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A to Z Challenge: Day Ten – “J”

Retirement Reflections

‘J’ is for ‘Jaunt’, ‘Joviality’ and ‘Jubilation’.

Today, Richard and I are headed to Vancouver for tomorrow’s jaunt to Boston.

But first, a quick get-together to honor good friend, Aliza Hutchinson’s, birthday.

There was no escaping the party hats at today’s ‘Birthday Breakfast.’ Wishing Aliza a great day and a wonderful year ahead!

This also makes it the perfect time to give a special shout-out to all family and friends born in April. According to my calendar, there are quite a few of you. So here goes:

Happy birthday to Shea Wageman, Marina Frias-Gavidia, Cathy Jones, Sam Maxwell-Polglase, Rena Mirkin, Asa Haeggblom, Winona Wang, Aliza Hutchinson, Don McMahon, Sandra Helmig, Tamara Redmond, Sam Saprunoff, Diana Hart-McConnell, Dave McConnell, Tamara Palmer, Lori Key, Susan Cannon, Craig Chambers, Janet Kiernan, Julian Edwards, Jenny Glittenberg, Shaun Wageman, Eric Hirsch, Linda Curry and John Curry.

If you have an April birthday, and I missed your name above, please add it in the comments. I will then include it on the list and add it to my calendar.

We are now at the Ferry and on our way to Boston (via Montreal).

Current view from the Ferry window.

Today is Day 10 of the A to Z Blogging Challenge. If you were not previously convinced, have I begun to sway you that retirement does not mean inactivity or having nothing to do?

Published by Retirement Reflections

Prior to retirement, I lived and worked in Beijing China for fourteen years (Middle School Principal/Deputy Director at The Western Academy of Beijing). Leaving international life behind, my husband and I retired to Vancouver Island in June 2015. To document both this transition and our new adventures, ‘Retirement Reflections’ was born. I hope that you enjoy reading these reflections, and will be willing to share your own.

38 thoughts on “A to Z Challenge: Day Ten – “J””

  5. Ooh, wet! Hope that weather doesn’t follow you to Boston.

    That’s a lot of April birthdays! I can just think of three: a friend on April Fools Day (though he’s no fool) and John and my sister still to come.

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    1. Hi, Anabel – According to the current Boston weather forecast, we will have three days of rain while we are there…including the day of the Marathon. Although I packed light, I did pack my rain gear. Happy upcoming birthday to John and your sister!

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    1. Hi, Sue – This Challenge definitely inspires us to be creative with our words! Wishing a wonderful birthday to all of your friends and family born in April. I’ll continue to keep you posted on our adventures!

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    1. Hi, Joanne – Richard and I fly to Boston first thing tomorrow morning. Our youngest son competes in the Marathon on Monday. (Unfortunately it’s a ‘N’ day on the Challenge 🙂 .) We are very excited to be able to attend! That is something else that we never could have done when working. I’ll keep you posted!

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    1. Hi, Heather – Thanks so much for stopping by — and thank you for commenting on the picture from the Ferry window. As soon as I glanced up from my computer, I thought that the view looked like an impressionist painting as well! I am off to check out your site now.

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  10. Ahhhh a little bit of rain on the ferry window. It’s raining down here in Western Australia too (probably not in sunny Qld though!) Lovely that you got to share a birthday party before jaunting off again to visit friends and have a good time. You are definitely not inactive!

    Leanne | http://www.crestingthehill.com.au
    K for Keep Trying

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    1. Thanks, Leanne – I entered retirement with a strong fear that if I ‘didn’t use it — I would lose it’! That deep-seeded fear (along with the love of adventure) has kept me active! Thanks for following!

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  13. Hi, Fran – The bad news is that the weather is predicted to be quite mixed while we are in Boston (sun, cloud, rain….and even potential light snow)! The good news (for us) is that the weather on Vancouver Island during our absence is predicted to be rain, rain, rain! Thanks so much for following. I greatly appreciate it.

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  14. I’m a day late here on your letter, so I hope that you’re enjoying Boston and eating all the scrod you can find there. That’s what I think of when I think of that city.

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  16. My hubby and I are looking forward to that phase in our life. (I write this to the melodious sounds of screaming in the background – not the crying kind, the playing kind that moms can tune out for a minute.)

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    1. Hi, Jen – I absolutely adore this stage of life. That being said, I wouldn’t go back and trade one second of any other stage of my life, especially the “melodious sounds of children playing loudly in the background”. Many of my happiest memories are from that time period! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting. I greatly appreciate it.

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    1. So nice to meet you. Thank you for your kind words of encouragement on this Challenge. Participating in “A – Z” has been an exhilarating adventure all on its own. I’m off to visit your site shortly. Happy April Birthday to Mr. Wren!

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  18. Sorry I missed you back on the 11th, Donna. I scrolled through my feeder and didn’t see this post…strange. April is a very popular birthday month in my family with Derek, his twin sister, my sister and my aunt…all celebrating.

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    1. Hi, Jill – Thank you so much for coming back to this post and commenting. You are definitely someone whom I would love to meet in real life. Your kindness is such a noticeable quality, and I find it to be very contagious! I am grateful that I found your blog (via Kate, I believe)!

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      1. What a nice thing to say, Donna. I feel the same about you. Maybe one day we’ll meet in person. Yes, I think it was Kate who introduced us…I need to thank her. 🙂

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