About Us

Life is strange. Patti and I now own two resort properties, but neither is suitable (has enough space) for a retirement residence. That's academic anyway given the size of our nest egg, and the present state of the economy. So we both are continuing to work for the time being. Patti finished up a 3-month contract job at USAID Tel Aviv on June 1st, then went back there again on July 3rd where she'll stay until early September. I continue working my contracts position at QinetiQ North America, a Government contractor in Fairfax, VA, just outside Washington DC, while living with Aunt Martha in Northwest DC. It's a life but it's not exactly living. Life is now a slog towards retirement. There's light at the end of the tunnel, but first, we have to measure how long to stay in the tunnel. This economy is NOT helping!

Summer continues to swelter here in Washington, DC. There are no upcoming breaks for me until after Labor Day when I hope to fly to Tel Aviv to join Patti for a week at the end of her current assignment there. However there is talk in the air of yet another tour in Tel Aviv later in the year, or perhaps a trip back to Pakistan which just received a new infusion of USAID money from Hilary Clinton.

When she is between assignments, Patti stays in our cabin in Lake Lure, NC. She spent the last months of 2009 there, cleaning up after a year of winds, rains, and vacancy. When I'm there, I'm generally busy. The work is pleasant and energizing -- I've always liked clearing brush, building and fixing things, making small improvements. Among the big improvements last year was the installation of a new garden plot on what had been a hillside. The landscape folks shored up the hillside with timbers and filled in the space with 2 trucks of topsoil. Now if I could just get some time, I'd plant that garden. Another welcome improvement this spring was the installation of a step ladder on the dock to allow a graceful entry and exit into the water. I've still got a canoe to fix and a boat lift to build.

We're planning to be in the cabin for the upcoming Thanksgiving, which means a week together, spent enjoying the last of the changing leaves, huddling inside and cooking. I will use up the last of my vacation with yet another week there during Christmas. Now if I can only make it to September before dying of heat exhaustion here in sweltering DC………….