Phannie

Phannie
Photo taken near Monument Valley, Utah

Sunday, January 17, 2021

Progress in PartTiming and Medical Issues

 At Grand Texas RV Resort, New Caney, Texas...

I see that I'm a little overdue for an update here in our Houston-area holding pattern.  In a week, we will celebrate five years of fulltiming, and this is the first winter we will have failed to spend either in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas or in Arizona, as we did last winter. We're grateful for those five years that were almost free of medical problems that weren't self-induced--as in our disastrous falling in Fredericksburg, Texas last year.

 The latest on Sandy's foot is the removal a few days ago of the steel pins from inside her foot that had been placed there by the surgeon after the failure of the first surgery. This was a huge relief for her, as you can imagine walking around with steel pins holding in place the bones inside your foot. We're thinking the healing will go much faster now, as the pain has decreased immensely.  

However, in probably a month's time, she will have surgery to replace her shoulder joint, and that's not likely to be very pleasant. I'm getting to be a pretty good cook and dishwasher, and it looks like my employment in these areas is not in any danger. My knee surgery will be next, but I may put that off for a while longer. We need a break, and I can still get around pretty well.

I'm not sure why our joints seem to have gone south on us all at once, but we are grateful for all the travels we've been able to do until now. We're also grateful for world-class medical care here in Houston and that we haven't contracted Covid. More positive news is that we have both had our first vaccination and will be due for the second in a couple of weeks. Hopefully, we will have dodged that awful plague, and our joint problems seem relatively minor when we think of all those who have had devastating tragedies in their lives. The best news is that, after our second vaccination, we will finally get to see our kids and grandsons! It has been agonizing to be so close by without being able to be with them. We celebrated Christmas with a Facetime connection and, while we're grateful for that technology, nothing takes the place of being there.

We have a little news about our part-timing arrangements that we've been contemplating. We have purchased a lot and adjoining building at Lone Star Corral, an Escapees Co-Op in Hondo, Texas, which is not far from San Antonio, one of our favorite Texas cities. This will allow us to have a permanent base, a second living area and a storage area, a combination we've wanted for some time. After the initial purchase, the monthly dues we'll pay to live there will be less than we were paying for storage here in Houston. The adjoining building is quite nice--fully insulated, air conditioned and carpeted with a nice storage area. We still don't know exactly what we will make of it, but I know for sure that I will finally be able to have a piano again!  When we're not there, the park rents out our RV space (not the building) and splits the proceeds--not bad! We also have good friends, Karen and Richard, who live there, and they seem to love it. 

The five years we've spent fulltiming have been pretty predictable, I would say--having made friends doing the same thing and reading the blogs of others. For the first few years, we were going like mad--in what is known generally as 'vacation' mode. Then we began to slow down and linger at the places we liked and, finally, after having seen so much of the country, we became more interested in just going to one place to spend the winter and another place to spend the summer. Finally, the prospect of having our own digs again--anywhere--became very attractive.  So, that's where we are at this point in the adventure; we know this will not be our hang-up-the-keys destination, but it will do nicely and inexpensively until we decide where to settle for good. It's a good place for part-timers, as we will certainly not be spending the summers there; Texas is too doggone hot for that. It would be a good place for the rest of the year, however.

We are not quite ready for a real house again. I've mentioned before our periods of insanity when we built or bought huge houses and then, we even built a medium-sized one, and we grew to despise the expense and upkeep of all of them. We have learned to live happily and simply in a small space, and whatever we end up with as a permanent dwelling will also be small and simple, probably in a 55+ community that is not too far from our kids. Unless you're in Florida, Arizona or the Rio Grande Valley, small homes in well-kept areas are not easy to find.

That's the latest from here in the holding pattern, and I'll post again when we have some news. Meanwhile, be careful and stay tuned! 

As I mentioned in the last post, I'll be attaching a favorite photo from our fulltime travels. This one was taken in St. George, Utah. (I'm a big fan of the desert Southwest):


 

                                      Thank you, Lord, for this wonderful life; 

please forgive me if I fail to appreciate it each day as I should.

