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We're Wingin' It |
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You honor us by taking time to read about our travels as we wander across America, Canada, & possibly Mexico. Gary will do the writing while consulting with Vicki as needed.
We both grew-up in small-town, blue-collar, working class families in Springfield, Tennessee, a few miles north of Nashville, living mundane lives with little exposure to the world beyond that small town.
We wed June 6, 1969, a year after graduating high school as classmates & have been blessed to see our two sons grow into their own families as we have lived in or near Nashville throughout our marriage.
Brian & Heather now live near Nashville with Micah, Joelle, & Isabel Kate; Kevin & Stefanie now live in Los Angeles with Cameron & Tori. Vicki's parents, brother & sister still live near Nashville.
Sometime during our early-40's we set our plan to retire in January 2010, when we would both turn 60. For us, retirement only meant that we were retiring from a paycheck; we were NOT retiring from life....NO rocking chair for us.
We wanted to see the many facets of the American lifestyle & countryside through small towns, backroads, & faces of the people who live there.
Our lives were blessed & relatively smooth until 2004 when the company for which I had worked for 33+ years experienced a series of events that ultimately caused it to liquidate in bankruptcy. Being a few years away from our original retirement target, we had to seriously reconsider our life-plan. After much thought & analysis, we concluded that we were sufficiently prepared to begin our retirement & travel.
And so we rolled-out January 1, 2007 to begin extended travel for as many years as necessary to scratch the itch of those travel desires. We honestly don't know how long that may take, but are prepared to travel in this nomad lifestyle for the next 20+ years.
We have camped throughout our married life, progressing through tents, a pop-up camper, more tent-camping, a 30' trailer, a 34' 5th-wheel trailer & now our 2nd motor home.
Soon after going on-the-road fulltime, we found that the Gold Wing motorcycle with which we began as our only vehicle for local sightseeing was very limiting. In March 2007, we replaced it with the next best thing, a Jeep. In January 2008, we traded our first motorhome, an Allegro Bus, for a 2008 Allegro Phaeton.
We will return to Nashville twice a year to catch-up on family & personal affairs that cannot be fulfilled via phone or internet. Then, as Willie Nelson sings, "On the Road Again".
We originally thought that we would keep our home in Spring Hill, Tennessee, but decided late in the preparation process to sell it. We sold it & completed the liquidation of its contents in March 2007. Only a very few items are still held in a closet at Vicki's brother's house. See the 09-21-06 entry for discussion of that change of plans.
We have made our share of mistakes & bumps through life. In spite of that, we feel very blessed & grateful for a life that has been filled with good health, reasonable financial success & the desire & motivation to improve our lives & the lives of those around us.
Come along, enjoy our adventures. Open the guestbook link above to share your thoughts. We would love to know your first names, home state, whether part-timing or full-timing, how you found us, etc.
If you would like to receive an email each time that I post a new entry, simply sign-up by clicking the "Request Updates" link above. I promise, no junk mail !!!!!
We added the counter on August 12, 2007 & began the count that day at 001.
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We both grew-up in small-town, blue-collar, working class families in Springfield, Tennessee, a few miles north of Nashville, living mundane lives with little exposure to the world beyond that small town.
We wed June 6, 1969, a year after graduating high school as classmates & have been blessed to see our two sons grow into their own families as we have lived in or near Nashville throughout our marriage.
Brian & Heather now live near Nashville with Micah, Joelle, & Isabel Kate; Kevin & Stefanie now live in Los Angeles with Cameron & Tori. Vicki's parents, brother & sister still live near Nashville.
Sometime during our early-40's we set our plan to retire in January 2010, when we would both turn 60. For us, retirement only meant that we were retiring from a paycheck; we were NOT retiring from life....NO rocking chair for us.
We wanted to see the many facets of the American lifestyle & countryside through small towns, backroads, & faces of the people who live there.
Our lives were blessed & relatively smooth until 2004 when the company for which I had worked for 33+ years experienced a series of events that ultimately caused it to liquidate in bankruptcy. Being a few years away from our original retirement target, we had to seriously reconsider our life-plan. After much thought & analysis, we concluded that we were sufficiently prepared to begin our retirement & travel.
And so we rolled-out January 1, 2007 to begin extended travel for as many years as necessary to scratch the itch of those travel desires. We honestly don't know how long that may take, but are prepared to travel in this nomad lifestyle for the next 20+ years.
We have camped throughout our married life, progressing through tents, a pop-up camper, more tent-camping, a 30' trailer, a 34' 5th-wheel trailer & now our 2nd motor home.
Soon after going on-the-road fulltime, we found that the Gold Wing motorcycle with which we began as our only vehicle for local sightseeing was very limiting. In March 2007, we replaced it with the next best thing, a Jeep. In January 2008, we traded our first motorhome, an Allegro Bus, for a 2008 Allegro Phaeton.
We will return to Nashville twice a year to catch-up on family & personal affairs that cannot be fulfilled via phone or internet. Then, as Willie Nelson sings, "On the Road Again".
We originally thought that we would keep our home in Spring Hill, Tennessee, but decided late in the preparation process to sell it. We sold it & completed the liquidation of its contents in March 2007. Only a very few items are still held in a closet at Vicki's brother's house. See the 09-21-06 entry for discussion of that change of plans.
We have made our share of mistakes & bumps through life. In spite of that, we feel very blessed & grateful for a life that has been filled with good health, reasonable financial success & the desire & motivation to improve our lives & the lives of those around us.
Come along, enjoy our adventures. Open the guestbook link above to share your thoughts. We would love to know your first names, home state, whether part-timing or full-timing, how you found us, etc.
If you would like to receive an email each time that I post a new entry, simply sign-up by clicking the "Request Updates" link above. I promise, no junk mail !!!!!
We added the counter on August 12, 2007 & began the count that day at 001.
Free Hit Counter<
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