtrip, Chris and I decided to stay home and return the house to a more livable state. 

Bike Route
Tequesta, FL
September 9, 2022

We were successful! But, we still have at least two more trips to make to the PODS to retrieve the remainder of our treasures. I will be getting a storage room today.

One of the things we did yesterday was locate the recycling transfer facility and get rid of the wrapping paper and cardboard boxes that were filling the garage. That helped to reclaim significant space in the garage.

To start the day, however, I went on a long bike ride around Tequesta and Jupiter. I was able to visit some new territory and enjoy the day before it got too hot or rainy. I was amazed that, as I hit the streets, my legs were tired before I even began from racing up and down stairs during the past days. I have been exercising more than I had thought. 

I was dog-tired at the end of the ride. I need to eat breakfast before heading out on these rides! There is a small hill near the end that can seem mountainous, although it is only a slight incline. After 18 or so miles, however, it provides the opportunity to push myself one more time. 

It is great to be hitting the streets again!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Closing a Chapter of History

I am not a Royals watcher, but I have always appreciated the steady leadership that Queen Elizabeth II provided to the United Kingdom and the world.

Through all of the travails, she provided was a constant not only for the United Kingdom, but for the free world. 

I now understand the saying, "The Queen is dead, long live the King."

And history will remember her leadership through seven decades.

A chapter of history is closing and her relatively sudden passing provides an opportunity to pause and reflect upon our own endeavors and direction. I wish the United States had leaders committed to bettering the country rather than forcing their own personal biases upon others.

The next days will allow us to reflect upon our own leadership as we remember Queen Elizabeth II. The world is complex and we need leaders that can work across the spectrum from domestic to international and serve the greater good of the people of both the United States and the world. We must not elect "one trick pony" leaders but rather those who can operate in the world.

Rest In Peace Queen Elizabeth II.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Moving - Garage Stress

Garage Stress
Tequesta, FL
September 7, 2022

I have a severe case of garage stress!

Chris and I have unloaded about half of our PODS and while we are maintaining the house in livable fashion, the garage is a disaster! I am used to having a garage in which cars can be parked. The moving-in mess we have created is causing undue stress. Between boxes which have been collapsed waiting for recycling, and empty tubs along with some wardrobe boxes which still need to be carried upstairs, the garage is unworkable!

Ugh. 

I will work on organizing the garage today before we make another trip to the PODS facility. We are donating a many items which have been replaced by counterparts brought from Maryland. We knew this would happen and so it is not a shock. 

In reality, it is all going pretty smoothly so far, but I  know that the hard part is coming because space is filling up quickly. I have been moving shelves to accommodate kitchenware--we are going from a house blessed with drawers to one with less than the minimum necessary. We are rethinking what we keep in the kitchen. And where are we going to keep the other stuff which occupied our perpetual junk drawer where almost anything could be found? 

First, I need to get a handle on the garage. That is my morning project. Everything comes through the garage and if there is no space to move and stage, there is no way to transition items from the truck to their new home.

The good news? I'm retired and we do not have a deadline! Or rather, the deadline is self-imposed and can slip without consequences. 

Another day dawns! The sun is not yet up an I am already plotting a course for the day.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Happy Hour and Manatees

It was off the the beach last evening for Happy Hour. It had been a successful day and a respite before we begin accessing and unpacking the PODS. I managed to find gas for $3.359/gl and both of the vehicles which made the drive from Maryland were filled and prepped for the travel ahead associated with retrieving our belongings from the PODS. We have been driving our Florida car, the Camry, which had a full tank of gas and was ready to get out of the garage after four-and-a-half months of storage. 

Manatee off Jupiter Island
Jupiter Island, FL
September 6, 2022

As we walked down to the ocean's edge, I noticed large brown shapes moving in the water about 100 yards offshore. There were groups of large brown objects, about 20 of them. They were moving with and against the waves. There were no fins and so I determined they were not sharks or dolphins. It finally came to me, manatees. We watched them off the shore for a while until they moved off. It was amazing how they were spread out but also moving in small groups. It was truly an aggregation of manatees. 

