“The Trouble is you think you have time”- Buddha

“The Trouble is you think you have time”- Buddha

That thought has been on my mind as we run all over the world, during our retirements’.  Over two years ago, I had open heart surgery, to replace a leaky Aortic Valve and 6 months later Catherine was diagnosed with Younger Onset Alzheimer’s.  Before then we both thought we would live well into our 90’s.  Both my parents lived until their late 80’s and mid 90”s.  Her father passed at the age of 76.  Her mother is still going strong at 82 so we both have pretty good genes.  All that does not really matter as all of our cells do not replicate as well as they use to.  As time goes on, it does not get any better.  Not trying to be a Debbie downer here, but it is what it is.

I must admit I am a blessed man and I have no regrets.  I worked hard since the age of 14 and always thought of saving for retirement as a way of life.  A few times when I have told people about our Nomadic lifestyle their response has been that I must have won the lottery.  In some ways that is true.  I have considered myself to have been in the right place at the right time and had a very rewarding career in Aviation.  It is not because I was a better Pilot/Manager than anyone else but more of the fact that good fortune has come my way time and time again, along with hard work.  I have always treated others as I have wanted to be treated and that also has proven well, especially as I get older and not so wiser.

On our last adventure to Africa we met two guys that have brought this thought home to me.  James was a Detective with the Chicago Police Department and recently retired.  His plan was that when his daughter went off to College he would retire.  He knew that it would be an early retirement and the financial consequence would be one that he would have to deal with.  That did not matter to him because as he saw all the violence going on around him, early retirement, was worth the expense.  His long time friend Al was also on the trip and is counting down the years until he will be able to retire.  If he left now the health care expense would be his and if he stayed two more years it would all be covered.

I hear these types of rationals all the time.  If I stay X more years or months I can make Y more or not have to pay for Z.  What none of us know is how long we will be on this earth.  There are no do overs, most people think.  It is not like I have the perfect formula but as one gets older the realization that life is entirely to short becomes more of a reality.

We all have bucket lists or as I call ours, Life list.  We all have things we would like to do or see before we die but most can not be done while tied to a desk  a cockpit or squad car.  Another benefit that we have that is becoming more scarce is a pension.  We both know that nothing is guaranteed but it is nice to see those checks arrive month after month.

I am presently playing a game with my former employer.  They went out and bought an annuity for my life expectancy and they figure that I will only collect for 5 years.  Both my parents collected for nearly 30 years and that is also my plan.  I am somewhat concerned about my kids, since as I said before, pensions are becoming more and more scarce.

I see others that are continuing to work or refuse to do any of the things on their bucket list because they are saving for their kids and or grand kids.  That is a noble gesture but since my parents and grand parents did not provide for me in that way I have a hard time wrapping my head around that thought process.

We both were able to provide a great college education for each of our children, so in my mind, that is all they can ask for.  I have always been there for them in their formative years and glad to say that they are all doing well for themselves.

Another rational people say is that they really enjoy their job.  I also had a great job but can honestly say that in the cycle of life, retirement is the best phase of life.  I tell people all the time not to work a day longer than they have to.  We all think we have time but one thing for sure is none of us know how much time there actually is.

You hear it all the time about people who work themselves literally to death.  By the time they finally hang up the keys to the office they only have a few months or even days to enjoy the fruits of their labor.  There is much more to life than work and some fear they would not know what to do with themselves if they did not work.  Not the case here, find and follow your passion.  It has “worked” well, so far, so don’t stop now.

I joke often about how this lifestyle is possible and how I did not let any of my kids move back into the house as adults.  I am not saying that any of them wanted to because, in their minds, they were ready to spread their wings when they went off to college and have not turned back.  My goal, now, is not to have to move back in with any of them when I get old.  I figure I will take up risky behaviors if that ever becomes a possibility.

Over the last 20 months we have seen and done things that I have could only imagined many years ago.  The great part about it is that it as included a very healthy activity of running, biking and swimming.  We have done either a marathon or half marathon in 25 different countries and for Catherine that would include 46 states.  There is something like 196 countries that have at least a half marathon and my goal now is to complete as many as I can.

We have Amsterdam and Cuba on the calendar later this year with Antarctica March of 2017 to complete all seven continents.  They say Madagascar is the 8th continent so I just signed up for that one that takes place June of 2017.  There are a couple of places that I have my eye on and that being Petra, Queens Town and Began Temple

We are presently on our way to Chicago for the OBAP, Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals, convention.  This is a once a year event and it always seems to put things into perspective for me.  I started in aviation in the late 70’s and back then the number of Black pilots was less than 1% and some 40 years later the numbers have not changed.  It is very inspiring to be there to meet and greet those that have that sparkle in their eyes as they aspire to be a major airline Captain.

