Six Months to the Day

It’s been six months to the day. My mom passed away on a Saturday afternoon on February 15. It’s easy to remember because it’s the day after Valentine’s Day and she was born in February. I think about her every day still. It was a whirlwind drive to and from Florida and the funeral. My parents made all the arrangements a long time ago and she was buried at a Florida National Cemetery next to my Dad. She was a Navy veteran - something both my parents were proud of. We were able to celebrate her life right before the pandemic struck. But it seems like it happened so quickly. It just so happens that I received an email from my cousin yesterday that includes a translated Polish letter her mother wrote about twenty years ago. It describes my mom’s family unit and included a lot of information I already knew about but was interested to hear again. The “estate” isn’t settled yet, but there is no hurry. Everything feels like it’s been put on hold and it doesn’t appear that things will normalize again for quite some time. We used to meet every month with my siblings and that has stopped, so there really wasn’t any opportunity to relive things as one might normally do. Our routine has changed and we don’t see anyone. Somehow it doesn’t seem fair but I don’t know what that should even mean anymore. This was supposed to be a time to “enjoy” our golden years. I just don’t see that happening. I feel like I’m still stuck in February. 

Social Security Milestone

After 41 years of working full time I retired four years ago. That doesn’t include the odd jobs I had starting in high school and through college. Thirty one years were spent in heath care and ten years were spent in the federal government. At the time I didn’t really realize what the benefits would mean to us by working at the Library of Congress in DC. Back then, the idea was to find a job in DC, be able to walk to work, and live near our family. In the end it had a huge impact on our health care insurance because I continue to carry the self plus one option at the federal government rate - especially nice since I retired at 62 and didn’t have Medicare yet. But today is another big milestone for me. I received my first social security check! I didn’t start collecting it right away because luckily and with planning, we could afford not to. I waited four years and applied for it in October. That way, I’m in the middle of the time period that I can start collecting at 66. Waiting any longer didn’t seem to make that much sense given our personal circumstances. We had a lot of discussion about what would be the best way to go and felt it was finally the right time. Last year I applied for Medicare and now I have my social security. What sounds weird is that I’m talking about myself and not all those “old people” out there. I have to say I worked long and hard for this “benefit” and deserve every penny. Hopefully I will be able to keep it coming for many years to come. 

Subaru Forester Milestone and a Cinnabon

We haven't driven long distances at night for quite some time. But since we wanted to avoid the DC Pope traffic and congestion, we decided to return home from Florida a day early and do all the driving at once. Somewhere in Virginia, we stopped for a final tank full of fuel, and noticed that we were about to reach the 100,000 mile milestone on our 2004 Subaru Forester. To celebrate, we picked up a Cinnabon - which we haven't had for many, many years - and gobbled some of it down. Somehow it didn't taste right and required a microwave zap, which we didn't have. Traveling towards Richmond the mileage number changed. Such drama! We made it back to DC by 2:30 AM and found a parking space pretty close to home - a great time to arrive in town. We have never seen the freeway so wide open with so few cars. In the end we probably saved a couple of hours just in avoiding traffic alone. It's nice to know we could do it if we had to, but it's taken us a couple days to get back on schedule. I think I prefer the take your time approach - even if it means sitting in traffic. 

The Birthday Card

I am celebrating a milestone birthday this week. I'm probably the only one who is thinking about it. Then the birthday card arrives in the mail from my mom and dad. My mom is exactly thirty years older than me.  I don't think it matters how old you are. She has never missed the day, and it makes me very thankful for all the things I have. It's hard to believe how quickly time has passed, but it's a good reminder to appreciate what I have!