New Year’s Day
A New Home?
To But A New Home or Not?
Decisions Made
The Trick on Connie
April
Specail Events
Started preparong fpor the Move
Preparing for the Move Continued
House is on the Market
September A New Home
October Getting Started in our New Home
Early Retirement
A Busy Novemeber
Thanksgiving and the Weekend
Early Retirement and a New Job
December a lot going on
EDS – Retiring
2005
2006
2004 — A Year of Changes
New Year’s Day
This was a year of many changes and none of them I saw coming at the beginning of January.
I started the day on January 1st very tired. I had been up all night on New Year Eve. There were many years in my career in which I was not on call, but this was not one of them. I was on-call for the Lincoln National Life account for their year-end processing. It started early about eight pm. The main on-call people were in India but those of us in the US were back-ups. After I received the call and beginning chat with the person in India, we got things going fairly, smoothly. But before I could go to bed other jobs had crashed and a couple of them were jobs that we only ran at year-end. Before midnight in trying to fix one of the problems, the person in India made a mistake and it was a big one because it would take us the rest of the night to recover from it. I finally got to bed around eight that morning. Luckily since New Year’s Day was on a Thursday and the companies were closed on the second, we had till Monday to get all the year-end jobs completed.
I did not sleep long as I wanted Connie, to have a good day. I got up around eleven and took a quick shower. I had decided to take her to Salt Grass Steakhouse for lunch. We got there around noon and there was a sign on their door saying they would not be opening until three in the afternoon. We then decided we would drive to Plano and have lunch at Texas Land and Cattle and thank goodness they were open.
I remember I had gotten a good deal on some Microsoft software at Sam’s. It included Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, etc. It was a student’s edition and had some limitations to it, but it did everything I needed.
The rest of the month was filled with dinner with friends. We met Marty and Randy twice for dinner and Connie had lunch with Lizzie and Mary that month.
I am not sure what we bought at Haverty’s (a furniture store) in December, but we started making payments in January of $122 a month for several months.
During the first week of February, I saw Dr. Jones, my orthopedic doctor. It was just a normal check-up to X-Ray my hips and make sure everything was good which it was. In the first few days of February, we had dinner with Marty and Randy and Then about a week later with Flo and Doug. It was also time for our yearly termite inspection. Connie also had a breakfast meeting with Marty and Lizzie early in the month.
A New Home?
Next, I am not sure about the date whether it was the 14th or 15th of February but it was the start of major changes for the year. I believe on the 14th a Saturday Connie and I had lunch at Salt Grass steak house as we had planned on going on New Year’s Day. The next afternoon, we had a late lunch and Connie said let go look at the houses at Heritage Ranch a retirement community. I agreed because we had looked out there when they first open back in late 1999 or early 2000 and we did not like the homes they were building. The builder was US Homes, and they were so dark.
Was I wrong as US Homes had sold the place and there were two new builders. They were Village Builders and Hovnanian. The first model we walked into was one by Village Builders and Connie fell in love with it as soon as she saw it. I have to admit that I also really liked the home. We continued to look at the 5 or 6 model homes that the two builders had there, but nothing could compare to how Connie felt about the first home.
Connie was ready to buy right there, but I told her I would not do anything for at least a month as we had to really think about what we wanted to do. We had bought a piece of property in Hot Springs Village and Connie had always wanted to retire there. I was not as crazy about retiring in Hot Springs as Connie was, but I felt we need to go where she wanted to go in retirement. I wanted to make sure we were making the right decision, but Connie never wavered as she knew Heritage ranch was the place she wanted to retire. The home Connie selected was 2,600 square feet while our existing home was only about 2,000 square feet. I talked to Connie about did we really need that much more space, but she said Sparkie when you retire, I am going to need more space to get away from you and have some quiet time.
During the rest of the month, I thought about it from a financial point of view and if we would be happy with the decision to say here. I knew I would, but I wanted to make sure Connie would be happy giving up the Hot Spring retirement idea.
On the 26th, of the month Connie took Peaches in for an adequan shot in her knew. The shot was to help with the cartilage in her knee. I took a long lunch hour and came home because Connie and I were going to Reed Elementary school to an event in support of the school. It was our friend Lizzie, whose daughter was attending that elementary school.
Decisions (To Buy A New Home or Not?)A New Home
Decisions (To Buy a New Home or Not?)
March found Connie more and more sure that she wanted to move to Heritage Ranch and give up retiring in Hot Springs Village Arkansas. Ever since we had visited in mid-February, we would take a trip out there two or three times a week after I got home for lunch and also go at least once on the weekend. Connie was anxious for me to make a decision. On the 2nd, of March she and Lizzie visited the “Corral Grill” which was located in the clubhouse for lunch and had a wonderful time. Connie and I also went a couple of times on the weekend.
We had dinner with several friends during the month. But the majority of it was talking trips to Heritage Ranch. We started looking at lots and talking to one of the salespeople. Her name was Mandy, and she was such a pleasure to work with. I was getting close to making a decision, but Connie and I were still talking about a lot of things because once we made this decision, we felt we were pretty much committed to staying in this area.
On the 20th of March, we attended Matthew’s (Lizzie’s and Dave’s son) confirmation. I remember it well because Bishop Gramhann, gave the homily and it struck a chord with Connie. I remember after that her letting go of some things that had been bothering her. After the service, we went to Lizzie and Dave for a little celebration that was attended by a few friends and family.
Decision Made
By Sunday the 21st, Connie and I made the decision that we were going to buy a home in Heritage Ranch and sell the one in Allen that we had lived in for 24 years. We had already picked out a lot and I told Connie, I would try to get home earlier on Wednesday, and we would go out there and make a deposit. We set up a time for 5:30 for that Wednesday.
On Tuesday the 23rd, Connie had an appointment with her OB/GYN (Dr. Jaffe) at 10:15, and then we had dinner with Marty and Randy and told them about our decision not to move to Hot Springs Village but to stay in this area. We felt that we should let them know as they were good friends and were also planning to retire there.
