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A Birthday Celebration
As I get older, I have been less thrilled with each passing birthday. Milestones like 50 were fun and a little embarrassing in the office, as you want to think of yourself as younger.
Spring day in St. Louis
Time marches on for all of us. I was happy to get a road trip into St. Louis to celebrate my father-in-law’s 80th birthday.
A birthday is always a good reason to travel. Visiting with family can be great fun and fulfilling. If I was working, we would have had to get approval for a day off or several to make a trip during the week. Of course, only a few at the dinner celebration for my father-in-law were gainfully employed. Being retired and “never having a day off” is no excuse for missing a celebration.
A few lessons learned:
This mug summed up the wisdom from the evening, all in good fun!
My father-in-law’s mantra: Every day is a good day.
He means it too!
Other highlights:
We were able to borrow bikes and take a ride on grant’s trail. We have now ridden outside (also in January) on the in-law’s bikes more than on ours. I enjoyed getting close and personal with several of the Budweiser Clydesdales horses as we passed Grant’s Farm. The Anheuser-Busch Grant’s Farm is across the street from the National Park Service Grant’s Farm House. I did a little of the ride on the BMX bike trail at near the end of Grant’s trail.
Trip by the numbers:
Our bike ride was just over 16 miles and we walked for several miles around the area. It was rainy and we walked in-between the rain storms.
Retirement Model?
Reinvent yourself. Try new things. Discover again what you wanted to do before you went to college. This is all the advice from retirement books that I have read. I recently took a chance to become a retirement model. A company I work with asked me to participate in a video shoot in San Francisco.
By way of background, part of the retirement benefits from my company was the opportunity to have a coach work through the decision to retire or to stay at the company. My company employed the services of BetterUp! As a result of a great coaching and learning on my part, I retired and am working to lead the life I want. I cannot say enough good things about this opportunity for coaching and how good my coach was for me. I shared that during the interview; I hope they are able to use the work that a few other clients and I shared with them as we discussed our experiences.
So, when I was asked to come out and share my coaching story, I jumped at it. I hope BetterUp! expands the number of people they can assist with coaching as a result of video shoot. I was interviewed about my experience and had several still shots taken of me, just like the other models that were at the video shoot that day.
Other highlights:
- The photoshoot took one afternoon. In addition, I took my first Uber ride, good and easy, and visited with my youngest in San Jose, near San Francisco. It is always great to see family!
- Playing disc golf in San Jose and eating at the Diner of Los Gatos. The diner was a throwback to earlier diners. The décor was fun and the food was good. Since I had played the disc golf course before, it was great to see that some rain makes everything on the course bloom and grow.
Disc Golf Course
Spring is here!
The Diner - Taking a ride on the cable car. It was fun to take one ride, although the tickets for one way were $7.00. This is a great way to get around and still make other commitments. Their website does allow for some breaks if you know you will be taking more than one trip. Since on my last trip I did not ride the cable car, I thought I had better this time.
The Car turn around
Glen at the car
Wear back pack in front to keep from hitting cars!
The van is ready for a tour!
View of the Golden Gate Bridge - Biking across the Golden Gate Bridge. If you are a bike rider, this is a treat. Several bike rental companies are located in San Francisco. My recommendation is taking a bike from Pier 41—Fisherman’s Warf. I used the Blazing Saddles bike rental and was pleased with the bike and the price. I have used this same company for several years. I am in good biking shape, so no issues on the bike ride. The bridge has lanes for bike traffic on one side and pedestrian traffic on the other. The first time we went, the lanes were combined and it was not as much fun crossing the bridge on a bike. Last year when we walked over the bridge, it was a better experience without all the bikes on the pedestrian side so I thought I would ride and it was a better experience without walkers.
View on the way to the bridge
Hey look–no walkers!
Selfie!
View of the bay from the ferry
- While traveling to a famous location, you can always have desert for lunch, especially if you just biked across the Golden Gate Bridge!
Champion Lunch
Lunch location - The free walking tours from Union Square (at 10 AM daily) was a treat for me. I have been to the city several times and have not participated in a group quite like this. I enjoyed the Tony Bennet heart that he painted on Union Square, and that was just the beginning of the information our tour guide imparted. We walked along the Barbary Coast trail into China Town. What a great tour.
