Robert Fowler | Boomer 55+ Places to Live and Retire

My Nightmare Story

As a night shift worker, I sometimes have sleep problems so I get up and write. Writing can be done at any time. Writing clears my mind and brings a sense of accomplishment. One can write anything that their heart desires. So here I sit writing at midnight about something that happened which was rather alarming for a short time.

The day was overcast with no sun in sight as I drove to the bank, post office, and grocery store. After completing my chores, I returned home. I stuck a nice pot roast in the crock pot for dinner. I prepared myself some comfort food for a very late lunch. For desert I ate chocolate peanut butter ice cream. As normal, I started to feel drowsy. I laid down on the cot by my computer to rest a bit.

Suddenly, odd things started to happen with the computer. My face book screen was flipping. Then something even more unusual took place. Up popped different kinds of screens. One had my favorite movie on it. Another pop up stated I had just won a meat market. A cartoon character appeared on the screen dancing around. The speakers came on very loud. Heavy metal rock music started to blast through them. My printer started printing. Then it began banging. After all this confusion, face book totally bit the dust. None of the problems on the screen had any x out buttons. I just used my mouse and started clicking. The more I clicked, the more the computer went wild. There were dogs playing on one side of my screen. Then I received an email demanding that I publish a story. Another pop up had a picture of a big hairy thing sticking its tongue out at me. Having had enough of this nonsense, I tried to shut the computer down, but failed. “Oh my, I must have been hit by Trojan horses and hacked.”I thought to myself. I grabbed for the computer plug and disconnected it. The printer continued to print. The heavy medal continued to play. All the nutty stuff continued to invade my computer screen.

Suddenly I awakened. My dog was sitting on my stomach. My body was drenched in sweat. The cover from the cot was on the floor. The television had a crazy science fiction movie playing. I glanced at the clock which said 12 midnight. I looked over at my computer which was turned off. My broken printer was silent. What a drag! I had fallen asleep and had a NIGHTMARE!

According to wikipedia.org/wk./Nightmare, a nightmare can be caused by fear, stress or anxiety and psychological problems. Nightmares can also be caused by some foods that we eat before falling asleep. “That is it!” I thought to myself as I began to remember what I had eaten earlier.

My suggestion for the prevention of a nightmare and peaceful rest is; Don’t eat a chicken salad sandwich, cheddar and bacon potato skins, dill pickles, and peanut chocolate ice cream before laying down after a comfy food feast. If you have a hairy dog, make sure it has its own sleeping spot. Set your alarm clock in case you fall asleep since you may not want to mess up a good evening. Above all, be more reasonable about your eating habits than I was. Henry The Eighth I am NOT! Even though I love to write stories, I would prefer to eliminate the Nightmares while I continue to write at odd hours of the night.

Originally posted 2011-03-10 21:24:07.

In Retirement Schedule Can Save Money

See how timing your meals, trips, trips, and activates to your own schedule does pay off in deals and savings and sometimes gives you a better experiences than when you were in the busy time crunched work years.

Since retiring a few years ago, I have found that having a freer more flexible schedule when I do things results in savings. There has always been a relationship between time and money, it just changes in retirement. Here are some specific examples:

1. My wife and I love to do our eating out at lunch, where you can enjoy pretty much the same dishes that you pay higher prices for at dinner. We save money and actually enjoy the meal better since it is less crowded when we go. Yes there are also the early bird specials.

2. I have been visiting our Active Adult Center aka Senior Activities Centers and participate in many activities that cost me no money at all. I am a member of the walking club and the book club both which are free. The center has fresh fruit, great free coffee, newspapers and wired computers. There are small fees for classes in dance, yoga and many other things. Compared to an expensive health club, this is a deal and I like the people better too.

3. Since retiring we like to take trips in the shoulder season especially right after school starts. The shoulder season has less crowds and better travel deals and rates. Sometimes we take short trips at lower rates during mid week, not during the higher priced and crowded weekends.

4. We have learned to enjoy the national and state parks and these offer senior discounts. Museums and other attractions locally are fun to visit and save you a lot of money on travel and accommodations. See my post: Retirement Activities in Your Own City

So timing your meals, trips, trips, and activates to your own schedule does pay off in savings and sometimes gives you a better experiences than when you were in the busy time crunched work years.

