Green Valley Ranch, Henderson, Nevada check in…

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Yesterday afternoon we arrived in Henderson, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas, to our vacation rental in Green Valley Ranch, a newer community with massive amounts of stores, restaurants, gated communities, and a  mere sprinkling of casinos. 

It doesn’t feel like Las Vegas with its slot machines in every gas station or public building.  Instead, it feels welcoming, safe, and low on tourists.

Entering the single-family home for the eight days we reserved over Tom’s birthday and Christmas, we knew immediately that we were “home.” A fresh smell wafted through the air (love that word!), welcoming us as we maneuvered through the door arms laden with “stuff.”

Unloading my arms onto the living room floor, I ran about from room to room squealing with delight. Each room had its own surprise to behold. 

From the stack of perfectly folded crisp white towels and washcloths in each of three bedrooms, two baths, and an ample linen closet, to the full-size bars of new soaps atop each stack, no stone was left unturned.  

The kitchen, fully stocked with every amenity, had a “working” ice machine, ground coffee, cream, some basic ingredients along with every small appliance we could possibly use.  Three flat-screen TVs, a pool table, stereo, and old fashioned boxed games were available for our entertainment.

The pool, although not heated and an extra $100 a day to heat (it’s too cold here now in the 30s!) has a free-use hot tub (forgot my suit) in a well-equipped yard with high top table, chairs, and a huge newer grill. Too bad it’s not 90 degrees!

The rent for the eight days, although much more than we’ll pay outside the US for most houses, was fair at $1500 which included a $250 cleaning deposit which we expect to get back.  We did the math.  Most likely we would have paid $165 a night for a hotel (including taxes) during the holidays, plus tips, valet parking, plus all meals in a restaurant, and how much lost with easy access to gambling.  Surely we would have spent at least $400 a day for an estimate of $3200.

Staying in this lovely home, cooking for Tom’s party, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day including our guests, our grocery and dining out budget is $1050, leaving us with a total of $2300 saving us $900 or more depending on how much we’d have lost gambling (we don’t usually gamble but when it’s at hand, it’s hard to resist). 

This is the first Christmas in my adult life that I won’t be shopping in a frenzy, wrapping gifts with elaborate hand made bows, baking a wide array of delectable cookies, and of course, decorating every corner of the house. In an odd way, it’s liberating.  We’ll miss family back in Minnesota and we’ll revel in family and friends here in Nevada.  Life is filled with trade-offs.

Soon, we’ll head to our two dentist appointments for our final cleanings, then off to the travel clinic for Tom’s final Twinrix vaccine.  Then, to the grocery store for the ingredients for the lesser amount of baking, I’ll do this year. 

It won’t be gluten-free, low carb, sugar-free, grain-free, starch-free.  It will be delicious, fattening, gooey, filling up this lovely home with smells that remind us of “home.”  I won’t take a taste.  Tom will take off a few days for this special time, his 60th birthday, and some of his favorite treats.

Hum. There’s no rolling pin. What shall I use in its place?

P.S. After writing the above this morning, then rushing out the door to the dentist’s office, I had yet to post it. Upon returning a few minutes ago, it was imperative that I amend it.  We just had the most amazing dental appointment in our lives, a referral from son Richard at Dr.Patrick Simone’s office in Henderson, Nevada.

Walking into his plush, well-appointed office puts me, a dental phobic, instantly at ease. From the elegant, upscale furnishings to the artwork to the well-equipped beverage bar and, the service, impeccable!  Even the restroom was a sight to behold with every imaginable accouterment. 

It almost felt as if we should tip not only the receptionist, but also Terry, the knowledgeable, personable, and thoughtful hygienist.  Instead of the usual hand performed cleaning, scraping away at our gums and teeth, Terry used a laser implement as an adjunct to the traditional cleaning. She used “before and after” photos that were shocking. 

After the cleaning, she performed what she referred to as “sandblasting” the surface of our teeth with a high powered baking soda spray.  The taste was awful.  The result, mind-blowing. My teeth hadn’t been this white since I was a toddler. We couldn’t be happier. 

As we paid our reasonable bill of $226 (for both of us), they thanked us profusely handing us a giant apple pie! Who gets an apple pie from the dentist?  I was thrilled with the bag of dental supplies Terry loaded up for our travel. And then, this giant pie. Wow! 