Union Square
Walking tour landmarks
China town Gate
Street in China Town - Visiting a new ball park is a treat for me. A no hitter from Oakland A’s at the Oakland Alameda Coliseum was a great introduction to the stadium. Of course I was rooting for the other team, but hey, a no hitter is fun to watch. I had a great time at the ballpark. The park looks a little faded; however, the experience was good. The train to the ballpark took about 20 minutes, much faster than driving to the stadium, not to mention it was only about $9 total for the one person round-trip ticket from my hotel in downtown San Francisco. The meeting with my BetterUp! coach in person at the ballpark was a benefit for me as well.
Take me out to the ballgame
Great fun!
A few lessons learned.
- On the way out of town, I saw some great glass work at the San Francisco airport, near the yoga room. It was nice to see the town with a “rose” colored view. Even though I have been to this airport many times, I had never noticed the colored glass window attraction. It made me think about the entire trip and how my world has expanded and grown since I retired. I now see things in a new light. You should try it!
- I am trying on a few new perspectives since coming to town. Being a model is hard work! The models I spoke with had interesting lives; they willingly shared some of their stories and how they got into the career. Not all are doing it full time. A lot of people are involved in making one person look good for the camera. I was surprised that most of the people at the photo shoot were supporting the activity and not models or actors.
Activity statistics:
- My personal bike ride across the bridge was over 12 miles. I also took the boat back to San Francisco and enjoyed the ride.
- Although I walked several miles, I did not keep track of them and just enjoyed getting out, as it was still cold when I left home and when I returned. Sunny and mid-sixties was great for me!
A Cool Walk on the Beach
Our trip to Florida proved that there is nothing quite like a Florida sunset even when it is cold outside. Watching the sun set is something we rarely do at home. With the weather near a not “Florida like” 30+ degrees (0 C) we were joined in viewing the sunset by several other tourists, most of whom did not get out of their hotel or condo during the day. Of course for us, no matter how many times you witness the sun going down over the water, it’s always a magical experience. We managed to get out every night while we were in Florida to see the sun set over the water. Sometimes it was with a glass of wine and friends. Other times it was just a few of us brave souls watching the sun set in the west.
When it is cold, it sounds good to book flights to Florida. We imagined ourselves spending a week at the beach the first week of January, using plenty of sunscreen while walking on the beach and taking some bike rides nearby. When we looked at the local forecast and saw the highs at home would be cold, we congratulated ourselves on our planning, until we looked at the lows for the panhandle of Florida, in the high 20’s (-2 C). Okay, a few days it did warm up to almost 50 degrees (about 13 C), and it was generally 30 degrees warmer where we were staying in Florida than it was back home. We managed to walk for at least an hour every morning before lounging around and eating breakfast. Warm coffee was great after a cool walk on the beach. I even put my bare toes in the cool sand, although not for too long.
We did enjoy the sunrise in the early mornings. We did all the things on a trip to Seagrove Beach, Florida, we anticipated; we just had on more layers and never got to wear the shorts we packed. A good day on the beach was better than shoveling snow at home.
We saw several shells and some wild life while walking along the beach. The sand pipers were fun to watch scurrying along the beach. A sea cucumber and the crab were interesting to see—although it was too cold for them on the beach. We saw the sea turtle signs although we did not see any signs of the turtles. Please let me know your suggestions for the sea shell collection we took home with us. The beach was a beautiful white sandy beach that reminded us of snow. Of course, the cold weather may have influenced our thoughts.
We biked and hiked in the nearby Point Washington State Park. We were very impressed by the trails and the different plants that we encountered. We were pleased to be wearing long pants when we rode through all of the saw tooth palmetto bushes. I was amazed at the deer moss that was like a carpet. On our hikes we found a grove of cypress trees .
Kim and I are experienced road bike riders. We were able to borrow mountain bikes and ride in the state forest for several days. It was different for us to be on the mountain bikes, and riding in the sand is very hard. The state forest practices controlled burns; the sand is deep when trucks have been through in recent days. I am not sure who can ride on the deep sand-filled paths. I could not ride parts of this trail as the sand was over a foot deep for the width of the trail.
We did discover what we thought was a tree from Dr. Seus–the long leaf pine tree.
We enjoyed the aviation in the panhandle with a nearby air force base. We did stop at the fascinating Air Force Armament Museum and enjoyed our tour inside as well as outside. They have heat and air conditioning inside the building. It is a good place to go when you cannot go out on the beach.
Lessons learned:
- Being cold on the beach is better than not being on the beach at all.
- Bike riding in deep sand is just as hard as a tall hill; new respect for mountain biking.
