Retirement Only Days Away!

Well, there are only 7 business days left before I retire.  As you might can imagine, I am very excited!  But I am nervous too.  I will soon have to find an entirely new “normal”.   I’ve been getting up and going to work Monday through Friday for so long I can’t recall what it’s like to not have to be anywhere at a certain time. 

It also just now seems to be sinking in that I’m not in school anymore.  I’ve had weeks off between semesters since I started on my master’s in January 2011.  But it’s been over 6 weeks now since my graduation.  It’s starting to feel weird to get home from work and not have any homework that needs to be done.  I’m starting to itch to find a class to take, but will most likely wait until I get moved to Asheville before making a concerted effort to find something.  I have quite a bit of company coming to visit over the summer.  And I prefer to devote my time to making regular visits to the local gym part of my new normal. 

I have so many things I want to do.

·         Explore neighborhood and state parks hoping to see birds and critters

·         Play tourist both with guests and by myself here in the DC area where I currently live; so many great museums and historical sites to see!

·         Take more photographs, both with my still relatively new iPhone 6 and my Canon SX700

·         Blog on a regular basis

·         Build readership to my newly created Pepper & Dublin Mini-Me Adventures Facebook page

·         Go bicycling

·         Continue to volunteer as administrator for the Women in Federal Law Enforcement Facebook and Twitter accounts

·         Continue to volunteer at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington until I move; then find new volunteer opportunities associated with animals after I move to Asheville – some prospects

o   Brother Wolf Animal Rescue

o   Asheville Humane Society

o   Western North Carolina Nature Center

·         Get an annual pass to the Biltmore Estate after I move to Asheville and explore the grounds

·         Continue to travel – some options:

o   African safari

o   New Mexico (Santa Fe?; Albuquerque?; Taos?)

o   Savannah, GA

o   Chicago, IL (visit my friend Jackie and the zoos there!)

o   Colorado (visit my friend Michele!)

o   Tampa, FL (visit all my friends there and the Lowry Park Zoo!)

·         Continue to read, read, read!!!

·         Start going to the gym regularly and loose at least 15 pounds

·         Spend more time with my furry kids, Pepper and Dublin

·         Join the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Asheville and take classes, maybe even teach some!

I don’t think I’m going to have any trouble filling my days in retirement!