I can't believe I have this blog. I had forgotten all about it. I last posted nine years ago.

So much has happened.

Mel passed in June 2014. I had a separate blog during his illness, just for reporting what was going on.

Our grandchildren are now 10, 12, 17 and 19. The oldest just started college.

One of the things Mel and I enjoyed was travel. I've continued to travel since he passed. Except for this pandemic, it would have been a lot more. I've canceled a river cruise from Amsterdam to Brussels. Twice. A trip to Australia and New Zealand has been put on hold. A trip to Wolf Creek, UT had to be canceled. I squeezed in a trip to Vietnam and Cambodia just before the pandemic hit. But I do have (fingers crossed) a trip to Hawaii planned with the whole family for Christmas week.

We’ve been here a couple of weeks now

Well, we’ve been here a couple of weeks now and this is the first time I have had a few minutes to update my blog. Usually, I fall asleep by 9:30.

The moving van arrived early Friday morning, September 21^st. We were to meet them at 8:00AM and scheduled ourselves to arrive at the house at 7:30. They called at 7:15 to say they were at the gate but couldn’t get in. When we arrived 15 minutes later, they were at the house. They had gone in behind someone else who opened the gate. So much for the security of a gated community.

The movers unloaded the truck and were about to leave when we pointed out they were supposed to unpack. They had to confirm with the office, but agreed. Unpacking means taking stuff out of the boxes and putting it on the floor. We had them unpack some stuff, mainly the kitchen, and just open most of the other boxes. By Saturday night, we had the kitchen in some semblance of order, but there are obviously boxes with kitchen stuff that we haven’t identified yet.

In trying to unpack, we realized there were a lot of things we didn’t know what to do with. So a high priority was to put the shelves on the bookcases we had brought with us and put in the garage. I use that for anything I don’t know what to do with right away.

The first order of business was to buy replacement furniture. We had taken the living room and dining room furniture. That fit fairly well into our new “great room.” Except there is absolutely no wall space for the paintings. But the 50” TV looked like a postage stamp. So we put it in the bedroom and bought a new 70” set. But where in the bedroom to put it? All we had brought with us was a bed. So we went looking for bedroom furniture. After some give and take about what we each liked, we picked a set. It will be delivered in (they say) about three weeks. They did have the “media chest” in stock so we had that delivered. But most of our clothes are (1) in the closet or (2) in the media chest or (3) still in boxes on the floor.

Next was the guest bedroom, which will double as Mel’s office. Again, all we brought with us was the bed. So we purchased a dresser and nightstand and, separately, a desk and hutch. The desk and hutch have since arrived but we had to hire someone to put it together. That is still in the works. Then we will have to sort out the stuff that goes there.

My office, aka the den, was next. I bought office furniture that will take a few weeks to get. So I am working on the dining room table. Eventually, I hope to put a convertible couch in there too. It turned out the movers had dropped all the stuff right where the desk will have to go. So I spent every afternoon for two weeks sorting through the stuff on the floor. Not all of it was from my old office. When the furniture arrives, I will have to find room for all the stuff now neatly on the floor.

We also needed a dinette set because the one in NY was built-in.
And a car! We had driven cross-country and left the other car behind. Now we needed a replacement.

I have now settled into somewhat of a routine… work from 7-12, Monday – Thursday, and then lunch, exercise, and unpack. I think it will take a year to finish.

We’ve managed to have a little fun too. We’ve gone out to dinner with friends we met here, and friends from NY here on vacation. And we got to see Don Rickles. We had seen him here when we drove cross-country on our honeymoon. He is still performing a 90 minute set, 45 years later. Today we attended a “meet and greet” for the new on-premises restaurant.

I’ve joined the computer club but have not gotten involved yet. There is a “sports frenzy” here this weekend where we can learn more about the sports opportunities. We will attend that. And I have promised myself that I will get involved in at least a couple of activities within the next month. I’ll let you know.

 

 

 

 

Home

It's been a lot of driving the last couple of days so I was too tired to write. But we are now at a hotel at our final destination of Henderson Nevada.

We got on the road Tuesday morning at 10 and by 10:05 we were in Nebraska. We turned on the radio and they were announcing obituaries. The speed limit is 75. There are many little museums we could stop at but we are anxious to get "home". We are on a four lane highway with little traffic, but they seem to be adding four more lanes. The radio is broadcasting livestock and farm equipment sales, auctions for land and firearms. Then they play 2 songs and it is back to auctions. We pass a town named Wahoo. 