Need I say that we were impressed?  If you live near or around Henderson or are visiting Las Vegas and a dental situation arises, Dr. Simone’s office is the place to call.

Gee, for the eight days we’re, here in Henderson over the holidays, this does feel like home, minus the grandkids, the grown kids, the friends, the beautifully decorated tree, the elegantly wrapped gifts, the oversized glass jars filled with home-baked cookies, the Santa Bears adorning every corner and on and on.

Life will be different going forward.  Good, but, different.

Photos of upcoming vacation home in Nevada!…

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Pool and Spa
Pool and hot tub in Nevada house.
Living room
Living room.

Below are the photos of the Henderson, Nevada vacation rental we’ll be moving into this upcoming Wednesday after a five-hour drive across the desert. We posted these photos many months ago, doing so again today for our newer readers.

Master bedroom.
Second of three bedrooms.

A charming house with great reviews in VRBO.com located in the fabulous Green Valley Ranch area in Henderson, a suburb of Las Vegas, will definitely serve our needs for eight days over the holidays with family and friends coming to visit for the three days between Tom’s 60th birthday on the 23rd and Christmas.  We couldn’t be more thrilled.

3rd bedroom
Third bedroom.

Over the next two days, we’ll busily pack for the eight days in Nevada, finish the balance of our paperwork, pack the food and cooking supplies we’ve accumulated while in Scottsdale, and the hardest part of all, decide what we’re leaving behind in one final bin we’ll leave at son Richard‘s house.

Kitchen, dining area.

This is the hardest part.  Once we leave the vacation house in Henderson on the 27th, we return to the vacation house in Scottsdale for our final packing before leaving on January 1st for San Diego to ultimately sail away on January 3rd.  Any items we don’t bring to Henderson now become a part of our luggage, an impossible scenario.

2nd Living room
Casual dining and lounge area off of the kitchen.

We have warm clothes that we aren’t bringing (Good thing we brought them along for the cold weather we’ve experienced lately), piles of papers to pass off to my sister Julie who’ll spend Tom’s birthday and Christmas with us as well. 

Pool Table
Pool table in the living area.

Julie will keep our medical files with test results, our health care directives, and stacks of legal documents that we completed on Friday.  We’ll leave our tax prep receipts in a banker’s box with Richard. 

Kitchen
The kitchen is dated, but serves our needs.

Oh, it goes on and on.  There’s so much to remember much of which I listed on a Nevada “to do” and others that require me walking around and “looking” at everything to further remind me. Thank goodness, my memory is serving me well. 

Living room
Main living room.

Not only will we move into the house below, but we’ll get ready for Christmas, baking (for guests), decorating (just a little), and go to our dentist appointments for final cleanings.  After the dentist, Tom has an appointment at a local travel clinic for his last TwinRix vaccine. 

Spa
Hot tub as part of the pool.

Plus, we’ll complete the arrangements for the sale of Tom’s car (prospective buyer in the works), hopefully, to transpire while we’re in San Diego over the last two days.  If that doesn’t work out for any reason, of course, we have a Plan B. 

On January 2, we’ll take the SUV to a local dealer and sell it for whatever they’ll give us.  Apparently, there’s a shortage of clean used vehicles. After pricing it at Edmunds, we feel confident that we will sell it for close to the dealer’s wholesale price. It’s a 2010 model and in perfect condition.  We’re already prepared for a low offer accepting this reality as part of the process, especially after doing so poorly at our estate sale. Ouch!  Nobody cares to pay what we feel “our stuff” is worth.  

Here’s the link to the details and photos about the Henderson home.  (Please excuse the formatting issues. It’s rather tricky copying and pasting photos from other web sites.  As I’ve mentioned in the past, web design is not my forte).
http://www.vrbo.com/301335

Budgeting, wills and taxes…

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Its been nagging at me.  I think about it every day with a sense of dread. 

On the massive Excel spreadsheet, I created for our 5 to 10-year worldwide journey, there is a worksheet page entitled “To Do in Scottsdale.”  It contains all the paperwork tasks we’ve had to complete before leaving the country on January 3, 2013. 