- Air travel in January is tricky with snow covering places all up and down the east coast.
- Beach access is a consideration when renting or buying near the beach.
- A month or two near the beach is a great way to spend a month or two.
Trip by the numbers:
Mountain biking: 41 miles, longest 15 miles.
Hiking,walking on the beach: 14 miles, longest 3.75 miles in the forest.
San Francisco and No Cable Car Ride?
It is true; we went to San Francisco and did not ride the cable cars once. We have been several times to the city and did not feel the need to ride on them this particular trip.
- It is one of the highlights for newcomers to the city and I have always enjoyed the ride.
- We did see them several times and riding would have been easier than walking, like we did, up Hyde Street on the way to walk Lombard Street (a 31% grade up 269 feet from the beginning).
This was our first experience using Air B&B and we enjoyed it. Our millennial kids all asked who was the millennial as they have not used the service. Just trying to pave the way…
The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.” The coolest thing Mark Twain never said according to my research. Of course it was in the 60s (15-20 C) while we were in the city. Going north to wine country and south to Silicon Valley was much warmer. We did spend most of our time in San Francisco where I wore my Michigan State University hoodie around the city and received several positive comments, even one positive comment from an Ohio State fan, with the lone exception of one U of M fan…
The point of the travel was to see our youngest son who works in Silicon Valley and we were successful. We also learned from our prior trips out here that too much Mom and Dad was bad, so we planned this year’s travel accordingly and had some great tours on our own.
- AT&T Park to see a San Francisco Giant’s baseball game: one stadium visited since retirement
- Muir Woods tour
- Bike ride and tour of Napa Valley, completing biking in our eighth state since retirement
- Self-guided walking tour of San Francisco, including the Golden Gate Park and Bridge
The views from AT&T Park were great and the game was exciting—this last place team had almost every seat sold for a three-day series with the Cubs.
- We saw an incredible inside the park home run and enjoyed all of the new food options not yet served by the Reds.
- Our favorite was the Helmet Nachos
- Although we did not try them, Churros was an interesting new (for us) item sold in the ball park and elsewhere in San Francisco.
- It was Metallica night at the ballpark, and we got to rock the national anthem as well as Take Me Out to the Ballgame. All of the songs that night were Metallica songs.
If you have not seen how tall a redwood tree can get, you should definitely visit Muir Woods National Monument.
- We had a tour walking into the park from Mount Tamalpais State Park above the Muir Woods Park with a connecting hike into Muir Woods.
- It was enjoyable to hike from the canopy of the redwood forest on down.
- Keith, our tour guide, did well leading our group on the hike and was very knowledgeable about the area and all things San Francisco.
- One of the highlights was the ferry boat ride back from Sausalito to the Ferry Building in downtown San Francisco.
Last year when we visited San Francisco, we said we would visit Muir Woods (check) and wine country. We signed up and enjoyed a half day bike tour of Napa Valley. Two wineries were plenty for me to handle; we kept the bikes for an afternoon ride along the Napa Valley paved bike path.
- I really enjoyed the wine and the whole area.
- We noticed a distinct culture that has grown up in the Napa Valley. The atmosphere was just different in a good way.
- We met several people on the tour with us who spent the night and it sounded like a good idea, especially after one or two tastings.
In 2015, I biked over the Golden Gate Bridge from Pier 39. This year, I did not want to bike. We noticed that this year the Golden Gate Bridge opened the west side of the bridge for biking only and we walked on the east side (with best views of San Francisco) across the Golden Gate Bridge (1.7 miles one way) as a part of our walking tour.
We wanted a walking tour of San Francisco and we took a self-guided (or misguided!) walking tour of about 20 miles.
Our walking tour began with the Haight-Ashbury district as San Francisco is celebrating 50 years since the “summer of love” from June through August, so we made it in timeJ.
- We also walked to Alamo Square Park to view the Painted Ladies, a wonderful row of colorful houses.
- Walked through Golden Gate Park and saw the bison, funny for us as we have a herd of bison close to our house as well.
- Walked to the beach near Golden Gate Park.
- Walked through the Presidio on our way to and from the bridge and enjoyed the nature trails and homes in the park. We also took advantage at mile 19+ of the shuttle service throughout the Presidio to visit the Main Post and catch our train back to our Air B&B.
A few lessons learned.
- We had a fun tour guide, Mike, on our bike tour. He said he had been retired for three days and went back to work. He lives in town and he and his wife walk to work. He only works part time and loves the job and the opportunity to stay active.
