Inspired by the annual update from our friends Mark & Mickey, I thought that I would recap our year and share some recent happenings. So let's start with the dreaded COVID. Our family has been very fortunate to be spared being afflicted. Several members had a scare with possible exposure, but all tests were negative. The RV park we're staying at has also been spared. In most cases, we're able to be socially distanced while socializing. Masks are only worn in the office and when you go out for groceries or the drug store. We have decided to hold off on getting vaccinated. I'm not satisfied that the testing regimen was sufficient and the latest news is that several variants are not fully affected by the vaccine. So we will hold off for now and will continue to follow the news.
On October 9th we sold our farm in Maine and ten days later bought a condo in Litchfield, NH. Ironically, we lived in Litchfield when we were married almost 49 years ago. We will use the condo as a home base while we are traveling the country and knocking off my bucket list. We are greatly indebted to our three daughters for their hard work in getting the condo ready for us. We are very proud of the caring, helpful adults that they have become. We were surprised this week to learn that the new owners of the farm made the heartbreaking decision to have the 200 year-old house razed.
The architect they hired to scope out a complete renovation found significant structural issues with the old post & beam building. We did not see the home inspection report, but I assume that it did not call out those issues. Our hearts go out to them. This had to be a devastating decision.
They enjoyed the horseback riding and the tour of Daytona Speedway. We don't have any intent of moving to Florida permanently, but this will not be our last year being snowbirds.
Most of our friends know that Pam has had a convertible for almost 40 years. I always had the family car and she had her play toy. Starting with an '82 Chrysler Le Baron that needed the floor boards replaced and ending with the 2008 Chrysler Sebring hardtop convertible. Well, her convertible days are over! We have sold the Sebring (and the tow dolly) here in Florida. Towing a car on a dolly is effective, but the setup and breakdown are a lot of work. Towing a car with all four wheels on the ground (flat tow) is more costly, but the connect and disconnect time is about 2 minutes. The Sebring was front-wheel drive and couldn't be flat towed. So we have purchased a 2014 Jeep Cherokee.
Unfortunately, the new car is in Massachusetts and we are in Florida. So we are going to have to fly up the New England to register the motor home in New Hampshire and pick up the Jeep. Going forward the Cherokee will be a much better car for us.
Lastly, our health. We are both doing well. My pulmonary embolism was a shocker and I am very lucky with the positive outcome. I will be on blood thinners for the rest of my life, but at least it can be a long one. There was also a concern about a mass on my liver, but the PET scan indicted that it is inactive and we only need to do an annual check to make sure that it remains that way. Pam's sciatica continues to be a constant source of pain. While visiting the Ocala RV Show a week ago, we bought her an electric bicycle. We are hoping that this will get her out and about without the pain.
So, life goes on. In our younger days, we never contemplated life in our 70's. Sadly, many of our classmates have not been that fortunate. So we enjoy each and every day. We look forward to spending more time with all five of our grandsons and leaving them some fond memories for them to recall when they too get to be OLD. Remember that wealth has nothing to do with material things. The love and strength of ones family is the wealth that matters.
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