We take an exit that says it has gas. It turns out to be a 6 mile drive to the nearest gas station.

Turn the radio on and John Denver is singing Rocky Mountain High. Perfect!

We get a call from the van driver that he will be there Friday. It takes some time pressure off but we decide we still would rather get to Henderson Wednesday night.

We get to Colorado at 4:30. We stop at the friendliest rest stop I have ever been to.

We stop in Georgetown because even though it is early, we are tired and it is dark. And we are driving through mountains. 

We were right to stop. Colorado mountains are magnificent and we would have missed it driving in the dark,

We pass a town called No Name. Except for the really mountainous parts, the speed limit is 75 so we are making good time. I notice a sign that trucks require chains September through April. We are really lucky to be having such fantastic weather. 

We enter Utah at 12:15. Utah has it's own form of beauty. Very different from Colorado, less consistent, but the rock formations are unbelievable. It is reminiscent of Santorini. The temperature has gone from 40 degrees in the mountains of Colorado to the 80's. We drive 100 miles without any services available and finally find a rest area. All the rest areas have been clean and they are typically about 30 miles apart.

At 4:30 we turn south onto interstate 15, heading for home. The speed limit is 80 for awhile. When the speed limit gets back to 75, I see a sign that this is some sort of trial speed area. 

We reach Arizona at 6:30 for a very short trip though a corner of the state. By 7:00 we are in Nevada and we reach Henderson at 7:45 Pacific time.

Today we will head out to the house to get a better idea of the layout and start furniture shopping.

Moving van is in a hurry

I had a little mishap on Saturday. I was showing off my balancing skills to my grandchildren and fell off the barrel. We actually caught it on video.  Since we were going to Ron's in-laws on Sunday, and his father-in-law is a recently retired orthopedic surgeon, it seemed worth while waiting to see him. He touched the foot in various places to see where it hurt and there is probably a small bone that is broken. I could wear a hard shoe and it would probably be better in two weeks, or I could have surgery, put a pin in and it would be better in a month. I opted for choice 1. We agree that we spent the Jewish New Year at their house, they will spend the Christian New Year at ours.

While at dinner, we got a call from the van driver that he might be there Thursday. Wait a minute! We weren't planning on arriving until Friday. So we leave Monday after morning services.  We stop at a drug store to get me clip on sunglasses and are on our way at 1:20.

We head south on 55 before turning west on 74 to meet up again with interstate 80. There's another wind farm ten miles out of Bloomington. We start to listen to a book. Mel bought 50 Shades of Grey. I had tried to warn him. It lasted 10 minutes.

3:00 and I start driving and hit a downpour. It lasts about 1/2 hour then remains cloudy. The first bad weather we have hit. At 4:30 we pass the exit that  would lead to Cedar Rapids, about 1/2 hour north. I spent two weeks a month there in 2003 on a big conversion project and met some really nice people. I had been hoping to have lunch with one but the change in timing eliminated that.

5:15 we change drivers and try 50 Shades again. This time it lasts 45 minutes. The reader is not very good. You can't tell who is speaking, or even if she is just thinking.

We pass through Des Moines at about 6:30 and there is no traffic. Isn't it rush hour?

At 7:30 we are treated to another beautiful sunset with more wind farms as a back drop. Out here the wind farms look really lovely.

7:45 and we reach the half way point of our journey. The tripometer says we have gone 1336 miles and the nav system says we have 1336 to go.

We get to Council Bluffs and decide to call it a day. I find a steak restaurant on the Internet. It has to be steak out here. We eat at Jack Binions in the Horseshoe casino. We didn't know there were casinos here. It even has table games. We had a delicious stak dinner and then Mel played one hand of blackjack. He won and we left.

To grandchildren's house we go

Drove around Notre Dame campus before we headed out. The strange thing was that as you turn onto the campus you are met with a cemetery. Other than that the campus is really beautiful. All the buildings are a light colored brick.

On the road at 11:20. There are billboards every 500 feet. Some of them are a bit different from those on the east coast. There was 'Krazy Kaplan's Fireworks' and 'Don't Die with your teeth in a glass' advertising dental implants.

12:26 we reach Illinois.

EZ pass still works even though the signs say iPass.  It's flat, some industrial areas and some farms. Several scrap yards.

