Retire In Style Blog Too

Sure looks new for a  55 year old smoker !) Having dealt with repair people that tell me that "the part is in the mail" I do know how that works. Only last week we were waiting on that mysterious part for our refrigerator. I suppose that is where I got the idea for my husbands Father's Day gift. See, almost 55 years ago I promised him a smoker...a real honest to goodness, big smoker for meat and other stuff. Then life happened and I forgot about the smoker...sorta. Honestly, my conscience has bothered me a little ever since. So when our grandson turned up with one, I knew the game was on. I could not have our grandson with a smoker and my disappointed husband without. My husband agreed. As soon as we arrived home from our dinner with that child, my husband was on the internet shopping. Next thing we both knew, the smoker was ordered, delivered and in  the garage...in 100 pieces. There were no complaints about the assembly required and just 10 days later, we are putting sa...

Do those of you think that retiring at 45 would be a dream come true? How would you manage that financially until you died? Would you be happy, active, learning all of that time? Would you be bored? Would you find fulfillment? I have been thinking about people that I have known that retired very young. The pattern I have seen is that those people sell everything they own and buy a home on wheels. Their plan is to live like a gypsy for the rest of their lives. They are seeking a simpler life. We parked in our motor home next to a couple in Palm Springs that were doing just that. Their RV was beautiful and we could see them dancing in their living space while we were eating dinner. They had quit their jobs and sold their home so they could chase the dream. They were in their 40's. That couple had only been living their dream life for a few months. I often wonder where they are now and what they are doing. It really is all about the money. Those that stop working early live with their...

It's all about the girls this week. Babies, mamas, grandmas, great-grandmas and granddaughter. Addie Jo is a character but then, that is expected. Daughter (Auntie) Grandma Susan and Great-grandma Barbara. Susan is the grandma to all our babies when my husband and I are in the desert...hence Auntie Grandma Susan. My granddaughter on her 21st birthday...she is so pretty and don't you just love her glasses? Mikaela is the baby-mama! Lucky us! This last Friday my two great-granddaughter met each other for the first time. Embrey is 18 mo. and Addie is 4. Alysia is Embrey's mom and the angel in our family! Have a wonderful day! b+

I have just returned from our snowbird winter and I brought a list of books that I read this winter for you to consider. The links here are from Amazon only because I have a selfish motivation...I am an Amazon Associate!  Each one is unique. Some are deep and challenging, others just plain fun.  The Woman in Blue  by Elly Griffiths was a lot of fun to read. A cat, a Druid, a mental institution and a religious story surround a murder that takes place in  England’s Nazareth, the medieval town of Little Walsingham . I loved this little light bit of reading. I think you will too. Susan Hill is not a writer of fluff. The Simon Serrailler series begins with The Various Haunts of Men . I actually held my breath as the climax to this story unfolded. Amazon say it was a "must read mystery" when it came out in hard back. Now, you can buy it in paper back. That is a good thing. I checked my copy out from the library. Dancing in a Distant Place  by Isla Dewar   is the ...

I apologize in advance. This blog is not perfect. If you can help, do so but please send me a message or email (btorris@gmail.com). The comment section is not the right place for that sort of thing. I posted a question on my Women of Midlife Facebook page the other day. It looked like this:  Thirty-six (36) responses later I was scratching my head because I was surprised. Is that a good idea? Should you correct spelling in comments and (like the commenter that started it all did) even criticize the pictures? Maybe so and then again, maybe no. The English teachers were adamant and felt "compelled" to point out a misspelled word. In a blog post spelling errors are just plain wrong and if you do that, you need to be corrected.  Others took a gentler approach suggesting that, if it was a glaring mistake, you should send an email or a Facebook message. They thought it was rude to post a comment with a spelling correction suggestion. No one, not one single person, said it was to b...

Elena at age 10 in Tombstone AZ One of my grandchildren is turning 21 today...remember that day in your life? I was at a party with family and all of my midlife friends. We were talking about turning 21 and almost everyone had a story to tell. On the day they turned 21 there were things that they did to mark the anniversary...parties with friends, beer, revelry! Wow, I thought. I have no memories of that day at all. What is that all about? So today I am invited to go on a wine tasting tour with my grandchild, her mother and her sister-in-law. I feel like it is my birthday because that is what I would have chosen...life is good isn't it? I hope Elena is as happy as I am and I hope when she is old, she has wonderful memories of this day. What a beautiful day. Happy Birthday Elena! b+ (Grandma)

Still Confused after All These Yeas We are both over 75 or whatever that age is when you are automatically excused from Jury Duty. We take advantage of that age thing. It is only right that having lived a long time should have it's privileges...right? Then why do I feel guilty about not doing my "civic duty". Meryl Baer over at Six Decades and Counting  wrote a piece about doing her "duty" and what it takes to get out of or get into that pool of people that are called. She was called to serve on Grand Jury in her state and is now in a pool of about 100 people waiting to "do her duty". The truth of the matter, I have never had to sit on a jury for over 40 years. But I still remember the one time experience. It was not good. See I had always wanted to be more liberal than I am (as thought that is possible.) But when it came to imposing justice it turned out I was not liberal or conservative...I was just confused. The man we were sitting in justice of was...

Found: One old article in my desk drawer. Did I publish this funny thing or not? The answer is yes and  no. Yes  it appeared on Generation Fabulous back in 2015 before that website became Women of Midlife.  No it never appeared on this blog. Here it is. My husband and I have been married for 53 (almost) year. I know things have changed a lot since we were teens but don't tell me that romance is not still alive...my husband and I are going on a date! I have it on good authority that date night is suppose to help keep the passion in a marriage...well it is one of 100 suggestions, number 3 I think. I knew we could do number 3 so I didn't read any further. I found out about this second hand on the Erma Bombeck Writer's Workshop website. Vikki Claflin wrote the article about date night and romance so she is the authority, not me. I am just going with the meme. But, I want you to keep in mind that I am probably 20 years older that Vikki so my date night probably does not look o...