The Trick on Connie
On Wednesday the 24th, before we went to see Mandy about buying the house, I decided to play a little trick on Connie, and you can read about it in the funnies. I think you will enjoy what Mandy and I did, so please read it in the funnies. When we went to the lot that Connie had picked out I had called Mandy earlier in the day. She put a sold sign on it but on the back was the sign Connie it is yours. I got Connie good that time. And you can see what Connie saw when she looked at the back of the sign. We put the $2,000 earnest money down to Village Builders and then we begin going full steam ahead with our plans. To celebrate Connie and Lizzie went to lunch at the Corral Grill the next day.
Peaches had another adequan shot on the 29th for her knee and Jay came and did a lot of repairs around the house.
April
On April 1st Connie and I visited the design center for Village Builders which was out near the airport. We would make several visits there before they started building our house and I know Connie always enjoyed those trips and planning for the new house. It was such an exciting and happy time for her. She also stopped taking her Prevacid on that day, I am not sure why, but she had acid reflux very badly, so I am wondering if she started taking something else or just wanted to get off it.
She had lunches with Lizzie, Marty, and Flo that month. It seemed she met a couple of them several times during the month. We also had lunch at the clubhouse at Heritage Ranch on one weekend that month. She also went back to see Dr. Jaffe around the 16th of the month. I am not sure why she needed a follow-up visit. I also spent over $500 with Dell computers this month but I am not sure what I bought.
Special Events
It seemed like May was a month of attending special events. We started on May 1st with Connie and me attending Nathan Leiter’s first communion. Nathan’s parents, Michael and Debbie were good friends of mine that I worked with at EDS. In fact, Nathan was supposed to get married in 2020 but because of the pandemic, his wedding has been moved to 2022.
On the 14th, we attended the wedding of Tonya, Marty’s daughter. I have mentioned that Connie and I had dinner with them quite often. It was a Friday night, and it was the first wedding that we had attended on a Friday night. I remember the reception was held in a town about 20 miles away and we had a good time at the reception. Marty was a very good baker and made the wedding cakes on the side. The one she made for Tonya’s wedding was remarkable. But there was a funny thing that happened at the reception one of our good friends Brenda went into the wrong bathroom and did not even know it. We all stood up and clapped for her when she came out and had to explain to her what she had done. One of Tonya’s brothers was a policeman and came over and told her he was going to arrest her. You probably had to be there, but it was so funny, and we can still laugh about that incident today.
The other event was Jennifer Baker’s High school graduation. She was the daughter of George and Nina Baker whom we were good friends of ours. They were from St, Jude and that is where we got to know them.
I got a major refund from the IRS this month of over $2,100. I also bought plane tickets to visit Connie’s mother in New York as we would be going to see her in June. I also bought myself a new wallet this month.
Started Preparing for the Move
Started Preparing for the Move
The biggest event of this month was that we rent a storage unit at 5 Star Storage near our house. We rent it on the 29th which was a Saturday, and we then begin to pack the thing up and gather things to take to the storage unit. On Memorial Day, the 31st we begin the process of moving a lot of stuff to the storage unit. That would continue all the way through June and the early part of July.
June was a busy month for us but not much in the way of excitement. The main activity that we had going on that month was packing things up and taking them to the storage unit. We also probably drove out to Heritage Ranch every other evening to see the progress being made on our new home. This was the second house we had built, and I forgot how exciting it can be to watch your home being built. We had dinner with Gary and Carol on Sunday the 6th. They had purchased a new home too; well, it was new for them, but it was an exciting home located on a creek ad they were so excited about it. It was nice to see how excited we all were since we had known each other since 1975.
Friday the 11th, I remember well because we took Lizzie and her mother out to Heritage ranch that night to have dinner. The rest of Lizzie and her mother’s family were head to a baseball game that night. The Texas Rangers were playing the St. Louis Cardinals. Before eating we went through the model home like the one, we had bought with them. Lizzie had seen it before, but Connie wanted to show Lizzie’s mother. After dinner, we drove by and showed them how much progress had been made on our new home.
Connie had lunch with Carol and Deloris that month.
Connie was called for jury duty on the 24th. It seemed she got more jury calls than anyone I knew. She probably got three jury notices to everyone that I got. Since it was a Thursday, she was not as concerned because Monday was the big day for jury selection in this county. Luckily, she did not get selected.
We also visited her mother in Sparkhill, New York this month and stayed at the Holiday Inn in Orangeburg.
My graduating class was going to have a 40-year reunion in October, and I sent in the $40 registration fee, even though I did not know if I would be able to attend or not.
Preparing for the Move – Continued
Preparing for the move – Continued
July was another exciting month for us. We had the storage unit completely packed. I am not sure we could have got anything else in there. We were getting ready to put our house on the market toward the end of this month. Our agent was a lady named Terri P. I had forgotten to mention that we had contacted her back in April, she had help Lizzie and Dave sell their house and they were pleased with her, so we used her too. It was also nice that she was a member of St. Jude. She did give us a great deal. If we would list, her as our agent when we bought the new house, she would not charge us a commission on selling our house. The way it worked if we listed her as the agent when we bought the new house, she would get a commission off of that. Even though she did not do anything. But by listing her then she would get more commission than she would on selling our old home. It was a good deal for us, and we appreciated her doing that.
I am not sure what was going on with Connie’s health at this time, but I notice she had another appointment with Dr. Jaffe. This was the third one in 3 months. She saw her on Thursday, July 1st.
We were still visiting three times a week in the evening after I got home from work and at least once on the weekend and sometimes twice. It was so exciting for us to see our new place being constructed. I am so glad that Connie, insisted on going to visit so often because we found a couple of problems. One turned out to be a big benefit for us. The first one was that they were putting a door from the master bedroom out to the back porch which we did not want. Since we caught it early, they were able to correct it. The second I think they could have corrected if they wanted to, but they chose not to do. There was a charge for having a small desk built into the kitchen area and the cost was several thousand dollars. Connie and I had decided we did not need it. On one of our trips there, we saw that they had built the frame for the desk. I contacted Mandy so she could have it corrected. Mandy eventually got back to me and said if we wanted to keep the desk we could at no charge because they had already ordered the top and other things for the desk. The building orders the contractor was working off of included a desk. After Connie and I talked about it we thought if we ever had to move it would be a good selling point and since they were not going to charge us extra, we decided to keep it.
