I got up later than everyone today. I think I'm finally leaning into retirement. By the time I got downstairs there were already chocolate waffles with butterscotch chips waiting for me. As soon as I got showered and dressed I went with my cousin Roya to pick up my Uncle Roy at his retirement community. It is a 30 minute drive away. I was astounded to learn that Tonja and her husband don't drink coffee and don't have any in the house. I drank some caffeinated tea with my breakfast and Roya made an emergency stop at Starbucks. We also stopped at the grocery store to pick up Wick's Sugar Cream Pies in the frozen section. I was telling my family about my attempt to find the best pies in the states in which I am traveling. The best pie in Indiana (according to Food and Wine) is the aforementioned pie and a fresh one is found east of Indianapolis, which is too far out of my way. Jeff's eyes lit up as he told me he loves Wick's Sugar Cream Pies and you can get them at the grocery store.
Pies purchased and coffee cup steaming in my hand we went to Uncle Roy's apartment. He lives in the same retirement community as a man who used to attend the La Verne Church of the Brethren. This retirement community has over 1,000 residents. My uncle didn't know him but I had his address. So we drove over to his apartment building and I ran in just to say hello. He was in the dining room having lunch so I just said hi and bye. I was there long enough for him to tell me a joke. What do Winnie the Pooh and Alexander the Great have in common? They have the same middle name. I think I was there all of three minutes.
We returned to Tonja's house in time for a delicious lunch of soups that Roya had made -- lasagna soup and hot and sour soup. My two cousins definitely got their cooking skills from their mother. Then we settled down to an afternoon of game playing. I had never played any of the games they had. It was sooo much fun.
Micah and Alyssa and their new Dalmatian puppy, Irish, cam over in the late afternoon.
Jeff got home from work and we ordered Chinese food for dinner. I noticed that there were two wish lists taped to the kitchen cupboards. One for Micah and one for Tonja. I quickly jotted down my wish list and taped it to their cupboards. I can take all the wishing I can muster.
Several of us played more games until it got too late for me. I head out tomorrow. Joe and Roya will return home to Michigan. Jeff is driving to Kentucky to pick up his sister. It was so good to be here.
There was a bit of excitement that I forgot to share. Last night the neighbors were making so much noise. It sounded like they were operating a chop shop next door. I went out to move my car a little forward. Tonja went with me. She went over to ask what was going on but they didn't respond. As we headed inside a car raced up the street and then there was a loud pop. I thought it was the car backfiring but I said to Tonja with a smile on my face, "I think I just got shot." We went inside and didn't think about it again until her doorbell rang at 11 p.m. It was a neighbor who asked if she had heard all the gunshots around the neighborhood. We told him it was a car back firing. Today, Tonja went for a walk around the neighborhood and her other neighbors across the street heard the same noise. They have a Ring camera and it shows a flash at the same time as the sound. They are convinced that someone was firing a gun. Wow. I could have gotten shot and killed 10 days into my retirement. It makes me want to make sure I live my life full out!
No comments:
Post a Comment