I still remember the day they gave me my plaque for achieving that status and even shook Colin Powell’s hand during that ceremony.  Now I will go up during the Gala event and shake the hands of those that have been promoted to Captain over the last year.  I get goose bumps each and every time.

As an added bonus will be meeting up with a runningcruise.com friend, Debra, that lives in Chicago.  Turns out Al also lives there and James and Lois will be there for a family reunion there, so we are all planning to get together and raise a glass or two to cheer life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

From there back to ATL for two days.  We have a Mindset appointment for Catherine.  She is doing a clinical trail for a new drug and even though she could be getting the placebo we are both convinced that she is actually on the drug.  They say the, placebo effect, is pretty strong and that also might be the case but either way in a few months she is guaranteed to get the drug so we are willing to participate since there is no real down side.

 

 

In my Mindset blog, Please Share, Someone, you may know, with Younger-Onset Alzheimer’s, I talk about my feeling and observations in detail about Alzheimer’s and the effects on her and us.  It is just like any other disability except for the fact during the early years only the ones very close to the individual notices the ailment.  Testing that is done also will show the ill effects and I encourage anyone that have fears to get their love one tested as soon as possible.

Just like any other disease the earlier the better.  I am also a firm believer that the stimulation of travel is a great benefit.  Those experiences are more likely to be stored in long-term memory since that part of the brain is not effected.  Couple that with the positive effects of travel on ones mood so we both see our lifestyle as win win.

I just signed up for a study that is being done my Indiana University, Perdue University Indianapolis, IUPUI.  Turns out that is where Catherine went to school.  They are looking at the benefits of the social network, Facebook, and how caregivers and benefit from networking on that site.  They will also post questions for the group and their friends to develop some possible solutions to common problems caregivers face.

I was just thinking of that as I was posting something about our trip to Africa.  It would work like all the other groups on FB that we belong to.  Individuals selected would join the group and share their experiences.  You would then be able to comment and offer suggestions on your personal best practices.  I have often thought of joining a support group but being on the go I find it hard to do so.  This way it would be very easy to do on the road and really looking forward to it.

Here is a, “poem”, I wrote shortly after I retired.  Using air quotes around poem since I am not really sure that this actually meets the criteria.

Retirement

You save and spend

not knowing

which is enough

or

too much

You just hope and pray

before the end

that you get to see that day

Will your body and mind

survive

or did you just play it safe

only enough just to stay

alive

I tried to live each day

as if it was my last

no regrets

no do overs

so they say

I hope to continue

till the very last day

The average black male lives

until 74

our dad left us at 94

so how many days do I have

left

time will tell

Did my open heart surgery give me

more or less

I was an aviator

a manager

I am a motivator

and marathoner

none of this is factored in

Just our genes

they say

but who are they

Does it all matter

on judgement day

time now to play the actuary game

this where I only collect my pension

for 5 years

they hope

my plan is to take after our folks

and make them pay and pay

I have lived to start my

new chapter in my life

so many have or will not

they will work till

they die

not I

I often say

I worked too damn hard and long

not to see this day

and not have it be the one that got

away

I lived my dream as a pilot

to see the world

but now

on my own terms

to come and go

as I see fit

and not wonder if I did not

stay in one place

long enough

you can’t do and see it all

But as I slide into home plate

all bruised and weathered

I will at least know that

I had one hell of a ride

nothing to hide

This is not the road to the end

but a new beginning that

has no end

I might either find that I did not

save enough

or

spent too much

but one thing is for sure

I will never say

I did not enjoy

my stay

The Convention was a huge success with this year being their 40 year anniversary and it all started right here in Chicago.  We were able to get some exercise in with a great 6 mile walk of the area one day and a soaking rain run, the next morning.  The Gala Awards night was also very inspiring with over 150K worth of Scholarships awards with UPS putting up 30K themselves.

The after party was a great way for us to catch up with fellow UPSERS and I even got to hear a term, at 4am, that I had not heard in many years.  The host said, “Not sure where you all are going but you have to get the hell out of here”.  That brought back fond memories of my youth.

