Who woulda thunk

Working 1 week a month can get in your way of plans?  Well looks like that is what is happening.  I am scheduled to work 1 week in Hawaii in the month of January, but the date keeps moving.  I already have my tickets and Bruce's but might have to change them  who knows.  It is the nature of the business and never bothered me when I worked full time but now it is cramping my style.

Going to head to Sunriver next weekend and get the house listed for sale,  I have my St. Joseph ready to take and bury so hopefully it will sale quickly, but if it doesn't oh well, not really strapped for cash right now.  I will just continue to make payments.

Christmas was very peaceful this year.  Maybe that is because my Mom & Aunt had everyone over for Christmas Eve and My Son made Christmas dinner at his house.  I think this is the only year in about 35 years I have been off the hook, and it was great.

Checked in on Bruce's treatment plan and still for his genotype no  plans without interferon so were on hold until June or July.

Three more days of going into the office and I will be done.  Feels good.  I have been cleaning out my office. BTW what does a person do with 35 years worth of plaques?  Not sure but for now they are in a box.

Getting excited - Counting the days

Time flies when you busy but goes so slow when your waiting on something.

I have several things to finish up here before I can head to Isla.  I had a problem with the lady I hired to do my visa paperwork in Cancun.  She did not file things properly and  now I have to go to Portland OR to file some paperwork there. Sounds like a big hassle because I have to make at least 2 trips to the Embassy and have a formal interview since  I also have some work to do in Hawaii around the 13th or so of January so I am just not sure of the timing between the 2 so Mexico will have to come after that is all resolved.  We still have not made the final decision if we will drive or fly and that may depend on what we find out about my visa.

We still need to make a trip to Sunriver to get the house there all ready to list for sale so that will be on the top of my list of things to get done.

Sure is nice to be winding down and able to say sorry have so and so take care of that for you.

It is cold out side...

Today leaves me longing for Isla.  We normally don't get snow that lasts for more than a few hours but we have a cold wave moving through.  It is suppose to be 5 degrees tonight burr.

 

Time Flies when yours busy.

Been working out of town pretty constantly for the last few weeks.  The good thing is is seems to make the time sail by.  I will be in Hawaii for a few days next week and central California the following week then home for the holidays.   Most of the Christmas shopping is complete and we are all snuggled in with a snow storm today.

Cant wait to get my January and  February work week nailed down so I can head to Mexico.  I have a mess to figure out with my immigration UGH.  Guess I need to file here and finish down there. It can be frustrating to get all this taken care of, and especially so when you pay a professional to do the work and they mess it up.

Things I need to do.  in the next 25 days
Still need to decide if we will purchase a car here to drive down or just fly down and buy one there.   I do think we have decided on a PT Cruiser convertible now just to find one with low miles etc.  Since I work for car dealerships this should not be to hard.

I need to list our vacation home for sale but I don't really have to sell it but we just don't use much anymore so might as well take one less chore off our list.

We have decided to wait on Bruce's treatment until early summer when we will be in Oregon more.

25 more days I think I got this one.

My countdown begins 35 days

I am pretty excited.. January 1st I am starting my retirement of sorts.  I will be only required to work 1 week a month for the next 15 months. I will finally be able to spend more time in Isla.  Although our house is rented pretty solid through April I  have a couple of weeks work in Maui and Oahu in January and February so I  will combine that with an extra week vacation.  Life is good and I am excited to start a new chapter.

Making a list

I have been doing some googling to see what a drive to our house in Isla Mujeres looks like.  Wow it is a long way to drive.  It could be a fun trip if we break it up and stop and check things out along the way.

I think I need to seriously start a fitness plan the older I get the the more stiff and sore I get when I do any physical activity.  Just gardening has me limping around this week.

My latest project is the pool.  It needs either a new liner or to be concreted in.   They say you have to be patient  in Mexico, well we have only been calling for 3 weeks and we still don't have an estimate.

On the funner side we are headed to Isla mid July, I am excited to get my permanent residency card.  This will mean I don't have to apply any longer and I will be ready to apply for dual citizenship.

Time to call it a night.

Ever feel like your life is in a hold pattern?  Well that is what I feel like today.

Before I retire we still have to take care of some medical issue Bruce has.  He has HepC and the good news is that there is a new non-interferon treatment that should become available in the next 3 months or so.   We have scheduled him for some tests he needs at OSHU for the  beginning of June.  I have my fingers crossed that he passes these tests and can go on the new treatment.  It would be nice to start our adventure with this behind us for awhile.  While i doubt he can ever be totally cured getting is viral load down and stopping the scaring of his liver would be awesome.  My fingers are crossed the drug gets FDA approval soon.

It is that time of year and I have outside projects coming from every direction. Pool gardening fixing decks adding an outdoor kitchen - really this list goes on and on.  I guess making a list would be a good way to start.

It is mothers day Sunday and my son and Daughter sent me some pretty flowers at work.  Sure makes my desk look nice.  Work seems much harder when you have so many othr things you would rather be doing.  I think it is harder when your counting down the days instead of just plugging along day to day on your normal course.

Retirement can be a bit scary

Retirement is a bit scary.  For 33 years I have worked for the same company.  I followed all the advice to save for retirement I donated generously to my 401k and saved along the way in a normal retirement account.  Now here is the scary part, how much do I need to retire?  Does anyone really have the answer to that one?

I of course consulted with my financial advisor before deciding to quit my good paying job, that has keep me very busy and engaged working.  He ran my savings and told me if I could live off x amount monthly I was free to retire.  I am lucky the only debt I have are normal living expenses and a vacation home I will sell after I retire.  Selling now would create to much tax burden so that can wait.

Well you would think this all sounds great but daily I have those twinges of how will we live without a bi monthly paycheck.  Things live medical insurance will no longer de subsided by my pay check and I will need to cover that expense.  Health reform will mean next year you can't be turned down for per existing conditions, of which we both have, but costs are really uncertain.  Hopefully we can find a policy that works great for us.  We plan to live between Isla Mujeres and our Oregon home.

RetireBut I do question my self all the time.  Bruce my love of 34 or so years has HepC and has cirrohsis that is already effecting his energy level and ability work and to do things so if were going to have a few quailty years we better do it now and not wait to turn 65.

So I just decided to set a plan for next spring and go for it.

Someday is coming

It's been a long time since I blogged. My head is swirling lately and I have made some important decisions.. I plan to retire  in a year.  I would do it now but I have some company shares that come due next March that will make retirement much easier so I will hang in there until then.

Bruce and I are wanting to spend more time in Mexico but we definitely have all kinds of  loose ends to sort through.

We are thinking we may want to take a road trip down to Isla.  My son has concerns with us driving across the boarder but I think we will drive and take our time and see the sites.

More to come but I plan on keeping my blog current with all that is going on in our lives.