We also finalized all the items we could pick from for our new home at the design center.
Peaches went back to the vet, twice this month. She was still getting shot to help with the cartilage in her knee. We did get the carpet cleaned as we wanted to make sure the house was ready for showing at the end of July.
Other than that, the month was filled with Connie, having lunches with Lizzie, Deloris, and Marty. We had two dinners out that month on Friday the 30th, and Saturday the 31st, with Gary and Carol and then with Doug and Flo.
House is on the market
August starts with Connie having another doctor’s visit. This time it was with her primary care physician. After seeing him she started taking Lipitor. It says it is a statin drug for Cholesterol. Since Connie and I never had a cholesterol issue I think it made have been for heart health. Statins can help prevent coronary artery disease and lower your risk of heart attack and stroke. I know that is why she started taking them because I remember a few years later she had me ask my primary care doctor to put me on a statin too.
The big thing going on that month was that our house was now on the market. So, all of us who have sold houses know-how that can be, keeping it clean and neat at all time, Having to leave within a few hours so they can show the house. We got a lot of traffic during the month.
Connie saw the dentist on the 26th and took Peaches in for another shot in her knee.
September A New Home
September was an exciting month for us. Our new home was supposed to be ready that month, but it was going to be toward the end of the month. We had a contract to sell our new house and were negotiating with the buyer on things we would fix and things we would leave.
It also meant packing and wow that was a tremendous job. We were so exhausted from packing even though we had spread it over several weeks that we decided we would never move again. Our friends Gary and Carol had moved recently and had used a company called Quinn Moving and based on their recommendation we called them and scheduled our move.
I was extremely busy trying to coordinate loans for our house. While we had qualified for a loan, I wanted to do it differently. I wanted two loans one for 15 years and another for two or three months. Since we would not get the proceeds from the sale of our house until after we had closed on the new one, I wanted a bridge loan that I would pay off after we had closed on our old home.
It had been a fun month in some ways starting back in August especially for Connie as she was selecting drapes, curtains, blinds, and other things she wanted for the new house. So, the month was extremely busy.
There were so many things to be done, we had Jay come and do most of the repairs that we had agreed to with the buyers. We also had Plumb Perfection come and take care of some plumbing issues. Connie was becoming extremely frustrated with all the demand the new buyers kept adding before they would close. The things they wanted us to leave, but there were several of those things that Connie wanted to keep, and she would not agree to. There were so many things we were already leaving for them. I remember one incident in particular in dealing with them out of many. They asked us to leave the refrigerator. Connie said no problem. She told them since we bought it in 1976, they were welcomed to it. When they heard that they suddenly decided that they did not want it. While all of this went through our respective realtors, Connie became so frustrated with them she wanted to pull out of the contract and put the house back on the market.
On Monday the 20th, we had a walk-through with the builders on the new house and found some things that we wanted to be corrected. We came back on the 24th, for a final walkthrough to make sure the things we wanted to be corrected were.
I took a week of vacation during the last week of September, but that still left Connie extremely busy the week before. Even though Connie was busy this week we still found time to have dinner with friends on the 22nd and to take Peaches for her shot on the 23rd of that week.
We started off the moving week on Saturday by attending a party at Tom and Sonja. Then things state to move very fast.
We drove out to Village Builder corporate office on Monday the 27th, and at 11 AM met with them to close on our new house. Our realtor was with us. I had forgotten how much paperwork and signing had to be done because it had been 24 years since we had bought a new home. We walked out extremely happy with the keys and garage door openers to the new home. That evening we took a few clothes to our new home.
Tuesday morning, I got up early and went to the new house to wait for 3-day blinds to come and install the blinds on the windows in our new house. There were lots of windows. Thinking back on it now, I remember we had been out two or three times before to let them in so they could measure for the blinds. Meanwhile, while I was waiting for the people to show up to install the blinds, Connie and Lizzie were back at our old home packing up their cars to bring more of our clothes out and the things that were delicate that we did not want the movers to break.
Wednesday the 29th, finally it is moving day. Connie was so smart because she scheduled Peaches grooming for that day. She never had forgotten when we had moved back in 1980, how sacred Brandy and Misty were seeing all the things leaving the house. I think they thought we were abandoning them. Since they had never been to the new place it took them a while to adjust to it. One of the things Connie had done was to take Peaches to the new home that was being built so it would be familiar to her. It worked because she had no problem adjusting to the new place.
The movers showed up early and had the first load moved and completely by about 12:30. They were going to lunch and then go back for a second load. I remember the day so well as Connie and went to a new Sonic that had only been open for a few months. They had some tables outside that you could sit at. Connie and I there sit thee so happy and excited about how things were going for us even though we were both pretty exhausted. To this day I can still see us sitting there eating our burger and fries and how happy we were.
That night the 29th was the first we would spend in our new home. I would like it to have been more, but our Dear Lord had other plans for our lives.
Closing on our old home was set for the 30th at 4 PM. We spent most of the day at the old place cleaning and make sure everything was ready for the new owners. But I had a new problem to deal with, the owners had requested we put in a new garage door opener on Tuesday of that week. Since they had children, they want one that would stop if there was something under it. Ours was an old one and did not have that capability. I told them that I would give them $200 toward a new garage door opener otherwise the deal was off. They accepted and so we found out Thursday morning the closing was still on. Connie and I both understood their concern for their kids, and we would probably have had no problem with it except for the fact that we felt they had been so picky about so many things just trying to see how much they could get out of us. Our first reaction was to just call the deal off but then we deicide since it was to protect their kids, we would give them something toward a new one, but we would not buy and have one installed before we closed.
Finally, the day was over, and we were exhausted, but we still had more cleaning to do on Friday and little items that still needed to be gotten out of the house that we did not have the movers move.
