Runaway Boomer is 2

This Runaway Boomer posting today is my 104th. You know what that means – a 2 year milestone. I have managed to write once a week, every week for two years. Somehow it has become important to me to consistently meet my self-imposed Thursday morning deadline.

In the beginning, at the request of friends, I wrote a number of posts about the steps we used to plan for our early retirement. Then I expressed more about what our life has been like after leaving our corporate jobs, including enjoying our homes in Chicago and Prescott, travel, and our newfound love of golf. The biggest surprises for me have been a few odd posts that have sort of written themselves – like my (bad) poetry. There were words and phrases in my head that wouldn’t be ignored, and just had to come out on paper. One poem I swear I composed in my sleep – I just had to get up and write it down before it was forgotten.

Friends; I sincerely thank all of you who have read my blog and reached out to me. Your comments and encouragement inspire me to act on my desire to write, and continue to “spill my guts”. Some have told me they are living vicariously through my experiences. I hope you are actually dreaming and making your own plans for personal freedom. The first big step toward living your dream is being able to visualize it. I wish that for you all.

Peace.

Don't Forget to Look Back

Last night, sated by a prime rib dinner at Talking Rock Club, Ron looked around our home and said, “I never could have guessed we would be here”. He was recalling the years of hard work and good fortune that allowed us to retire early. That led us both to think further back…

Ron’s paternal grandfather worked as a carpenter for a coal mine in southern Illinois. Later, health issues forced a job change. He became a janitor for the local school system. Ron’s father, Jim, left at 17 to join the Navy, get an education, and make a better life for himself. After the Navy, with the help of the GI Bill, Jim earned an engineering degree from the University of Illinois and became an electrical engineer. He married Barbara, a true farmer’s daughter, college graduate, and teacher. They raised 5 children. When the family would go to see Jim’s parents, they visited a home that was little more than a shack, with no indoor bathroom. But Ron and all of his siblings went to college. It’s humbling to remember that there is just one generation between us and an outhouse, or a hard life of farming that included walking the beans and slopping the hogs.

My own paternal grandfather emigrated from Greece. My papou (grandfather in Greek) was a furrier – a good living that allowed him to send John, his son/my father to Northwestern University to earn a degree in electrical engineering. Mom and Dad raised 4 kids, and sent us all to college. Early on, we lived in modest homes and pinched pennies. Vacations were taken once a year, via a packed station wagon, to visit family in New Hampshire. My idea of comfort food was derived from dishes like Creamed Tuna on Toast, which stretched a can of tuna fish to feed a family of 6, served with a salad. The occasional dinner out as a family was burgers and milkshakes at the Ho-Jo’s drive-in.

Ron and I both made the most of good public education and, later, advanced schooling paid for by our parents. Neither Ron nor I were provided with a car when we turned 16. We both worked real jobs for pocket money and our own savings, from our mid-teens on. When we graduated college, we moved out of our parents homes and started our own independent lives and careers. As a young couple, I remember visiting friends who had just moved into a lovely $100K home in Plano, TX and thinking, “We’ll never be able to afford a house like this.”

Fast forward to 2011. Retired now, we (temporarily) own two nice homes – a condo in the city and a ranch cottage on a golf course with mountain views. We eat out several times a week. Our next vehicle will be an electric golf cart. Good friends and family enrich our lives, which couldn’t be better. In April, we will celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary, and once again we will count our blessings and say,

“We never could have guessed we would be here.”

No More Mulligans for Me

If you’ve been following my blog, you already know that I am golfing. I love the physical challenge, the competition (with myself), and being out on a beautiful course in the fresh air. All that walking and flailing around with a club is good exercise. An added bonus is my new circle of golf buddies – the ladies I see at least once a week for our “Nine and Wine” gathering. But, it’s time to kick it all up a notch!

I am working on my golf handicap. Turns out that I need one to play on Ladies Day and in any club tournaments. My goal for this year is to participate in Talking Rock’s “Spirit Cup” tournament in late August. The tournament is several days of golf, female camaraderie, food, drink, and fun. I don’t want to be left out this year.

