Monday Musings - January 31, 2022

 

1. Welcome to the last Monday of January 2022. There are 47 Mondays remaining in the year and today is also the last day of January. February begins tomorrow. The New Year is no longer new. 

2. The Super Bowl competitors are set. The game between the LA Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals will occur on February 13th. The Bengals have never won a Super Bowl, but have appeared in two, the last being 1989. The Rams, as St Louis or Los Angeles, have appeared in four Super Bowls, losing three and winning in 2000 as St Louis with Kurt Warner as quarterback. The current LA version of the Rams lost to Tom Brady and the Patriots in 2018--which was their most recent appearance.

3. Driving in Florida is much like being involved in a road race. Drivers speed and swerve everywhere without regard for speed limits and traffic. I have seen some really crazy things happening at high speeds on the Turnpike and Interstate. Wow! No wonder the insurance rates are so high.

4. War and rumors of war. The situation between Russia and the West over Ukraine is dangerous and I do not understand what Putin's goal is in moving to the brink of war.

5. Even though the temperature here was in the 30's on Saturday, the high for this coming Friday is expected to be 80! 

6. I bought a new TV yesterday to replace a decades old one. I was amazed at how easy set-up has become. I remember the old days when it took hours to get a new TV set-up and ready for action. This happened in minutes. The hardest part was inputting the WiFi password. 

7. Today in History. On January 31, 1950, U.S. President Harry S. Truman publicly announces his decision to support the development of the hydrogen bomb, a weapon theorized to be hundreds of times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan during World War II.

Five months earlier, the United States had lost its nuclear supremacy when the Soviet Union successfully detonated an atomic bomb at their test site in Kazakhstan. Then, several weeks after that, British and U.S. intelligence came to the staggering conclusion that German-born Klaus Fuchs, a top-ranking scientist in the U.S. nuclear program, was a spy for the Soviet Union. These two events, and the fact that the Soviets now knew everything that the Americans did about how to build a hydrogen bomb, led Truman to approve massive funding for the superpower race to complete the world’s first “superbomb,” as he described it in his public announcement on January 31.

Rents are up 40 percent in some cities, forcing millions to move - The Washington Post

Ukraine leader’s message is don’t panic. That’s making the West antsy. - The Washington Post

Fed grapples with how to raise interest rates without hurting the economy - The Washington Post

Hillsong pastor steps down to fight charge of concealing his father’s alleged child sexual abuse - The Washington Post

Stock Futures Waver on Final Day of Tumultuous Month - The Wall Street Journal

Russia to Face U.S. in Rare U.N. Security Council Debate - The Wall Street Journal

Omicron Pushes World Toward Accepting Covid as Fact of Life - The Wall Street Journal

Britain warns Russia of sanctions on oligarchs if Ukraine is invaded - Reuters

Rising geopolitical tension and demand send oil price outlook soaring - Reuters

North Korea fires longest range missile since 2017 - CNN

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Reflection on a Month

Sign at the Flamingo Gardens
Ft Lauderdale, FL

One month ago today I walked out of my former place of employment for the last time and began my journey into the land of retirement. I miss all of my former coworkers and friends and hope they are well.

Since my retirement, it has been a wild month. Flying to Florida on my last work day, time in Houston, and then back to Maryland just long enough to close the house and return to Florida before the Blizzard of 2022. 

I have visited with a lot of my family and said good-byes to friends. Amazingly, Chris and I have enjoyed multiple days around fire pits even during January and in Maryland--before the storms. And I have been to a flamingo center to enjoy my favorite birds. 

It was at the Flamingo Gardens Botanical Gardens and Wildlife Sanctuary that I came across perhaps the most the most important piece of advice for dealing with retirement. I took an image of the sign. What does the sign mean to me? Don't sit around waiting for life to come to me because the only thing that comes without asking is poop, and I really don't want to clean that up.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL 

A Top 10 Happy Hour

Carlin Park Beach
Jupiter, FL
January 28, 2022

Happy Hour at the beach last night was one of the most unique adventures that I have lately enjoyed.

The evening almost did not happen because the temperature was cool and the winds were blowing. Both Chris and I believed that it would be too windy and cold to enjoy time on the beach watching the waves.

We were wrong. 

At almost the last minute we decided to meet friends at the beach for Happy Hour--an early one about 3:30 PM. Why early? Because I'm retired and I can!

It turned into an incredibly enjoyable event. 

The weather was milder on the beach than anticipated because the bright sun kept us warm despite the constant breeze. But that was not the best part. First off, the waves were magnificent. They were curling and breaking just offshore like waves we have seen in California and Hawaii. And there were surfers enjoying the rough seas despite the red flag warnings posted on the lifeguard stands. 