October Getting Started in our New Home
October getting started in our new home
While we did not spend the whole day at the old house cleaning on Friday, but it was still around 10 PM when we finished. I remember so vividly that we were told to leave the keys and garage door openers. Thinking back on it I cannot remember why, but I remember having left the garage door openers in the house and me pushing the button and then running to get out of the garage before the door came down. I cannot remember why we could not have done it some other way.
It’s over, we started Saturday, October 1st in our new home even though we had been here since Wednesday. Everything was done with the old home and now we could fully concentrate on getting our new home set up.
Connie, love the long hall when you came into the front door that ran past the kitchen and into the dining room. There were two areas where she wanted something painted or stenciled on them the first one, she wanted to have it say, “The Best Is Yet To Come”, it was one of her favorite sayings. The second would go over the dining room where it would say “Fine Dining’ which was a joke about Connie’s cooking
One of the things, that I had forgotten to mention back in September on the 28th, when they came to install the blinds, Rodenbaugh a local store delivered our new refrigerator. It was black, I had suggested to Connie that the sink, stove, and microwave should be black, and I was so glad to hear after we were in the house, she was so glad that she had gone along with my choice. We put the old refrigerator and the freezer in the laundry room.
A company called Grande Communication was providing cable tv, network, and phone service for the area. They had installed fiber optic when the ranch was built and had exclusives rights to this area. While they were a regional company, we found the service to be very good.
During the first or second week of October, they came out to bury the cable in the ground. It was late and getting dark when they showed up. I am not sure what they did but I think they must have hit the sprinkler system as we saw water bubbling up in the yard. I had a tough time with them as they were wanting to leave because one of the men was taking a bus from Dallas back to Mexico that night to see his family. They finally were able to correct the problem temporarily. I hope the guys made it in time to catch his bus. The next morning there was another crew out there and they fixed the problem. We had two TVs, but they were not the big screen one yet, because they had just been out a couple of years and their price range was still very high. We bought a small HD TV less than 19 inches if that large, it was in an open box item from Circuit City, it was still over $500. Maybe I know why now because it only lasted a couple of years. We had planned on using it as a kitchen TV, but they could not run the cables into the kitchen for some reason. I remember one of the reasons is that they would have to come through the backsplash and were afraid that they would mess it up. So, we had the cable run to the living room instead.
High School Reunion
The biggest thing that happened that month, was that I traveled back to Shelbyville for my 40th high school reunion. It was a big bone of contention between Connie and me at the time. She did not want me to go, and I wanted to go. Her reason for not wanting me to go seem valid to me now but at the time I did not think it was.
We were in a new section of the Ranch and there were 4 houses on our block, and they had not even thought about building across the street. There were two of us that had moved in and there was a house in between us. The block to the east of us had only a few people that had moved in and they were still completing the house on the next block west of us. Connie was afraid to be alone. I could not understand it as I had traveled quite a bit during my career at EDS and she hardly ever was afraid of being alone.
Anyway, I decided to go but to make it a short trip. I left the house about 5 AM on a Saturday to catch a flight to Nashville and then drove to Shelbyville. After I arrived, I tried calling her, but she was not answering. I knew she was upset. The reunion was a lot of fun and I had not seen most of the people since 1987. But it was short. We had a dinner and dance at the local country club and that was the extent of our reunion. I called the airlines after I got back to the hotel sometime before midnight and changed my flight to a 7 AM return flight rather than the 11 Am I had been scheduled on. It meant getting up around 4 to leave the hotel by 5 to get to the airport in time to catch the flight.
I got back to the DFW airport a little after 9 that morning called Connie and told her I would be home shortly, and we would go to the Saltgrass Steakhouse for lunch. The rest of the day was great, and we were enjoying our new home.
You can read about how the “Underpants Gang” Stories got stated in “Stories: “The Funnies 00-09”.
We had Jay out to do a lot of small tasks around our new home, such as hanging some pictures, building some shelves, etc. Connie also returned to see Dr. Kellum that month, but I am not sure why. Peaches got another shot.
On Friday the 29th, we had Quinn moving to go to our storage unit and pull all the things that we had put in storage. We both wondered why we were doing it, as we had been without the stuff for several months and had not missed it. It was a lot and took up a lot of space in our garage. A good thing was we had time to work through it.
Early RetirementHigh School Reunion
Early Retirement
The major thing that happened that month, was that EDS announced an early retirement program. It was the 2nd one that I was eligible for. This time I was strongly considering it. I knew there would be forced separations coming the following year and as usual, they tended to separate the older people. I had just turned 58 and wanted to work a few more years. So, Connie and I decided that I would look for another job, and if I found one, I would take the early retirement.
It’s strange how things happen, Connie and I had thought briefly early on when we were looking at the houses to wait until they open the next section on the golf course before buying but they did not know when that would be, so we decided to go ahead and buy back in March. Thing goodness we did because if we had waited for the golf course section to open, I may have not bought because of the early retirement. The one thing that helped us make that decision was the fact that the next section of golf course lots to be opened were not as pretty as most of the other golf courses lots. I am so glad we decided not to wait on a golf course lot.
A Busy November
November started with a table arriving from JC Penny’s. We had ordered it earlier in October and when it arrived it was missing a piece at the bottom. A piece that goes across the bottom was missing but it was stable enough without it, so things worked out ok with it.
The main thing that month was getting things done around the house. We had an iron fence built around our property so that we could let Peaches out to enjoy the backyard and we started looking for spas. Connie really missed having a spa. Peaches got groomed and had another shot for her knee.
I am not sure what happened to one of our cars that month, but we spent more than $1,200 on it.
Thanksgiving and the weekend
We spent Thanksgiving Day at the clubhouse enjoying their Thanksgiving buffet. It was a lot of fun and we enjoyed it. That Friday, my next-door neighbor Tim and I went to a place called Golf Carts for fun and purchased golf carts that we could use around the neighborhood. Neither one of us played golf but we thoroughly enjoyed using the golf carts.