The purpose of establishing a handicap is to allow amateur golfers of disparate skill levels to play together competitively. My club has set me up online with the Arizona Women’s Golf Association, and I now log my scores. Once I have completed a certain number of rounds, a calculation will be made based on my scores and the difficulty of the courses I have played, and a handicap established. Assuming I continue to submit my scores, the handicap will be adjusted over time, if I get better (or, God forbid, worse).

Let’s say I am assigned a handicap of 20. If I then actually score a 120 on 18 holes, my handicap would be subtracted from my score, and my score would become 100 for competitive purposes. At this point, I expect my handicap to be pretty high – but I have to start somewhere, right?

The pursuit of a handicap is having some interesting side effects on my golf game. First – I can no longer be casual with the official rules. Until now, if I flubbed a drive, I would take a mulligan and try again (without counting the extra stroke on my score). Second – I find that I am much more focused on making a good shot, because one more stroke here and another there makes a difference. Now that I submit my scores, I would like to avoid unnecessary embarrassment. I think this focus will help me improve my game.

This could be a humbling experience, but it’s necessary if I want to become a serious golfer. Stay tuned for updates.

Blizzaster!

Spending January and February in Prescott was a premeditated plan to avoid the worst of winter in Chicago. I didn’t count on missing the third biggest blizzard on record, which occurred earlier this week. The city and some its outlying areas got 20+ inches of snow, blasted in by hurricane-force gusts and impressive sustained winds. Officials closed Lake Shore Drive, and snow drifts stranded hundreds of motorists. Some were rescued by paramedics on snowmobiles! St Joseph’s Hospital became an overnight refuge for over a hundred commuters who couldn’t make it home.

Our relatives in the northern suburb of Wadsworth lost power for 6 hours overnight. They couldn’t make it to work in the morning, and spent three hours with a snow blower, clearing their driveway. Of course, the streets are still blocked by 4-foot drifts, but hopefully the snow plows have made it there by now. (Ron’s brother, Ken, in his driveway pictured below.)


Photo by Joy Bailey

We missed all the excitement! It would have been fun to hole up in our cozy condo with a hot toddy, watching the snow rage sideways down our street, and eating comfort food. Our building is a 1920’s-era fortress, and we have a gas fireplace, so we would have been safe and warm. The association has a contract with a service that shovels our walks and stairs, so we wouldn’t even have had to worry about that. And now I can’t brag that I survived Chicago’s Blizzard of 2011, AKA, “Bizzaster”, “Snowmageddon”, “Snowcopalypse”, etc.

It was fun to see the photos people posted on Facebook, and we were glad to get the messages that our friends and family members were safe. We got some effect from that same weather front in Prescott. Yesterday was nasty; a cold and windy day. But by the end of the week, we should be able to golf. That day is distant in Chicago.

I Admit, I'm Selfish

When I watched President Obama’s State of the Union Address this week, I listened with a somewhat biased mind – biased toward the protection of my happy, healthy, financially-secure life. I often describe my political leanings as “Financially Conservative and Socially Liberal”. I am wary of government waste and free-spending that drive taxes higher without long-term benefit for the majority of U.S. residents. And, honestly, after working since the age of 15 (sometimes 7 days a week at 2 jobs), paying off my student loans, working a high-stress corporate job that infringed on my personal life for years, paying taxes at a pretty high rate, and never once having to file for unemployment – I strongly believe I have earned the right to protect the life I have built!

There were two statements from the SOTU Address that spoke directly to me:

“What I’m not willing to do is go back to the days when insurance companies could deny someone coverage because of a preexisting condition. “

Now that we are no longer covered by a corporate-subsidized health insurance program, Ron and I pay for our own individual health insurance. Although I consider myself to be pretty healthy now, my history as a colon cancer-survivor, among other minor managed conditions (like high cholesterol), are problematic. My application for individual coverage was denied, and I was only able to obtain coverage because Illinois has a government-subsidized program for “high risk” candidates. I pay $700 a month for insurance, and have a $2500 annual deductable. Arizona has no such program (until ObamaCare kicks in fully in 2014), so I don’t know what we will do for my health insurance when we move in 2012. We may only be able to obtain Catastrophic coverage. It’s a crap shoot, and it makes me angry.

“To put us on solid ground, we should also find a bipartisan solution to strengthen Social Security for future generations. We must do it without putting at risk current retirees, the most vulnerable, or people with disabilities; without slashing benefits for future generations; and without subjecting Americans’ guaranteed retirement income to the whims of the stock market.”

