Last 10 of 66

As my 66th year comes to an end, so does the list of things I have done throughout the year. I am going to start off the last ten, with the trip I made to Saskatchewan for my Alumni event. In this community there are several old wooden country churches. Making the list of firsts is my visit to the Winlaw Church. It was part of the alumni event and what a beautiful old building. The thing that struck me the most about this church is how the community has put their arms around it to save it. The foundation is not good, which is understandable, and money has been raised to repair it. We were blessed to go inside and witness the beauty within. There it stands holding memories for every community member and now memories for me as well.   

I have already written about my first ever Alumni event. Everyone was asked to share what they enjoy about retirement. Some of the comments were: traveling or planning to travel, sewing, knitting or other things that bring them joy. One person has discovered the love of reading and has read 100 books this year. Another finished her first 5K marathon. One person is remodeling her home, and this person will be doing the remodeling herself. Several were just getting used to being retired, but they were like me and so happy to have a retirement group to join.

When I got my Ford Escape in 2019, winter tires and rims were part of the selling incentive. I was delighted because I had never had winter tires. Now four years later, my summer tires were getting worn and I felt that changing tires twice a year was way too much for me. I had them put the winter tires on my summer rims and decided to sell the extra rims. I took a great picture and included the sticker from the rim and thought what a good ad. I described them as 17" rims. Well, just so you know that is not adequate, you apparently need the bolt pattern. Bolt pattern, seriously, I had never heard of a bold pattern. A quick google search provided me with a picture and the answer. In the end, they sold. I came away with the thought, I hope I never, ever, have to sell another auto part as long as I live. So, selling an auto part falls into the first ever and hopefully the last. 

I enjoyed lunch at the Riverheights Terrace which is an assisted living facility in Brandon. One of my friends recently moved there and she invited me for lunch. There is a huge dining room and if you have an invited guest you sit at a table to the side. The residents are served just like in a fancy restaurant. The salad and bun come first, then the main course followed by a selection of desserts. I loved the experience and I thought how wonderful it was to make mealtime such an important time. I understand that you can sit wherever you want but according to my friend most sit in the same spot, except for the table hoppers as she called them.

I have shared my dismal search for a volunteer position. Nothing seemed to fit with me, or I didn't fit with them. I must admit I felt somewhat discouraged. While on my quest to find places to donate working clothes, I came upon a community resource that is going to fit for both of us. I had decided that I didn't want anything structured and I was going to make that known upfront. I was delighted when the person running my new place said, "we will take whatever you can offer us". Part B of this is to get criminal and abuse checks done. There are a couple of things here, applications are done online, and it cost me nearly $100 to get them. The wait for processing of a Vulnerable Person's check is 6 weeks. The message here for me is to be patient and let things unfold as they are meant to. Things will work out if you let them. It has taken nearly 2 years to find a volunteer fit, but I am happy right now. I feel rewarded that this is going to work out. Especially since the winter has already settled in and I need to think about something other than the cold and darkness. 

I was scrolling around on Facebook and an ad caught my eye, a fundraising lunch at Knox's United Church. They were serving soup, bunwich and of course dessert, which we all know would be homemade pie. My friend and I were one of the first to arrive. I am not sure what the average age would have been, but it had to be up there. I had the best potato soup I have ever had in my life. Apparently, one of the ladies just threw it together when she arrived in the morning. My point here is, there is nothing like a church group to put together such a beautiful meal. There were homemade pies on the longest table ever, the food was hot and flavorful, and of course they served the tea and coffee at the table.   

My baking buddy and I had an unfinished sewing project from last year. I had gotten sick, and we didn't get our sewing done. Yep, we bake and sew and this year the project was to make Christmas scrunchies. She sewed them, turned them and put the elastic in. I tied the elastic and hand stitched them together. We timed ourselves and it took us 9 minutes to complete one. At the end of the day, we were able to make 16 and the best part was we spent time together and we felt accomplished. 

                                  

As an early birthday present, my dear friend took me to the Dean Brody Concert. I have seen Dean before but never like this. They called it an acoustic performance which meant they recreated a camp site. He and his 3 band members sat on coolers, and they had a big screen showing a pre-recorded story about Dean's life growing up. It is refreshing to see big men cry and make no apology for it. It was one of those concerts where you could sing along to every song. Singing, clapping and laughing is a great way to spend an evening. 

I still can't believe how I reached and far exceeded my goal of collecting "67 things" for women to help them look and feel successful. That was such a rewarding experience for me. There are so many wonderful projects and corporations out there to help others. I wanted to do another "67 items" since most of the clothing items weren't mine. I saw a request for donations to the Betty Gibson Christmas store. This was just perfect for me. I swooped around my home and into every drawer, closet or storage box and managed to get a nice little haul for the school. When the EA picked up the items, she was so full of life and energy. Because of her going the little extra mile and asking for donations on Facebook her garage was full of future Christmas presents. At the Christmas store the kids can shop for free. They wrap their gifts and at the end of the day they have a feast for them. Many of the students, because of culture or religion, don't celebrate Christmas in their homes so this is their Christmas. She is also collecting warm winter clothing for the students. Winter came early this year and many of the kids arrived at school without proper clothing. She said that some had just arrived from Africa and Jordan and didn't have anything to wear to keep warm. 

          

When I retired on Nov 21, two years ago, I had "3" things planned to do in retirement. I thought I would get right at them. Well, life threw me a curveball and I didn't get them done right away. The first one was to start a blog, and it began in September 2022. The second was to join Senior CrossFit. It only makes sense to go from knitting in your recliner to taking on CrossFit. As you read this, I started 2 years to the day after I retired. I have completed 2 CrossFit sessions. At the first class, I was quite surprised that I wasn't as pitiful as I thought I would be. The hour flew by, and I had no clue what time it was or cared. I was reminded that just because the class was in a CrossFit gym, it doesn't mean it is CrossFit. I guess it is called, "Move Class for Seniors". Then I had my second gym experience, this time with the guy trainer. Reality hit as he made us drag our own bikes out, and ride them for a specific amount of time, then go do something else, followed by something else, then back on the bike. Once that is done, we are onto weights and squats and more biking and rings. I had just gotten rid of the stiffness from session #1 and now session #2 stiffness has arrived. Just so you know, I am back to calling it "CrossFit for Seniors". I think I can call it what I want, because I will anyway. In any event, I feel so physically and mentally good that I have finally committed. Ten years ago, I had a trainer, I called him Sven and he was magical. I have never felt so strong and centered. I will never be as strong as I was then, but I am okay with just getting stronger. There is no doubt you will have to endure more posts on this topic.   

The last thing of my 66 things, is also the third thing I was going to do in retirement. It was to get a tattoo and I did it. I decided on a feather because its spiritual meaning is freedom, love and wisdom. I had my wonderful tattoo artist, Sky, embed 7 initials into the drawing. Some are evident in the picture because we are looking for them, but on my arm, they blend very nicely. I have to say, it was a unique experience. I had accomplished something I had been talking about for nearly 2 years. It was virtually a painless process, and it only took 45 minutes to complete. Many people say getting a tattoo is addicting. For me, I don't think so, because this one was years in the making, but maybe, I will feel differently at some point in time. If I do, I am just going to get it done.

The little ongoing collection of 66 different, fun or new activities has come to an end. I hope you enjoyed reading about them and maybe you found some inspiration to do some of them. For my 67th year, I have decided that since I believe life is a celebration, I will do just that. On the 27th day of every month I will celebrate. Right now, I have not one thing planned so you will just have to stay tuned.