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Paula Carden
12-10-2015, 06:44 AM
Well guys, for the few of you that still come here I just want to say I have made one of the biggest decisions in my life at least in the last 30+ years.
I have decided to retire! Aug 1 I will begin a new phase of my life. My hubby is excited and I am too. I am not sure exactly what we will do in this new phase but one of first plans is to clean my house from top to bottom and declutter. I am having new pantry built currently.
Then I plan to stamp, I have so many card ideas in my head. Maybe I will host some A Muse Stamp Classes at our local senior center and cooperative extension offices. A little travel, nothing elaborate. I plan to sleep in, drink coffee, stay up late and who knows maybe get back to walking everyday to try to keep these knees for a while longer.
:):):)

maxiesmom
12-13-2015, 02:18 PM
Hi Paula, how wonderful that you've decided to retire, I can't wait for the day when I can say those words as well. You will find that you have lots to keep yourself occupied. The classes for others sounds like not only a great way to keep yourself active, but to give back to others as well, good for you!

I was checking in here more frequently before but as you know all we hear around here are the crickets chirping anymore. Just gets depressing, if people are visiting they sure aren't bothering to post. I generally only see stuff from you and Cindi. Feel free to email me directly, we can chat away as much as you like! Missing all my shack buddies and all our fun projects and swaps we used to do. hugs

Paula Carden
12-14-2015, 05:27 AM
I know Kathy, I am sad for the Shack also. Facebook is not so personal so I tend to just look at card ideas there.
Hope you are doing well. I am very excited about the decision of retiring. It took me a while to get here. I could have retired earlier but glad that I have waited now because I know I am really ready and can walk away from all the pending projects.
How is your cottage coming? Will you be there for Christmas?

cindi
12-17-2015, 03:30 PM
good for you Paula!! I hope retirement treats you well
:)

Paula Carden
12-19-2015, 06:32 AM
Thanks Cindi, me too! I am really looking forward to it. I was going to wait until our new facilities were constructed but that is still 2-3 years for completion and I just can't wait that long. My hubby is looking forward to it. I am looking forward to doing a good deep cleaning and decluttering of my house first thing.

maxiesmom
12-21-2015, 04:48 PM
Re:cottage, we still don't have the kitchen finished! We went all summer without having a sink or a counter or cabinets! We have one little one that has a couple glasses and paper plates. We have 2 small counter areas on both sides of the stove, luckily those hadn't gotten burned when they burned everything else so while they are only set in place, at least it was something to use. Maybe about 3' long. The most I did was use the burner and the tea kettle to make some tea in the morning and the toaster for bagels & muffins. We do have a microwave but it didn't see much use.

Primarily, because a friend of David's was helping him. You know how it is with free labor, his actual job came first, of course and thus we were often put off. supposedly he and David are going to stay up there in Jan for a couple weeks to just knock it all out finally. As long as it's finished by May or so.

we may go up around New Years since we have a half day the 30th and then off till the following Monday, we'll see. We also never got the tv hooked up, while most of the time I'm ok with that I do like to watch the news occasionally. Plus without a fenced yard we have to go out with the dogs all the time and that gets old fast!
thanks for asking!

Paula Carden
12-26-2015, 07:33 AM
Sounds like a work in progress but I bet the end result will be worth the wait. Free labor is hard to beat tho.
Hope you had a good Christmas. We are having unseasonably warm weather and lots of rain. We had rented a cabin in Georgia for Christmas week. Ended coming home yesterday because it was just so wet and rainy. Same here but at least there are things to take care of if I can make myself do that.
I will be off Monday and Friday next week so that will be fun.
I am practicing for retirement!

Do you hear from Jan or Joan Petty? I think of them often and wonder how life is treating them.

Paula Carden
12-26-2015, 07:34 AM
Sounds like a work in progress but I bet the end result will be worth the wait. Free labor is hard to beat tho.
Hope you had a good Christmas. We are having unseasonably warm weather and lots of rain. We had rented a cabin in Georgia for Christmas week. Ended coming home yesterday because it was just so wet and rainy. Same here but at least there are things to take care of if I can make myself do that.
I will be off Monday and Friday next week so that will be fun.
I am practicing for retirement!

