I know we have more golfers, more bowlers, more pickleball players, more softball players, more swimmers, more dragon boat racers, more artists, more writers than anywhere else I could imagine living, but the smooth and rhythmic motion of the cyclists really caught my eye. I don’t know if Thursday is a big day for cyclists, or 8:30 am is a good time for them, or the route I was taking was a popular route, but in the course of a 10 minute period I came upon six groups of cyclists, a group to me being more than 10 members.  That’s quite a few considering I was traveling north of Rt.#466 and I am sure there were many more south of Rt.# 466. Of course there was also the solo cyclist which I don’t know whether they were ahead or behind a group, and I also wondered if they were showing off, or weren’t as good if they were part of a group. Maybe they had a faster or slower bike, that’s why they were riding in front or in back. Equipment is the key to every sport isn’t it? We also can’t forget the special clothing that is worn when participating in a sport, and that is what caught my eye. I thought they look so sleek, one with their bikes, no sleeves flabbing or long pants to get tangled in guard less chains, the helmets aerodynamic, and the form fitting clothing with not a wrinkle were colorful blues and reds, yellows and greens.  I’m wondering if their clothing only comes in one size as I have to say that all of them were as sleek looking as their bikes.  They have to be some of the fittest athletes in The Villages, and I’m sure many of them participate in other sports.  It was a beautiful sight to see one group after another cycling along.  With the exception of vineyards the Tour de France has nothing on the Tour de Villages.

new neighbors.  There are four of them and at first I was a bit leery that they are now residing on my street.  My introduction to them was a conversation I was having one morning while taking my morning walk.  It went something like this..have you heard about the  Lyons up the street…no, what about them?  Oh, wait until you see them.  See them?  Why, do they look funny?  With that we rounded the corner heading for home and there they were.  They are not Lyons, they are lions.  Two large stately lions, a little shorter than I am and I’m 5″4″, sitting regally at the end of my neighbors driveway.  I was in shock, oh no this can’t be happening.  As we got closer we saw two more guarding the garage door, one on each side.  They are much smaller, but still very large.  My first thought was to laugh, then I felt bad for the people that had to look out at them, and I think I was even a little mad that someone would feel they belonged in our neighborhood.  I walked past them in silence,  afraid that if I talked they might come alive and chase me, after all I was making fun of them.  As if their size is not enough they sit on a small platform and have been painted a bright yellowy gold.  Of course they were the talk of the neighborhood and not in the most flattering way.  The next morning as we rounded the corner there was their owner, sitting on the ground next to them, paint brush in hand giving them another coat of yellowy gold.  I could hardly wait to talk to him, not knowing exactly what I was going to say and hoping I just didn’t blurt out..are you crazy??  As I approached him I couldn’t help but feel the love that surrounded those lions.  He was so proud of them and he was painstakingly putting on a primer (yellowy gold) that would be the base for the real color which he explained will be like real lions, darker brown mane etc.  He asked us with great enthusiasm do you know where these came from?  My mind was racing who could they be.  The MGM lions…the one that roars and his stand-in, or they guarded the Chicago museum, or they stood at the end of  a long driveway in New Jersey that needed guarding.  You’ll never guess,  he said again even more enthusiastically when he realized he had piqued  my curiosity. Who, who are they I couldn’t wait another minute.  His excitement was contagious and I could barely wait to hear.  They are the lions that you saw every time you came out of Spanish Springs Town Square, heading south on Del Mar Drive, they resided at the home on the corner of Panama Place and Del Mar Drive.  Oh, those lions….not really what I was thinking, but again his affection, love and pride of ownership for these concrete creatures was contagious, and they became just as important to me as if they were the MGM lions.  I asked how did you get them over here and he pointed to his golf cart with a platform on the back…one at a time he said.   He went on to explain how he was going to be painting them, and all of a sudden I was touched by the passion he had for them.  I walked away with a smile on my face and a warm fuzzy feeling for our new neighbors.  Later that day I noticed two large black garbage bags over them and became concerned for their well being.  It was then that I realized that they stole my heart.  I really love them.   Welcome new neighbors.

