"What have you been up to since you retired?"

I hear that a lot, and my answer is usually something like, "Absolutely NOTHING!" or "Not much, really."

Then I got to thinking about a couple things I have done since retiring a year ago. And I decided to make a list -- at least a partial list.

So, here's what I've been up to in the past year:

I've been to:

• Several HOG State Rallies (even the Duluth HOG Rally -- twice)
• To the eastern-most point in the US and west to Phoenix
• North to the Canadian border and south to the Gulf of Mexico
• HOG National Rally in Knoxville, TN
• Lake Chargoggagoggmanchaoggagoggchaubunaguhgamaugg (no, my fingers didn't 'spaz')
• Lake Michigan sand dunes
• The House on the Rock
• "The Rock" in west-central Iowa
• Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, where I almost lost my lunch (and more) numerous times
• McDonald's Museum
• Superman Museum
• SPAM Museum
• USS Alabama and Museum
• Air Force Museum (twice)
• Indianapolis Motor Sports Museum
• Titan Missile Museum and Education Complex
• New Mexico Museum of Space History
• Museum of Naval Aviation
• American Museum of Science and Industry
• Gun shows and car shows
• The Mall of America
• Saguaro National Park, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Shenandoah National Park, Acadia National Park, and others
• Carlsbad Caverns
• National Solar Observatory
• TWO school reunions
• Several Drum Corps shows, including the 2007 World Music Games
• White Sands National Monument
• Transylvania (Louisiana)
• White Sands Missile Test Range
• Disney World - Twice!
• Kiester and Bixby, Minnesota

And I:

• Went on our Annual ride to Helen for Oktoberfest
• Visited Es and Bill in Virginia
• Visited Norm and Ive in Arizona
• Had my nose busted
• Crashed my Harley into a pickup truck (and won)
• Visited Farmamerica
• Met a guy who actually combs his ear hair!
• Had an extensive self-guided tour of every room in my old High School
• Cooked: pineapple upside down cake, banana bread, sugar cookies, meatloaf, goulash, biscuits, (but not a cherry pie -- that was Alice)
• Spent more time with my brother (Norm) and sister (Esther/Marie) than we've had together in the past 10 years combined.
• Seen Blue Angels perform in practice
• Been on numerous rides and lunches with the Harley Owner's Group chapter members
• Toured the Cirrus Designs aircraft plant
• Toured the Harley-Davidson plants in York, PA, Kansas City, MO (twice), and Tomahawk, WI. (The Wauwatosa, WI, plant was closed.)
• Toured an iron ore ship
• Was the photographer for a friend's wedding
• Crossed Michigan's Mackinac Bridge
• Stopped at countless statues, memorials, and roadside attractions
• Ridden something like 40,000 miles and in 36 states
• Ridden in rain, snow, dust storms, sand storms, crosswinds of 65 mph, dragon fly blizzards,
• Rode more than 1,000 miles in one day to earn the Iron Butt Association's "Saddle Sore Award"
• Ridden in the chaos of downtown Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, New York, Boston, and Chicago
• Followed "Fall" foliage colors from Maine, through New York and Michigan to Minnesota, and then down into Missouri.
• Made it to Vermont - the milestone marking my presence in all 50 states (and it only took me 59 years)
• Camped in temperatures ranging from 102 down to 22, with winds up to over 60 mph
• Got in bed with Gerri (okay, it was in the hospital, but ...)
• Camped on ground that became an island overnight
• Had lots of dinners and meetings with old friends (Gerri Downs, Joyce Peavey, Charlie [and Candy], Christi Slay, Connie [and Wayne] Tucker-Long, Barbara Hester, Doris [and Ray] Green, Pat Embry, Kim [and Randy] Ponthieux, Mark, Michelle, Tina, Phil [and Linda] Ratliff, Dan Hill, Mike Sarran, Patrick Gridley, DJ Lucas, Joan Wandrisco, Jim Penner, and many more); and other friends and relatives (Dave and Janet Elliott, Linda and Larry Icenbice, Robin Ives, Sandy Williams, Mary and Alice Williams, John and Marcia Priebe, Lois Evans, Keith Williams, and others -- far more than I can remember).

And I've Seen:

• Bears
• Moose
• Deer
• Elk
• Plastic dinosaurs
• The World Trade Center site
• The Pentagon
• The United Flight 93 memorial
• Iwo Jima Memorial
• Arlington National Cemetery
• Statue of Liberty
• A giant surfin' gorilla
• Foamhenge
• Numerous roadside "art" exhibits
• A cow in a coffee cup
• Lots of light houses
• Paul Bunyon
• Early American forts
• Hot air balloons
• Becky's new boyfriend
• Abe Lincoln's birthplace
• John Wayne's birthplace
• The world's largest bat (baseball)
• The world's largest bat (mammal)
• The world's largest ball of twine
• The world's largest catsup bottle
• The world's largest stucco snowman
• The world's largest penny
• The largest coffee pot in America
• 29 3/4 Avenue (really) in Wisconsin
• The Texas Eifel Tower in Paris
• The launch of Space Shuttle STS-118 "Endeavor"
• A massive wind farm of over 500 square miles
• Swarms of beautiful butterflies
• The beautiful Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania
• Fort Knox (both the one in Maine and in Kentucky)
• My brother's quartet sing the National Anthem at a Phoenix Suns game
• My brother's quartet sing in concert in Wisconsin
• The Roadrunners perform one final time
• All sorts of relatives; nieces, cousins, and any other types
• Reelfoot Lake (created by an earthquake in 1811)
• and A 9-foot-tall thistle

Damn. NO WONDER I feel tired. I HAVE been doin' stuff! I think I'll take the next year off.

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