As the summer winds down

Once the bedroom floors were finally done, we rushed to Ikea to get a bookcase and other small pieces of furniture to help us utilize the space more efficiently. And we’re glad we did because soon after that we started receiving summer visitors which have kept us entertained most of the summer. First there were B’s siblings that congregated in south Florida to celebrate one of their birthdays. Then we were blessed with our son’s visit to celebrate the initiation of the newest AARP member in the family. Tita and Sandra came to celebrate as well and a few days later came Nellie and Hobert. Now that we are a little more familiar with our surroundings, it’s been a lot of fun to take folks around to try to show them our hang outs in Miami and South Beach. Nellie and Hobert even had a taste of “the price of living in paradise” by being indoors bound for a couple of days of the Tropical Storm Fay.

Fay was our first experience with bad weather since our move. It was mostly a rain event in south Florida (2.5”). Living in a high-rise the only thing we were asked to do was to lay down the outdoor furniture in the balcony. Of course a bigger concern would have been if we had been threatened with power loss as we are 100% electric and going up and down thirty one flights of stairs would definitely give you a work out. As the storm moved north it left behind a lot of devastation dropping more than 20” in parts of Northern Florida.

Responses to my job applications have been slow in coming. A few emails telling me that some of the positions have been filled and a few interviews which may or may not pan out in the next few weeks. I continue plugging along at every opportunity but I’m sure it’s going to be an uphill battle. Something else that I’m doing to entertain myself is to align myself with some organizations that could benefit from my free time and energy.

One of them organization is the Miami International Airport Visitor Information Program (VIP). It took me several weeks to get ready for this as a complete FBI background was required. Now my job is to wait for arriving passengers and be ready to answer questions or help them with transportation into the city, etc.

The other organization with whom I’m lining myself to volunteer is the Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 7-11 which is based walking distance from our condo right on the Biscayne Bay. I say that I’m lining myself because it’s a long process which requires security clearance and purchasing a couple of uniforms. After attending the first meeting I came out excited about the possibilities of learning a whole lot as well as being able to help others in what I can.

As I’m finding myself questioning what to do next in my life and as I look for opportunities and open doors anywhere, I keep coming back to the satisfaction that is felt when you can actually help others. At the end of the game, there is no better feeling than to be able to help out.

So, as we wind down the summer, after all the visitors, all the bus rides, all the resumes, all the hours watching the Olympics and the Democratic Convention speeches, we are still enjoying our new life in the city and amazingly are now feeling right at home.