More Discounts and Deals for Boomers and Seniors

Originally posted 2011-12-23 14:04:03.

Learning

In my last blog I mentioned the three L’s for living which are Live, Love and Laugh but I would like to add one more L. that L would be Learning. No matter how old we are life is a process of learning experiences. Let us never forget what we have learned and the wisdom that we gain from our experiences! For this we can be Grateful.

According to Wikipedia, Lifelong learning is the continuous building of skills and knowledge throughout the life of an individual. It occurs through experiences encountered in the course of a lifetime. These experiences could be formal (training, counseling, tutoring, mentorship, apprenticeship, higher education, etc.) or informal (experiences, situations, etc.

Learning in the 60+ age group

Learning in old age (over 60 years old) elderly people can learn a great deal from activities suitable to their age e.g. art, music, sports for the elderly, handicrafts and social work. They are highly respected in Thai society; capable of searching for knowledge and provide intellectual support to local communities. They can also carry out voluntary work in community organizations, clubs and associations. Such work makes their lives meaningful as well as bringing benefits to society.

Lifelong learning opens your mind and creates a curiosity that is natural when you are young, but can fade as you age. It increases your wisdom and helps you adapt to changing situations, which comes in handy as you age. Lifelong learning can help you make new friends, enrich your life, and help make the world a better place.

Originally posted 2019-02-18 15:51:23.

Wanted: Stress Free Boomer Bubble Pad

A boomer bubble pad that is warm and cozy in the winter, cool and light in the summer would be wonderful. Since I have tried meditation, exercise, healthy eating, vacations, life style changes, geographical changes, yoga, finding my purpose, job changes, and many other things this seems to be the only answer. Retirement Communities

This is a great time to write this blog because it is almost 1 a.m. in the morning and I have been unable to get to sleep. Earlier, I wanted to write a blog and for some reason could not get in here to write it. As I lay in bed thinking about it sleep would not come but stress did. I decided to give it another try. Now I am not computer literate so I tried a few things. Here I am now. I got here by going the long way around but it sure does go with my blog title. Lately, I have been reading a lot about how we boomers should alleviate stress from our lives to be healthier and happier. Of course I totally agree with that but I have been thinking maybe I should rent a stress free bubble boomer pad. Remember when we use to call our living place a pad. Yes, definitely that is what I need!

This is the only way that I can figure out how to keep the stress away from me in today’s world. It may sound a little crazy but I am ready to go to any lengths for de-stressing and living that healthy life.

A bubble pad that is warm and cozy in the winter, cool and light in the summer would be wonderful. Since I have tried meditation, exercise, healthy eating, vacations, life style changes, geographical changes, yoga, finding my purpose, job changes, and many other things this seems to be the only answer. Retirement Communities

Just like tonight, I turn on the computer to write and there was no writing place…stress. Then I turned on the news and heard the President was going to hold up social security checks…stress. I lifted my foot up in bed and found it swollen…stress. I turned on face book and read where several of my friends were ill…stress. I reached for a nice piece of fruit from my refrigerator and none was there…stress. Then to top it all off with my chocolate ice cream container was empty…stress. I took the dog out to do her thing and the hot air from dangerous temperatures over took my breathing… stress. My garbage disposal stopped working… stress. I ran a warm bath to relax and found I was out of my favorite bubble bath plus TP…stress. The check book is getting low since I have been out on sick leave…stress.

Then what about all those articles saying that we single boomer women are really going to have it rough as far as trying to retire?….stress.

Therefore if I can find a stress free boomer bubble pad without television, computers, garbage disposals and such, things would be stress free, right? There would be just me, no fruit, no ice cream, no nothing but me in the stress free boomer bubble pad with no job, no friends, no life. Oh my it just dawned on me, NO SWEETIE MY precious DOG FRIEND.

On second thought forget this idea about a stress free boomer bubble pad. My imagination has really gotten the better of me tonight. Boomers we are going to deal with this stress and learn to pace, calm and enjoy what we can in life. After all who wants to really live in a bubble. That would be very lonely, not living. There is the answer! We all are in this thing called life together and we will deal with it. We will enjoy the small things and the adventure. If by chance there is such a thing as a stress free boomer bubble pad we can watch our grandkids play in it. They would have a ball.

