9/20 Still in Zion National Park

As some of you know, I have said that one of my goals in my retirement was to slow down and enjoy life.  I have worked a full-time and a part-time job for over 22 years, spending my evenings and weekends grading papers, and until she passed away, taking care of my elderly mother.  I have gotten used to double and triple-tasking.  I had little time for hobbies or doing things for pleasure.  I had little time for walking or bike riding or doing any outdoor activities, so I kept my winter pallor all year.

I used to squeeze out time from business trips or IACET meetings out of town, to see as much as I could in a limited time.  I actually went to weekend meetings in both Boston and in Vancouver where I left the hotel for only a few minutes over a two-day period!  Philadelphia was one place I did take a few extra hours to see the Liberty Bell and have dinner in a nice restaurant with friends, but it was a rushed weekend.

When I planned this trip, I set my schedule so I would be spending several days to a week in major parks, and stopping for more than an overnight on the way.  I am forcing myself to be bored occasionally, in other words. 
 
I’ve developed sort of a routine where I try to do one sightseeing thing each day, but only lasting 3-4 hours.  I get up, make my bed, get dressed, have something to eat, and go out to do something.  It might be taking a trail of some sort, visiting a museum or visitor center, listening to a ranger talk, or going shopping for something.  (Today, my big activity was taking the shuttle to the post office to mail some things to my grandkids!)    

Then I go back “home” and read, watch TV, or get online to catch up on the news and friends.  I fix dinner and eat, do laundry if I can, do more reading and such, get my shower, and then go to bed, where I spend a couple of hours reading my Kindle books.   Not very exciting, but I am doing all of this in some very scenic places.  I’ve attended some of the evening ranger talks in some of the places I have been, but sometimes I just skip them and stay home. 

Am I bored?  Sometimes.  But I would be bored at my old condo.  Could I use some company?  Sometimes.  But that would be true at my old condo, also. 

I have all of the comforts of home here, and I can look out my windows and watch the goings on of my fellow campers, which is sometimes pretty interesting.  The best part is that I have more things to see and places to go to, and the next place is always a bit of a surprise.  I’ll be headed to Bryce next, and then maybe stopping back at Lake Powell to take the Rainbow Bridge boat tour and hike, now that the weather is cooler.  Then several days in Flagstaff.  I am working on planning out where I will be in October right now.  Phoenix and Tucson are terribly hot right now, so I am hoping they cool down a bit in a couple of weeks.  Long term plans involve meeting some ladies who do this in Texas at the end of October and making it back to Michigan and Ohio by mid-November.  Onward!!