“To Do” lists never intimidated me, no matter how lengthy. I’ve always taken great comfort it chipping away at task after task ensuring each one completed in its entirety before going on to the next. 

Yes, I know.  I’m rather obsessive. We live with that.  It doesn’t intrude in the enjoyment of our lives, we don’t fight about it and it doesn’t prevent us from a rich and full life. 

Perhaps, in a certain way, it adds to our lives by eliminating thoughts of all the “things” we have to do.  One by one, I chip away at them, freeing our thoughts to more fulfilling moments.  No one ever heard me say, “Oh, I can’t come to the party ’cause I have to fill out forms.”  Never.

So, on that “To Do in Scottsdale” sheet we’ve knocked off everything (many of which I posted here and there) except for the following:
1.  Prepare and get new wills notarized (our bank here will notarize at no cost)
2.  Prepare and get new Living Wills and health care directives notarized.
3.  Prepare our taxes up to date, amending the last two weeks of this month at the end of the month forwarding everything to our accountant by snail mail. 

Oh, tax prep, I despise this task!  Always have, always will. Yesterday, I began the process and today, it will be completed except for additions as mentioned above. 

We couldn’t imagine living in Belize, steps from the ocean and ever feeling like going through that bag of receipts, let alone hauling them along with us. In future years, we’ll have used our handy Doxie portable scanner, saving all tax-related items.  Much easier to do as we go then dread it all along.

A few people have asked, “Will you still file tax returns and pay taxes in the US?”  The answer is “yes,” always. We will always remain US citizens, as do many ex-pats living outside the US. 

Having saved every receipt for absolutely every dime we have spent since leaving Minnesota on October 31, 2012, it was also time to enter our “actual” costs into that budgeting expense record.  Upon completing the tax portion which I will finalize today, I started totaling the other expenses, such as food and entertainment.

Our total cost for the three-day drive to Scottsdale $780.  We had budgeted $1065 but arrived one day early.  Fortunately, the property manager didn’t charge us for arriving a day early but had he, we still would have been within the budget.

Preparing the taxes and totaling the receipts (all of which we’ve saved) finally enable us to see how we’re doing on our budget.  As I mentioned, going forward, we’ll log (scan) and toss each receipt as the expense occurs to avoid hauling around a growing bag of receipts.

Here’s where we are so far for the variable expenses for food and entertainment with only 18 days left in 2012.

Groceries for Scottsdale
Budget:  $ 1700.00     Actual: $ 696.00

Dining Out & Entertainment for Scottsdale 
Budget:  $  300.00      Actual: $501.00

Total Budget for Groceries and Entertainment for two months: $ 2000.00
Actual (so far):                                                                   $ 1197.00
Balance available until we leave for Henderson next week:     $   803.00

Groceries for upcoming 8 days in Henderson over the holidays
Budget: $ 600.00

Dining Out & Entertainment for upcoming 8 days in Henderson over holidays:
Budget: $ 450.00

We’ve been in Scottsdale 40 days as of today, arriving on November 3rd for an average cost of $30 per day.  With 6 more days until we leave for Henderson, we’ll plan to spend another $180 for a total of $1377, leaving us an overage of $623.00.  Thus, our total available for Henderson is $1673.

Preferably, it won’t be necessary to use this overage, putting us ahead of our budget right out of the chute.  We’ll see how it goes, posting our “actual” costs later.  Of course, there are other costs we are reviewing and will be posting as we go along.

Today, I will finish the tax prep after my trip to the health club, leaving the file ready to receive the remainder of this month.  Tomorrow, we will re-do our wills bringing them up-to-date and re-do our living wills, getting them notarized at the end of the day.

Also, VisaHQ, our visa, and passport processing company, sent us an email that our second passports will be in our mail within one week.  Yeah!  We did all the paperwork correctly! 

By this weekend, we can relax knowing that the worst of our paperwork is done, a huge relief.

Isn’t this part fun?

Adaptation…

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ad·ap·ta·tion

noun ˌa-ˌdap-ˈtā-shən, -dəp-

Definition of ADAPTATION
1   : the act or process of adapting : the state of being adapted
2   : adjustment to environmental conditions: as
a : adjustment of a sense organ to the intensity or quality of stimulation

b : modification of an organism or its parts that makes it more fit for existence under the conditions of its environment  

We’re adapting.  It’s not easy.  We knew it wouldn’t be easy.  We loved our unique peninsula home, the breathtaking views, Mother Nature surrounding us, the ease of being together day after day, and the people in our lives. 