Seriously though, I do think there should be a warning sign that comes on prior to the news that says, “WARNING; WATCHING AND LISTENING COULD CAUSE STRESS AND BE DANGEROUS TO YOUR HEALTH.” Actually after that statement it might be best if I just crawled over here to my nice soft clean bed and got rest. This stinking thinking has gone a bit far and yes those thoughts do get us in trouble sometimes. 🙂

55+ Homes for Sale

Originally posted 2011-07-13 06:37:38.

Bucket List Travel

Bucket List Travel Can Improve Your Health, Broaden your Perspective, Even Lead You Into New Careers

If travel is something you long for, I encourage you to do it. Don’t let fears or worries stop you.

Study after study reveals that travel is good for us. It’s good for the body and good for the mind. It lowers stress, strengthens relationships and gives you memories for a lifetime.

Whether you like natural beauty (think rivers, mountains, beaches, waterfalls), cultural experiences (think museums, concert halls, art galleries), or historical sites (think battle grounds or presidential libraries), traveling to these places can enrich and enlarge your life in numerous ways.

Want to be amazed? Fascinated? Awed? Travel somewhere you’ve dreamed about but never actually been. Or, return to someplace wonderful you visited decades back and feel the wonder anew.

My husband, Al, and I began to travel in earnest after we were involved in a serious automobile accident in 2012. That wreck brought home to us how fragile life is. How it can be snatched away in a moment, in the blink of an eye. We decided to stop putting off our travel dreams.

Since then we’ve cruised through the Panama Canal, visited the Taos Pueblo in New Mexico, ridden on the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad, cruised the Mediterranean, driven the Blue Ridge Parkway, and cruised the Mississippi River on an honest-to-goodness steam-powered paddle-wheeler. Next spring, we’ll cruise the fjords of Norway.

We’ve been pleased to learn that travel is associated with lower rates of heart disease, reduced risk of depression, as well as increased brain development. Yes, our brains can develop even at our “seasoned” ages.

Activities such as touring a museum, finding your way through an unfamiliar town, walking along the beach have positive mental, physical and social benefits.

Traveling develops new skills. And that increases confidence.

When we travel and meet people from unfamiliar cultures, we may find new ways of looking at life. And that can give us a different perspective on things. We may find ourselves growing intellectually and emotionally.

Because travel often includes walking, we may find ourselves actually getting in better shape. We may even lose weight and gain muscle as we hike, stroll, walk or amble about.

Escaping the every-day, if only for a weekend, can energize and renew us.

Travel is fun.

And you never know where your travels will take you. Al and I have made friends we never would have met otherwise. And we found our travels so amazing, that we began to write about them.

So travel has turned us into authors. We write travel memoirs, filling them with all the wit, wisdom, discoveries and surprises we experience on our journeys. This year, we’re publishing three books about a trip we took in 2014.

Cruising the Mediterranean, describes our adventures in Amsterdam, Venice, Athens, Istanbul and other places. It was named an Amazon #1 best seller in the senior travel category.

Indie Book Reviewers say that the book is “…full of adventure and life and great advice on traveling.”

Our second book, Finding Ourselves in Venice, Florence, Rome & Barcelona, was also named a #1 best seller in the senior travel category. In addition, Amazon named it the #1 Hot New Release in Venice travel guides.

In this book, we visit local markets, famous sites, and quiet out-of-the way neighborhoods, staying in Airbnb apartments and using Barcelona’s hop-on hop-off bus to show us around.

Rick Bava, author of In Search of the Baby Boom Generation, said this about the book: “The beauty of these wonderful places shines through every page. I recommend it for Baby Boomers and others whose hearts long to travel. You’ll feel like you’re right there…”

And we have a third book, coming out soon: Cruising the Atlantic, Our Epic Journey from Barcelona to Miami.

I tell you this to underscore how travel can take you places you never dreamed of. Who would have imagined that a wreck caused by a texting driver slamming full speed into us would result in our becoming travel memoir authors sharing our trips with readers around the world?