As a reminder of how rough the water was, one of the surfers was smashed onto the shore by a wave. He shook the collision with the beach off, but his surfboard was not so lucky as it was broken in half.

Friday Evening Beach Wedding
Carlin Park Beach
Jupiter, FL
January 28, 2022

But wait, there's more!

As if the activity of the waves and surfers were not enough, a wedding occurred behind us complete with music, vows, attendants, and witnesses. It was an intimate affair and we were fortunate to be able to enjoy the activity. 

I thought the wedding set-up was well done and thought out. We had met the three-year old ring-bearer in the parking lot as he was throwing a fit because he had to wear a bowtie. He later departed, mid-ceremony, to chase a seagull and had to be shepherded back by his mother.

We enjoyed watching the activity and celebrated with the invited guests when the couple was pronounced married. 

This Happy Hour was high up there on the list of top 10 Happy Hours!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Different Every Day

Walking Along the Beach at Ocean's Edge
Jupiter Island, Florida
January 27, 2022

Yesterday had a perfect beginning and ending to a day. Temperatures were in the high 60's during the morning and high 70's at sunset--and the beach is where the daylight portion of the day began and ended.

The sunset was not spectacular over the intracoastal waterway, but it was fun to watch the developing colors--muted though they were by the clouds. 

The morning beach walk was especially interesting. I was surprised at how the color of the ocean changed during the morning walk. It was gray and uninviting when we began, but resolved into beautiful blue as the clouds cleared and Chris and I walked along Jupiter Island Beach. 

Ending the Morning Beach Walk
Jupiter Island, Florida
January 27, 2022

That is what makes walking along the beach so interesting and exciting--it is different every day. There are new things to find, scenes to enjoy, and even the heights of the waves and their sounds crashing onto the beach are different. Yesterday was classic in that sense. The beginning of the walk saw gray clouds and green and gray water, but the conclusion of the walk was under a bright sky with blue water. All of the transformation happened while we were walking. It made the walk unique--not like walking the same path through the neighborhood day after day.

The day marked my first visit to the beach since returning to Florida on Sunday. The days have been either too cold or rainy to make a beach walk enjoyable--but yesterday's walk was truly special watching the ocean transform before my eyes. 

Today? Who knows, but one thing I do know is that it will be different.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Friday Eve Again

Sign Along I-95
Fayetteville, NC
January 23, 2022

Happy Friday-eve. I am approaching the end of my first month of retirement. Chris and I still have not hit our retirement stride yet--but that is to be expected since we started the new year planning to be on a cruise and then spending a week in Houston before returning to Maryland to close the house there and relocate to Florida becoming "snow birds." We had a very busy first three weeks of retirement planned and it felt like a vacation. I confess, it still feels like a vacation.

I like the thought of being away from the freezing temperatures that I experienced during the week I was in Maryland. It will be cold here this weekend, in the 30s as a reminder of what I'm missing, but today will see temperatures in the high 70's. 

Even with the cold expected here this weekend, I am happy that I do not expect to see signs along the highway indicating that there are icy spots as I saw on Sunday while driving past Fayetteville, North Carolina. And the cold will be temporary for two days and then back to shirt-sleeve weather.

I have to confess, I have not yet been to the beach. We have been busy in the condo and the weather has not been either warm or dry enough for a morning beach walk. Hopefully, today that will change. 

The whole concept of Friday-eve has certainly changed during the past four weeks of retirement. I don't see it as a means to get through Friday and then to the weekend. Someone told me that everyday is a weekend when retired--and that is mostly true. I have noticed that. I do not like shopping on the weekend because it is better early on a weekday. We sojourned to Costco the other day and it was not nearly as bad as trying to shop there in a weened.

For those who still need the greeting Happy Friday-eve to smile and think on the impending work break--I wish you the best.  

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Settling In

Flamingo Room w/Riordin on the Bed
Tequesta, FL
January 24, 2022

The process of converting our condo into a full-time residence from a vacation home is more extensive than I had believed possible. It turns out that the small things that we lived with have now become important issues since I am retired and have nothing else to do but work on projects. 

There is also the fear of over-stuffing the condo--which has less storage space than our Maryland home--even though we are not nearly close to maxing out the capacity. But, Chris and I are cognizant of the "collection syndrome" and working hard avoiding gathering "things" just because. One way we are doing this is by evaluating the function of each item being considered for inclusion in the home--be it decoration, furniture, kitchen ware or whatever.  