That Friday evening, we met Lizzie, Dave, and her kids at a BBQ place in Plano. I had forgotten to check my phone until we got to the restaurant, and I had a message for her. We were supposed to meet at 6 but she had left me a message that they were going to a movie and would not be there until 7. For some reason, Connie and I decided to wait. I am glad we did as we had a fun evening.
Early Retirement and a New Job
Early Retirement and a New Job
The main thing that happened that month, was that I decided to take the early retirement from EDS and had turned in my paperwork. I had interviewed at a Worker’s Compensation company called Cambridge. It was about a 45-minute drive from where I lived. I was lucky in that I knew several people that had left EDS and gone to work for that company, so I had some inside help in getting the job. I had done some work back in the 90s in developing a piece of software for Worker Compensation companies, so I did have some knowledge.
December a lot going on
During December we had more work done on the iron fence we had put up so Peaches could go out in the yard. I am not sure of the date, but I think it was on the 17th of December, that they delivered our golf cart. I had a lot of vacation time and had taken off till the end of the year when my retirement would take effect. The golf car provided us so much fun over the year and still does to this day. The first time we took it around the golf course we could not believe how beautiful it was around there. It was amazing and we always enjoyed our trips around the course.
Early in December, the new company that I was going to work for (Cambridge) had sent me all the paperwork, that I needed to fill out, including that for insurance, etc. I noticed a problem the salary on the paperwork was $5,000 more than we agreed to. I call the main office and told them I thought there was a mistake and after checking they agreed they had made a mistake, so I cross out that number and wrote the correct number that we had verbally agreed to.
I started to realize early in December that it was a good thing, that I had taken the early retirement. They had started reclassifying our job based on the job we were performing at that time. I was a Senior System Engineer and based on the job I was assigned to them were going to reclassify me and lower my salary until a job with my skillset open up. But because I had already filed my early retirement papers, I did not have to worry about that.
We had a mirror made for the dining room wall and they installed it during this month. It seems we had used the glass company Binswager several times over the years. We also made a substantial payment to Wells Fargo to pay off the bridge loan we had taken to buy the house. Now we would have only one primary loan payment for the house.
One thing I will remember about Saturday, Christmas Day that year was that Connie said it was her best Christmas ever. Connie and I usually spent Christmas alone, but this year, Lizzie and Dave asked us over to their house. Connie had so much fun the house was filled with people, Beside Lizzie, Dave, and her two kids, there was her youngest sister Lolli, her husband, their two children, her other sister Laura and her husband, and her parents Lawrence and Beanie. Counting us there was 14 of us and it was fun. Connie enjoyed all of Lizzie’s family, the excitement of all the ladies in the kitchen cooking, the games afterward. It was a totally different Christmas than we were used to. Rather than our normal quiet Christmas day together, this one was filled with laugher, good food, and wonderful friend. As Connie said at the time it was the best Christmas ever.
EDS – Retiring.
On Friday the 31st of December, I returned to the office to turn in my badge, computer, etc., and to sign any remaining paperwork that was required. It was with sadness that I left there that day. Even though I had not been there since taking vacation around the middle of December, it was hard since I had been there for over 31 years. There were not many people in the office that day, but I did say my goodbyes to those that were there.
2005
The year 2005 begin with me being unemployed. I had a new job that would start on January the 5th. It was with a company called Cambridge which was a workers compensation company. That would be the start of a long drive for the next three-plus years as it would take me about 45 minutes to an hour to get to work and to get home. I noticed that I was spending over forty dollars a month in tolls just to go to and from work.
Before I would start to work at the new job, I had a meeting with Doctor Cooley who would give me my first colonoscopy. I have written about that in the funnies so that you can read it.
There was a big store in Plano called Garden Ridge. They must have had some good after-Christmas sales because I notice that we spend almost $200 at the beginning of the year. We were still getting work done around the house as Jay came out and we spent another couple of $100 with him to get things fixed up around the house. Connie also bought her a new winter coat at the Burlington coat factory this month.
On Saturday the 22nd we had a party at our house. It was the first party we had thrown since we had moved into the house. Connie labeled the calendar as the coyote party. It was based on an incident that happened in October 2004 you can read about that in the funnies.
We had dinner with Doug and flow on the 20th, of that month and Connie had lunch with Deloris later in the month.
It seemed in February we had a lot of medical things going on. On the 16th, I had my first colonoscopy, and on the 23rd, Connie had an endoscopy because of all the heartburn she was experiencing. Connie also had a mammogram on the 25th. I also bought new eyeglasses that month.
But most of the weekends in February were filled with trips to look at spas. We had an in-closed patio in the previous house that contained a spa, and the room had heating and air conditioning. Connie loved that spa room so much and wanted another spa as soon as possible. I remember we spent one whole Saturday driving around Fort Worth looking at spas to buy for our new house. We did find a brand of spa that we liked called Nordic hot tubs. We decided not to go with that company because of the cost of the installation and getting it delivered but we were committed to getting a Nordic spa. We spend another Saturday on Interstate 20 looking at some stores over there that carried spas, but we did not find anything we liked so we continue to look.
We did a brunch on Sunday the 27th, and I think we did it here at the clubhouse, but I am not sure. On the 28th, we had the GE technician come out because we were having problems with our dishwasher, I think, and it was still under warranty, so we had them come out and look at it.
March was a busy month, as we finally found the place where we going to buy our spa. It was in a small town called Tioga Texas and it was very hard to find the place. Connie and I headed out early one Saturday morning and after missing several turns we finally found the spa place. Randy Travis also lives in Tioga TX. We like the people that owned the spa place. They also carried the Nordic hot tub which was just what we were looking for and their prices were reasonable which also included delivery and installation. They also provided me with the name of an electrician who would come out and do all the electrical work that needed to be done. We took another week to think about it and went the following weekend to make the purchase. While in Tioga, we stop and had BBQ at a small little restaurant in the town, it was very famous for its BBQ. The population of Tioga was maybe 500 people. We scheduled the installation up for the early part of April.