Do you hear from Jan or Joan Petty? I think of them often and wonder how life is treating them.

maxiesmom
12-27-2015, 08:39 AM
I got a card from Jan on Christmas Eve. She had taken a winter cruise last year to New Zealand and said it was fabulous, of course! I can't believe this June will be 10 years since I saw her, where does the time go?

Yep, we've had the same warm and wet weather as well, my kitchen floor is a mess with the dogs but that's still one of the jobs on my list today. MIL was looking droopy on one side and had numbness in her arm and when they went to the ER, yes, she had had a stroke. Thankfully it seems to have been very mild so she's been in the hospital since Christmas Eve and is getting out today and coming to stay here with us for a week or so. At that point our niece will be done dog sitting and will go home with her, probably. So not the best Christmas ever but you make of it what you will. Tonight is our dinner party for my work so that will be nice.

Paula Carden
12-31-2015, 07:20 AM
A cruise to New Zealand, I can't even imagine. I bet she did have a wonderful time.
The time goes quickly.
Sorry about your MIL.

I hope the new year-2016 will be better for you than 2015 has been.

maxiesmom
01-10-2016, 08:57 AM
I just heard about some wildfires in western Australia. Can't help thinking about our awesome (former) mod Sarah. Although there has been brutal weather, hmm can you really call fire weather, all over our country. I am sure many Shackies(we're all still shackies in my heart) have had some trying times these past few months. We're only getting a bit of snow here today, but it's being prefaced with some freezing rain and we have a brunch to attend for my coworkers 50th so sadly we'll be out driving in it soon.

Paula Carden
01-13-2016, 06:37 AM
I know, I think about many of the Shackies and wonder how they are all doing, how many still stamp or make cards. I have seen Sarah on FB but not recently. Remember Kirsty, she posts some over there, her children are growing up quickly. She is so artistic.
Angie Reece/Mary Reece-Mary's husband Tom has a brain tumor that is quite serious and undergoing radiation. Someone said Heather Slack that use to post to our gallery from Nova Scotia is in an assisted living, maybe Sarah had an email for her nephew. She was always so kind.
Be careful out and about, we are finally having cold. It is really cold after all of the unseasonably warm.

maxiesmom
01-14-2016, 08:02 PM
Oh that is so terrible about both Tom and Heather. I remember Tom had some type of heart issue(I think) while he and Mary were on vacation a couple years ago. Sounds like I need to send some prayers out. Yes, I always liked Kirsty's work as well, she seemed like a fun person.

cindi
01-17-2016, 10:56 AM
I miss Dee too and she is not on face book, either , as that is where I keep in touch with many shackies
:(

Paula Carden
01-18-2016, 10:08 AM
Yes wonder how Dee is doing, I wish we could get them all back here to find out what it is going on with them and their families.

maxiesmom
01-19-2016, 09:18 PM
Well, my MIL went home yesterday after 3 weeks with us. She really did need to since she wasn't doing anything at our place, she needs to be doing her little putzing around the house jobs or she'll never get back in the groove to get back to work. She seems to think after a month of basic inactivity she'll be able to just jump right back in at Kroger and work her 8 hour shifts, she's crazy! David is worried she will have another stroke, I said at least now she is on medications that will hopefully prevent that from happening.

I'm glad we've been able to keep this little thread going for as long as we have. Thanks for checking back in. I'm trying to remember to do so as well.

cindi
01-20-2016, 11:00 AM
glad your MIL is getting better, but your right, baby steps
:)

maxiesmom
01-20-2016, 08:25 PM
Thanks Cindi, at least she said today she's not going to go back until the 2nd week in Feb. and hubby said he's going to tell the doctor to make sure she makes it part time only.

