Settling
into our new home we were just reminded that it was one year ago when we first
walked the lot, talked to our assigned builder and watched the concrete pad
being framed. It has happened all so quickly – but doesn’t every new home build
seem to flash by more quickly than anticipated. Put it down to inexperience
building in Florida, although through the years, we had become fans of the
show, 100 days. Then again, this is our house and we inspected every inch of
progress almost every day.
We
rented a cottage for a year after we had taken the decision to build. That was
probably among the smartest things we have ever done. It allowed us to drive to
the site each day, sometimes more than once. It also justified us purchasing our
first golf cart just for the purpose of traversing the two and a half miles
that separated our rental from our new home. There is always an air of
excitement surrounding any new home build and in our case, this proved to be no
exception.
Once
we had made that final move to where our treasured goods and chattels began
appearing, we went about furnishing it with some flourish. When our Windsor
Colorado home was sold, all of our furniture went with it – as part of the
purchase negotiation together with a last minute to buy almost all of what
remained following that negotiation. Naturally enough we were sad to see it
being acquired by the new home owner – a sense, if you like, that what we loved
as “our style” captivated others.
On
the other hand, it meant we started with a clean sheet of paper. Even the items
we acquired for the rental cottage were gradually winnowed down, basically give
to worthy new home-owners looking for budget fit-out of their new build homes.
One of the more captivating items was a small, entry-way, console table that
was called, “Reaching out of the Box.” We thought nothing more could be
better suited to be placed where our guests would be greeted. Our Florida home
was assuredly, a step taken that reached outside the box.
Over
the years, visitors to either our Niwot or our Windsor homes, both homes in
Colorado, will have seen the many Charles Billich’s Cityscape prints. Look
closely and you will see that they are 1 of 20, 16 of 49 and 116 of 250 plus.
This is a reference to our wedding anniversary date of January sixteenth and
where on several of the paintings, Charles has endorsed with a congratulatory
message. He did this on our third, twentieth and lastly our twenty fifth. These
prints mean a lot to Margo and me as you would expect and have been hung in all
of our residences, following us each time we built another home.
These
cityscapes tell a story. It starts with a Sydney cityscape, followed by Warsaw,
Paris, London and Singapore. There is a Shanghai cityscape as well but that’s a
divergent storyline. It starts with recognizing where each of us came from –
Margo from Warsaw, me from Sydney. We were engaged in Paris, honeymooned in
London and then had our first Thanksgiving in Singapore. As for Shanghai, well,
it was a special painting by Charles’ honoring Schumacher’s last F1 win in Shanghai.
It became a favorite of Ferrari aficionados – and yes, we have number one, of
twenty. Imagine then the pain we are going through as, in our last move to
Florida, the Sydney print went astray – damaged so the story goes from UPS, and
then thrown into the trash. The print that anchored our cityscape collection.
As yet no compensation but the hurt we feel is very real.
As
a footnote, a decade or so back (2008 – 2017), Margo and I tracked Corvettes –
a blue Vette followed by a red Vette. In both instances, and following similar
logic to that of the painting’s numbers, our car was always 161 – a slightly
different variation on the theme we followed with the paintings.
Again,
a reminder of our January 16 wedding anniversary. As these Vettes were parked
at home and passed each time I took the garbage out, having once forgotten our
anniversary, Margo thought that this would be a positive reminder should I ever
have another lapse of memory. Surely, I couldn’t possibly forget the meaning of
our race car numbers!
When
it comes to being hurt, after a serious fracture in her leg (both the tibia and
fibula), Margo has experienced difficulties wearing some of her favorite shoes.
Big problem, obviously, as she has quite a number of really nice shoes. Among
them Prada, Jimmy Chou and yes, Christian Louboutin. For a number of years,
these shoes have sat silent, packed away in their original boxes. However, for
the past couple of months we have been regular visitors to Boca Raton, Florida,
where there is a major mall with upscale stores including many that feature
accessories.