Yes, as most of us, we longed for more; more time, more money, more freedom.  The longing, in itself, became an elemental part of our existence, tucked away to draw upon when pensive or reflective, never quite certain what it was we wanted.
The familiarity of the enveloping environment created a cocoon from which we could so easily escape by simply stepping away.  We chose not to.  Instead we chose to stay entrenched in the soft folds of a life insulating us from the harsh wounds life often inflicts. 
It didn’t protect us.  The sorrow, the disappointment and the unfulfilled expectations, still came our way.  We drew closer to one another as we muddled our way through, always grateful to have survived yet another rising of the tide, all the while anxious to return to our comforting routine.
Letting go of it all, saying goodbye, wasn’t easy. Yes, we had this great future planned, full of wonder; travel the world together for years to come.  “Wouldn’t that prospect make the leaving easier?” they asked.
In a perfect world, it would. But we’re imperfect. If we fall and break our leg today does it hurt less when we know that next week our new car is being delivered? Life is lived in compartments; today is a tough day but tomorrow is easy.  Today we falter, weak and unsure, yet tomorrow we stand tall ready to face whatever is thrown our way. 

Its the nature of us humans.  We feel. We’re inconsistent in the process of feeling.  That’s what makes us wonderful.  That’s what makes us adaptable; the desire to recover, the desire to heal and the ultimate desire to begin again.And, we begin again, as the clock to the end of our lives begins to tick louder, we begin again, to savor every moment in a state of constant flux and challenge in unfamiliar surroundings, testing our strength, testing our will.

Yes, it was hard to leave “them” behind.  It was riddled with guilt and fear of losing their love. But they have their lives to experience, to learn, to grow.  They have their own raging seas and calming tides.  They have their own adaptation.

As the time draws near, we find peace.  In two unfamiliar homes in the past three weeks we’ve chosen to call wherever we may be, “home.” That, ultimately, in our own way… is adaptation.

Our new look…request to our readers…

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Hello, Readers,

We hope everyone finds our new look easier to read and follow.  As I mentioned yesterday, we still have some work to do to get it where we want it to be, to ensure it’s easier for our followers all over the world.

To complete our optimization in Google and other search engines, the more “followers” we have the easier it will be to find us when we leave the US in 57 days. 

In addition, we’d like some of the companies who’s products we’ve mentioned to be easily available to you, if and only if, you want more information.  We will continue to share bargains, coupons, budgeting and financial tips with you as we encounter them.  Some of these will be time sensitive.

In order to accomplish this, we need to show the scope of our already 1000’s of readers on the right side of the page via “JOIN THIS SITE” by our readers entering their email addresses.  It won’t take more than two minutes to complete.

What does this mean to you? This prevents you from having to check each day to see if there is a new post.  Instead you will receive an email in your INBOX with the day’s post (s). 

Since we’ll be writing more frequently, perhaps twice in one day, everyday or… in some cases, less when we are unable to get online in remote areas, this prevents our readers from having to look for new posts.

Our readers email will not be used for any other purpose other than to notify you of posts on this blog.

We are so pleased and surprised that we have readers from all over the world.  Here’s an example of our readers over the past week directly from our stats section in Blogger:
United States
668
Russia
42
France
15
Poland
6
Canada
5
United Kingdom
5
Germany
4
Slovakia
4
Finland
3
China
2

We look forward to growing our site, providing what we hope will prove to be interesting and useful information to both seniors like ourselves and of course, the younger generation. 

Please take a moment to enter your email in “JOIN THIS SITE” on the right side of the page to ensure we are always able to share our journey with you.

Thanks so much,
Jess & Tom

Today’s the day! Happy Halloween…Off we go!

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Tom went to work at 5:40 this morning for the last time after 42 years, to sign his final papers and get the traditional frosting laden train decorated cake. 

In minute he’ll walk in the door of friend Karen’s home to begin the process of packing “way too much stuff” into his SUV and head to Scottsdale, Arizona to begin the first leg of our year’s long journey.  