Have you been working on anything new? Any new mixed media projects? Say hi to Mrs. Fence for me.

cindi
01-22-2016, 10:35 AM
I am working on a set of 3 tags using the julie nutting doll stamps for a swap right now. join us on mixed media monday soon
:)

maxiesmom
01-22-2016, 07:24 PM
I still get the emails saying that it's on but it's usually well after the fact. I check her blog every now and then, I like her new stamps but haven't bothered buying anything new craftwise since last years misguided Misti purchase. I hope to get a handle on my stamping area later this year, like when it's not so flipping cold in the basement! I figure if I'm not going to use it, it shouldn't look like such a PIT! Every now and then when I only have a few minutes left on the washer cycle and I am not about to walk up and then back down, I spend it going through stuff. I need to give away a bunch of stuff. There is just so much people have given me that I'll never use so why keep it around?

cindi
01-24-2016, 10:39 AM
I hear ya, I could use a good destashing myself
:)

Paula Carden
02-07-2016, 08:09 AM
Kathy glad you MIL is improving. I bet work will be good for so she can be active. That is the thing I hope I remember when I retire later this year- activity. I have had such a sedentary job for the last few years, I have to remember to get up. I hope each morning I will go walk in the park first then come home and start the day.

I like Cindi could stand to purge. I get so distracted tho when I start.
Scrap paper takes over my life, I did just dump all the bits and pieces last year, but I now my trays are full again.

Have you seen the new small misti- it is for cardmakers, I think I might have to give it a try. It is less expensive then the full size. I went to the Heirloom show in Lawerenceville Ga yesterday but didn't find it. Panpastels are hot, Tim Holtz new cats are going to be. The crazy birds still. Copics seem to be losing the popularity altho I saw lots of the Chameleon markers to but no refills yet.
I bought stamps and paper. I did buy four Zig Clean markers to try. They seem to be a new craze too. Dies of all sizes and kinds! It was fun but way to many people. If I go next year it will be back to Sun. I hope to go to the A Muse Convention this year as it will be within a couple of hours of my home.

This is about it for now. Still looking forward to retirement end of July!

maxiesmom
02-08-2016, 08:27 PM
I went looking for the Misti, looks to be about the size it should have been in the first place. Oh well, not even thinking about another one, mine hasn't bee touched since last April.

Paula, are you in countdown yet? at least you have less than 6 months to go!

maxiesmom
02-08-2016, 08:34 PM
deleted duplicate post, forum doing weird things!

Paula Carden
02-11-2016, 05:13 AM
I am on the count down. I have less than 120 workdays left. I have 3 holidays and about 3 weeks of vacation to take, which will still leave me with the maximum payout of 6 weeks vacation. I have saved leave through the years always thinking you never know when you will need it.
I am getting more excited each day. For the last 2 days I have been up by 4 am. I have a lot of projects to wind up before I leave but it will all work out.

What about you Kathy, when will you be able to retire? I know you are still pretty young. I will be 59 soon.

maxiesmom
02-12-2016, 08:02 PM
I'll be 53 this June, but with David being on disability... and every time I turn around it seems he adds another new medical problem to his existing ones. Let's just say we can't both be retired. I honestly don't see him ever going back to work. Too much heavy lifting ( and by that I mean as little as 30 lbs.) and it aggravates his muscular disorder, too much activity of any kind really aggravates the blood disorder. He manages the diabetes very well, I think it is primarily brought on by the other conditions and his weight. Even after being off Prednisone for many years that weight is a bugger to come off. I swear he eats better than I do and he certainly goes to the gym. Whatcha gonna do?

I'll live vicariously through your retirement, Paula!

Paula Carden
02-19-2016, 12:11 PM
I watched my mother try to get prednisone weight off, it is near impossible. Prednisone really works against diabetes too. At least he goes to the gym, right now I work and that is it. I hope when I retire I will go to the park first thing most days and walk some. My knees are not good but its flat so it should be good for them. I am counting the days and I just hope it is the right thing to do. I think when it comes down to the last day it will be hard to close the door to walk away. It has been my life for 30 years at one place.

You are much too young to retire anyway although I am sure just as with the rest of us, the daily grind is hard. I hope you will be able to get your mojo back too once your cottage is where you want it.

cindi
02-23-2016, 11:18 AM
uhh Kathy that prdnizone is nasty stuff, I mean it's neccesary but the side effects suck.like Paula, I hope your mojo comes back
:)

maxiesmom
02-25-2016, 09:16 PM
Hmm, haven't been able to get on for a few days. Was wondering if it was finally over.

