[villages07]

"Living the Dream" ..... yep, pretty close to it. I thought retirement would be to a warm climate and staying active. Combine those two basic requirements with all that the Villages has to offer and I couldn't have designed a better retirement solution for myself. Now, with 2 new knees, I plan to play as hard as I can for as long as I can and this environment is certainly conducive to that. The other major bonus is the golf cart accessibility/travel we have here. Coming from the DC area, with its legendary traffic, it is so relaxing to be able to hop in the golf cart any time of te day and be off on one's travels or errands and not worry about traffic. It's not perfect, but, pretty darn close for me. As others have said, this is one of the happiest times of my life. "healthy, wealthy, and wise" ... good health, comfortable finances, and still have all my marbles.

[Villages PL]

I'm not sure how to answer this question. I came to Florida in 1969 and lived in a small town. I could have retired in that town but there were no activities to speak of. And yet I felt like I was too young to be living among retired people. So I had no idea what I wanted, no well defined dream. Then when my house sold I had to make a decision quickly and I decided to take a chance on The Villages. So, here I am and I'm old now, just like everyone else.

I'm healthy, secure and content; I suppose you could say that's my dream, and there's still room to include more, whatever that may be.

[kittygilchrist]

Originally Posted by Pointer

Thought I'd be spending my years with my husband of 34 yrs. After spending 23yrs just 30 mins. from Canadian border in VT., and with a now empty nest, I'd had enough of the grey cold and snow/ice storms. Still it was hard to give up the people, safety and beauty of VT, until I found the warmth of TV.

My daughter says it was like dropping me off at Collage, and you know she's right. Where else can you be with wise joyous people your own age with so much to do and opportunities to learn. And lets not forget all the dogs that make your day just walking by and saying hello or joy riding in carts with their ears blowing in the breeze. I even get a kick out of everyone parading their "doggie bags" on the return walks and the now much lighter less prance of the pups.

Sometimes when I go for my swim and the pool is empty, the birds perch on the roof watching me take what they must think is some kind of very long exotic bird bath. Does toweling off mimic preening in their eyes?

If you write a novel, please let me know about it. Delightful post.