Peaks and Troughs
Retirement, like any change in lifestyle, takes some adjustment. Suddenly your time is no longer compartmentalized into work, weekend, housework, socializing, entertainment, me-time, partner time, family time.
With an extra nine or ten hours a weekday to fill, you have to rearrange and re-prioritize those compartments to fill the work void, including possibly perusing some new hobbies or activities. And of course, you have to get used to living 24/7 with your partner.
For Richard and me, since moving from the UK to the USA, learning to RV and visiting family has pretty much occupied our time since we finished work last December. It is only now, in our 8th month in the US that we are beginning to fall into a pattern that I think will pretty much shape our lives in the coming years. There are peaks of activity, ie sightseeing, the occasional movie or meal out, and the troughs of normal everyday chores – food shopping, truck and trailer maintenance, finding things to do to fill the coming days, planning routes, on-line surfing, reading, writing, and reflection.
Three weeks into our stay in Montrose, Colorado, I can attest that life has indeed been a series of ups and downs.
On the downside, shopping is no longer the high it used to be. Now that we have finished with our spending frenzy and the RV is fully accoutered, what is the point of perusing shops in all the towns we encounter, when you have a limited budget, no surface to put souvenirs or hang pictures, and no-where to show off your new clothes? In fact, dress mode is so casual in our new lifestyle, I could wear the same pair of shorts and t-shirt over and over and no one would even notice. In short, I am at an all time low when it comes to my passion for dressing up.
I confess I miss the throngs of fashionistas strutting down Glasgow’s Buchanan Street, the lengths of which were walked on a Saturday, to see and be seen! Here a bustling main street means a few couples in jeans and faded T-shirts heading from their cars to a series of consignment shops. And the chic American ladies are definitely not to be found in the local Malls either. The Carrie Bradshaws of the mid-west must surely use mail order facilities and stay beside their swimming pools in their air conditioned mountain hideaways.
The few smart clothes I brought with me from the UK remain ignored in the closet. I don’t even try them on anymore to see how much weight I’ve lost. I might as well give them to the thrift stores (charity shops) before the moths eat them all.
Now if you know me then you will hear the deep despair in those last few sentences. I was always known for my love of clothes, eclectic style, and dramatic entrances. My mother, who shared the same characteristics, and taught me the importance of matching colors and accessories, would turn in her grave at the state I am in now. “Save money, get busy and get yourself a sewing machine” she would say. But how many pairs of shorts with colorfully embroidered patch pockets can a body wear?
In consolation, I treated myself to a turquoise ring and some earrings made of recycled metals. These are the only adornments that signify a special occasion for me now, (except for when I get the opportunity to wear a borrowed hat for a few hours). Indeed, they are the only things that will stop me merging into the dull grungy melee at the tills of Walmart…
On the upside, the thunderstorms we have witnessed almost daily pass by our campground releasing just a few drops of rain, but they do help to drop the temperature. Montrose has been uncomfortably hot at times, but is auspiciously located near to four outstanding areas of natural beauty that lie just within 75 miles of each other and offer cooler day time temperatures. In fact, it seems that over the millennia, the particularly extreme weather patterns in this area have created the various peaks and troughs of the local mountains, canyons and mesas.
Sixty miles to the north is the Colorado National Monument, near Grand Junction, where we tried to avoid the 99 degree heat by mostly driving our air-conditioned truck along the winding 23 -mile rim road, braving the edges to look at the canyons below, with their battered and weathered red rocks and pinnacles that seem to change shape as you view them from one side and then the other.
Forty miles to the north-west is the Grand Mesa. It is described as the largest flat topped mountain (at 10,000 feet) in the world, and has a 63 mile long scenic byway that can be driven to view the varied ecological area – desert sandstone, evergreen and alpine, and over 300 lakes formed in the depressions of this lava capped mountain. It is a haven for dry camping, fishing and back-roading via jeeps and ATV’s, and offers spectacular views over the surrounding valley.