I am not sure what was going on with the house this month as I notice we had the carpet cleaner out on the 3rd, of the month and then on the 8th, of the month we had another place called Chem-dry come out and do something. I am not sure what that was all about since the house was so new.
I also notice that Connie had lunch with Mandy on the 3rd, of this month. Mandy was the salesperson that sold us our house and she was wonderful to work with. Connie had several outings this month with different people she had breakfast with Marty early in the month and she had lunch toward the end of the month at the clubhouse with a couple of her friends.
We had contacted a company called Pavestone to extend our patio out so we could put the spa on it. They were supposed to come over the weekend and do it, but I got a call from Connie on a Tuesday afternoon that they were there installing it. Since I was new at the job, I felt uncomfortable taking off, but I did ask my boss and they let me take off, so I went home to make sure they did it the way we want it. I had to make sure they had put a place in the stone to run electrical cords for the spa.
I notice that Connie had a mark on the calendar for the 20th, of the month to watch a shark movie on a certain channel. Connie was really into sharks, and we watched every show that came on that had sharks in it. We also had a lot of magazines about sharks. She just seemed to be fascinated by them. It seems she was busy this month taking Peaches is to be groomed to get the shot in Peaches’ knee. Connie also had a dental appointment that month.
The thing we did this month, was to attend a murder mystery theater here at the club. Since we were new, we sat at a table with a lot of new people and some of them became our friends for a long long time. It was a wonderful way to end a month having fun at the club.
April was a fun month for us. Connie had her normal outings. she had breakfast with Marty early in the month and then she had lunch with Lizzie and Dolores later that month. But the biggest excitement for the month was the installation of our spa. They had brought it out, but they were having a hard time getting the spa over our fence but luckily there was a lot of workmen around working on the new homes being built. A couple of them came over and helped him get it over the fence and get it onto the patio. They hooked it all up as the electrician had been out earlier to run all the electrical stuff that was needed for the spa it was so great to have a spa and I know Connie was so happy as she used the spa more than I did even though I used it quite a bit.
The other major surprise was her birthday. It was on a Saturday but on Friday the night before her birthday, some of our friends came over and surprised her. I knew they were coming so I had her in the backyard checking out the spa while I sneaked and let them in the front door. It was a great surprise for her, as she walked back into the living room they were standing there with a cake and singing Happy Birthday to her. Things like that make you so proud that friends acknowledge your birthday. I know it made her feel wonderful and happy as you can see in some of the pictures, I have included.
Brenda Connie Sonja and marty at Connie Birthday 
Connie at her birthday party 
Randy Brenda Connie and Sonja at Connie Birthday
There was not a lot going on in May. We attended our first homeowner’s meeting, which was on Tuesday, May the 3rd, at the new Lovejoy high school. If I am correct, we were the 382nd household to move into the ranch. It would be completed about four years later with 1145 households. So, the meeting was kind of small compared to the later ones that were held. We found it interesting as we had never lived anywhere where there was an HOA.
I bought a new computer from Dell this month. Connie started a walking program as I noticed on the calendar, she had done over 10,000 steps each day starting May the 18th, through the end of the month.
Connie started seeing a new foot doctor this month, but it did not last long as the doctor started to tell her about all her personal problems. We did end up buying some new shoes that seemed to help her with her foot problems. She also went back to her family doctor, and he prescribed her some medicine for her acid reflux. Like I said not a lot going on during May.
Connie continued her walking into June. She walked at least 10,000 steps through June 9th. She may have done it more but that is the last time she recorded it on the calendar that I can find. So evidently the new shoes we bought her in May were helping. The rest of the month was filled with Connie having lunch or breakfast with some of her friends. On June 27th, Connie and I had lunch with our next-door neighbors Charlie and Sue Ellen. they were the last to move into our small block of four houses. If I remember correctly, they moved in around April. Since both Charlie and I were still working this was the first time we had a chance to go to the club together. Unfortunately, Charlie transitioned in 2019 but Sue Ellen is still my neighbor next door.
A ride on the golf cart with Gary and Carol.
Connie and Carol on our Golf Cart 
Connie Carol and Gary at Heritage ranch Golf Course 
Connie and Carol at Heritage Ranch Golf Course 
Golf Path at Heritage Ranch Golf Course 
Sparkie 
Sparkie Gary and Connie at Heritage ranch Golf Course # 9 
Carol Gary and Connie at Heritage Ranch Golf Course # 9 
Sunset at Heritage Ranch
The only notable thing was in July was a new restaurant that Connie and I went to when I had taken her to Colorado in 1998 for her 50th birthday. It was a restaurant called Ruby Tuesdays. One had just opened up here in McKinney not far from where we lived so we had to definitely go try it out. They had a great salad bar and Connie always enjoyed it the only other one she enjoyed as much was the salad bar at Steak and Ale. I noticed that Peaches was still getting shots in her knee and not too much else happened in July.
In August on the 16th to be exact Connie and her best friend Lizzie started a cake decorating class in Frisco. There are a lot of funny moments about that especially some of the cake she brought home. Our neighbors enjoyed it because we usually end up giving them a lot of the cakes. Lizzie and Connie would bake their cakes and then take him on Tuesday night to decorate them. The first one Connie decorated I had to laugh so hard because it looked like it had been decorated by a kindergartener. She kept complaining about the lady that taught the class because Connie was left-handed, and the lady was showing him how to do all this stuff with their right hand. So, Connie had a challenging time translating making a rose the way the teacher showed them. She was trying to do it in reverse with her left hand, but the teacher kept wanting her to use her right hand. I am not sure how long the cake decorating class lasted but at least four to six weeks and it was a lot of fun for Connie, and I know how much she enjoyed it especially doing it with her friend Lizzie.
There was a surprise birthday party on the 17th, of August at Scotty P’s. I am not sure who it was for since the calendar just says surprise birthday party at Scotty P’s. It may have been for Brenda since her birthday is on August 13th.
