Age is Just a Number

I've just celebrated my birthday. 69. It is the last year of this decade. Next year will be the big 70. When I was younger, 70 was the Rocking Chair Era. Gray hair. Slow moving. The age of Grandma's. Which is rather funny, because my own mother was indeed a grandma 11 times over, but she certainly wasn't in a rocking chair when she turned 70. She was still leading an active life. However, my generation was also part of the era where 'you didn't trust anyone over 30' and 40 was 'over the hill'! Weren't we the naïve ones!

I showed remarkable wisdom, when at the age of 30, instead of seeing it as lost youth like my peers, I told my friends: "For most of the 1st third of my life, I was oblivious, a child following directions, doing what I was told. Little of my life was under my control. For the last third of my life I may be returning to that stage in the waning years. For the middle third it is My Life. My Choices. This is the best age!"

I can adjust a bit of that outlook, now, but looking back I do believe I was right. Being a wife and a mother, raising a family, having a satisfying career, were exciting, exhausting, frustrating, wonderful, years. As much as I enjoyed those years, I didn't realize, then, how fulfilling they really were. Looking back, I realize even more, that raising my family were the pinnacle years.

What I didn't understand, when I was younger, is that even as we age, we stay the same. I think I expected to feel different inside. But of course, I'm still the same person I was at 20, 30, 50. Life's lessons may have made me wiser. Experiences may have given me more confidence. But inside I still feel like "Me". However, my body often has to remind me that try as I might, there are just some things that aren't going to happen anymore. Yes, at 69, almost 70, some things about me have changed.

Maturity is a sneaky thing. One day, you are pulling all-nighters, and then you discover you can't stay up past 10:00. You're idea of the perfect party changes from the music driven, booze driven night, to the neighbors coming over for a cookout, glass of wine, and some laughs. Sitting cross-legged on the floor with your kids? No problem. With your grandkids? Ha!

What's different about me at 69--almost 70? Not a whole lot. I do play more. That's what retirement is for. The best part is having the time to do all of the things I never had time for, during those family and employment years. The empty nest and retirement years offer a freedom to explore in so many ways that those years of family and job responsibility didn't. I have friends that live full-time in an RV and send photos of their expeditions and explorations. Others have embarked on 2nd careers completely different from their past. Most of us are just as busy as we were 40 years ago. But if we want to take the day and do nothing, we can!

70 no longer seems like 'old age' to me. It's just a number. Travel, writing, visiting grandkids, participating in community organizations, enjoying life; that's the life I love now. True Confession: My favorite part of any day is sitting on the porch in late afternoon, with a glass of iced tea or a vodka tonic watching all of the activity at the bird feeder. And yes, I'm usually in a rocker! But the rocking chair sits empty the rest of the day, waiting for me.

Here is the heads up. Kids from 17-97: You are you, and that will never change. Life is an adventure. 50 years from now, your experiences will add to your story, enhance your viewpoints. God created you. Enjoy the moment you are in.

At any age, Every day is a gift.



NOTE: Not to get preachy, there is a truth that we know, but have a hard time projecting. The healthier we are at 40 and 50 and 60.... the better we will feel at 70 and 80. "Use it or Lose it" is a maxim. Exercise, watch your weight, know what foods are best; it is all relevant and important, if you want to enjoy those 'Golden Years'. This is the biggest lesson I have learned. See what I mean about being wiser?

New England Scenes: Aesthetic or Whimsical

There's a Moose in there.....just sayin'

My previous post focused on the history of New England and how it has changed. This post will give a more random view of the area. Perhaps I should just admit up front, this will be some of my favorite photos from our trip.

First off are some scenes from the coast.

Nantucket is a Must See destination. We really enjoyed our day there. However, it might not be the easiest place to find your way around. First the houses: there is a saying; "Turn left at the gray house with white trim." Sure. They are almost all gray shingle with white trim. The entire island is an Historical Site and as such, there are only a few colors you can use on your house. The Gray is easy because it is natural weathering.

Then there is the idea of getting around. Looking at this truck navigating the narrow road, we were really glad we weren't driving!

Narrow roads aside, we loved the whimsical weathervanes on many of the buildings.

This view of the Nantucket Island beach is one of my favorites.

Cape Cod was another interesting spot. And they obviously don't take themselves too seriously.

Cape Cod Whimsy.

If you forget your swim float, there are plenty of places like this to pick one up!

Cape Cod was beautiful, but the drive to Provincetown was long.

By the time we got there we thought we had driven the length of Route 6. 

On the way home we came across a flock of turkeys

waiting to get into the dump, er, um, landfill. Perhaps they thought it was 'all you can eat'.

Among my favorite sights were the boats. Small colorful sailboats, beautiful yachts, battered fishing boats. 

Boats are an integral part of life on the coast. 

From shells waiting for their sails

to fully decked out yachts.

Some were recreational, but others were working boats--lobster and fishing boats.

Dinghies lined the docks, waiting to take fishermen to their boats moored in the harbor.

Few photos capture the life of a New England Fisherman better than this one of a small house along an inlet, dock piled high with lobster traps. 

Tucked into the overgrown bushes was this old shed.

One thing my husband, the fisherman, really noticed was the large tidal flow. There were many places that obviously had a huge change between high and low tide, but one place where we could see the change was in Acadia. We drove past this area several times. This is low tide... or as Big Bang Theory's Sheldon would say.... I'm stating the obvious.

In the photo below, the tide is still coming in! 

Stopping at one scenic overlook we met a concerned 'citizen' of the coast. This one had quite a conversation with Larry.

From the beautiful Acadia National Park,

To the panoramic White Mountains,

the scenery is awe inspiring. On the other hand, driving up Mt. Washington in New Hampshire is just jaw-dropping.... in a 'hold your breath and close your eyes' kind of way.

Once you made it to the top , you still had 70 steps to climb to the REAL top.

Many people lined up to take their photo at the very top of the summit, some climbing over more rocks to get there. We figured, at our age, climbing the 70 steps was equal to the 4 hours it took hikers to get there. We passed on the extra climb.

It can get really windy up there, but in my opinion

… if you have to chain the building to the ground, maybe you shouldn't build there!

For the person who would rather ride than drive, you could take the Cog Railroad to the top.

Life in New England can seem to be a bit laid back. At least that's the impression I got when I went into the Carriage Ride office in Acadia to buy tickets.

These aren't your typical junkyard dogs, but they were busy keeping the seats warm until the boss got back..

We came across a very cool shop in Vermont, that made one-of-a-kind sculptures out of old metal parts.

A large marble quarry is located near Rutland, Vermont. As a result we saw marble sculptures and marble houses. 

However, we found the yummiest sculpture of all in Maine. A 1700 lb. Chocolate Moose.

We also came across one type of sculpture that always amazes me. Chainsaw sculptures.

How do you take this and turn it into ...

 This? They're so cute.

We did come home with one, but it wasn't a bear which seems to be most common.

I fell in love with this owl as soon as I saw it.

Rural areas gave us some of our most unexpected sights.

 Yep. Someone was actually driving this!

This may seem like an unlikely place to park your truck, but then, how many people keep a ferris wheel in their back yard? He did.

And next to his house, was a Karaoke stage, complete with a full sound system. I guess it was entertainment for the whole neighborhood.

One of our very favorite sights was this house. Talk about ingenuity! Check out the windows!

The window, sideways in the end of the house, caught our eye, but when we pulled over to take a picture, a head popped out of a window in the roof! He waved when he saw us taking a picture of the house.  Notice the fan in the sideways window! #ways to get a breeze and some light in your room!

One of the most pleasant surprises I discovered were small bookstores. They were everywhere. Barnes and Noble and Books-a-Million are too big for these small towns, but independent booksellers are thriving.

This tiny store in Vermont, no bigger than 10'x10' was tucked into a small strip mall, next to a chocolate store. Inside it was bright, with new books for children, and adults, as well as a few gift items. A black board tucked into a corner highlighted upcoming author signings. It was actually a branch of a larger store in town, but apparently worth the cost of having this space.

Nothing surprised me more, though than finding this 'used book' store!

Tucked into the door of the Good Humor Ice Cream truck, this enterprising driver had placed a bookshelf with used books for sale! As he drove the old neighborhoods and docks (where we saw him) he was ready with both treats for sale. How cool is that!

Our trip through New England was wonderful. There was so much to see, and so much we didn't see. This last photo from Pennslyvania, reminds us that we live in a terrific country, and pride in America is everywhere.

It's a little hard to see, but the flag is stretched between two tractors. One is an old rusted brown one. Antique perhaps?

I hope you enjoyed our view from the open road, as much as we have.