Monday, December 12, 2011

Retirement place goal sheet


For several years, we discussed the attributes we wanted in our retirement location and home. I collected these in a Retirement place goal sheet (see chart). My friend, Diana, shared the items she had used to select their house in Oregon, which primed the pump for the list we compiled.

As we got nearer to leaving the military, we continued refining the qualities in house and location that were desirable to us. In deciding where we would spend our post-active duty time, I wanted to be sure that we evaluated properties based on the qualities important to us and not be mesmerized by the "new house" smell. Having lived in a variety of states and overseas, helped us refine the things that mattered. For instance, when we lived in Tampa, we were able to bike to work.  In Heidelberg, Germany, our house bordered the woods and bike paths.  Easy access to transportation alternatives would allow us to visit our son and his family wherever the Coast Guard sent them.

As you view the Retirement places chart, there are a lot of phrases on this list, but there are two sets of words that capture the essence. One set is Walkable, sustainable, accessible and the other group of words is community, sanctuary, mystery. On upcoming postings, I’ll elaborate on what those mean to us.

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