The year is winding down

As 2010 comes to a close, I am reflecting on what I accomplished as a father, grandfather, retiree, husband and citizen.  At age 65, the list gets shorter and shorter. 

I'm still waiting for my wife to retire, so we can decide the lifestyle we’re going to adapt.  I know coming home to a hot meal every night will be part of it; eating out will be less of it.  We would both would like to visit Washington, DC and that part of the country, but we are reconsidering the drive.  Perhaps we can get some really good prices on air flights?I did get to use Medicare for the first time, so I surpassed that milestone and my wife is looking forward to her first Social Security check early next year.  She is thinking about volunteering at the hospital because she's been working since she was 17 years old, and sitting around the house is not an option.  She’s a people person; within 10 seconds of sitting down; she will strike up a conversation with the person next to her. She even strikes up a conversation with the clerk who rings up her order.

On our way back from Houston Saturday, we stopped off in Richmond to buy some things at a Fiesta Food Mart.  That brought back a lot of memories for us because highway 90, directly through downtown Richmond, Rosenberg, Sugar Land was not bypassed on the way to Houston.  I remember a cafe in Richmond or Rosenberg (I could never tell the difference between the two) that served the best enchiladas in Texas.  That was a must stop, but now we have substituted Heinz’s barbecue in Wharton as that must stop. The sleepy towns of Rosenberg and Richmond have not changed a bit; it did bring back some good memories. Sugar land is a different story; the much improved HWY 6 is an accident waiting to happen because of all the impatient drivers.  As you exit the Colony Creek Mall, a left turn is out of the question.

I know its Christmas and department stores are trying to increase their sales but that shouldn’t make an overzealous sales clerk ask me for my Sam's Club membership card.  Saturday, I was looking at some electronics at Sam's Club when a clerk asked me if I wanted to upgrade my card to the deluxe model.  I politely said I wasn't interested, but she persisted and started asking me what type of Sam’s Club membership I had in my possession.  I said I only needed the basic card, but then she asked to see my membership card, as if I was a suspect of not having a card.  About that time, my wife pulled up with her basket, and I told her to immediately check out and I would explain the reason in the car.  I know was not that big of a deal, but it made me feel really uneasy.