In the past if someone were to refer to someone as a straight shooter, they would be referring to a person that was extremely truthful, a person that would tell you exactly how things were or should be.  A straight shooters’ words could sometime be hurtful but  I don’t believe that that was their intent, rather their intent was to help you.  John Wayne, in my book, would be considered a straight shooter.  I think Straight Shooters are patriotic and loyal to their country.   And on that note let me tell you about the Straight Shooters in The Villages.   I’m sure they all tell the truth,  are patriotic and loyal to their country, but our Shooters add one more attribute to their personal resumes.  They like to shoot guns.    The Straight Shooters’ Club  consists of approximately 80 members, who as one member says, are interesting, very knowledgeable and competent men.   They meet monthly to plan future outings, which consists of visits to local shooting ranges.  Some members are interested in black powder shooting, using older rifles to hit targets.  Others are interested in taking part in International Defensive Pistol Association competition shoots, and others enjoy sport shooting.    Many started out at a young age shooting with BB guns, then on to shotguns and rifles.  I have stopped from time to time to watch them fire their pistols at the range on Rio Grande, behind the mailboxes.  I think they enjoy the camaraderie they share with each other as much as the shooting.  Of course, when it comes to the actual competition I’m sure they forget the friendships for just a few moments.  This club is just one more example of the many hobbies one can get involved in and proves that when coming to The Villages, we are not leaving anything behind, rather we are catching up with things we loved to do.

adj.: pleasing to the eye,  collog.: extra good,  syn.: attractive, lovely.  I don’t think I have ever used the word as much as I have since I moved to The Villages.   Occasionally I would remark that something was beautiful, but it seems that I am always thinking that lately.  Who wouldn’t think it going over the bridge to Lake Sumter Market Square or walking around  Spanish Springs Town Square,  when entering the Recreation Centers, or how about the Sales Office or the new furnished models, the Country Clubs.  I think we would all agree that there are many  things that are pleasing to the eye, extra good, and attractive and lovely. I was recently amazed at how many times I actually thought this in a matter of 15 minutes.  It takes me 15 minutes to get from my home to the Mulberry Sports pool.  I can travel Morse Blvd to El Camino to Buena Vista or I can ride through Tierra del Sol, Santo Domingo and El Santiago to get to my destination.  It was when riding through those neighborhoods that I found myself saying, this is really beautiful.  The rain has been very good for all our golf courses, ponds and landscaping and we come to expect that of our amenities. However,  more than that it is the way each resident manicures their property.  As I drove along  I never saw one errant blade of grass and  all the mowers must be  set at the same cutting height.   You look down street after street and it is a continuous carpet of green.  It must be resident pride and I think you have to agree…it’s beautiful.

Almost everyone has one, and those who don’t wish they did.   If you are working, it is hard to have one, but some do anyway. Some don’t know any better and just do it. Others fight to the bitter end, and either don’t do it or eventually after many shed tears succumb to it. Then there are the ones that plan them, carry the mission out and while it is happening sit back and enjoy a few hours or minutes of peace, but there are also those times you don’t plan to have one and it just happens, other times you can hardely wait to have one. Ones age enters into the amount of enjoyment you get out of one and even effects the length of one. Usually people are much happier after having one, but sometimes there are those that are very cranky and should go back and have another one. For many years I had not had one because I was too old to have one, and then too busy to have one, and probably did not feel successful people needed one, only lazy people would have one. However, things change and I bet most people in The Villages have one everyday…some intentionally and some just happen. If you don’t plan one you will probably have one when you least expect it like when you  sit down to read or to watch TV. You need no skills or special equipment to have one. Every single person worldwide can have one. We don’t debate it, talk about it and many times don’t own up to it. No I wasn’t having one, you thought I was but I wasn’t. Living in The Villages produces more of them I think because of the amount of energy exerted all day long by the residents, plus it takes time to have one and we that we have. There is the saying what goes around comes around and it is so true..we all started out needing one and now we are just having one, just because we want to. Szzzzzz