The Black Canyon of the Gunnison, eighteen miles to the north-west, allows for some hiking along its north and south rim drives. This area was cool enough for us to attempt a couple of shorter hikes as we drove from one end of the southern rim to the other. The views were well worth it. The black and white striated rock walls of the “painted wall” section looming some 2,300 feet (nearly twice the height of the Empire State building) over the Gunnison River was spectacular.
Though most visitors to Colorado seem to view the varied landscapes via one motorized vehicle or another, we prefer to hike. Twenty miles to the south of Montrose and in the foothills of the San Juan Mountains lies Ridgway, famous for being the filming location of the first True Grit. There is even a café named after the film, harboring all kinds of John Wayne memorabilia. We walked along the Uncompaghre River from the little town center to the local hero Dennis Weaver’s Memorial Park when temperatures were much more convivial. I especially liked the memorial statue to this once famous star of police series McCloud, and unknown to me, local conservationist. That eagle was pretty impressive, especially with the moon shining in the sky behind!
Ouray, another ten miles further south, is a small town surrounded by four signature San Juan Mountain peaks ranging from 11000 to 13500 feet, and there is a wonderful five mile perimeter walk
that climbs and falls through forested areas, tracks creeks, cuts through Cascade Cliff
and its waterfall, and also takes you over a scary bridge spanning the spectacular Box Canyon and its Gorge. Not for the fainthearted!
On the day we took the walk, there was a music festival in the local park from 2pm, a fund raiser for the annual summer music festivals held in this area. We had planned for this by taking along our deckchairs so we could rest from our rather strenuous walk, and enjoy the music as it echoed off the surrounding mountain walls.
A most successful day, the highlights of which were two-fold: firstly, I took along my ring and earrings, and a change of shorts and top, and wore them to watch the bands. One must take one’s opportunities when one can.
Secondly, during that strenuous walk, perhaps when my heart pounded in fear as I walked the suspension bridge over that gorge, the wire in my bra snapped.
I was not stabbed in the heart, but my pride was deeply hurt when I noticed the mortally wounded bra as I got ready for bed that night. On reflection, not knowing when it happened was probably just as well. It would have been mortifying to have to have walked knowingly with lopsided peaks that afternoon. Thank goodness I didn’t dance!
However, as I threw the offending bra into the bin, I realized that it is the only green bra that I possess which matches my selection of green tops. So, I will have to replace it.
A shopping opportunity, I hear you ask? Oh yes! Walmart, Mall, etc, here I come…
With an extra nine or ten hours a weekday to fill, you have to rearrange and re-prioritize those compartments to fill the work void, including possibly perusing some new hobbies or activities. And of course, you have to get used to living 24/7 with your partner.
For Richard and me, since moving from the UK to the USA, learning to RV and visiting family has pretty much occupied our time since we finished work last December. It is only now, in our 8th month in the US that we are beginning to fall into a pattern that I think will pretty much shape our lives in the coming years. There are peaks of activity, ie sightseeing, the occasional movie or meal out, and the troughs of normal everyday chores – food shopping, truck and trailer maintenance, finding things to do to fill the coming days, planning routes, on-line surfing, reading, writing, and reflection.
Three weeks into our stay in Montrose, Colorado, I can attest that life has indeed been a series of ups and downs.
On the downside, shopping is no longer the high it used to be. Now that we have finished with our spending frenzy and the RV is fully accoutered, what is the point of perusing shops in all the towns we encounter, when you have a limited budget, no surface to put souvenirs or hang pictures, and no-where to show off your new clothes? In fact, dress mode is so casual in our new lifestyle, I could wear the same pair of shorts and t-shirt over and over and no one would even notice. In short, I am at an all time low when it comes to my passion for dressing up.
I confess I miss the throngs of fashionistas strutting down Glasgow’s Buchanan Street, the lengths of which were walked on a Saturday, to see and be seen! Here a bustling main street means a few couples in jeans and faded T-shirts heading from their cars to a series of consignment shops. And the chic American ladies are definitely not to be found in the local Malls either. The Carrie Bradshaws of the mid-west must surely use mail order facilities and stay beside their swimming pools in their air conditioned mountain hideaways.