We don't stop playing because we get old; we get old because we stop playing. 
 ---George Bernard Shaw

"I get up every morning, and I just don't let the old man in." ---Clint Eastwood






































































                       





   

               

 

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16 comments:

  1. We are excited to see your new place (eventually, when all the surgeries are done and you guys get settled.)

    I know you will love having your piano again.

    It's been great seeing you guys several times over the past month.

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    1. Thank you, Janice! We would love to have you visit. We didn't realize that our fulltime travels would enable us to get to know wonderful friends, what an added blessing that was! The jury is still out on Dave, though. (Not really.)

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  2. Glad to hear Sandy is on the mend. I like the sounds of your new digs! Enjoy those Grands! Doug and Michelle

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  3. Good to hear Sandy's landing gear is down and locked...and you've gotten your first dose of the vaccine....you're cleared to land.

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    1. Well, this is the longest holding pattern I've flown in my 15,000 hours. In fact, it seems like it's been that long! Thanks for your kind remarks.

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  4. Glad to read that even though you are settling down things are looking up for the both of you.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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    1. Thanks, y'all. The next couple of months are not going to be easy for poor Sandy, but she's so glad to have the successful foot surgery out of the way. Lots to be thankful for! We always appreciate your kind comments.

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  5. We certainly agree with your plans to go part time in steps....that’s how we got started and I think we return in the same fashion. Covid has slowed our travel down in a major way, but play the cards your dealt! We will be down to San Antonio to visit you for sure! So pleased Sandy’s foot is improved and pray her shoulder surgery will allow her to pick up the iron skillet again soon😂 we love and miss you all!

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    1. Ha Ha! She hasn't been able to kick me, either. Looks like I can get away with even more mischief with her shoulder bandaged up. Isn't it great that we'll be close by you guys? We have a number of other friends in the area, too. We miss you guys, but we see that you're having a great time. Enjoy!

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  6. I was just thinking about Sandy the other day. I have to admit, my thoughts of her came from me receiving my 3rd Amazon package of the day. Later that afternoon, I received an email informing me my statement was available on my Amazon account. Needless to say, my Amazon card has been removed from auto pay on my account, and has now gone into quarantine!!!! Houston has the finest medical services in the world, too bad they powers at be can not figure out better management of the traffic down there. Happy New Years to you both, and hopefully, Sandy will be up and out shopping soon.

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    1. Thank you for your kind comments. We are just as guilty of making Jeff Bezos richer and ourselves poorer. When Sandy get completely overhauled, I'm sure she will be back to her normal activity of supporting her favorite stores. And you're so right about Houston!

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  7. I'm so glad to hear of Sandy's progress in her recovery from foot surgery - what a long and difficult ordeal. Best wishes to her for peace of mind and continued improvement in the days ahead. It sounds like the two of you have an excellent plan in place for this stage of the game. (I'm not surprised.) Thanks for sharing such a lovely pic. It's much more cheerful than our gray winter skies here in the northeast and it brightened my day immensely. Stay well and take care, both of you!

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    1. Well, your elqouent comments certainly brightened our day, as well! We will, indeed, be glad when our 'maintenance' is done and our limbs begin working again as designed. I love going back through our photos and picking out favorites, as do you. It's not quite like being there, but the memories are still strong. Our best to you and your dear family.

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  8. I always liked San Antonio and Hondo sounds like a great place to nest. Hope the medical issues are healed soon as summer will be here sooner than you think. That is a beautiful picture and I am happy you got your shots. We are scheduled for this week. I do not think life will be the same again but that is my opinion, hope I am wrong.

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    1. Well, we are looking forward to having our own small part-time place for a while, and there are certainly worse places to be than San Antonio; we've always liked it. I keep my blood pressure down now by boycotting all TV news. Since we can't do anything about what's happening, we'll just pray that things will get better.

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