have imagined that within seven minutes of my home I would have sixteen movie theatres that I could go to. I never could have imagined that I would be within seven minutes of a movie theatre that was playing movies the day they were released. If the ads say Sept. 23rd, Sept. 23rd I can see it. I never could have imagined that I saw every movie that was up for an Oscar, every Best Actor and Best Actress movie. I think I am exaggerating on that a little, but I know I can say I saw almost every one. Can you imagine as a resident of the Villages the cost is $6.75…a medium popcorn, which is way more than the average person should eat, cost $3.75. I never could have imagined that with my hands full of soda and popcorn that the individual collecting tickets would walk with me to the appointed theatre and hold the door for me. He did. We have eight theatres with stadium seating, which is very comfortable, and eight theatres with seats that have just been replaced with very comfortable seats that I think rock. As if this is more than enough to satisfy the most avid movie goer, with the impending opening of Brownwood, the third downtown in The Villages, there will be eight more theatres. It looks like their stadium seats rock, if not literally but figuratively. That downtown will take me a little longer to get to, about 20 minutes including time to park, but I will have 24 theatres to chose from. I never could have imagined…

click click, click. No this is not morse code, I am texting, and that is the word text. I feel as awkward doing this as I did the first time I tried to inhale a cigarette. How do people do this, why don’t they just pick up the phone and call, isn’t that easier.  I’m  hoping, it will eventually become easier and more pleasurable.  I would not want anyone to know how long it took me to text a short message, how many times I lost my message, I even erased the phone number.  I will persevere and be as proficient a texter than any  others my own age. One nice thing is the texter is instantly rewarded,  as before there is time to put the phone away there is an incoming text. Of course you have to answer…and off you go again..click, click.   I realized while I was visiting my 17, 16 and 15 year old grandsons this summer that if I am going to be able to communicate with them, I better learn to text.  When I was leaving I told Damian that I was going to start texting him so I could keep up with what is going on in his life.  He said that if I didn’t want to text I could call him.  I felt very special when he said that as he talked to no one all summer on the phone.  It was like he gave me a privelege that he not even extended to his closest buddies.   I never thought that he might have figured I was too old to text.  While I was visiting it struck me how hard it is for parents today to keep up with what their teenagers are up to.  When my sons were growing up we had one phone in the kitchen.  I knew pretty much what they were doing and who they were doing it with.    Where are you going? Who are you going with?  Oh no you’re not.  Damian, on the other hand,  would come to me out of the blue and asked if I could take him and his friend to the fair.  You better check with your mother.  I did. Does Miles know we’re picking him up.  He does.  I never heard him talk to anyone, how do they know?  Oh, texting, even his mother texts him.  I observed the three of them for the rest of the summer and realized what I had to do if I wanted to get any of their attention.  I sensed Damian was very proud of me as his return text said You did it.  I think he was as surprised as I was.   I have to admit that when he did not return a text to me right away I was  discouraged.  I thought about my text, and not knowing how private they are, or if their friends get to see their texts, I did not want to end with Grammie, so I put G.  I thought maybe he doesn’t recognize my cell number and he is wondering who G is.  My second text said G stands for Grammie….I got an instant reply.  So I am officially up and running.  However like any sport we get involved in requires better equipment,  I realize so does texting.  I will probably have to upgrade my phone as it takes quite awhile to click there is an alligator in the driveway…I need a phone with a keyboard.  I do promise myself that I will not stand around looking at my phone, or sit in a restaurant texting, or interrupt a conversation to check messages, oh well unless it is from my grandsons.  I will apologize though, and I know everyone will understand.

