Desert Dabbler

Happy New Year!

I always heard that what you do on New Year´s Day is what you´ll be doing all year. A harmless old wives´ tale--if you can control how you spend your day. It may not be true, of course, but since it´s never a good idea to mess with old wives, I try to plan as if it were.

So I wanted to have the perfect Retiree-Wannabe day. I started out with a long walk, beginning at 6:30 a.m., while it was still dark and very chilly. I walk every Friday morning with my friend Chris, but today I took along my camera. The moon is full and beautiful right now. On my way to work early Thursday morning, it was stunning. It hovered over the mountains like a giant silver ball. I had wished I had a camera with me then. But today, with camera in hand, I wasn´t able to get a good picture. The moon stayed too high, and the houses in SCG, while pretty, cannot compare to the rugged beauty of the Harquvar range that I drive by every work day.

After my walk I visited Dr. Verloop at Surprise Chiropractic. Yes, on New Year´s Day! I can´t seem to get an appointment with other docs at any time, but he saw 3 patients while I was there. Bless his heart. I had been wincing in pain for days with my back, but I am feeling much better now. I hope I don´t spend the rest of 2010 with him (or any doctor), but it is great to be moving pain-free again.

Kent and I had a really good time celebrating all afternoon with our friends Chris and Lou. We have a shared past in flying gliders in Ohio, and we enjoy a lot of the same current interests. Always have a great time with them.

Later I played with my new Cricut cutter that I received for Christmas from my son and daughter-in-law. I love scrapbooking and card-making, and this is a great tool to expand my horizons in that direction. My first project was a Thank You card that went in the mail this morning to them.

After that I retired to the couch with my ice pack. LOL. No writing, which I hope to do more often, and no computer visit to Second Life, which I love to explore.

I could have been happy without the ice and the doctor visit, but I know it could have been so much worse. Doctor visits here are more common than sliced bread, and they often do not have a happy ending. I am very lucky to feel good enough today to be writing without wincing.

All in all, New Year´s Day 2010 was as close to perfect as you can get in Sun City Grand. A day spent with my husband, dear friends, a little wine and more food than I needed. I wish everyone could be so fortunate.