Our runningcruise.com friend, Debra, from Chicago took us to the stairs the next day, called Swallow Cliffs, for some post party exercise.  This was a great place where folks can run or walk a large and steep set of stairs.  It also meets up with an elaborate trail system at the top.  We did the stairs three times and another half hour of trails.  Many folks use rocks to keep track of how many times they do them and there is also a sliding bead system that others can us to track their progress.

Our last night there was spent laughing and going over stories with our MarathonTours.com,new best friends, James, Lois and Al.  I can’t believe we all forgot to take a picture of the event at Pappadeaux restaurant.  I was about half way back to the hotel before I remembered.  The food was great and we all agreed that Africa was the most memorable of all trips we each have done.

Another not so original thought about time.  This came from Kayna from our African adventure.  She quotes Albert Einstein, “Time is nature’s way to keep everything from happening all at once”.  I am actually using this blog to help me keep all the destinations and experiences clear in my mind.  Maybe one day my grand kids will stumble upon this and somewhat marvel at our exploits.  I remember how time played a crucial role leading up to and during my recovery of heart surgery.  I had to become a patient, patient.

That thought process was entirely new to me.  I was use to going places at 500 miles an hour so now to have to wait patiently for hours for a blood draw, etc, was quite an adjustment.  On the end of the spectrum was the time period right before and after the surgery.  I saw the gas mask as it headed for my nose and mouth and was told to take a deep breath and then in the next second, in my mind, I heard Catherine and the nurse’s voice, in each ear, asking me to wake up.

I actually thought I was dead since when I opened my eyes I could not see anything and really did not feel anything.  I forgot the fact that they had told me those would be the last senses to return with hearing being the first.  I guess some could say I was dead for about 4 hours as I was hooked up to all those machines since they had to stop my heart to replace the valve.

I realize that I have a tendency to wander from topic to topic on this blog but that is how my mind works and hope all are able to connect the dots without too much trouble.  I do hope you are able to get my point about time and if not you can send your comments on to me at Flyprkr@aol.com.

I just saw this on Face Book from another runningcruise.com compadre, Pamela. It fits in nicely on what I have been rambling about so far in this blog. We often try to wait for the perfect time to do such and such but we must realize that we might just run out of time waiting for that perfect situation to arise.

I, on the other hand, often say, if this Nomadic lifestyle was easy, anyone would be able to do it. I am not waiting for that perfect situation to arise. I have a tendency to make lemonade out of lemons and look at life as a glass half full. Why wait for tomorrow when you can do it today. Yes it might be a bit complicated or downright distasteful but the rewards are, most of the time, worth it.

Presently we are off to Portland Maine to catch up with my older brother, Garrett, for a few days. Another MarathonTours.com side kick, Mariellen, who lives in the Boston area and has been on two tours with us is driving up. We are all looking forward to catching up on our our adventures since we were on tour together in South America. I plan on eating Lobster in as many ways as possible.

Our Mindset Appointment went well and they say that they got word that the new drug for Catherine will be going to open label soon. That basically means that the final clinical trail will come to an end and that all that participated in the study will be getting the actual drug. They hope that will take place when we come back for our next visit in 6 weeks. That was really good news since the other studies, for this drug, in the past, have shown great results.

Here is something I found on my phone in the notes section. I am forever writing down something I run across that peaks my interest and most of the time I find somewhere to put them in my blog.

Laugh when you can, apologize when you should, and let go of what you can’t change. Kiss slowly, play hard, forgive quickly, take chances, cry when you are sad, dance when you are wasted, stay out later than you should, forgive, forget, love.  Give everything and have no regrets. Life’s too short to be anything but happy.

Turns out I modified this note during the writing of this blog entry.  Yet another running cruise.com and Face Book friend, Joanne, posted the quote the other day.  My version left out the dancing wasted and stay out late part.  As I get older I tend not to do those two things as often as I use to.

That about sums up my life. Some things listed I do a better job at than others but you can see that Play Hard is in my DNA and as I mentioned before Life is too short, so in my mind, you might as well be happy. In the big scheme of things, I guess I need to work on the forgive quickly part.

As a side note my writer’s block is a thing of the past, for now. I guess I have been inspired by the positive comments made by many on the last entry. Also I have decided to take time each day or so to contribute something to this blog. It makes it much easier than trying to catch up after many days and weeks have gone by.

The trip to Portland Maine was fantastic. Got to spend some quality time with my older brother and his family. His summer home, where we met, I had not been to in 48 years. It is actually located on Georgetown Island. Back then it did not have running water or electricity. He has done some great renovations over the years.