The next evening Doug and Flo came out to the ranch for dinner at the clubhouse. They were always fun to be with and we always enjoyed our dinners with them. Later that weekend on the 20th, we started playing bocce ball. It was a lot of fun and we enjoyed that season of bocce ball. Outside the clubhouse, they had a grill where you could order hamburgers hotdogs other small sandwiches and it was near the swimming pool with a lot of tables around there with shade. So, most Sundays after our match of bocce ball with other couples we would all hang around and order from the outside grill and sit with a lot of the other couples that had played bocce ball that day. It was another way of getting to know people around here and we met some nice people playing bocce ball.
Connie was uncomfortable using the spa as it just set out in the open. So, during the month of September Jay, our handyman came out and built an enclosure around it. I am not sure why she was uncomfortable because there was nobody behind us and it was all just dirt land as they had not started building homes back behind us yet.
We had two more bocce ball games this month. Connie and I were enjoying the activity and meeting new people. We met Gary, and Carol for dinner on the 13th, and then towards the end of the month we went back to the club with our neighbors Charles and Sue Ellen.
Connie met several people for lunch during the month and met Marty twice for breakfast. The highlight of our month was attending the variety show at the club. We found out there are a lot of talented people living out here and that they had many different talents that were put on display. I told Connie the following year I was going to enter it and tell jokes well that did not go over too well, so I never enter the variety show. It continues to be an annual event here at the ranch.
October turned out to be a fairly normal month. not much happened that month. we had our normal outings with friends, doctor’s visits, and taking Peaches to the vet.
In November we went to Sparkill NY, to visit Connie’s mother. I do not remember much about the trip except I believe this was the year that Peaches got sick. while we were in New York, and Lizzie called to tell us she had to take Peaches to the veterinarian. after we got home, we took Peaches back to the vet and they did some scans, but everything turned out to be OK after that.
We had Jay out to do some work around the house and spent about $375 but I am not sure what it was for. That Thanksgiving Lizzie, Dave, Matthew, and Lindsey joined us at the clubhouse for Thanksgiving brunch. that was a nice Thanksgiving, but it was the last one that Connie and I spent somewhere other than Lizzie’s home. After that, we spend every Thanksgiving with Lizzie, Dave, and their family. We developed some nice traditions. One of the main ones that we will talk about later on was our annual Thanksgiving trivia contest in which we were awarded trophies. Those Thanksgiving or so rememberable.
December was another normal month in which we did not do anything special. I cannot even remember what we did for Christmas that year. I notice that we did have dinner with Doug and Flo two weeks in a row during that month and we also went to the clubhouse for steak night twice that month.
We did buy two chairs from Haverty’s, for the TV room during the month/
2005 was a fairly normal year for us.
2006
The year 2006 it’s just typically another year for us nothing special going on that year.
I had not mentioned this before but the neighbors in the house behind us fought a lot. It bothered Connie and me, but it bothered Connie more than it did me. They were very loud, and they used a lot of ugly words; words that I don’t say and neither did Connie. We could hear him and her from our bedroom and sometimes it went on to about midnight. So, in January Connie started documenting the fights so she could get something done about them from the homeowner’s association. On January the 1st they fought, and it lasted for over 4 hours it went on until early in the morning. The language they used against each other was terrible. it was so bad and loud. Even though they live several houses behind us you could still hear them fighting and that would wake us up during the night. They had another fight on the 8th this started at 2:30 in the afternoon another one on the 13th that started about 9:00 PM and went for about 2 1/2 hours. Their next fight what on the 24th it started around 7:00 PM and went on for about 3 hours.
Connie had lunch with Carol on the 6th.
Connie had bought me a desk while I was in college in 1971 or 1972. We had somebody come and pick up that desk only 17th. I cannot remember which organization we gave it to, but it served us great over 30 years. I remember so well coming home and finding that desk in our apartment and being a little concerned at the same time. We did not have that much money at the time, but Connie really thought I need the desk, So, she cut back on some things so she could buy me one. She was always thinking of me.
We took Peaches to the vet, got a shot for her knee, got her groomed, and on the 30th we started her on a new dog food.
According to the calendar not much happened in February Connie and I had dinner with Doug and Flo on the 8th. we took Marty and Randy to the club for dinner on the 23rd, to celebrate Marty’s birthday. Below are some pictures from the party.
Tom and Connie at a party at our house winter 2006 
Mike Connie Tom Mike and Randy at a party at our house winter 2006 
marty Connie and John at a party at our house winter 2006 
Connie’s BURN Certificate
In March, Peaches got a shot on the 1st, and Connie went and got her hair cut on the 2nd. Jay came on the 9th, and the 15th, and the 22nd, to do some work around the house I’m not sure what he did but we spend a couple of $100 with him. Connie had lunch with Lizzie on the 20th, and again on the 25th. Our neighbors had another big fight, and it must have been a big one because Connie wrote on the calendar in big letters that it was a big fight. They both drank a lot and I think that is what contributed to their fights. Connie had been in touch with the HOA but there was nothing that they were going to do about it. I think the HOA did send them a letter, but nothing ever came of it.
As you can see our life is coming fairly routine in our new home. Peaches got another shot on the 4th of April. We had dinner at the clubhouse on the 6th, with friends. I’m not sure I mentioned this before, but we were required to spend $50 a month at the clubhouse on food. at the end of June and the end of December if you had not spent your required $300 for those six months you had to pay the difference. Connie and I were still enjoying the club, so we had no problem spending our $50 a month. Every Thursday was a theme night and back in 2006 and we especially, enjoyed pasta night and steak night.
The neighbors had a couple more fights this month on the 11th, and one on the 18th. It became obvious that the HOA was not going to do anything. Connie and I with our next-door neighbors decided to do our backyards so we would block the view of the neighbors and cut down some of the noise. it was not a pretty sight to see him in the backyard yelling and screaming vulgarities at each other. So, on the 27th, our neighbors and I had Puckett’s nursery come out and do our backyards. The trees block the view and cut down on some of the noise. My next-door neighbor head confronted the people at one time, and you just do not need to confront a drunk. The drunk wanted to fight him. We had dinner at the clubhouse on the 27th.
