As mentioned before, I am living in the Valley of East Tennessee nestled between the Great Smokey Mountain on one side and the Cumberland Plateau on the other side which prevents, at least most of the time, bad weather from entering our area unless it comes up from the Gulf of Mexico. We get more rain than snow or sleet and seldom does it remain in the lower 30's for more than a week or two during our brief winters; although, Spring is no longer a gradual transition for us and quite often are there periods of Blackberry Winters lasting for a few days in our area. However and generally speaking, the climate is damn near perfect for someone like me who can no longer tolerate the moist cold weather or the humidity of the hot summers.
During our first 5 years of retirement, we traveled somewhat every other month, sometimes every month but recently and not because of COVID-19 and the Pandemic have curtailed our traveling but because we have had some bad experiences in international airports with our luggage and the logistics of finding the right location that it has become a hassle for us and taken away most of the enjoyment... plus, 8-10 hours in an airplane is rough on our bodies and passing through many time zones has been difficult for us to adjust on either side of our destinations.
SO... in the Valley we remain... in our modest home... 1200 square feet upstairs and 1200 square feet downstairs with a weirdly measured acre lot, 4 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, open concept kitchen dinning and living room, and exercise room, den, and 3 garages with a screened in back porch and a front porch that spans the length of the house. In the backyard is an above ground 28 foot round pool that is 12 years old with minimal signs of wear and tear. A wooden deck surrounds the pool with enough extra space for several lounge chairs and a 12' X 12' gazebo and a Hot Springs 12 year old hot tub near the shady side house wall. Under the screened in back porch is an enclosed 12' X 15' storage space with siding.
My wife and I and our 3 cats are comfortable and want for nothing except maybe less space to have to keep clean as we have been throwing stuff away about every quarter now that we don't need in case we ever get the nerve to sell this house and move into a smaller one that is more suitable to our needs and that is only on one floor because eventually we will not want to go up and down any stairs.
Saturday morning in the Tennessee Valley is like any other morning in the Valley for us now that we are retired. Our cats wake us up around 6:00 am each morning for a treat and after returning to bed (we alternate who gives the treat) we continue to sleep for another 2 hours or so... coffee for me and it varies for my wife from hot chocolate to juice to diet Pepsi while we check our messages on the internet and as I post articles and other stuff on my blogs, she surfs the internet for all sorts of things like clothes, vacation deal, items for the house, deals on movie tickets, to health issues as we both listen indirectly to FOX NEWS on cable.... our cats have gone back to sleep.
When I was about 50 years old (give or take as I recall) I decided to have myself baptized again and the minister I chose for this activity was someone I respected and with whom I had had numerous religious and spiritual conversations and he understood and respected my need to question. However, this time and not because of any coincidence, this minister was of the Southern Baptist Belief... a belief that I did not totally accept even though I respected him. It was a full immersion baptism whereas my first was a sprinkling of HOLY WATER on the head.