My goal was to see how many different ways I could enjoy lobster. We also got to go out on his motor boat one day and 36 foot sail boat the next. In between and during boating trips I went off the deep end when it came to lobster. I might have broken the record for different ways and sheer quantities of lobster.

Here is the break down. Soft and Hard shell lobster, lobster roll, lobster bisque, lobster mac and cheese, lobster bruschetta, and even lobster tacos. Turns out the restaurant, Osprey, we went to had fish tacos so I asked them to replace the fish with lobster meat. I thought I was done but did enjoy a Bloody Mary with a lobster claw included while waiting for the flight..

The flight back to ATL did not go so well. The plane came inbound with a mechanical and they tried all day to fix it to no avail. The delta app did not do such a good job of keeping up with the rolling delay and I ended up booking myself on the next flight. Unfortunately that flight came in late and due to the weather back in ATL they had to put on extra fuel and ended up leaving some passengers behind. That whole process of figuring out who those unlucky people were going to be, took awhile, which made the flight even later. Many on board were also from the earlier flight and most had connections in ATL. That is one of the reasons we picked ATL for our hub of run all the world operations, no connection for us.

The upside to the lengthy delay was that I got hungry again and enjoyed Lobster quesadilla, as the finale. Washed it down with a very tasty flight of bourbon at the Linda Bean’s Lobster Cafe right at the airport. After it was all said and done I felt like I was that guy in the Forest Gump movie and all his various way to prepare shrimp.

I must admit I did past up two other offerings, Lobster burger, that is with lobster meat on top of the burger and lobster omelette. For whatever reason both just did not sound appealing to me. For me it was a tie between lobster taco and lobster roll as my all time favorites.

Growing up, our mother would take me out for my birthday and I would always have a whole lobster. That would probably explain my affinity for the tasty creature and my skill at getting every morsel of its sweet meat. Now that I think about it, Whole Maine hard shell lobster wins after all.

There is a possibility that I might not have my bags when I get to ATL. Once again the Delta app was not able to keep up and did not give me much information on our bags. It showed that they were pulled off the broken airplane but did not indicate that they went on the plane that I finally got on. We don’t go back out for two days so no big deal since our hotel is close by the airport.

I am sure for many this whole, spend a day at an airport, would have drove them crazy but for us the airport had all the necessities of life so no big whoop. They even had free wifi, plenty of outlets to charge your devices and numerous couches to relax in. We figure it is a travel day and usually do not have anything else that needs to done during that period of time so why sweat the things you can’t change. I might have referenced something like that earlier.

 

Surprise, surprise no bags in ATL. Actually for as long as we have been doing this and this is to be only the second time they have not arrived with us is not bad. I really like the system they use. Having fears that they were in fact left, I went straight to the machine and scanned our bag tags. Affirmative on the fact that they were still in Portland so printed off the documents and went to the lost bag area. No wait, but had to listen to someone next to me bitch out his agent. We apologized for his behavior and within 2 minutes we were on our way.

The next morning I had an email that they were now in ATL and awaiting a driver to bring them to us. I confirmed that I was not coming to get them and that they did not need my signature. A few hours later another email saying they were on their way with the last email saying they were delivered. Pretty slick system, however still scratching my head as to why they could not get them on the airplane I was on. Maybe they were left so they could carry one more passenger.

Headed back now to where it all began, Louisville KY. Hope to run into some UPSERS that are protecting my pension with their outstanding work ethic. Onboard ran into Dijana Laurentz, the wife of one of my old bosses. She is deadheading home as a Delta Flight Attendant. She is also a runner so we did a quick catch up on what we had been doing since last we saw each other. I did not recognize her at first with her uniform on and all.

The UPSERS did not disappoint with about a dozen of them showing up to have some drinks and Mexican food at a local watering hole. We laughed and enjoyed each others company since I had been gone for almost 2 years. A long time friend Bill, who has been fighting the great fight with cancer also joined in on the fun.

My yearly echo exam went well and we also went by our storage unit to clear out about 1400 pounds of items. The most important being our bikes that we shipped UPS back to ATL. A bunch of other items were loaded into a truck and dropped off at a local Goodwill store and a few things were taken back to our smaller storage unit in ATL.

Before we left, turns out we found out that another runningcrise.com, fellow runner, Lori, was going to be in town.  She is a flight attendant with Republic Airlines and was on a layover at the same hotel I stayed in when I first got hired at UPS.  We were able to meet downtown for dinner and laughed about our last cruise we took with the group, this past February, and when our paths might cross again in the future.

