It’s been a month since I retired. It hasn’t seemed very adventuresome but it has been put very productive.

I’ve been focusing on preparing our house for sale. We’ve taken care of all of the big projects: a new roof, new landscaping, and repaving the driveway next week. One truckload of junk removed from our basement and next week they’ll come for the last ½ truckload. I spent a few days gathering stuff for garage sales and researching how to effectively hold a garage sale which led me to the conclusion that I should not worry about holding garage sales. My plan is to donate all items that are worth less than $50 and sell the other items individually. And I’m trying to focus on the high value items. So, if you are in the market for a pinball machine, stage lighting, collectible trains, or a blue PRS guitar, please let me know!

I’ve been studying Italian and am preparing for our upcoming trip to Italy in mid-May. Not a typical vacation; the focus will be on learning Italian and meeting with locals to prepare for our move. Last year we attended the Lucca Italian School and will be returning for more studies. It’s a nice mixture of learning, fun, and meeting interesting people from around the world. Lots of emphasis on conversation. While in Lucca, we will also meet with several realtors, people who can help with the immigration process, and an accountant. We’ll squeeze in some fun activities and we were very pleased to learn that the annual Cantine Aperte (Open Cellars) will be held during our first full weekend. Across Italy many wineries open their cellars for tastings and special activities. Usually reservations are required for all winery visits and scheduling them can be quite a challenge! Jim is still contemplating which areas we will focus on.

I’ve had several requests from people to post pictures on my blog. No Italy pictures, but here are some pictures of Bald Eagles from Conowingo Dam and a Red-Shouldered Hawk from our back yard. I hope to have some nice pics of Lucca for my next blog update!

On a sad note, Wes passed away this week. Wes and Mickey, my sister, have been companions for several years and I feel like I’ve lost a family member as well. The picture below is from a trip that we took to Scottsdale in 2016 with various “family” members. Wes is now “Br’n & 😎’n” in heaven…

I’m still dreaming about work. I wonder when that will stop???