If you haven't considered NC as a place to retire, you should!  From the coast to the mountains, this is the perfect place to spend your post-working years.  We live in the Piedmont (central) area because we can get to either the ocean or the mountains in 2-1/2 hours.  And the quality of life here is unbeatable!  We get all four seasons, including some snow, but rarely enough to have to shovel.  

Just saying...

That is a nice area and the home values are good. We will consider that for our summer home. We talked to a lot of people who retired but said they would rather have waited and discussed what retirement "looks like" before making that call. So Kathy and I will do that. We're going to Europe for a year after retirement and spend a month in each country and on the train rides we'll talk about what we want in retirement. After the year we should come back with a good idea of what we want. It should be interesting!

Chuck

 A year in Europe would be wonderful!  In fact, any time in Europe would be wonderful!  We were going to do Greece next year, but a China trip presented itself and we chose that instead.  Greece will have to wait for another year.  

I don't know about a place to retire, but we just got back from Utah;  I had no idea it was so beautiful.   There were seven of us and one remarked, if you didn't believe in God before you sure would after seeing this. 

Janet Braun Colbert

I could talk for hours about The Villages.   The best way to experience The Villages is to try the lifestyle Preview plan it's a wonderful way to find out what The Villages is all about.  Make it a great vacation or just a long weekend. The Villages is in Central Florida and  located approx. 35 minutes south of Ocala and approx. 1 hr north of Orlando.

Now you went and done it! You gave the secret away.....Next then you know Lucy, everybody gonna be up here.

On second thought, wouldn't  that be nice....A little Carol City in the mountians...LOL

 That's what I've been hoping for Tony, a little "Carol City in the mountains" reunion.  Anyone up for it?  Quite a few classmates either live here or have part-time residences here.  

I would SO be up for a gathering in NC!  I always feel like I'm "home" when I am there. 

You can count us "IN"...... We have some much to share,  we may have to have multiple gatherings.

PS;

Betsy,

Sharron and I did the Creeper last month. The colors were absolutely brillant. It was an excellent ride and Sharron really enjoy this one, last time she had a broken arm. From your pix in Blowing Rock, we must have been in the mtn.s about the same time. Hope to see ya'll on the trail next spring.

Tony - I was supposed to be on the Creeper trail the week after Blowing Rock with a group of women but got sick and couldn't go  :-(   Looking forward to doing it again next spring/summer.   Glad to hear Sharron's arm is better and thus, she had a more enjoyable experience this time.  

Betsy

And for a bit of Tuesday humor:

BEST PLACES TO RETIRE
Where to live after Retirement

You can live in Phoenix , Arizona where...
1. You are willing to park 3 blocks away because you found shade.
2. You 've experienced condensation on your butt from the hot water in the toilet bowl.
3. You can drive for 4 hours in one direction and never leave town.
;4. You have over 100 recipes for Mexican food.
;5. You know that 'dry heat' is comparable to what hits you in the face when you open your oven door.
6 The 4 seasons are: tolerable, hot, really hot, and ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!!

You can Live in California where...
1. You make over $250,000 and you still can't afford to buy a house.
2. The fastest part of your commute is going down your driveway.
4. You drive your rented Mercedes to your neighborhood block party.
5. When someone asks you how far something is, you tell them how long it will take to get there rather than how many miles away it is.
6. The 4 seasons are: Fire, Flood, Mud, and Drought

You can Live in New York City where.
1. You say 'the city' and expect everyone to know you mean Manhattan
2. You can get into a four-hour argument about how to get from Columbus Circle to Battery Park, but can't find Wisconsin on a map.
3. You think Central Park is 'nature'
4. You believe that being able to swear at people in their own language makes you multi-lingual.
5. You've worn out a car horn.
6. You think eye contact is an act of aggression.

You can Live in Minnesota or Maine where..
1. You only have four spices: salt, pepper, ketchup, and Tabasco
2. Halloween costumes fit over parkas.
3. You have more than one recipe for moose.
4. Sexy lingerie is anything flannel with less than eight buttons.
5. The four seasons are: winter, still winter, almost winter, and construction.

You can Live in the Deep South where...
1. You can rent a movie and buy bait in the same store.
2. 'y'all' is singular and 'all y'all' is plural.
3. 'He needed killin'' is a valid defense.
4. Everyone has 2 first names: Billy Bob , Jimmy Bob, Mary Sue, Betty Jean, MARY BETH, etc.

You can live in Colorado where...
1. You carry your $3,000 mountain bike atop your $500 car.
2. You tell your husband to pick up Granola on his way home and he stops at the day care center.
3. A pass does not involve a football or dating.
4. The top of your head is bald, but you still have a pony tail.

You can live in the Midwest where...
1. You've never met any celebrities, but the mayor knows your name.
2. Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor.
3. You have had to switch from 'heat' to 'A/C' on the same day.
4. You end sentences with a preposition: 'Where's my coat at?' 5. When asked how your trip was to any exotic place, you say, 'It was different!'

AND You can live in Florida where..
1. You eat dinner at 4:15 in the afternoon.
2. All purchases include a coupon of some kind -- even houses and cars.
3. Everyone can recommend an excellent dermatologist.
4. Road construction never ends anywhere in the state.
5 Cars in front of you are often driven by headless people.

The Perks of being Over 50

Your supply of brain cells is finally down to manageable size.

Your secrets are safe with your friends because they can't remember them either.

Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the national weather service.

People call at 9 PM and ask, "Did I wake you?"

People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.

There is nothing left to learn the hard way.
Things you buy now won't wear out.

You can eat dinner at 4 P.M.

You can live without intimacy but not without glasses.

You enjoy hearing about other peoples operations.

You get into heated arguments about pension plans.

You have a party and the neighbors don't even realize it.

You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.

You quit trying to hold your stomach in, no matter who walks into the room.

You sing along with elevator music.

Your eyes won't get much worse.

Your investment in health insurance is finally beginning to pay off.

You can't remember who sent you this list.

Darlene Gillis Capo wrote:

Betsy;

Thank You , Thank You , Thank You......I have not laugh to this degree in a while. 

I did not know you were a woman of the world and had done detailed studies of so many stange and wonderful places. Through your descriptions I have made the decision to stay put, right here , in God's country....."North Carolina".

My heels are stuck in the tar, forever, ya'll and if'n all ya'll get a chance, do drop by and have some sweet tea and apple pie with us'ins.

Just remember one thang ya'll....if ya'll come to see us, come on the back door is never locked......Now if'in ya'll come to look at the house, call first, so we might straighten up a bit.

Ya'll Come;

Tony & Sharron

I would agree with Tony, NC is a great place to live. I would caution against Charlotte though. High and rising taxes, crime and way too many Yankees have changed the character of the city in my 31 years here. Another problem is the Halfbacks coming from Florida.

There are some new retirement communities being built in South Carolina by Dell Webb that look good and taxes and expenses are low.

Bob

I agree with Bob about Charlotte.  Great place to visit, but wouldn't want to live there.   I've heard of the Dell Webb communities, but haven't seen one yet.  I think there's one going in around the Triangle area (Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill).  

Betsy

Jackson Tennessee is another possibility.  Taxes and living costs are low and medical care is pretty good and avaiable.  I would like to participate in any activities that you plan for NC.  I wonder how you all manage to afford travel etc, perhaps a two earner family?