The few smart clothes I brought with me from the UK remain ignored in the closet. I don’t even try them on anymore to see how much weight I’ve lost. I might as well give them to the thrift stores (charity shops) before the moths eat them all.
Now if you know me then you will hear the deep despair in those last few sentences. I was always known for my love of clothes, eclectic style, and dramatic entrances. My mother, who shared the same characteristics, and taught me the importance of matching colors and accessories, would turn in her grave at the state I am in now. “Save money, get busy and get yourself a sewing machine” she would say. But how many pairs of shorts with colorfully embroidered patch pockets can a body wear?
In consolation, I treated myself to a turquoise ring and some earrings made of recycled metals. These are the only adornments that signify a special occasion for me now, (except for when I get the opportunity to wear a borrowed hat for a few hours). Indeed, they are the only things that will stop me merging into the dull grungy melee at the tills of Walmart…
On the upside, the thunderstorms we have witnessed almost daily pass by our campground releasing just a few drops of rain, but they do help to drop the temperature. Montrose has been uncomfortably hot at times, but is auspiciously located near to four outstanding areas of natural beauty that lie just within 75 miles of each other and offer cooler day time temperatures. In fact, it seems that over the millennia, the particularly extreme weather patterns in this area have created the various peaks and troughs of the local mountains, canyons and mesas.
Sixty miles to the north is the Colorado National Monument, near Grand Junction, where we tried to avoid the 99 degree heat by mostly driving our air-conditioned truck along the winding 23 -mile rim road, braving the edges to look at the canyons below, with their battered and weathered red rocks and pinnacles that seem to change shape as you view them from one side and then the other.
Forty miles to the north-west is the Grand Mesa. It is described as the largest flat topped mountain (at 10,000 feet) in the world, and has a 63 mile long scenic byway that can be driven to view the varied ecological area – desert sandstone, evergreen and alpine, and over 300 lakes formed in the depressions of this lava capped mountain. It is a haven for dry camping, fishing and back-roading via jeeps and ATV’s, and offers spectacular views over the surrounding valley.
The Black Canyon of the Gunnison, eighteen miles to the north-west, allows for some hiking along its north and south rim drives. This area was cool enough for us to attempt a couple of shorter hikes as we drove from one end of the southern rim to the other. The views were well worth it. The black and white striated rock walls of the “painted wall” section looming some 2,300 feet (nearly twice the height of the Empire State building) over the Gunnison River was spectacular.
Though most visitors to Colorado seem to view the varied landscapes via one motorized vehicle or another, we prefer to hike. Twenty miles to the south of Montrose and in the foothills of the San Juan Mountains lies Ridgway, famous for being the filming location of the first True Grit. There is even a café named after the film, harboring all kinds of John Wayne memorabilia. We walked along the Uncompaghre River from the little town center to the local hero Dennis Weaver’s Memorial Park when temperatures were much more convivial. I especially liked the memorial statue to this once famous star of police series McCloud, and unknown to me, local conservationist. That eagle was pretty impressive, especially with the moon shining in the sky behind!
On the day we took the walk, there was a music festival in the local park from 2pm, a fund raiser for the annual summer music festivals held in this area. We had planned for this by taking along our deckchairs so we could rest from our rather strenuous walk, and enjoy the music as it echoed off the surrounding mountain walls.
A most successful day, the highlights of which were two-fold: firstly, I took along my ring and earrings, and a change of shorts and top, and wore them to watch the bands. One must take one’s opportunities when one can.
Secondly, during that strenuous walk, perhaps when my heart pounded in fear as I walked the suspension bridge over that gorge, the wire in my bra snapped.
I was not stabbed in the heart, but my pride was deeply hurt when I noticed the mortally wounded bra as I got ready for bed that night. On reflection, not knowing when it happened was probably just as well. It would have been mortifying to have to have walked knowingly with lopsided peaks that afternoon. Thank goodness I didn’t dance!
However, as I threw the offending bra into the bin, I realized that it is the only green bra that I possess which matches my selection of green tops. So, I will have to replace it.
A shopping opportunity, I hear you ask? Oh yes! Walmart, Mall, etc, here I come…
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