- A good guided tour is worth the money. Our self-guided tour was fun, but we could have learned a lot more, and been a little less tired if we hired a local guide.
Other highlights: Played disc golf in Silicon Valley and Golden Gate Park. Only problem at the Golden Gate Park—they were “closed” to house the Outside Lands music festival at the park. The group Metallica played at the Outside Lands as one of the headline groups.
Visit to Stanford University—a wonderful campus on Palo Alto. We sat and had ice cream and watched some of the new orientation students. We also visited the University of California Berkeley. It was interesting to see the college campus at Berkeley after having visited the Haight-Ashbury streets and the “summer of love” promotions.
Trip by the numbers:
States visited (number in total…) 1 California, flew direct
Activity statistics:
- Biking miles: 22miles.
- Hiking/Walking 40 miles.
Biking in wine country–fun!
Water and Water Falls
North Carolina
After our travels to the Biltmore, we needed to get some fresh air. We hiked, or walked, up the stairs to the top, and them some more at Chimney Rock. We walked the 500 steps up to the top. We also took the additional 330 steps from Chimney Rock to Exclamation Point, the highest point in the park. Of course we had to hike to see the Hickory Nut Falls as well, since it is in the same park.
Since we biked through the Biltmore Estate, Kim thought it would be fun to kayak the French Broad River. It was a great time kayaking for over 2 hours on a bright sunny day. We saw the Biltmore (hard to miss that house!) and the path we had biked on the day before. It was a great day for a float, and I believe the tops of our feet are still sunburnt.
Finishing our travels in North Carolina and on advice from a former coworker, we made plans the next day to hike in DuPont National Forest to see three separate waterfalls better than the one we saw at Chimney Rock, which was pretty cool at over 400 feet up! The Forest trails were well-marked. Several mountain bikers rode nearby. This is a little known gem with over 80 miles of hiking available. We could have hiked another mile to see another falls as well. This is a park to check out. Of course we laughed at the way they prevent climbing on the rocks—check out the sign on the yellow post.
Next stop South Carolina.
Our first stop in South Carolina was the fun city of Greenville. We enjoyed riding Greenville’s Swamp Rabbit River trail. We would have ridden longer if it had been cooler. The temperature for the ride was over 95 degrees. We did meet a local store owner in downtown Greenville at the Pedal Chic bike store. The staff was helpful and we found a great parking spot and starting location for our ride.
We also rode on the Ft. Jackson Army base. It was interesting riding on a road that encircles live firing. The range was in full use as we went around it. The roads and hills were good and the path well marked.
It was also hot when we rode, so we did only one loop. 
The sign says share the road and the brown side says restricted access—this is how you get to the firing ranges. Follow the rules!
We visited the University of South Carolina as well as Clemson University. Yes, I got to play a few rounds of disc golf in South Carolina as well. I am glad my son knew the course layout in Columbia near his house.
The course near Clemson in Central called Grand Central Station; it was well marked and fun to play.
Georgia
As a child my family often drove from Michigan to Florida on I-75 to visit grandparents. We always saw signs on the road for “See Rock City” and Ruby Falls. We made a stop at Lookout Mountain and visited Rock City in Georgia. The tour was good and cool walking through the rocks. Quite an enjoyable place to visit and worth the stop. We are not sure we saw all seven states from lover’s leap although we sure tried. We did visit all of them except for Virginia.
Tennessee.
Ruby Falls in Tennessee is on Lookout Mountain near Rock City. Two fun attractions near each other. We did not make the time to see the military park on Lookout Mountain and it would make a good stop for our next time through. The cave tour was fun and the falls were grand. We also enjoyed the cool cave and were surprised to see that we were about the only ones that dressed for the travels.
A few lessons learned.
While visiting Rock City we met a lady who lived her whole life near Rock City. She was working in the fudge shop (yes, it was good!). She enjoyed Rock City as a child, with her children and her grandchildren. She loves Rock City and encourages all to come. She has been a retired nurse for several years and enjoys hearing other people’s stories, especially first time visitors. She was sharp and loved to share her story with others. I learned that if you have a special place, it is fun in retirement to work (part time) at that special place.
The military retirement must be good, and it should be for those who serve. We ran into several military retirees who live in and around Ft. Jackson. We thank all who serve or who have served for their service.
Too many touristy adventures can be too much. We needed a few days’ rest. Next stop, Alabama.