Yes, he's been off the prednisone for wow, can it be almost 7 years? When he first got sick, we were all still back on the PCMB and at the time he was on about 80 mg a day, was eating like a maniac and losing weight. Luckily the eating part didn't last that long, sadly when the weight started staying it has stayed long! He got his exercise doing snow here and at my moms place today.

Paula, you have lots of time left to do whatever you'd like to do. It'll just be starting a new chapter and I am sure there are ways you can put all your hard earned knowledge to use. There must be organizations who could benefit and would love to have you as a volunteer.

cindi
02-26-2016, 10:48 AM
I couldn't get in fior a few days either. it's strange

:)

Paula Carden
02-28-2016, 08:46 AM
Yes I tried a few days to get in too. Thought must be gone but today I tried, a little slower but finally came up.

Kathy I have already had many offers to volunteer, but I am telling them right now I need to focus on ending up at the health dept and once that is done I will be in touch. I don't want to over commit and not follow through. Plus I will pick the ones that are most important to me. Animals will be at the top of my list. I am hoping between now and Aug 1 we will have the 2nd phase of an animal shelter started. Animal Shelter comes under my prevue now and we have really over this past year worked to get a new one. The one we have is 40 years old. Its clean, but its not pretty. We need more space and better location. The Commissioners are committed so I hope it will continue.

I may teach some cardmaking classes at the local extension office since I am still an A Muse Consultant maybe I could actually sell something. I am my best customer and have never tried to sell anything.

I am getting excited tho.

We had snow flurries here this last week, today is sunny and will be 60's. Going to lunch at my favorite place with my favorite guy (hubby). I hope it is a good day, tomorrow I am taking off so I want have those dreaded Monday feelings tonight!

I hope you have a great day. My email is [email protected] just in case this place goes away.

maxiesmom
02-29-2016, 07:47 PM
The animal shelter sounds like a wonderful place to volunteer. I am a big animal lover myself and I know they can be grim places.
I help maintain a large garden area at a nursing home. It actually takes many of us, there's a long path with gardens on either side that's paved for the residents to be able to access. An area in the courtyard with raised beds that both gardeners and residents keep and a smaller area adjacent to the hospice section. Additionally, there is a senior apt. tower across the parking lot and many people from there walk through as well. It's rare when we are there that someone doesn't walk through and tell you how much they enjoy the area. It's nice to know so many people are benefiting from it.

That would be awesome if you'd be able to get some outside sales and stop being your own best customer!
I have you in my address book.

Paula Carden
03-27-2016, 07:44 AM
Gardening is good too, relaxing!

I saw this am where Cindi Hooks' sister passed away last night after a very brief illness with cancer. Also a couple of weeks ago when I was on vacation Lesa (tattoolesa)'s brother passed away.

Hope you have a great day! Happy Easter.

maxiesmom
03-30-2016, 08:46 PM
Oh, so sorry to hear of both these. We lost a good friend Tuesday too, while he had heart trouble that doesn't mean you die from it(although sometimes you do). Poor Cindi and Lesa.

cindi
04-03-2016, 04:42 PM
thanks ladies, it has been a roller coaster of a week here, sometimes don't you just wish you could stick your head in the sand and stay there? ok, well maybe my butt in the sand..in the carribean, with lots of pina coladas!!

Paula Carden
05-14-2016, 08:35 AM
Just thought I would check in to see if anyone was here!! It is hard to get into the forum, had to go to gallery, then forum, then daily dish.
I guess no one is keeping up the site anymore!
How are you all doing...Cindi, Kathy, anyone else?

cindi
05-24-2016, 02:44 PM
I'm doing ok..seems like my family is dropping off like flies over here, my moms sister passed the other day, funeral is tomorrow. we need a break

Paula Carden
05-30-2016, 08:16 AM
Maybe summer will bring a change. It is hard to lose multiples for sure.

I am counting the days to retirement, I have about 40 workdays left- the end of July, with my official date being Aug 1. More time I hope to stamp, organize and clean closets.

Paula Carden
06-12-2016, 09:22 AM
Cindi what was your favorite thing at the Stamp show you all went too?