Seriously, I can’t believe it has been FOUR years since my last post! I need to do something about that. I’m sitting here thinking back over the past four years and I know why I have been silent. I have been contemplating life way too much. Here’s why.
In October of 2015 my elderly mother came to live with me full-time. In a nutshell, caring for her was the hardest work I’ve ever done in my life. She made it for a little over a year before succumbing to 70 years of cigarette smoking in December of 2016. Honestly, her lungs finally gave out. Thankfully, due to end-of-life laws, I was able to help my mother make her life exit in a peaceful and comfortable way. That being said, watching your mother’s life drain away before you can have a profound effect on how you view your own mortality.
My previous blog post was on New Year’s Eve of 2016, just a few weeks after my mom passed. Fast-forward to today and I am retired from my former work life and trying to make the most out of the years I have left. To catch up, here’s a list of some of the things I’ve done since December 2016:
- 2/2017 - Moved to a smaller town
- 4/2017 - Visited Painted Rocks Petroglyph site
- 8/2017 - Visited Monument Valley, Mesa Verde, and toured the Alpine region of Ouray, Colorado
- 2/2018 - Formally retired after 40+ years of corporate life
- 8/2018 - Visited Montezuma Well, Sedona, Sunset Crater National Park, Wupatki National Monument, and Walnut Canyon National Monument
- 11/2018 - Visited Tonto National Monument
- 2/2019 - Visited Picacho Peak State Park
- 5/2019 - Visited Meteor Crater, and the region in and around Santa Fe, New Mexico
- 7/2019 - Started converting a 5x8 cargo trailer to a camper (aka Clutch Cargo)
- 6/2020 - Maiden camping trip with Clutch Cargo at Patagonia Lake
When not traveling, I spent time on day trips, updates to my backyard, numerous home improvements, and visited family in California on several occasions.
So, now we’re up to date. The current pandemic situation has made things interesting, and thanks to kindred spirits on YouTube, I have been inspired to get out there (safely, of course) whenever possible. Going forward, I will be sharing more of my exploits here in my blog as well as Instagram, so stay tuned. 🤓
