Considering that I have just gone through one of the
major “life events” that people experience, i.e. moving to a new home, I thought
it would be a good time to begin writing something on a semi-regular basis. I
don’t know how frequent these entries will be, or how substantial, or what they
will be about, but I know that I have wanted to put things on virtual paper for
some time now. Maybe this fresh start in a new location will give me some
inspiration.
If you are unaware of the reason for our move, Pat and I
wanted to be closer to her dad and brother. We both took early retirement from
our jobs within the past couple of years, and our son Ben graduated from
college (University of Oklahoma) last August, so we decided last year that the
time was right to make the move. Ben decided to stay in our house in Grapevine,
to take advantage of the job opportunities in the area and the lower cost of
living than here in California. Having a girlfriend there also factored into
his decision. We will miss him, but will be in touch with him often and will be
back for visits.
We arrived in California January 18, having driven from
our former home in Grapevine TX starting Jan. 16. It feels strange referring to
Grapevine as my “former” home, and I know it will take some time to get
accustomed to saying and hearing that. The drive out here was the longest trip
that I have ever taken by car where I was behind the wheel the whole way.
Fortunately, we had very nice weather the whole trip. The scenery was
mega-boring in west Texas, but got more interesting in New Mexico and Arizona with
hills and the occasional fascinating rock formation to break up the monotony.
We even had time to take a short side trip through Saguaro National Park
outside of Tucson AZ. That was a beautiful place, and we wished we had had more
time to spend there.
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| Saguaro National Park, Arizona |
When we finally got to CA, we were several days ahead of
the moving truck’s scheduled delivery, so we stayed with Pat’s dad until the
truck got to our home in Thousand Oaks Jan. 23. Since that day, our lives have
consisted almost entirely of unpacking, shopping, more unpacking, and meeting
various technicians whom we engaged to install phone service, satellite TV,
etc. And then, some more unpacking. As of today, just over a week after the
truck made its delivery, we have cleared the boxes out of almost every room,
have most of the furniture where we want it, and are getting an idea of what
everyday life here might be like. It will be an ongoing process as we adjust to
the house, the neighborhood, our neighbors, and the community. I’ve been
feeling a bit overwhelmed by it all, but the stress of the moving experience is
dissipating more with each new day. Pat suggested that we start looking at all
of the opportunities that the Southern California area offers, figure out which
of them we want to take advantage of, and make plans to do so. I signed on to
that course of action immediately. We are both excited to jump in and enjoy
ourselves in this wonderful region in which to live.
Besides all the things there are to see and do, there are
also people here for us to catch up with. Some are friends and relatives that
we have kept in touch with since we moved to Texas, and some are friends and
relatives that we are hoping to renew ties with. That process will begin very
soon. If you are reading this and would like to reach out to us, please don’t
hesitate to leave a comment (without including any personal information, you
know, to be safe), or better yet send an email to the address you will find in
the left sidebar to let us know how to get in touch with you.
We are excited about this new chapter in our lives. I
will try to record some of my thoughts and impressions as time goes on. With
luck, it won’t be too boring.