FOR dinner. We have lived on the James A Chicielo Wildlife Preserve for six years and it has brought us great pleasure watching the wildlife that has at one time or another lived in it or visited it. We have watched a coyote dig for frogs, we have been loudly serenaded by frogs after a long period of drought and then abundant rain. It seems they can live months without water and then when it rains they come out and sing for hours. We love to hear them, and yet I spoke to a neighbor who can’t stand the noise. We have seen large turtles exiting, a bobcat has been known to visit, Sean and other neighbors have seen him. We have had the ducks, coot hens that look like black chickens with a red comb, have their chicks right outside our back door. There was nothing more fun than to see them navigate across the small pond at the foot of our yard on the lily pads. It seemed they were playing a game of tag as they jumped from one pad to the next, their mother watching dutifully over them. We watched a coot hen and a mallard duck try to protect their nests out in the larger part of the preserve, as an alligator slowly made his way toward them. Their racket had alerted us to the fact something was happening and it sure was. I didn’t want to watch, but did. Sean always says that is nature, but he normally doesn’t want to watch, but he did too. As the alligator got closer the coot hen’s and the duck’s screeching got louder, they jumped up and down in desperation flapping their wings, but he just kept coming. Finally the duck abandoned her nest and let the coot hen alone to take on the monstrous predator. The little coot hen did not give up and just when we thought it was over for her and her chicks, the alligator backed up, turned around and disappeared under the water. It was as thrilling as a super bowl toouchdown. We were left wondering what discouraged the alligator, he was so close yet it seemed he took mercy on the hen at the last minute. We wondered what the coot hen might have communicated to the duck when the she returned shortly after abandoning her post. After all the duck was quite a bit bigger and the hen certainly needed her assistance. Sean and I knew who we would want to be our Mother if we had to make a choice. We have also had armadillos, raccoons, and possums, and of course our forever sandhill crane couple, that present us with two babies every spring.  I once again got sidetracked as I really wanted to write about our visitor yesterday that we unfortunately were not home to see, a baby alligator. This will be the third time we have experienced a baby one at our house.  The first time one came into the garage, the second one came up on our patio in the back, and yesterday we got a message from our neighbor when we got home, Sean there’s a baby alligator under your car! Although we checked, he was gone.  I haven’t figured out why they come, we have never seen the parents, but we do get them.  They are roughly two to three feet long, so perhaps they are kicked out to find their own home and we just happen to be in their navigational route to the next preserve.  We love their visits but fortunately for us and unfortunately for him, he left hungry as there was no dinner waiting for him at this inn.

I found the secret to The Villages and what makes it so great.  I recently was reading a book about retirement, and what makes for a happy retirement, etc. etc. etc.  All of a sudden the phrase No Automatic Relationship Generator jumped out at me and it made me really think.  For some people retirement comes very easily and when they leave their jobs for the last time they never look back.  I always admired people that could do that.  I, on the other hand, retired, went back to work, retired again, and went back to work again and then I retired again, determined to work at it and threw myself into activities.  I felt a little like an odd duck because I could not just sit back and relax.  Many people would see me after I retired and when they asked how I was doing I would say…having no stress is very stressful to me…and I wasn’t kidding.  In every other phase of our lives there has been an Automatic Relationship Generator…in the world of education we belonged to groups and teams, we developed great friendships, but when that was over we moved on to the world of work, where we lost touch with many friends but developed new friendships, ones with like interests and skills.  The world of parenting automatically generated another social group: neighborhood, sports teams, school events and so on.  Again when you’re thrown together into similar circumstances, it connects you with other people with like interests, conveniently. I never thought of our six month old rambunctious lab mix named Harry as an Automatic Relationship Generator but that is exactly what he was.  We had just moved into our new home with our 2 year old son and his 4 mo. old brother and Harry.   I was extremely caught up with trying to be the best parent I knew, but on the other hand felt very alone in my new neighborhood.  I knew no one until one eventful morning.  I took Harry out and he got away from me.  I called and ran after him but he payed no attention, he was on a mission.  His mission was to go to the bus stop at the top of the hill and cavort with the children.  By the time I gathered my sons and got to the bus stop, Harry decided he would like to continue his fun and hopped on the school bus and ran directly to the back of the bus.  He was going to school and no one was going to stop him.  The children all had fun, the parents that were with their children at the bus stop took my sons, I wrestled Harry off the bus and from that day forward I have always credited him with my introduction to my neighbors.  I made many friendships that morning and was never lonely again.  When children grow and leave many of us go back to work with a new set of friends but when you retire there are no automatic relationship generators.  Had we not moved to The Villages, I don’t know what I would have been doing all the time.  You can have lunch and dinner with friends, but at some point you have to bring something to the table.  Something that sparks your interest or gives rise to a long buried passion.  That is what The Villages  is an automatic relationship builder. Through a like interest…whether it be sports, cards, discussion groups, art of all mediums or classic cars, harley davidsons, convertible club, etc., we all come together, from all over the country, to share likes and interests, and that is why neighbors and residents all say how happy they are living here. We have come here and automatically generated new relationships, just as Harry had done for me many years ago