Most likely it will take an hour or two and we’ll be off.  One third of the stuff we’re bringing on the road trip will be ditched when we leave the US in two months. Mostly, its includes some snacks, a few remnants we couldn’t part with for now, my tea pot, my Genius chopper, sugar free peanut butter, and four bottles of Courviosier he received as gifts at his party.

Tom just walked in the door, frustrated and angry that his last day on the BNSF railroad, after 42 years of hard work, was dismissed in a few ways.  One, the usual jacket retirees receive on their last day was no where to be found and two, his departing cake had “Marty” written on it.  One would think after all these years, they could get his name right!  Marty!  Good grief! (Poor Marty. He must have “Tom” on his cake!)

Ah, let it go my love.  Your name “Tom,” was on your cake last Saturday night at your retirement party with over one hundred railroad guys and gals in attendance to celebrate YOU!  

Now, its close to 1:00 PM.  After nearly two hours, the car is loaded, the Kryptonite bike locks are entwined in the handles of the six suitcases, the over-sized black tablecloth covers it all and we’re just about ready to go.  

Surprisingly everything fits, except for the cooler which I’ll keep on the floor near my feet.  Whew!  My bad shoulder is killing me but maybe, just maybe, the manual labor will be at a minimum over the next four days as we waft our way across half of our beautiful USA.  

Goodbye, family.  Goodbye, friends.  Goodbye, Minnesota. 

Hello, New Life… the life of two traditional baby boomers, aches and pains in tow, wrinkles and gray hair escalating by the minute, hearts filled with love, hope and anticipation, embarking on the journey of our lives.  Stay tuned.

Thank you, family and friends!…

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We’ll be getting our new camera soon, Watch our photos greatly improve!
Tom and Jess last night at Tom’s 42 year retirement party.

No words I can possibly write can express the gratitude we feel for the warmth and love we experienced last night at Tom’s 42 year retirement party. 

With over 150 guests in attendance we both made every effort to talk to everyone. If we missed you, we apologize.  Of course, with me having lost my voice a few days ago, I was unable to hostess in my usual chatty manner. Perhaps, it was nature’s way of telling me to shut up and listen.  Which I did.

The thoughtful and generous gifts, the hilarious and heartwarming cards, the hysterical photos of Tom over the years and of course, the appearance of Alfred E. Newman in disguise made Tom feel so appreciated and loved. Thank you everyone!  Thank you so much!  We are so grateful.

Tom’s 42 years on the railroad warranted a special cake.  This fully edible cake is held together by the gifted hands of the fine baker and the stiff fondant.

My amazing co-hostess, daughter-in-law Camille, interminably hard working throughout the busy evening, made time to enjoy the festivities as well.  Thank you, my dear, for being there for us during this important event finding myself sick and slightly exhausted from the overwhelming recent preparations.

Tom’s co-workers, many known for over 40 years, many now also retired came in droves to celebrate Tom and one another for a near lifetime of great stories and memories. The wives, partners and girlfriends I’ve come to adore over the years filled the room with well wishes and great memories of our own.  We will miss you all.

Tom’s family, the ultra large pack of fun and friendly individuals came from all over, some having come a long way.  They told endless stories resulting in non-stop laughter and the usual teasing of one another.  Thank you family. We love and appreciate you all.

The cake made by Raven, baker extraordinaire at Cub Foods in Shorewood, Minnesota spent days preparing this fully edible cake.  Her passion and enthusiasm were only surpassed by her attention to detail.  We couldn’t have been more pleased with the cake. Thanks, Raven!

It appeared everyone had a great time enjoying the food and beverages and most of all, the conversation and warmth from one unbelievable group of people.

In three more days, we’ll pack Tom’s car and head down the road on the first leg of our world wide adventure…two months in Scottsdale doing paperwork, finalizing medical appointments, obtaining visas and second passports and purchasing and setting up all of our digital equipment.  They’ll be a few side trips to Nevada to visit family including a rental house in Henderson over Christmas.

Although this portion of our trip will be less exciting than that which transpires at the end of the two month period when we officially leave the US, we will keep you informed along the way.  

We’ll share details of the necessary processes of the paperwork and logistics portion of the tasks required to leave the US for years to come, the security measures we employ for our health, wellbeing and safety, the people we meet along the way and the trepidation and joy we experience in the process.  