Some excitement to end the day before we headed home to make dinner. It had been years since we had seen manatees off Jupiter Island.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Alle-gator (AG) on Patrol

 

Map of My Bike Ride
Tequesta, FL
September 5, 2022

I managed a Labor Day 17 mile bike ride yesterday. It was good to be back in the saddle on a serious ride. My guide toured me through developments that I have not visited before and in one area the wildlife was active and fin to watch. 

The ride meandered through Tequesta into Jupiter. The most interesting part of the ride was through a large housing development in the initial stages of building but where the infrastructure is mostly in place from a failed development a few years ago. It winds into wild areas and I saw deer, rabbits, many species of birds, lizards, and one alligator hanging out in the pond, or is it large enough to be a lake?

Lake or Pond? You Make the Call
Jupiter, FL
September 5, 2022

I sometimes have difficulty determining the difference between lakes and ponds. 

In this case I think it is a lake, but the gator in the lake thinks that it owns the waterfront. BTW, the object in the image to the left is not the gator, that is the fountain. I zoomed in on the gator could tell that it is searching for its next meal. 

Alligator on Patrol
Jupiter, FL
September 5, 2022

Biking through undeveloped areas is a lot of fun because of the wildlife. I saw four deer race across open fields. I knew that within a few years those fields would be filled with houses--but, for now they were open areas. 

Most of the ride was in neighborhoods where the houses start at well above $1M and go upwards from there because of they are either on the river or lakefront property. Yes, they are nice houses, but way out of my desire for a mortgage. I am looking to be mortgage free by the end of September and so buying a house on the Loxahatchee River, while a pleasing thought, is not in the plan unless I win the lottery. Only problem there is you have to play to win. 

It was a beautiful morning to be out on the bike and I am looking forward to many more. The total time of the ride, with stops, was 1h33m with an average speed of 12.3 mph. I have to admit that at the end of the ride there is a small hill (compared to some I rode in Maryland) and I was out of gas in the tank. I went about as far as I could for the second ride after my return.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Monday Musings - Labor Day 2022

 

1. This is the first Monday of September 2022. There are 16 Mondays remaining in the year. 

2. Happy Labor Day 2022. My how the world has changed during the past few years and we are beginning to get back to normal.

New Mattress Installed
Tequesta, FL
September 4, 2022

3. Get your booster!

4. Chris and I took delivery of a new mattress yesterday, our first new one in over 25 years. It was about time. It was one of the first things we wanted to do upon arriving back at our home in Florida, and we did! It was interesting that the installers took pictures of the various stages of the installation for proof of delivery. 

5. Enjoy Labor Day and remember our military and the first responders who are on watch to protect all of us! 

6. Why does it seem that we, as a nation, have lost the concept of tolerance? Everyone seems to be trying to mold everyone else into their vision of life and liberty. 

6. Today in History. On September 5, 1836, Sam Houston is elected as president of the Republic of Texas, which earned its independence from Mexico in a successful military rebellion.

Born in Virginia in 1793, Houston moved with his family to rural Tennesseeafter his father’s death; as a teenager, he ran away and lived for several years with the Cherokee tribe. Houston served in the War of 1812 and was later appointed by the U.S. government to manage the removal of the Cherokee from Tennessee to a reservation in Arkansas Territory. He practiced law in Nashville and from 1823 to 1827 served as a U.S. congressman before being elected governor of Tennessee in 1827.

Dollar Strength Lifts Americans’ Relative Spending Power - The Wall Street Journal

Ukraine’s Zelensky Hails Small Advances in South, East - The Wall Street Journal

Markets Struggle to Walk Tightrope With Focus on Fed - The Wall Street Journal

Manhunt underway after at least 10 killed in Canada stabbings - CNN

Las Vegas isn't betting on Mother Nature to solve its water problems. Here's how it intends to win - CNN

Labor Day 2022: Almost everything will be closed except these retailers - CNN

Britain's Truss expected to be named Conservative leader, new PM - Reuters

Afghanistan earthquake kills eight, more casualties feared - Reuters

South Korea braces for 'very strong' typhoon, businesses curb operations - Reuters

Two Russian embassy staff dead, 11 hurt in suicide bomb blast in Kabul - Reuters

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Back in the Saddle

 

Sun-Kissed Cloud
Tequesta, FL
September 4, 2022

Chris and I managed a short ride bike outing yesterday. It was great to be back on the road again and touring the neighborhoods in our vicinity. We rode some streets that we had not ridden before and enjoyed a relatively short 30 minute ride just to check out our conditioning and reacquaint ourselves with our bikes after riding sparingly for the past four months in Maryland. I have to admit, I enjoyed riding the flat streets a lot more than the continuous hills of my Elkridge neighborhood.