But there you have it. We’re either writing about a trip, planning a trip, or we’re on a trip, enjoying all the benefits of travel.

At our age, we have the time for travel and we have more money for travel than we had as young adults. Still, we are careful with our travel funds, and try to get the most value for our dollars.

If you have a travel dream, I encourage you to take it. Travel now, while you can. The Internet can make the trip easier than ever. Nearly every city, state or national park has a website where you can check out tours, lodging, points of interest, even maps of the area.

Do some online exploring, plan with care, fuel your sense of adventure, trigger your imagination, then make your dreams come true.

Al and Sunny Lockwood have traveled by foot, car, rail, air and cruise ship. Everywhere they go, they capture unforgettable moments — Al with his camera and Sunny with her reporter’s notebook. Their work has been published in magazines and newspapers. This photograph was taken in an Athens coffee shop, when Al and Sunny ducked inside to escape a sudden downpour. You can contact the Lockwoods at sunnyandallockwood@gmail.com

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Originally posted 2016-09-09 08:55:48.

Don’t Let Life Keep You Down

Even in the most difficult times, there are things that we can do to keep life from keeping us down. This is but a few of those things, in addition to writing, that helps me.

Folks, this has been one of those weeks. I am sure that you have had them too. It is after midnight. Sleep will not come. I need to write. As I have said before, writing is healthy. It is time to stand up and continue on. Life is to be lived. It is short. Even in the most difficult times, there are things that we can do to keep life from keeping us down. This is but a few of those things, in addition to writing, that helps me.

If you receive a message by text or face book that is upsetting, try to accept the fact that texting is the way things are done in this modern day and time. It is a way to communicate. If it upsets you then let that person know. If you don’t need email or text then you might want to consider taking it off your telephone and computer. Learn from written messages. We must remember that there are real people using computers and telephones. We do not know how their life is going. They may be suffering from an illness, or going through a difficult time. Be appropriate when communicating.
Do not expect others to think like you do. Do not expect others to deal with death or any grief situation like you do. Everyone has their own way of working through things in their own time.
Try not to take your anxiety out on someone that is close to you, as you go through your grief process. They are grieving too, but they are NOT YOU. Share your feelings but respect the feelings of others too.
When you get to the anger part of grief, do not give up. Feel it! If it is necessary to drop a tear or two, then do it. Try to keep your mind focused on the moment. Stay centered. Be real! Share with people that understand and care. Do what you need to do. Just don’t allow anger to become YOU.
Use slogans such as, “Easy Does It, First Things First, and Keep It Simple, This Too Shall Pass. Try to get in touch with the spiritual part of yourself.
Take time to breathe. Do not go back to unhealthy habits or behaviors. Remember, this only sabotages getting through the grief. It hurts you and sometimes those closest to you.
Kick something. Smack a pillow. Tear up a telephone book. Get rid of that negative energy. There is enough hurt right at the moment. Be gentle with yourself.
Cry if you must. Those are your tears. You can let them drop. If you are a man and feel it will hurt your image, then go some where alone. Let them flow. Crying is natural. Let those tears wash away the pain, then wipe your face off, get up, and face the world. You can do it! After all you are a boomer, remember!
Show compassion. Be real. Do not deny your feelings. Console others. Listen. Rest. Do what you need to do to deal. It is your life. You have that right. Exercise your rights as a boomer with wisdom in a constructive,understanding and loving way.
Grief is a natural part of life that must be done in order to carry on. Be who you are. Put your best foot forward. You are experiencing life. You will probably remember happy times, sad times and laughter. That is what LOVE is all about and this is life. Live it! Share your feelings and thoughts because much later in your life, you may find yourself at an age, or in a situation where you are unable to communicate.

I just wrote some of my thoughts and feelings down. I have shared them with you. It helps to write. I want to thank those that have encouraged me to write again as I put on my big girl pants and continue on in this thing called life. By sharing, I hope that you always know that there is someone out there that cares. You are not alone. Put on your big girl or guy pants and take a boomer walk with me. Peace, love and light!

Senior Centers offer lots of support – see SeniorCenterDirectory.com

Originally posted 2012-02-10 15:26:36.