It’s amazing how routine things have become. there was not much going on in May either. On the 6th, we started Peaches on a new dog food. Connie had lunch at the clubhouse on the 10th. On the 30th, we send a stool sample from Peaches to Dr. Frazier. The one thing I cannot figure out is why we paid a handyman over $900 this month but I’m not sure what it was for.
On June 1st we had dinner at the clubhouse. Things were going pretty normal. I had adjusted to my 45 minutes ride to and from work. I was starting to fit in and get the hang of things and knew what was going on. it’s amazing though in the previous job I was there for 32 years, and you become the go-to guy and you knew all the background about what had gone on before. Now you’re approaching 60 and almost starting all over.
Connie had a mammogram on June the 22nd, and again she was called back. She went back on the 30th, and everything checked out OK. I cannot remember the number of times we were called back after Connie had a mammogram, but it was several and it was always scary, and it always turned out to be ok.
July and August were almost the same as June. we had dinner at the clubhouse on their specialty night. We usually went for the homestyle or steak night. Peaches was still getting her shots and going to the vet about once a month. We had Jay up during both months to do repairs for us. Other than it was just a typical month.
In September we celebrated Lizzie’s birthday on the 6th. Connie had a dental appointment on the 8th. Connie had also worked on the counter to watch the Enron movie on the 10th. it was about the fall of the Enron Corporation in Houston. it was very well done, and we thoroughly enjoyed the movie. It gave us a lot of insight into corruption at major organizations.
On the 13th, my 60th, birthday I was heading home from work on the George W. Bush freeway. Traffic was at a complete stop, and I my car was hit from behind by another car pushing me into the car in front of me. The police came and issued a ticket to the young man that hit my car and pushed me into the car in front of me. It seemed to be no big deal as his insurance company paid for my car repairs. But it turned out to be a much bigger deal you have to wait till 2008 to find out what happened. I was not hurt, and I didn’t think anybody else was. After I got home about 5:30 our good friends Lizzie and Dave showed up with a birthday gift for me. They brought me a little present and we celebrated my birthday.
On Friday the 15th we attend a get to know your neighbors gathering at the clubhouse. Since we moved here in 2004 the places almost doubled in the number of houses and people living here. I think we were the 382 homes to be built here and it was now approaching 700. We met some new friends that night and stayed friends with him until they moved from the ranch.
During October I started working from home one day a week. that was so I could attend a French class help taught by one of the residents out here. Her name was Paulette and Connie, and I attended many classes she taught over the next five to six years. She taught us all about French history. She had many amazing stories as she was born in 1928 and grew up as a teenager when Germany occupied France during WWII.
We got our flu shots on the 13th, as Connie always felt it was better to wait till October to get them than in September.
We also went to Hot Springs villages, and it would be the last time we would go. Even though we had sold our property there we went to visit our friends Randy and Marty who move there. The good thing about the trip it confirmed our decision not to move there and to stay where we were. One of did good things about to property in Hot Springs village was that we broke about even. we paid $3000 for the property I sold it for $8000 but after all the monthly dues we had paid we broke about even.
On the 17th, Connie took a paper illusion class. Paper illusion is like wallpaper but much easier you just tear the stuff in strips and paste it onto the wall and it looks great. I think it looks better than wallpaper. Connie did several rooms and I think they looked great even to this day. She enjoyed doing things like that and it made her happy.
They added a new theme night at the club. It was Italian night. Connie and I attended almost every Italian night after that. You would go through a line select the type of meat you wanted in your pasta and vegetables, and they would cook it in front of you then you move down and select the type of pasta you wanted and type of sauce you wanted they would put it out together and you would have a nice Italian dish. We went with friends we had recently met Chris and Jerry. Our golf cart had broken down and Jerry use theirs to push it up to the clubhouse so that I could have it fixed. We stayed friends with them for the next two years until they moved away.
The ranch is a gated community, but they opened it up on the 21st, so the residents here could have a garage sale. The Friday night before the garage sale all the residents took their golf carts and went around to view the stuff that was for sale. So, we got a preview of it before it they opened it up to the public. The next day was a great success as we had a lot of people come around and almost everybody sold everything they had.
Connie and Lizzie went shopping on the 10th, over to Frisco. She also had Lunch three times this month with our new friend Chris. We had Doug and Flo out for steak night at the club. At the end of the month on the 30th, we went to the clubhouse with Fred and Donna. Fred was in a high position at EDS, and I had known him for many years. It was interesting to hear some of the stories he had about his assignments at EDS. He was a country manager for one of the Asian countries. I think it was Taiwan.
Something was going on all summer that I hadn’t written about. Connie’s nephew Larry and his wife Nancy had their second child. It was kind of late for them since their first child was a teenager. Unfortunately, she was born premature and struggled a lot. I’m not sure if they ever got to bring it home but I think they did for a few weeks. Emily Grace struggled all summer, and our prayers were with her. In late September or early October things took a turn for the worst and their child Emily Grace was transferred from Knoxville to Nashville to a special unit there. unfortunately, after all these months, Emily Grace did not make it. We were unable to go back for the funeral, but we did give them money for the burial expenses as they were struggling with all the medical expenses. We were worried about how it would affect their marriage and they assured us it would not. Unfortunately, down the road, it did they ended up getting divorced. They were married for almost 20 years.
Thanksgiving was fun, we spent it with Dave and Lizzie and their family. If I am correct this was the 3rd Thanksgiving we had spent together, and it would continue for the rest of Connie’s life. I continue to go to Dave and Lizzie’s for Thanksgiving. I think Thanksgiving was the best holiday for us after starting to go over to Dave and Lizzie’s.
Not too much happened in December. Peaches was still getting her shots and we attended Christmas dinner at the clubhouse on the 20th. We started a new tradition. Since Dave and Lizzie always went to Albuquerque for Christmas, we started having dinner out right before they left. This year it was on the 21st because they were leaving on the 22nd. I am not sure where we went this year, but I do remember some of the years. We also had dinner with Carol and Gary on the 22nd and we attended a party at Sue Ellen and Charlie’s our next-door neighbor on December the 30th. other than it was just kind of a normal year for us.