Thank you for reading and for joining us two traditional, stay-at-home “creatures of habit” as we venture out into this unknown territory leaving everything and everyone we love behind us, in an effort to fulfill what may prove to be the experience of a lifetime.

Feeling better, not perfect…

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Last Saturday night, we attended a 50th birthday party for Tom’s nephew. Tom drank. I drove as usual, which proved to be an hour’s drive each way. 

On the way home, my lively and animated passenger kept me entertained   With his usual jokes, backseat driving and directions, in this case leaving me much better off on my own resources, stone sober that I was.  His ongoing enthusiastic suggestions would surely would have taken us to a dead end road to oblivion.   

Tom seldom drinks.  Tom seldom drinks enough to get noticeably drunk and never has a hangover.  Tom is never sloppy or obnoxious.  He’s funny, very funny. As a result, I gladly drive when he wants to imbibe on those special occasions a few times each year.

Arriving home, he flopped into bed, snoring softly only minutes later. I poured a glass of ice water to leave on his bedside table, just in case he awoke thirsty during the night, along with the two Tylenol tablets. Just in case. 

Sipping iced tea all night, I struggled to fall asleep, finally relenting by taking two Formula 303 tablets, an all natural homeopathic remedy that works wonders getting me to sleep, not necessarily keeping me asleep. (It’s safe to take two more if necessary, that works as well the second time).  

Two hours after drifting off, I awakened to the gut-wrenching sound of gut-ripping coughing and relentless sniffing.  Darn!  He’s got a cold!  How will I ever fall sleep with all of this noise, light sleeper that I am?

Awakened no less than 20 times during the night to these “noises,” in the morning I felt as if I was the one with a hangover, struggling to drag myself out of bed and begin the day.  How can he be sick now, when we have so much to do?  

With his long work hours, he had little time or energy lately to get “his stuff” sorted and packed, mostly tools and memorabilia to give to the kids and grandchildren.  Trying not to nag (not my style) I gently reminded him over the past few weeks that time was marching on.  

Let’s face it, I tend to “over-prepare” well in advance and Tom, bless his heart, is somewhat of a procrastinator. We accept these differences in one another knowing full well, that when it’s time to go, we both will be ready.

As sick as he was all weekend, somehow he managed to work on his piles of papers, attack his boxes filled to the brim, and help me complete the packing and weighing of his luggage, mine done months ago.  

The weekend nights were sleepless for me with his coughing, choking and snorting while he remained relatively unconscious from the big dose of Nyquil PM.  Monday morning he dragged himself to work while I remained at home, minus a car to drive, preparing to get back to packing and sorting.  

On Monday night it hit me, first a little tickle in my throat, a peculiar little cough and a feeling of general malaise. As the sickness left him, it gathered deeply into my head, leaving me useless to perform even the smallest tasks.

In years past, this degree of discomfort would have driven me to go to urgent care for cough medicine, antihistamines and antibiotics.  Not so the case. Practice, practice, practice, I told myself. Practice getting through this illness without a doctor visit, toughing it out, drinking hot tea, eating light, healthy meals, moving about to avoid muscle loss and weakness.  

Last night around 3:00 am, I relented and took a half dose of the Nyquil PM when the coughing wouldn’t stop. Without my contacts in, I couldn’t read the label.  I searched my night table drawer, now nearly empty from cleaning and packing, for an old pair of reading specs.  What I read shocked me! 

Oh, no!  I had just downed high fructose corn syrup!  Is anything free of junk these days? I slugged down the second half of the dose. Tonight, sleep, sweet sleep was more therapeutic and meaningful that my desire to avoid HFCS.  I slept until 7:30 am, feeling better, not perfect, but better.

A wasted number of days with little accomplished, I resigned myself to the reality that when we travel the world, on occasion we’ll be sick, we’ll be tired and we won’t accomplish anything.  

However, while sick this week, Tom (never missing any work) and I both applied for Railroad Retirement. I researched less costly health insurance plans outside the US, finding a  more affordable option (we’ll write more about this later). I contacted social security about my Medicare options, packed several boxes, did more laundry, cooked a fresh dinner each night, made the bed each morning, talked to the pharmacy about purchasing our year’s worth of drugs out of our pocket (sans insurance) at month’s end and on and on.

I can’t wait until we’re gone to be able to spend some time doing nothing. How peculiar that will be. I’ve never “done nothing.”

Today, we’re both feeling better, not perfect, but better.

Road trip angst further resolved…

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Like a song stuck in my head (an “ear worm”), I have continued to worry about the security of our luggage while on the four day road to the Scottsdale, Arizona beginning on October 31, 2012 as we commence the first leg of our worldwide year’s long journey.

Yes, we now have the “Club”, the window stickers and the warning lights for the console of Tom’s car creating an appearance that we have an additional armed alarm system along with the factory installed system. 

Our plan has been to take our time on a leisurely drive to Arizona for the two month stay to complete all of our paperwork, obtain our second passports, purchase health and emergency evacuation insurance, prepare our 2012 taxes to be sent by email to our accountant, establish residency in Nevada, apply for Nevada driver’s licenses and get Tom’s new eyeglasses.  

Some have asked why we are spending two months in Arizona when in fact we are establishing residency in Nevada. Before deciding on our worldwide journey, we had decided to spend time in Scottsdale, a  delightful climate and city while contemplating what we wanted to do during this last third of our lives.  

We’d committed to the condo in Scottsdale late last year and chose to honor that commitment, although we could have gotten out of it months ago.  Also, Tom’s two, possibly three of his six sisters will be a short drive from us while they spend their winter in Apache Junction.  It will be fun to spend time with them).

During this period, we will also purchase and set up two new laptops, two new unlocked smart phones and other digital equipment. We’ll spend four days in Henderson mid-November to babysit son Richard‘s dog Monty while Richard is out of town.  It will be rather entertaining to spend some quality time with our grand dog, a rambunctious pug who enjoys sitting on the back of the sofa leaning on one’s shoulder and snorting in one’s ear. 

Our long time friends of 25 years, Lisa and Brian, live only a few blocks from Richard.  As world travelers, foodies and health nuts, we always have plenty of lively and animated conversation.  

In December, we’ll spend eight days in another vacation rental house in Henderson, Nevada (will post photos later), have our final dentist appointments, throw a party for Tom’s 60th birthday on December 23rd and celebrate Christmas with friends and family.  Whew!  We’ll need a vacation after all that!

On December 28th, we’ll head back to our vacation rental in Scottsdale, pack up all our bags, heading directly to San Diego on New Year’s Eve to stay with our niece and her hubby, to finally leave the US on our first cruise which will be through the Panama Canal, on January 3rd.  

In any case, my angst is wrapped around the risk of a thief(s) stealing all of our remaining worldly (no pun intended) possessions out of the back of Tom’s SUV while we’re parked at a hotel or while dining in a restaurant along the way. 

Sure, everything will be insured but that’s not the point.  The point is that I have spent a good chunk of the past eight months outfitting our bags for their contents, commensurate with the particulars of each location in our journey; weather, activities, social events, etc.  

It would be a daunting task if we were robbed. The thought of replacing each well-thought out item while dealing with the insurance company in an attempt to recover our losses, and subsequently continuing on with our plans, is nothing short of intimidating. This dreadful possibility has continued to nag at me over the past week since purchasing the Club and the other “security” items mentioned in an earlier post.  

While driving my car the last time to deliver it to the dealer who purchased it last Friday, a thought popped into my head:  What if we were able to link all of the bags together with two “cut proof” indestructible locked cables?

With each of six suitcases weighing about 55 pounds each, plus about 25 pounds for each of two carry on bags, it would be literally impossible for one, two or more thieves maneuver 380 pounds of bulky luggage, tied together, (also anchored to the interior of the car), unload them and walk them down the street to the own vehicles.  