When
Margo purchased her original Louboutin boots, it was in Las Vegas during a HPE
conference. It was a time where I was part of the HPE Influencer program and
for Margo, this meant participating only in the evening social activities, but
not in the event itself. This opened up opportunities to look at the stores and
on one such occasion she found a pair she really liked and yes, she
demonstrated how easy it was to walk in them. Fast forward to today, and
walking through the Boca Raton mall, she found a pair of boots not just with a
less-aggressive height, but a wider heel base. Her stability was restored and
the hurt now quickly forgotten and a new pair of Louboutins adorn he wardrobe.
We
have been spending our time in Boca Raton at the local Renaissance Hotel. There
is a restaurant as part of the hotel, although managed as a separate entity,
which gave us cause to shudder – yes, it’s called the Meat Market. A great name
for a steakhouse but we really couldn’t shake off the inuendo. However, there
was never any concern over the quality of the meals, drinks and cocktails let
alone desserts. In time, it became out go-to place for brunch and dinner and
given they served the poolside bar and café, we were able to select from the
same menus as when seated in the restaurant proper.
For
Margo and me, it was an opportunity to take a good look at the cars the valets
parked. On the occasion of our last night on our latest visit, the line up
included three Ferraris, two Rolls Royce sedans and a sole Bentley Continental
GTC. Boca Raton may not be on the same level as other cities up and down the
Florida coastline, but all the same, it cannot be said to be a shabby locale.
And did I mention, just out of sight was a Maserati MC20 that well, I kind of
spent way too much time looking at and then scrolling the Internet for more
information. Do you know how deep the depreciation on a new Maserati goes?
Let’s just say, it’s very deep, indeed.
We
have returned from Colorado to the Florida panhandle where we plan to stay
until sometime early December. This has given us opportunities to visit the
gulf shores. Already the crowds of summer have left the holiday rentals and
there’s a sense of peace that has descended on the many beachfront communities
that line the coastline. Although we have to admit, the peace was shattered
this week as it was Bike Week and the Harley Davidson community was hard to
ignore. Oh, how I miss having a motorcycle but then, there’s no way known to
man that Margo and I will ever take up that “hobby” ever again.
Being
back home in Panama City Beach has meant we did get to finish decorating our
home. Pieces ordered a long time ago began arriving. Not just console tables
but glassware and smaller items of furniture. The pace has picked up
considerably with a renewed sense of urgency as we will be having guests over
Thanksgiving. First up it will be our good friends and business advisors from
California, Brian and Jan Kenny and then our daughter, her husband and the
three grandkids. To say Margo is waiting with baited breath is an
understatement as being away from the grandkids has been tough.
It
is till hard to imagine the time before the twin boys arrived. We were called
well before their expected delivery time to inform us that it was happening
right away. Being in California, preparing for a short RV vacation. Margo just
had to be by her daughter’s side, so we headed to our RV for a spirited return
drive to Colorado. Weather proved to be in our favor and it was possibly the
quickest trip we ever made in the RV. Unfortunately, we missed the actual birth
but not by many hours and our attachment to the twins, not forgetting our
granddaughter, is as strong as it ever gets.
Having
the family here with us over Thanksgiving is developing into a small tradition
– this is the second occurrence in two years so I guess it’s safe to say a
tradition is developing. With our new Florida home having just two bedrooms and
an office, there will be compromises all round but then again, we have a pool
and a spa and a grill. On the other hand, we are so looking forward to having
the whole family with us even as we are sure the grandkids will be setting the
pace for all that will likely follow.
One
of the last actionable items completed these past couple of days was the
mounting of the pool enclosure perimeter lights. What a sight! We are still to
settle on a color combination – maybe at Christmas, the pool green and the
lights red? But what a change! It had been pretty dark out by the pool at night
now that we are deep into Fall with Winter not far away. Did we mention that
the vendor of the lights will be installing an infrared heating system shortly?
From the very first week in our new home, it has been the backyard that has
been the center of our lives as it’s where we eat meals, breakfast included,
and enjoy that final beverage of the day.
The
pain of moving is slowly lessening. The loss of items a sad situation. However,
as anyone who has moved cross-country knows all too well, a painting here and a
toolchest there, and that’s about it, means we have come out well-ahead of the
pack in this regard. Seriously, I seem to have done more damage than the movers
having broken cherished crockery and a vase or two. But then again, where we
are today, is all happiness and for that alone, we are more than grateful!
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