One thing we have done is to theme each of the bedrooms. Using a theme helps in deciding whether a particular item has a place in the house. Currently the three bedrooms are the Flamingo, Turtle, and Pelican rooms. As one might suspect, my favorite room is the Flamingo room and the recent additions to this room are the large freestanding Flamingo statue in the corner of the room (which we brought with us from Maryland) and the three-piece art over the bed. The stairs at the foot of the bed? They are for Finnegan, our Yorkie. 

It is all part of the process of settling into the condo and living here for more than one or two weeks at a time. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

The Cold Followed Me

 

Christmas Gift Wine Glass

Two weeks ago, when I was last in Florida, the daily highs were in the high 70s and low 80s. It was idyllic. Yesterday the high managed chilly 62 degrees with a cold 40 degree start to the day. Who turned off the heat? At least it was not 16 degrees as it had been when I departed Maryland on Sunday.

But, the temperatures were OK because by the afternoon I was outside in just a shirt enjoying the day. I confess, I did not make it to the beach as Chris and I were busy transitioning the condo from a vacation home to one more suited for long-term living. Today I get to tackle the garage.

During the evening we enjoyed a quiet Happy Hour and Chris was able to use one of her Christmas gifts--a Beach Life wine glass. While we were not actually on a beach, but sitting on our patio, it was a time to relax and enjoy the sun leaving the sky and reflecting on a productive day. 

I might be getting used to retirement, although I still have this nagging concern in the back of my mind that the vacation is going to end.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

The Arrival - Not Monday Musings

We arrived in Tequesta last evening after a 14 hour 27 minute uneventful trip. We departed Elkridge about 3 AM and had the roads almost entirely to ourselves until about 11 AM when traffic began to build. I used a new weather forecasting trip tool called Drive Weather and it perfectly predicted the conditions except at the very end when the expected overcast conditions turned into a light misting situation. I was mostly concerned about snow and ice in the Carolinas and the roads there were dry and clear!

I definitely recommend Drive Weather for long-distance travel. I paid for the yearly subscription which enabled me to look at the weather more than two-days ahead and find the best window to make the drive from Maryland to Florida between the expected storms. The app is pretty simple to use, but it gives a wealth of information. The screen at the left shows generally overcast for the projected trip leaving at 2AM Tuesday the 25th. No precipitation until Georgia when the rains begin and get heavy around Jacksonville. For my actual trip, for which I failed to take an image, we had blue/clear skies for the trip except the last hour when the skies became overcast as predicted. There are many other features including temperature, wind conditions, and a radar projection. The screen also zooms in and out and has a pretty good map when zoomed in. 

It is good to be here for the long-haul. We have been planning this for so long and even the 42 degree temperatures that greeted me this morning when I let the dogs out did not dampen my spirits. It is January, after all and the high temperature will be in the 60's. 

The truck was emptied as we watched Tampa lost its playoff game and I have to admit we were too tired to see the Bills-Chiefs game to the end. 

Where is Monday Musings? Taking the week off. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Escape to the Land of the Palms

North Carolina
January 23, 2022

 We escaped Maryland under the cover of darkness this morning and are at this moment preparing to cross into South Carolina.  Chris and I, accompanied by two dogs and a very unhappy cat are making good time. 

There has been snow along the highway, but no ice.  It was very eerie driving through DC with no cars on the road in many places except us.  Driving through Virginia I was often using high beams to find the road which in places was not well marked. Even now, on this Sunday morning, the roads are pleasantly empty of traffic.

We are almost 6 hours into a 14 hour trip. Well, with the animals along it will likely be a bit longer with the required bio-breaks. 

There was some concern that the high in Jupiter today was supposed to be only 66, but that is 50 degrees warmer than when we left and even now at almost 9 AM just leaving North Carolina it is only 24 degrees outside of the car. Sixty-six sounds balmy.

Hey, there is South of the Border.

Goodbye North Carolina.  

And the exodus continues.

— Bob Doan, writing from I-95 in South Carolina

How Do You Spell Relief?

 

I thought it was one of the more creative commercials when I was a kid, the voice from the television was asking asking the viewing audience how to spell relief and then substituting the spelling for the product.

It is similar to the phrase we use today: in the dictionary with the definition of "pick a word" is a picture of ___. 

Well this morning when, for the fifth day in a row, I let the dog out and was slapped in the face by the arctic blast of frozen air I realized that I spell relief: F-L-O-R-I-D-A.

Yesterday, I also came to the understanding, as I was laying under Chris's car putting air in the spare so that the check tire light would go out, that when I finally do escape to the south that I probably will have enjoyed the coldest stretch of the Maryland 2021-2022 Winter season--it can't be worse than this period has been, right?

Yesterday the high never reached above freezing. It is hard to believe that three days ago we were sitting around the fire pit in the evening during as brief respite. The lawn even thawed, briefly.

Relief. That is what we need.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD