249 days until retirement
I would so love to be able to be in SC right now. It is hard to think of my place just sitting there while life goes on as usual in Ohio. It is also hard to remember that everything I do here is part of the process of getting to SC, especially when it is the boring stuff. I cleaned out my clothes closet today. I have a couple of bags of stuff to go to Goodwill plus a bag of stuff I threw out. I'm planning on taking summer clothes down to Bluffton the next time I go.
My next project is my Santa collection. Since I don't really celebrate Christmas anymore I am giving all of my Santas away except for a couple I just can't bear to part with. I've already given some away to the family. I think they didn't think I was serious. Anyway I am going to pack them up so I can take the shelving apart and take it down to Bluffton. If anyone reading this would like any Santas just let me know.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Last year
254 days until retirement.
My last academic year has started. Sinclair has been a huge part of my life for 24 years. It is strange to be aware that I am doing things for the last time - the last fall payroll, the last time I will be teaching this class. In terms of interaction I am much more involved with first year students. So this is my last first year class. Even though I am obviously excited about the move to Bluffton I want this to be a good year for the students.
We have the added excitement of an accreditation site visit in a few weeks. It will be my fourth and my last. They haven't asked for any additional information from the written self study and that usually means that they have found everything they are looking for. It doesn't do to get complacent, however, it isn't over until it is over.
My last academic year has started. Sinclair has been a huge part of my life for 24 years. It is strange to be aware that I am doing things for the last time - the last fall payroll, the last time I will be teaching this class. In terms of interaction I am much more involved with first year students. So this is my last first year class. Even though I am obviously excited about the move to Bluffton I want this to be a good year for the students.
We have the added excitement of an accreditation site visit in a few weeks. It will be my fourth and my last. They haven't asked for any additional information from the written self study and that usually means that they have found everything they are looking for. It doesn't do to get complacent, however, it isn't over until it is over.
Sunday, August 18, 2013
I went back down to Bluffton before classes started. It was a interesting trip. My friend Marta went with me. We made it down OK except the air conditioner went out. That wasn't too bad on the highway. On Sunday the temperature was 95 and it was absolutely miserable in the car. We were able to get the car in to be fixed on Tuesday morning but didn't get it back until Wednesday afternoon. Unfortunately it was an expensive fix.
That kind of put a damper on the sightseeing. Marta did get some shopping done at the outlet malls. At her suggestion we rented a golf cart on Tuesday. It was fun tooling around Sun City in the golf cart. I am definitely going to get one when I move down there.
We also got over to the pools this time. The one nearest to me is really a beautiful pool. When I looked at it before I didn't pay much attention to it. Even the outside one has strategically placed umbrellas so I can get out of the sun. One night we went late and we had the whole pool to ourselves. It was wonderful to be in the water at night.
The more I am there the more I love Sun City. It really does feel like home. I thought I would go down again over Thanksgiving but I don't have very much time them. I think I will go a longer time over the Christmas vacation.
That kind of put a damper on the sightseeing. Marta did get some shopping done at the outlet malls. At her suggestion we rented a golf cart on Tuesday. It was fun tooling around Sun City in the golf cart. I am definitely going to get one when I move down there.
The more I am there the more I love Sun City. It really does feel like home. I thought I would go down again over Thanksgiving but I don't have very much time them. I think I will go a longer time over the Christmas vacation.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Purchases
295 days until retirement.
I am trying to restrain myself to buying only one thing for the Bluffton house per pay check. I hate my current bedspread in my master bedroom and have been looking for a new one for a long time. I found one I really liked but when I went to buy it this week they were out of them in the size I wanted. When I found a new one I liked I decided that it definitely would be my purchase this paycheck. I don't want to lose another one. The room will be painted a soft blue green. Here is the bedspread.
I also bought a couple of pillows.
I am trying to restrain myself to buying only one thing for the Bluffton house per pay check. I hate my current bedspread in my master bedroom and have been looking for a new one for a long time. I found one I really liked but when I went to buy it this week they were out of them in the size I wanted. When I found a new one I liked I decided that it definitely would be my purchase this paycheck. I don't want to lose another one. The room will be painted a soft blue green. Here is the bedspread.
I also bought a couple of pillows.
Of course they will stay in the package until May but at least I have them.
I have been anxiously waiting my housewarming present to myself - a meditating frog. I finally contacted the sellers yesterday to tell them it hasn't arrived yet. It turns out it is back ordered. I hope it is here before my next visit to Bluffton. It is a foot high so I am looking for something really cool to sit it on by my front door.
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
The Joys of Long Distance Ownership
296 days until retirement.
I received a frantic call from my SC realtor that my gas and electric was being turned off in Bluffton today. This was a surprise because I thought I had everything set up. A call to the Gas and Electric company, as opposed to the electric company, revealed there had never been an account at my address. Another call to the realtor provided me with the information that I needed to call again because the company had been known to miss accounts. By now it was 5:15. I did call again on the odd chance that they were open until 6. This time they found an account for my house and the gas was scheduled to be turned off tomorrow. I didn't even know I had anything running on gas. It turns out that I have a gas furnace. Sooo, now I have gas that I didn't know I needed. Wow, what a flurry of activity.
That's kind of the way this retirement thing is going. Lots of stuff happening and then nothing. Right now I am in the middle of a nothing period. I want to go down again but there is no reason for it except that I want to be there. There is absolutely nothing in the house except an air bed, a couch, love seat and recliner, the odd lamp or two and a couple of folding chairs. I know Dan got my key and the list of things I want to have done before I move in but I haven't heard back from him. He is doing me a big favor even looking at the house so I don't want to bug him. I wonder how long I need to wait so it doesn't qualify as nagging? I think daily contact would be considered to be too much!
In the mean time we inch along to the beginning of my last academic year. I finally have all of the classes covered. That was beginning to worry me. I think I have the Student Handbook revision completed. It needs one last look from Nan and Shanese. I haven't been able to finish the syllabi for my courses because the class roster keeps changing. We have orientation on Monday, the 22nd, for the new students. That will be our first look at the class.
I received a frantic call from my SC realtor that my gas and electric was being turned off in Bluffton today. This was a surprise because I thought I had everything set up. A call to the Gas and Electric company, as opposed to the electric company, revealed there had never been an account at my address. Another call to the realtor provided me with the information that I needed to call again because the company had been known to miss accounts. By now it was 5:15. I did call again on the odd chance that they were open until 6. This time they found an account for my house and the gas was scheduled to be turned off tomorrow. I didn't even know I had anything running on gas. It turns out that I have a gas furnace. Sooo, now I have gas that I didn't know I needed. Wow, what a flurry of activity.
That's kind of the way this retirement thing is going. Lots of stuff happening and then nothing. Right now I am in the middle of a nothing period. I want to go down again but there is no reason for it except that I want to be there. There is absolutely nothing in the house except an air bed, a couch, love seat and recliner, the odd lamp or two and a couple of folding chairs. I know Dan got my key and the list of things I want to have done before I move in but I haven't heard back from him. He is doing me a big favor even looking at the house so I don't want to bug him. I wonder how long I need to wait so it doesn't qualify as nagging? I think daily contact would be considered to be too much!
In the mean time we inch along to the beginning of my last academic year. I finally have all of the classes covered. That was beginning to worry me. I think I have the Student Handbook revision completed. It needs one last look from Nan and Shanese. I haven't been able to finish the syllabi for my courses because the class roster keeps changing. We have orientation on Monday, the 22nd, for the new students. That will be our first look at the class.
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
303 days until retirement. How did that number go down so quickly you might ask. I was looking at the State Teacher's Retirement System newsletter. It said that you have to work until the last day of your contract. Since I had no idea when that was I asked Human Resources at Sinclair. It turns out that the last day of my contract is graduation day. So my new retirement date is May 9, 2014. I'll take a week to finish up everything.
Last week Becky and I took a trip down to Sun City. I wanted to take possession of my new house. If I had been down there on vacation I would have been upset. There were thunderstorms every day. I managed to get lost both in Bluffton and in Sun City. I had a map of Sun City but didn't keep it in the car. We finally got a map for the Bluffton area. For some reason the GPS on my phone wouldn't reset. It kept trying to route me from Miamisburg.
We dodged rain drops and got a lot done. We took down an air bed that I could leave there so I would have some where to sleep. We got that set up and put up the shower curtain in the guest bath. We had a couple of lamps we put together so we could have light in the bedrooms. I had my new resident orientation. I am now officially a resident of Sun City. Most of the people I met while I was there were originally from Ohio. That was a little weird.
I also had the locks changed and bought some furniture. I went to this outlet store that my friend Kathi told me about. I got an awesome deal. They have beautiful furniture with all kinds of styles. I wasn't planning on going so conservative but I love the color and the rounded arms. The sofa is a queen sleeper. The recliner is amazing it is so comfortable.
The color of the love seat is the true color of the furniture. I was worried about my TV amoire because it is so dark and the furniture is so light. It just happened that the coral in the cushions matches the furniture really well. After the furniture was delivered we were able to match paint chips and pick the color for the rooms in the front of the house. It is a soft pale yellow.
We came back a day early because it was raining so much and we were bored. The next time I go down I think I will take the TV in my bedroom and VCR and DVD players. I don't want to order cable yet because I won't be down there much until May. Other than that I think the majority of stuff I will take down will be kitchen stuff. I know I can organize and put that stuff away.
Back on the work front I have the fall courses pretty much set up. I still need an instructor for the second half of the developmental lab. It is weird to think about teaching the classes for the last time. I am working on cleaning out my office. I would be doing that anyway for the accreditation site visit in September. I am just being a little more thorough about it.
Last week Becky and I took a trip down to Sun City. I wanted to take possession of my new house. If I had been down there on vacation I would have been upset. There were thunderstorms every day. I managed to get lost both in Bluffton and in Sun City. I had a map of Sun City but didn't keep it in the car. We finally got a map for the Bluffton area. For some reason the GPS on my phone wouldn't reset. It kept trying to route me from Miamisburg.
We dodged rain drops and got a lot done. We took down an air bed that I could leave there so I would have some where to sleep. We got that set up and put up the shower curtain in the guest bath. We had a couple of lamps we put together so we could have light in the bedrooms. I had my new resident orientation. I am now officially a resident of Sun City. Most of the people I met while I was there were originally from Ohio. That was a little weird.
I also had the locks changed and bought some furniture. I went to this outlet store that my friend Kathi told me about. I got an awesome deal. They have beautiful furniture with all kinds of styles. I wasn't planning on going so conservative but I love the color and the rounded arms. The sofa is a queen sleeper. The recliner is amazing it is so comfortable.
We came back a day early because it was raining so much and we were bored. The next time I go down I think I will take the TV in my bedroom and VCR and DVD players. I don't want to order cable yet because I won't be down there much until May. Other than that I think the majority of stuff I will take down will be kitchen stuff. I know I can organize and put that stuff away.
Back on the work front I have the fall courses pretty much set up. I still need an instructor for the second half of the developmental lab. It is weird to think about teaching the classes for the last time. I am working on cleaning out my office. I would be doing that anyway for the accreditation site visit in September. I am just being a little more thorough about it.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
As of today I have 337 days until retirement from Sinclair Community College. I didn't particularly have any plans for retirement. I thought I would teach the occasional class at Sinclair and stay in my condo here in Dayton, Ohio. Then my sister Trish started talking about retiring somewhere close to the ocean and close to each other. She did the first scouting with her friend Mark and fell in love with Bluffton, SC. It is just interior from Hilton Head.
Trish and I went down last August to take a look at Sun City Hilton but it was really just an excuse to visit Bluffton. I wasn't the least interested in a retirement community. I certainly didn't think I needed all those swimming pools and walking trails and lakes. I wasn't expecting how beautiful it was or how many things they had there that I was interested in doing - cards, crafts, theaters. The craft center with beading, quilting and ceramics sealed the deal as far as I was concerned. I know I will be a lot more active there in retirement than I will in Dayton. And that doesn't even take into account the weather.
In May I took another visit to Bluffton to be on the ocean and to find a house. I did find a house but was reluctant to post anything about it until it was officially mine. So here is my house.
Take a look at the view from the Carolina room. There is a lagoon on one side and a park like area out the back.
The rest of the pictures of the interior have the previous owner's furniture. I am going to go down soon and I will take some pictures of the empty rooms and we can watch it as it comes together. Here is the floor plan though. My unit is actually a flipped version of this. And it does have a screened in porch.
In May I took another visit to Bluffton to be on the ocean and to find a house. I did find a house but was reluctant to post anything about it until it was officially mine. So here is my house.
Take a look at the view from the Carolina room. There is a lagoon on one side and a park like area out the back.
The rest of the pictures of the interior have the previous owner's furniture. I am going to go down soon and I will take some pictures of the empty rooms and we can watch it as it comes together. Here is the floor plan though. My unit is actually a flipped version of this. And it does have a screened in porch.
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