12:00 Central time and we turn south on interstate 55 to head to Bloomington. This is the same road we use when we drive from Chicago. Lots of cornfields. We stop for lunch in Coal City. Following the nav system back to the highway via a different route. There are farms with mansions. Beautiful. Until the road becomes unpaved. We turn around and go back the way we came.

The speed limit is 65. I am doing 75 and getting phased frequently.

We pass a huge wind farm about 50 miles north of Bloomington.

We still don't know when the moving van will arrive in Henderson so we will have to stay in a hotel when we get there.

Arrive at Ron's house at 2:30. Signing off to play with my grandchildren for a couple of days. Will hit the road again on Tuesday.

Arrived in South Bend, Indiana

We slept in and got on the road at 10:15. The foliage has turned less vibrant. Still lots of trees but it looks kind of washed out. We pass Puxatawny but don't see Phil (the famous groundhog). There are lots and lots of trucks, many of them recruiting drivers. It's not a life I would want, but I guess I can see some people wanting the freedom of being on the road. I expected route 80 to have great cell reception all the way through, but there are spots where it drops down to one bar. I guess it's the mountains interfering.

11:48 as we enter Ohio. Now this is what I remember from when we lived in the Midwest and would drive to NY to visit friends and family. The exits are filled with food, gas and lodging and 400' high signs advertising their presence. 12:30, it's getting even less green.  We notice the sped limit here is 70mph. I don't know of any place near the metro NY area that's over 65. Interesting though, people go 70 when the limit is 65, and still go 70 when the limit is 70.

We stop for lunch in Macedonia, OH. Not much to see.

Back in the car, we start making a list of the things we have to do as soon as possible when we arrive in Henderson. Buy a bedroom set, buy a car, register to vote. In Nevada, your vote really counts because it is a swing state.

Mel starts complaining of a headache after driving for a fairly short while. As he says it, I realize my head hurts too. I notice that I am squinting because of the sun and suggest we get sunglasses. My glasses turn into sun glasses, but it doesn't work inside a car. So we stop at the next service area and buy Mel sun glasses. He had never worn any. But boy did it make a difference. They didn't have clip ons so I will have to wait til the next stop.

5:10 and we are in Indiana. The price of gas here is 50 cents more than it was in Ohio.

At 6:45 we meet Dave Groff, a colleague from Polylogics, at a Chinese restaurant in South Bend. His lovely wife, Sharon joins us as we are finishing. It's the first time we got to meet her. We went back to their house for a couple of hours and had a very pleasant evening.



This morning we saw the Notre Dame campus. It's really beautiful. Now it's time to hit the road again.  We will get to our son's house this afternoon.

First day

The packers were scheduled to arrive between 9:30 and 10:30 am so we got up early to do some last minute sorting and packing. Five men arrived at 10:15. I showed them around to tell them what was staying and what was going. Then they started packing and wrapping. They seemed to be doing a really good job... Professional, fast but careful. We are supposed to give them lunch. Good idea, we have to eat too. But they had already packed the dishes! I ran out to get some paper plates and utensils. At about 4:00 pm they said they were finished. I did the walk around and they had missed my closet. LOL. The closet door is behind the room door so if the door to the room is open, you can't see it. So they went back and got that, plus a few odds and ends like some lamps. They said the weigh station closes at six so if they weren't there by then, they would lose a day. It took five man-days to pack, and that's with them having all the supplies at hand and years of practice unfolding boxes, taping them closed etc.. Hiring them to pack was the smart thing to do. We have to call late afternoon today to find out when they will arrive in Henderson.

We were on the road at 5:24 after saying goodbye to our "family" who will be moving from the basement to the main house.

Driving south on Interstate 287 I notice how green it is. That's something I will miss. The weather is perfect, 74 degrees. Oops- this is NY, it's rush hour. Our speed drops down to 40 then 30. Let's stop for coffee and let some of the traffic pass.

Back on the road watching th "Jersey drivers" tailgating and cutting people off. I wonder if it will be the same as we get to the heartland. At 6:18 we get to route 80 where we head west. We will stay on this for days. The sun is in our eyes, and everyone slows down. We pass Lake Hopatcong. I spent many a fun day at an amusement park there when I was a child staying at a bungalow colony in Mt. Freedom. We reach Pennsylvania at 7:00 and it becomes a bit more mountainous and picturesque. We found a nice radio station and enjoyed the sunset.

It was not easy to find a decent place for dinner. We finally ate at a Subways.

Mel did most of the driving. We did 290 miles and stopped at a motel in Dubois, PA. It was 11:00 and we fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow.