Welcome to 2018, which cannot be any zanier than 2017.

Happy new year! 

Welcome to 2018, which cannot be any zanier than 2017.



A year ago, I wrote in my blog about surrendering to 2017.  I was wondering can Donald Trump really be as nutty and ignorant of the world and national politics as he seemed during the campaign?  Mystery solved!!

A year ago, Frank and I were sitting in the condominium in Fort Lauderdale wondering about the year ahead,. We both enjoyed our friends and work, but found ourselves ready for a change. 

We had explored over the years a number of options of places to move; Tallahassee, Savannah, Asheville, Richmond, and others. The requirement was that the place had to have a balance of closeness to family, professional opportunity, quality of life, and higher elevation. 







Frank had dreamed of living in Austin. While I had been to Austin many times for work, I had never really taken the time to really explore all it has to offer.  There is plenty of tech companies in the Austin area, along with IBM and Dell, and I always heard how great of a city Austin was to live in. And the topography is very interesting, with spring fed rivers and canyons to walk through with Daisybelle.








We decided sight unseen to move...  


Visited and toured Austin late April.

Condominium under contract in May. Packed, and closed the sale in June, thanks Elaine.  ( I call this our homeless period.)


Drove to Austin, with Marcia, 

week of June 21st



Moved into a monthly rental in the Deep Eddy neighborhood just west of Downtown, and a stone's throw from Lady Bird Lake on July 1st





Found our new home on July 7th closed on July 27th and all moved in on July 30th.

Austin, a nice place to call home!  


In a short period of time we adopted Austin as our home town.  People are nice, friendly, open minded and there is much to do, see and learn.  There are  great restaurants representing a diversity of cuisine, and we are learning that tacos are meant to be eaten morning, noon and night.  We enjoy touring all the parks, and green belts with Daisybelle. It's great to have Frank's family nearby, especially Andrea and Elias, who helped us find the house and make Austin feel like home.


It is also a luck of magic, that we found a house in a neighborhood as warm and friendly as Allandale.  Walking Daisybelle today I wasn't able to walk more than a block without bumping into neighbor Drew, getting invited over for drinks next door, and checking in with a nice family at the end of the street as we headed home.  





We do miss our very good friends in South Florida,  and I, in particular, do occasionally miss the sunrises over the ocean, but we have no regrets of our choice to move to Austin.







Growing professionally

I have accepted a position at DeLaune and Associates as a Senior Marketing Specialist.  My focus will be on helping grow marketing opportunities, exploring new relationships, new ideas and increased value for IBM and non-IBM clients. 


iSOA Group, continues to help me grow professionally with opportunities to understand customer and technology trends. Cheryl, Bryon and Peter continue to be be supportive of new initiatives, and continue to be good friends.

I will continue with iSOA Group, Inc. assisting in marketing and sales efforts focused on customer facing technology opportunities. We hope they will come for a visit soon!



Looking out and up for 2018


So, yes 2017, has been a little zany, and 2018 is looking to be great.  I don't think Frank, Daisybelle, and I will need to move again, (smiles), and I'm to have surrendered to 2017 and made the best of life and our lives together.

So from my family to all of our friends and family

We hope you have a very 

Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 

New Year!!



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Apparently I am my car...

Image
Apparently I am my car... For those of you that didn't know, I actually got a new car in July.  Oddly, I think in 3 months I have driven it a little over 650 miles, but that is primarily because of travel and Provincetown.   I owned a 2010 Mercury Milan, and liked it.  Was about to come off of warranty so traded for a 2012 Ford Fusion.  Realizing that they had a new model coming out so I could negotiate a fair deal. What does this have to do with me? some people end up looking like their pets apparently I end up acting like my car.  I have owned Buicks, Nissans, Volvos, and even and SUV.  Frankly, I don't think most of them would have made it on the cover of MotorTrend, but I liked most of them...  So here I am in a 2012 mid-size sedan.  It is very similar to the Milan, of course, but a little bit upgraded.  V6 engine, leather seats, and the queerest (I must say) ambient lighting I have seen.  ...
Read more

Saturday Reflections: Musings on Life, Television, and Elections

Image
A few random thoughts on a Saturday morning? I appreciate The Bear TV Show and understand the awards, but I don’t like watching it and don’t see any contradiction. In college, I knew how to get an A, and I assume I knew how to get an F, but I didn’t know how to differentiate effort to get a B or C.  This has continued in my work life; I am either all in, or I feel like I am failing. This election year is more stressful than at any point in my lifetime. I don’t understand why the Democrats can’t get behind their candidates as much as the Republicans. I don’t color my hair.  I appreciate being bald, as I don't spend time worrying about my hair. We have had a relatively cool July in Longview; I assume Mother Nature’s payback in August will not be pleasant. People assume I am an introvert.  Not necessarily. I just enjoy my own company.  This is one reason I need my early morning walks alone.  As I age, I realize that change is good; it is desired for me, but trying ...
Read more

I can’t sit here this morning, quietly, after all!

Image
It isn't a time to sit here quietly. We in the USA are challenged by a presidential race between two men, one 78 and the other 81.  One who has served his country and been part of the political scene since 1972.   During many of those years, he was a senator. He became Obama’s vice president for two terms. He is campaigning and fighting to be reelected president of the world's most powerful country, militarily and economically. Thursday night, he had a bad night in a debate. His opponent looked good but lied about his accomplishments and Biden. As Biden said, it is hard to debate a Liar. But, yes, maybe he is 81 and had a bad night. That doesn’t negate his presidency's accomplishments in helping us recover from the pandemic. He passed bills that will lead to infrastructure improvements that are sorely needed in this country. He has led the effort to cap insulin costs so people don’t have to choose between insulin and food.   He also has a good cabinet of leaders and ...
Read more