Ron and I have planned meticulously for many years in regard to the funding of our retirement. We had to make some conservative assumptions about Social Security, earnings on investments, taxes, and inflation. If there are any really major changes that invalidate our assumptions, our future will be at risk. We weathered the recession pretty well, and are always willing to modify our plans; but I don’t want the government pulling the rug out from under us financially.

Although I was admittedly self-focused about some of the content - I did listen to the entire address, and have interest in and opinions about most of what Obama put on the table. For example, I would love to see high speed rail throughout the country. I believe that we should take better care of the soldiers that serve our country, along with their families. Personally, I thought the Sputnik reference was kind of off the mark. Overall, I was gratified to hear Obama show evidence of a more centrist position; a position I believe better reflects the policies of the majority of his constituency across the country.

An Eyeful

My mother and my younger sister, Althea, are visiting us in Prescott this week. Since neither have been to Sedona (and especially because Althea is a photographer), we decided to drive to Sedona yesterday for some sightseeing.

The “direct” route to Sedona takes us through some plains, up on a winding pass over Mingus Mountain and through the tiny former mining town of Jerome. Jerome is now a town of artists and free spirits; a unique and historic place that draws tourists and hikers. We visited a few galleries and enjoyed the view of the valley from the east side of the mountain.

Once through Jerome, you can see hints of the splendor of Red Rock country 30 miles away. From a distance, haze dilutes the intensity of the natural colors in the desert rocks. The closer you get, the more the glow of the rock formations fills your eyes, draws you in, and stirs the blood.

Photo by Althea Haropulos

In the late afternoon the rocks both absorb and reflect the golden sunlight, creating a stunning red- orange and purple glow. The surrounding foliage- green, gray, and brown, provides a frame to anchor the unearthly beauty of the Red Rocks. Fragrant sage adds another element to enjoyment of the view.

We weren’t able to spend time hiking, but did get out of the car at several points to take photos. With a camera, one can only capture representative frames of specific scenes. Even the eye and brain can be overwhelmed as a result of trying to take in and “process” the entire vista.

Photo by Althea Haropulos

If you haven’t been to Sedona, put it on your Travel “Must See” list and prepare for an eyeful! We have so many sights to see and appreciate in these United States.

Time to Take Care

The New Year has brought me a renewed commitment to eating right and exercising regularly. We are thankful that our life of leisure allows us to spend the time required to do both properly without feeling frenetic.

Seven years ago (the year after recovering from my bout with colon cancer), there was a period when I was getting up at 5:30am to get to the gym by 6. I’d work out for an hour, then hurry home to get ready to leave for work. Work days were long…often lasting until 6 or 7pm. Exhausted and really hungry, I got into a bad habit of eating whatever I wanted and making it worse by eating late in the evening. Somehow I felt like I “deserved” it…for being good about my workout regimen, and giving so much to my job. Phooey and Hogwash!

Now retired, it’s a pleasure to take the time to take care of ourselves. I can do an extensive workout, taking about an hour and a half. Usually I do 45 minutes to an hour of cardio (elliptical or treadmill, and stationary bike), 100 to 150 abdominal crunches, and a short circuit with weights for some strength and toning. Here at Talking Rock Ranch, we have a first-class fitness center. The cardio equipment has TV’s and headphones, which keep me from staring at the clock. (“All I need to do is watch another HGTV show, and I’m done!”) No excuses in Chicago either, as Ron’s Man Cave has a TV, an elliptical, free weights, and a mat for floor exercises and stretching. Since I’m getting into the routine in Prescott, I can continue my goal to workout 5 days a week when we get back to the city. Ideally, I would like to drop another 20 pounds.

As far as eating goes… We know how to do this right. I have to count my carbs, to keep Type II Diabetes at bay. Low Carbs = No Meds for Laurel. Lots of protein, plenty of fiber, some dairy, and the right veggies and fruits are the ticket. We stay away from most processed/packaged foods. Those we do buy, we check labels carefully. Read the nutritional information! Many so-called “healthy” products are loaded with unhealthy carbs, silly levels of sodium, and other chemicals you don’t need.

I’ll get off my soapbox now. Actually, I was giving myself a pep talk. Onward to a better body!