Other highlights: Walking around downtown Columbia and a big rainstorm! We enjoyed dinner and were happy to be inside. Downtown Columbia, SC, was a happening place.
Trip by the numbers:
States visited: North and South Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia.
Activity statistics:
- Biking miles: 33 miles, 2 rides, longest 21 miles.
- Hiking/Walking 14.7 miles, 7 separate walks, longest 4.1 miles in DuPont.
- Kayak, 7 miles on the French Broad River.
At least this one was not firing as we rode by!
Biking, Shooting and Drinking in St. Louis
Last July, Kim went to visit her parents and had what we now refer to in the family as the St. Louis biking, shooting and drinking trip. Our daughter Sarah went on the same trip in April along with Kim’s brother, minus the biking.
For my pre-retirement/birthday trip it was time for me to go biking, shooting and drinking in St. Louis. Kim and I have ridden with the Bike MS team for several years and are behind in our miles ridden this year. Our biking portion was a ride from the in-law’s home to Grant’s trail.
On a few mornings we saw several of the Budweiser Clydesdales out grazing at Grant’s Farm along the trail.
Safety first.
My father in law Butch invited me to go to the shooting range for the shooting portion of my pre-retirement travels. He is currently qualified on the range and was an instructor for his fellow police officers. I took advantage of the safety briefing, about an hour, and the shooting at the range, along with another briefing on firearm safety. I eventually shot a 357 magnum, and the gun has a kick. My memory is seeing the flames shoot out of that gun as it was fired.
Many of you who know me well are surprised at the drinking aspect of the trip. Of course, if you know Kim, you are even more surprised. Here is how it went down… Still enjoying a great weather day in St. Louis, we went out to lunch in the Soulard area of St. Louis at a place called Hammerstone’s.
We ate out on the porch area in the shade and enjoyed a great taste of St. Louis. Kim had the toasted raviolis and that was a treat. Pat and Butch shared a meal; they apparently eat less as they do not bike the same way Kim and I do and we enjoyed ourselves.
After lunch we toured the famous Anheuser-Busch brewery. Yes, they still provide free samples as a part of the tour. We saw more Budweiser Clydesdales out enjoying the day. The tour was interesting; the samples were great! (Drinking!) Yes—I did the sampling of the beer and it was good. Kim passed this time as it was my drinking tour.
After the brewery tour we had to stop at the St. Louis icon Ted Drewes. I had the concrete and Kim and Pat had the hot fudge. It was good and we did not have any left over. Butch does not like Ted Drewes but still drove us to get our treat.
As part of the fun in St. Louis we went out to the Hill for a visit with some friends and relatives also in town for the same high school graduation. The restaurant, chosen by one of Butch’s brothers, was Rigazzi’s. You can see the small glass in front of Kim’s uncle (more drinking?). It was great for them to connect. Who knew retirement was so active!
Of course we went to St. Louis after Memorial Day to see my niece graduate from high school. The ceremony went really well and it was great to see her graduate. We stayed until Sunday to attend the graduation party, another day for friends and family (yes, more drinking). It was great to visit and be a part of the celebration.
As a part of the visit I asked “How do the In-laws do this retirement thing?”
Butch exclaimed they get all of the same things done in retirement that they have always done. Just not in the same hurry or the same day. Sure enough, he spent some time every day working on a project on his deck that is still not complete. Now, I do not think he was trying to prove a lifestyle point, I believe he was just doing what he does. He is one of the most optimistic guys you could meet. He is quick with a smile and always says hello.
Other highlights:
We had Imo’s pizza and took a walk to Webster University where I received my MBA. The campus has grown.
Yes–we did our bike ride in Webster University bike shirts–so it was only fitting to walk over to the campus.
A few lessons learned.
- Butch: Be optimistic. Take it slow, it will be there tomorrow and you are no longer on the clock.
- Pat (mother-in-law): Enjoy the time, be with friends and family.
- Natalie —now a senior in college, giving advice to her sister entering college: It is all about relationships. When the semester begins, go to the professor’s office on the first day of class and introduce yourself, be social. Know what you want and go for it.
Trip by the numbers:
Travel days: Tuesday, May 30, 2017, Sunday, June 04, 2017, all by car (350 miles one way)
Activity statistics:
- Biking miles: 54.8 miles, 3 rides, longest 20 miles.
- Hiking/Walking 19.9 miles, 10 separate walks in neighborhoods, longest 4 miles.
- Trumpet playing at Webster Gardens with their brass group at the 8 AM service
Retirement Travel with Glen 