After that we made a swing by Cincinnati to see my son, Shawn and my new daughter in law, Cassie. From there we went over to Bloominton Ind to visit Catherine’s daughter, Christie and her husband, Greg and two grands, Aaron and Adam. Aaron the oldest remind me of my oldest son, Aaron, at that age of 5.

Another touch and go in ATL and we are now in Kauai Hawaii. Another bad experience with our bags, with on day three here, one of the three is still missing in action. The other two were a day late. We are here to run another half marathon tomorrow. Catherine has decided to complete a marathon in all 50 states so we will be using this as a training run. She is only 5 states away from getting them all done so I will try to put them all on the schedule for next year.

I had thought I had convinced her to drop down to only doing half marathon from now on but I understand, with her being so close to reaching that goal. I am 15 away so the jury is still out as to what my plans are with that endeavor. I really don’t enjoy the agony and pain associated with a full marathon any more so I might just have to sit back and watch.

They call this the Garden Island and it rains on and off each day to keep this place so lush and green. The varieties of plants are outstanding and most pictures I have taken so far have not done the picturesque landscape justice.  We rented a very nice Condo thru Airbnb and will be here for two weeks at the Kiahuna Plantation Resort Kauai by Outrigger. I am sure Catherine’s bag will be here before we depart or we will be buying some new clothes while here or our next destination of Colorado.

Once again it was a broken plane that separated us from our bags. They moved us to another flight from ATL to LAX but not our bags. By the time the original flight took off for LA we were already on our way to the Lihue airport. Someone thought it would be a great idea to send our bags to HNL from LA and then on to the Garden Island. The only problem with that idea was that they would need to make that last leg on a Hawaiian Air airplane.

That is where Delta lost control of the bags and the black hole of information has been taking place. The delta app has no clue of where the last bag is and I have been calling Delta every 3 hours over the last three days to rectify the situation. Right now they say they are with the delivery company but that information is almost 24 hours old.

We might have to rethink how we travel from place to place but knowing that we are on destination number 185 the delayed bag percentage is still pretty low and really not looking forward to a lot of carry ons. Time will tell. We first have to reunite with the one missing bag.

Last bag arrived on day four and now Catherine has three great looking dresses, etc. That is perfect for two upcoming cruises in Oct. plus 10,000 Delta miles each.  Time now to hit the beach and enjoy the next ten days on the Garden Island.  The race itself was over the top.  The start was right outside our condo building and even though we had to climb the hills for 3.5 miles starting at mile four the rest of it was back down to a great finish area with some of the coldest beer possible.

They even had chips, ice coffee and turkey wraps.  The ice bags at the finish were a great way to cool down.  Since we only did the half we were able to shower and return to the finish to cheer in the final few marathoners that braved the 85 plus weather.  I had to get the shot with the cheer leaders that also remained.

Switching gears for a moment I would like to copy and paste something else I saw on Facebook, by the president of Marathontours.com, Jeff, concerning time and a different way to look at it.

“Imagine there is a bank account that credits your account each morning with $86,400. It carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening the bank deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to used during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course?  Each of us has such a bank, it’s name is time. Every morning, it credits you 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off at a lost, whatever of this you failed to invest to a good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no over draft. Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the day. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours. There is no drawing against “tomorrow”. You must live in the present on today’s deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost in health and happiness. The clock is running. Make the most of today.”
― Marc Levy,

If Only It Were True

You also don’t know when the bank will close for good.

I have found our new home if we decided to settle down one day.  Just kidding but the reality is that we love this island.  I probably say that 10 times a day and still have 5 days left before we have to head back to reality.  As you know we are actually on a budget and usually don’t splurge but I made an exception here on Kauai.

I actually wanted to be an helicopter pilot when I started my flight training but decided I did not like the drop like a rock aspect of helicopters and the amount of maintenance needed to keep them up in the air.  You would think after 37 years of flying airplanes a helicopter tour of the island would be simple enough.

Not the case, but was the thrill and tour of a lifetime.  For whatever reason I thought that we would be touring the island from thousands of feet over the ridges, mountains, waterfalls, etc.  Nothing is farther from the truth.  I felt I could have reached out and touched the leaves as we passed by.  Did I mention that I opted for the doors off and extended version of the tour.

We got outstanding pictures, as you will see below and after I got over the idea that this was how I was going to die truly enjoyed the experience.  I highly recommend Mauna Loa Helicopter Tours.  The cost was a bit steep but was worth every penny.  Catherine grinned from ear to ear the entire time.