Radar of the Large Cloud
Tequesta, FL
September 4, 2022

We have a respite from unpacking until Wednesday. We cannot access our PODS until then and begin the processes of unpacking, sorting, disposing, storing, and using the treasures we moved from Maryland. 

This morning as I looked out from the patio, I saw a huge sun-kissed cloud heading my way. Dark Skies predicted rain imminently, but that never materialized. The radar image of the cloud was impressive and somewhere very close saw a heavy, brief downpour.

I am glad the storm missed my location.

And the holiday weekend continues. Chris and I have been busy and we have also been relaxing a bit. Good friends invited us for dinner and a swim last evening and it was great fun. 

We are definitely "back in the saddle" with its multiple connotations.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

September and a Deep Breath

 

Evening Storm Clouds
Jupiter, FL
September 1, 2022

It was a strange coincidence that as the new month began, so did the next chapter in our journey. 

It was hard to leave, but exciting to arrive and we have already begun to resume the life we left behind during mid-April when we relocated to Maryland. 

It is freeing and scary. 

I am recovering from my fire ant encounter. The itching woke me during the night, but slathering the spots with cortisone and Benadryl reduced the urge to scrape the skin off my foot to a manageable level. 

The weather is hot, but not as hot nor humid as what we had been experiencing in Maryland. The morning and evening were both comfortable enough to be outside. Chris and I spent the day unpacking, organizing, and obtaining the essential items we needed to live comfortably. We prepared a salmon dinner at home last evening and even our furry family members adjusted to the new pace and relaxed from the past months of continual upheaval.

While I would like to say, "It is over," there remain more than a few tings to accomplish. We need to be reunited with the PODS and assimilate those treasures into the home. We have decided that we will require a storage room even though the weeding process will continue. Many more things will be thrown off the raft, but more than a few will be retained--at least for a while.

Now is the time to take a deep breath and move forward in an unhurried, but deliberate manner. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Moving--Arrived

Happy Hour on the Beach
Jupiter, FL
September 1, 2022

 After a two-day road trip, the two-car caravan arrived safely in Tequesta about 1:30PM yesterday. We spent a couple hours unpacking the cars and moving back into our Beach House which is now home and received some great help from Fran and Mary. 

I was exhausted! I could hardly think when I arrived because Riordin meowed the entire second-day drive and it was all I could do not to open the window and offer him the escape from the car that he was seeking. But I didn't. 

We managed to miss the thunderstorms that have been pounding the South and only had to drive through one significant rainstorm within 20 minutes of our destination. 

My Fire Ant Ravaged Foot
Tequesta, FL
September 2, 2022

The only mishap was my run-in with fire ants yesterday morning in South Carolina. It was dark when I took the dogs out and I did not see a small mound--suffice it to say, I am now itching ferociously my right foot. I probably will not stop for the night again in South Carolina as a result. 

I had forgotten about the low season here in South Florida. I wondered where all the traffic had gone, but was reminded that we were last here during high season. 

I had not, however, forgotten about Happy Hour on the beach and it was a fantastic ending to the trip. We enjoyed the water and the sand and our friends. OK, there may have been some adult beverages as well, but being back on one of our favorite beaches was the perfect exclamation point to the trip. 

Now the work begins. We need to assimilate a lot of treasures into an already complete house and transform it all into a home. 

And so the day begins, bright, sunny, and relatively low humidity as compared with the conditions we have been experiencing in Maryland. 

I realized, just now, that I might never, or only rarely ever, sign my blog from Elkridge, MD again.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL