Where Did the Time Go?

In Branson, Missouri...

I am way behind on my posting.  This is one that should have been uploaded a couple of weeks ago.  We’re in Branson now, so I’ll just have to get caught up.

After our return from Houston, the time flew by as we made preparations for our Thanksgiving trip to Branson.  Our last time at the home base after our extended stay at Red Bay encompassed only five days before we left for Houston for another month. We discovered that such a short amount of time was woefully inadequate to take care of all the chores that accumulated while we were away.

If I were reading this rag, I would be curious as to what chores could possibly take more than five days for us retired people.  Permit me to elucidate.

We have learned that the time freed up by retiring does not automatically accumulate as spare time now.  We quickly filled that void with other things, like:  

1. Sleeping late; this is a very important activity that prepares us for the many added chores to come during the day. 
2. Fixing breakfast; this is also important. Like sleeping late, it provides the energy needed for added retirement activities and is something for which we had little time while working. 
3. Planning lunch; this must begin immediately after breakfast. It is important to determine early whether lunch will be eaten at home or not, because Sandy must dress accordingly.  I, on the other hand, have no such complication; slacks and a shirt are acceptable anywhere. Sometimes it is more efficient to grab a quick bite on the fly and, if we’re careful, it is often no more expensive than eating in, especially if we consider that our time is worth something. 
4. Making and going to medical appointments; retired people are generally older and have more body parts that don’t work all that well, so we have to go see physicians, dentists and optometrists often to perform maintenance on the old carcass.  Then we have to go to the pharmacist to get filled all of the prescriptions they give us to keep us going.  Sandy, the planner and organizer in the family, takes great care to see that our medications are expertly managed.  Left up to me, I suppose there is some likelihood that I wouldn't be here to worry about it.  I'm very grateful for her, because it's not easy to keep up with it all.  I often tell people that I have a drug problem and that Sandy is my pusher; it's not far from the truth!
5. Planning dinner; see #3 above.  We generally jump at the chance of eating out with friends, and we do that probably more than we should; it’s a hard habit to break. And for Sandy, a determination must again be made as to whether she needs to change outfits.  This will depend on several things, including the type of restaurant, the weather and, most importantly, whether her outfit has been seen by our companions in the last month or so.  As for me, I just wear the same slacks and shirt, and I can never recall any time in my life that a male friend ever took note of or commented on my attire.  Guys simply don’t care when anyone last wore a garment.  It just never comes up. If Sandy and I are not going out, we have to decide on something to fix at home that we don’t have to fuss over too much.  After all, we ARE retired.
6. Performing maintenance on the house and rolling stock; there is always something that needs repair or servicing on a stick house, a motorhome and two cars.  If I can’t (or won’t) do it myself, I have to arrange for a repairman and wait on him to show up.  
7. Miscellaneous stuff; dealing with this is often time consuming.  A recent example is a tiff I had with the post office.  Seems they no longer wish to hold our mail while we’re away on trips.  They said we’ve been abusing the hold-mail program, so I will need to get a post office box.  That means spending months advising people and businesses of our mailing address change.  I had been toying with the idea of letting Escapees handle our mail, but we live very near our post office, and allowing the mail to accumulate in a large post office box while we’re gone seems like a more convenient solution.
8. Planning the next trip; this is not something to take lightly, especially for someone like me who hates planning. For example, I was going to make reservations for a couple of weeks in February at Llano Grande Resort in Mercedes, Texas to visit with friends Ed and Marilyn, but when we called today, they informed us that we can’t make reservations for less than a month’s stay until January 1.  Now I have to remember to call again then to make the reservation, and it’s not that easy for me to remember stuff as it used to be.  Planning also includes being alert to things that will make life easier on the road.  I found these three-drawer cabinets at Target that fit perfectly in one of Phannie’s lower storage bays.  Great for organizing “blue” stuff, and only about twenty bucks apiece!

So long for now; must work on another post.