Moving On

Once again, Ron and I are packing our bags and moving.  This is the happiest of our 5 moves in the past 15 years.  We are moving to Ocean Hills, a 55+ community of 1632 homes in Oceanside.  I couldn't be more excited.  New friends, new activities, new dog friends for Pepper, and getting back into golf.  With a golf course right outside my door, I've got to play golf!  Yet moving from a neighborhood you love is always hard.

When you have a dog, you know everyone in the neighborhood.  Not necessarily by name, but you certainly know what's going on.  I not only know what's going on, but I have made a lot of nice friends in this neighborhood.  I will miss them.  I will miss Molly, my 92 year old friend up the street.  We stop and chat often about life, loneliness and politics.  She LOVES to talk politics with me.  I will miss her.  Lynda, my friend around the block  was responsible for finding the home we have been renting for the past few years and will also be missed.  If I ever needed anything, from a cup of sugar, to a ride, to newspaper and boxes for packing, Lynda was there.  Finally, Rose and Arthur, my neighbors across the street, will be missed.  Rose and I became friends before she married Arthur.  We both had dogs, and we were on the same walking schedule, so we would walk together twice a day.  I knew all about her life and she knew about mine.  The dogs loved each other and I will miss their adorable chasing, biting and rough housing.  I love to watch them chase each other up and down the stairs at Rose's house.  We also rely on each other for taking care of the dogs.  Both Roger and Pepper will miss their sleepovers.  Since Rose married Arthur, I have gotten to know Arthur well too.  He walks the dog in the morning, and we always chat about our plans for the day, and what movies, books and restaurants we have enjoyed recently.

There are many other neighborhood friends who I will miss seeing, but hopefully new people will come into my life.  I will miss the stores and restaurants I have grown accustomed to in the past 10 years.  I will miss close access to the freeway.  Our new house is 10 minutes from the freeway.  I will miss the beach.  I drive Coast Highway almost everyday, and I love the view from Poinsettia and the 5 (west), especially in the late afternoon.

I will NOT miss the terrible phone reception we have had for the past three years.  Hopefully, my days of dropped calls are over.  I will NOT miss the big dog behind us that has been trying to break down the fence to get to Pepper ever since we moved in.  I will not miss Ralphie, the cute yorkie that Pepper hates.  Every time Pepper saw Ralphie or even got a whiff of him from afar, Pepper would freak out.  He'd lunge, bark and do everything possible to get to him.  Since they never even met, I don't know what he'd do if he actually got to him, but he was so out of control at the sight of him, I never wanted to find out.  I won't miss having to avoid walking by his house to avoid Pepper's out of control behavior.

;It's just a few days before we move, and I'm exhausted.  Each day I pack a few boxes and take a few things over to the new house.  I have scaled down the amount of "stuff" I have, but it just keeps coming.  I don't know where I will put it all.  I have such a hard time getting rid of things.  I know half the stuff I'll never use again, but I can't let go.  Right now, I just want this move to be over, to settle into our new home, and enjoy our new community.  I look at it as another adventure in my life.  I love adventure!