We were also able to get in some great runs around the different areas around the island.  We did get to see the entire island by road.  Thee are numerous hiking trails throughout the island but we did not do much of that.  I am more of an open road type of guy.  I do not like having to look down constantly to see where I need to place my foot so that I don’t trip and fall, twist my ankle or get bitten by something hiding near or under a rock.  Let alone having to duck under all the branches that have been cleared by everyone much shorter than me.

 

We could not leave the island without taking one of the most popular tours there.  That being the infamous sunset cruise.  We went with the recommended Captain Andy’s Catamaran sailing adventure.  We went with the 65 foot boat option where the dinner was actually cooked on boat.  They did not disappoint and even though the clouds hide the actual setting of the sun the views of the inaccessible portions of the island and the colors of the sky just after the setting of the sun were breathtaking.

We finished off the two weeks with an uneventful flight back to ATL.  The red eye back to LA on the first leg was a bit hard to take but the upgrade to First Class for the morning leg to ATL made up for it.  We will be back to Kauai next year for another two weeks and since we got the two best and rather expensive tours out of the way we should be right on budget next time.  We had access to a great grill right outside our unit so probably will do a lot more cooking which will also help with the budget.

Chickens and roosters.  You can’t experience Kauai without experiencing the chickens and roosters.  Simply said, they are everywhere.  Not sure they actually serve a purpose but the reason they are so plentiful is because of their previous purpose.  Turns out cock fighting was big time on the island and due to a huge hurricane some time back they were all freed by the high winds.  Once they got out they did what they do best and populated the island big time.

The locals don’t like them since they are a nuisance but for me all it meant was that if you are a light sleeper, like I am, you are going to be an early riser.  So for us, early to bed and early to rise was the agenda each day and night.  No big deal. for us, since the first few days we were adjusting to the 6 hour time change.  Catherine thought they were so cute so she has numerous pictures of them and I could not resist taking a few myself.

Did not realize how colorful they are

Off to Avon Colorado for a week tomorrow for no good reason expect we have to be somewhere since we don’t have a home.  Actually we get offers to use unsold timeshare properties at a deep discount every now and then from Interval International.  I usually take them up on the offer and since we have never been there before, why not.

Avon is nestled in the foot hills of Vail and Beaver Creek.  We are staying at the Christie Lodge and is a very nice property with plenty of places to eat and shop nearby.  There are also paved trails great for running or biking in either direction for many miles.

One of the things we love about our travels are all the great people we have met along the way.  While we were on a Windstar Cruise from Costa Rica to Panama City, Panama last year we met Vicky and her niece, Katiebeth.  Turns out Vicky’s graduation present to each of her Nephew’s and Niece’s is a trip of their choice.

Vicky lives in Colorado, 5 plus hour trip between Durango, where she lives and Avon.  So the only logical plan was for us to each make a 2 plus hour drive to Salida for dinner.  The drive through the mountains was breathtaking and the drive back at night was uneventful.

We were able to catch up and take in the atmosphere of the sleepy town.  I did remember to take some pictures of the reunion and we have promised each other to cross paths again next year.  Turns out Durango does have a marathon in October.

All smiles

My baby and only daughter, Mariah, was in town for a concert so we were able to meet up for brunch at Smoke Ring in downtown ATL.  It was great to see her especially since she turned 25 earlier that week.  Her answer for where she sees herself 5 years from now, “PHD”.  I am sue that is a real possibility if she does not get the itch to hit the road and tour the world again.

We are now off to Europe for a month.  We start off with a 8 day Windstar cruise from Venice to Rome.  My daughter, Mariah visited Casablanca during her year long Europe tour after college so i figured why not pay a visit ourselves.  When we were in Amsterdam last year we noticed they were have a marathon and half marathon in October so we put it on our calendar for this year.  Only doing the half marathon and then on to Marseilles France.

There we will meet up with our runningcruise.com group for a pre-cruise tour of the area.  We will then cruise from Lyon to Paris.  We did a river cruise with them in 2013 along the Danube starting in Budapest.  I wrote about our trips with them earlier this year called, How not to go overboard on a cruise ship.

To close out this blog on my slant on time and what we have been up to for the last 45 days, I leave you with a phrase all have heard and or used.  “Time flies when you are having fun”.  It also speeds up when you get older.  In other words for a 2 year old, one year is half their life but for me it is 1/61 of my life.  Something I have also noticed is that time really hauls ass in retirement.  We are now starting day number 649 but it only feels like day 2.