That may deter a theft, ultimately deciding to steal from a more convenient scenario all the while our alarm is blaring.  As soon as I returned home, albeit “car-less” I started searching online for the appropriate cables.  Here’s what we purchased:

Kryptonite Kryptoflex 1218 Combo Cable Bicycle Lock (1/2-Inch x 6-Foot)

Kryptonite Kryptoflex 1218 Combo Cable Bicycle Lock (1/2-Inch x 6-Foot)by Kryptonite

Price: $21.49 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details 
Product Features

  • Integrated, user-set, four-digit combination lock has indexed number dials for error-free combination setting; adjustable spline attachment rotates up to 240 degrees for variety of lock carrying locations
  • Flexible 12-millimeter braided steel cable with protective vinyl cover offers increased cut resistance; patented EZ Mount transportation system is versatile enough for variety of tube frames and shapes

Tying all the bags together, looping the two cables together and perhaps tying them to the steering wheel, should create a secure situation.  Covering them with our over-sized black tablecloth will provide added security.  Ah, I feel better.

Also, we’ll use the same two cables to lock together each of our sets of bags when we’re wheeling them in each of our 250-pound-capacity rolling carts. Doing so prevents a thief from walking by and grabbing a single bag. This provides us with an additional use of the cables. 

Yes, I do feel relieved enough to let this go to free my mind to continue on with the zillions of other tasks at hand, as the countdown continues, 15 days until we move to our friend’s home, 22 days until we leave. Whew!

Car sold!…Seamless transaction…

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In a 24 hour period from Thursday to Friday, I drove over 150 miles around town, meeting prospective buyers to finally sell my car.  Slightly nervous about meeting strangers, I chose public parking lots, close to busy roads.  

Tom suggested I turn over the keys to any prospective buyers to test drive it on their own rather than join them, better to have a stolen car than to be kidnapped!  I agreed.

Listed on Craigslist for free, CarSoup for $9.95 for one month and Auto Trader for $20 for one month, I was delighted to notice an increase in activity when I placed the last online ad on Auto Trader, resulting in a sale only a day later. Had I known Auto Trader reached such a wide audience, I would have listed it there in the first place. Who knew?
The last car I’d sold several years ago was the result of an ad in CarSoup. This time, I didn’t have much time to be overly creative or frugal. With our high level of motivation I was determined to get the car sold as quickly as possible, leaving one more crucial task out of the way.

Oddly, it sold to a dealer, Patrick O’Conner/owner/dealer of a finance company, First Source Financial. Patrick had a potential customer on hand.  My instincts told me that his buyer may have required “special financing” allowing him to resell it at a higher price than he paid me, a price with which I was satisfied. Win, win for everyone.

Treated with kid gloves, not only did I feel at ease throughout the transaction working with Patrick but also with his delightful assistant Jennifer, who was kind enough to drive me the long way home after I’d dropped off the car at his dealership on Friday. 

It was an odd sensation when Jennifer left me at home. Looking out the window, I realized that for the first time in my adult life, I didn’t have a car of my own. For a moment I felt trapped, even lost.  Tom’s long work days left me at home certainly with plenty to occupy my time over the next 17 days when we move to our friend’s home as the estate sale begins.  

Suddenly, everything is moving quickly. While grocery shopping early in the morning before turning over the car, I carefully calculated each item that I purchased to ensure that it was “just the right amount” to last through our remaining days.  I started saying goodbye to the staff of many years at our local grocery store, knowing that I may only be back one or two more times.  How odd.

I’ve lived in this general area of the western suburbs of Minneapolis for the past 40 years, seemingly far away yet only 30 minutes to downtown.  For years we used the same bank, the same library, the same State Farm office, the same drugstore, the same Target store, and the same post office. 

On Tuesday, I sadly said goodbye to the staff at the post office while dropping off a package. Over the years I’ve come to know and  appreciate each one of them for their kindness, their great service and for remembering me each time I entered their door.

We won’t be able to say goodbye to everyone. The time is flying by so quickly that I am now left wondering how everything will get done in time, let alone having time to see everyone to say goodbye. Now, with no car, I am dependent upon friends and loved ones coming here to say goodbye.  Some will come, others will not.  I accept this.  
That which seems so huge and meaningful to each one of us is often, but a blip to others, as we all get caught up the whirlwind of our daily lives seeking a sense of achievement, of fulfillment and of responsibility.  
I have no expectations other than to embark upon this adventure with an open heart and eager mind, to learn, to grow, to experience and of course, to share. 

Not only will we share this life changing experience with one another, but with all of our readers who may in some small way find their own sense of discovery in the never-ending details, the not so professional looking photos, from the heartfelt perspective of two determined retirees as they travel about the world.