New Jersey Baby Boomer

A few posts back, I was sharing with you about a job change my husband was experiencing during these economically turbulent times, about our trip to Delaware on an interview, and so on….click the “tag” under the title of this post that says “Boomer Life Changes” to find those posts.

Bottom line, hubby has found a job here in NJ, we don’t have to move, and are so thankful for this.  He finished his present job yesterday and starts the new, and hopefully more stable one, on Monday.

Also, in order to keep this blog focused more on my Boomer & New Jersey life, I’ve started a more personal blog, something I’ve wanted to do for a while, that can be just about anything in my life, my heart, my thoughts.  You’ll by clicking Claudia’s Chronicles.

This past summer, we had the pleasure of seeing Goldfinches come to our bird feeder, especially in the Spring when the yellow was so bright an vivid.  I have a tiny little picture of one at our feeder, wish the camera had been closer.  Instead I have chosen to share one from Webshots, if you want to see other pictures by the photographer, just click the picture.

The Goldfinch is our State bird, and was declared so in Senate Act No. 241 which was introduced in January of 1935 by a Mr. Kuser. At that time, 44 States had state birds, and I am sure the Mr. Kuser figured that it was high time that New Jersey did, too.

I have been feeding the birds for years, but recently I purchased thistle seeds to use with a thistle feeder, and the picture on the packaging had many Goldfinches on it.  I was planning to use the seeds over the winter, and asked whether birds other than goldfinches would eat the seed, the woman at the store said that Goldfinches are around all year, but lose the vivid yellow during the cooler months.  That was new information to this bird-lover.

I hope you are enjoying the beautiful fall colors if you are living here in the northeast.

Last Saturday hubby and I packed a few things, hopped in the car, and hit the road for the few-hour drive to the location of his potential new job.  We were being put up in a nice hotel for a night, but since we went down a day earlier, chose a much less expensive hotel for the night on Saturday.  Then we spent the day Sunday driving the area to see what we thought.  We saw potential in some places, and didn’t care much for others.

Monday hubby was to be interviewed, all Sunday night he tossed and turned, then headed out for the interview, after a delicious breakfast provided by the hotel.  A few hours later he called, excited, saying that all went well and he knew most of the people who interviewed him.  They would contact him within the week. All day as we drove around gathering apartment rental books and real estate books he talked about how he really wanted to get into this company, how beautiful it was, on and on he talked.  I listened, and thought about how hard it would be to leave everyone and everything familiar and move, but for the most part kept that to myself, wanting to support him during this challenging time in his life.  The drive home was a difficult one, the traffic was not good, but we made the best of it and arrived home safely.

Here we are at Tuesday morning (no FREE internet access where we were, so took a vacation from the computer), and my dear husband just called a short while ago to say he already found out that he was not chosen.  My heart sinks, feeling for him…he did all he could to sound unconcerned, but I know when he comes home he’s going to collapse in his recliner, and have to work through a lot of emotional feelings…and he has a tough road ahead, it’s not easy getting a job when you’re in you 50’s.  We trust God will provide…but the waiting is tough at times, and with the economy as it is…

So for now, it looks like I’ll remain a NEW JERSEY Baby Boomer, and even though the idea of moving was hard to imagine, my feelings are a bit confused right now.  I will keep on posting our journey.

Most of us who call ourselves Baby Boomers have been through our share of changes.  I have passed through some of the most common ones, including the painful experience of losing a dear parent; raising two children to adulthood and realizing that the “mommy” role that I took so seriously and poured my life into is no longer what it was; watching my husband experience the physical challenges of diabetes and a heart attack; looking in the mirror and watching the the face that looks back at me change; supporting my husband as he went through the painful experience of realizing that after thirty years devoted to one company, surprise, he is dispensable, and now of at an age where there’s a tendency to go from one job to the other without settling, and what about retirement? Is it possible?

That brings us to our newest change, which could be looked at as a negative, or embraced as a new and exciting adventure, it’s up to us what we decide to do with it.  It may mean a move from our home of 25 years, the home where I raised my babies, and how can I be the “New Jersey Baby Boomer” if we leave NJ?  It may mean leaving behind friends of many years, and being further away from my now-grown babies than I want to be.  It may not happen at all!

I want to take you along on this personal journey and intertwine it with the usual New Jersey info on this blog, and let you get to know me a bit better.   More later this week!

If you’re a boomer with some extra time on your hands, and who doesn’t have a little extra time in a day, you may want to spend some of it making a little extra money reviewing services and trying products that you may have never heard of before. “Get Paid to Try” has set up an easy-to-use system for doing this. Once you sign up, you will be sent an email every day with tasks to complete, and if you complete them, you receive $5.00. I am in the process of signing up myself as I type this, it’s quite easy. Simply click the link at the end of this post, fill out your name and email, then you have the option of reviewing a few services. After that, you move on to the next page, where you can receive a bonus $20 by completing 10 tasks…I am going to go right back and complete mine as soon as I finish this post. After the 10 tasks are completed, $20 will be added to my account, and then each day, I’ll get an email with tasks to complete. There are many good offers…you don’t have to take them all, just the ones that interest you. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Click here to begin

When I was young, I was told I had astigmatism, and trouble seeing at a distance. For a little while, I wore glasses, but soon realized I could get away with not wearing them, that lasted until I was into my 30’s, when I only needed them to read. And THAT lasted until I was into my ’40’s when finally, it was time for my first pair of bifocals. Not wanting the line in the lense, I opted for progressive lenses.

If I had known how inexpensive it is to purchase online earlier at sites like zennioptical.com I would have saved a LOT of money. Of course, you need a prescription, but beyond that, everything you need to find the best glasses is available at this site. My prescription is still good, and I always ask the optometrist for a written copy, so I’m all set if I want to purchase another pair online.

So Boomers, if you’re avoiding getting glasses because you don’t like the look, take a look, there are many fashionable frames! Since they manufacture their own stylish frames, the prices are great!

Many Baby Boomers are at the point where their children are grown…and this is the time when you can repaint and remodel the home because those precious little hands have left their marks. In fact just today after I showered, while the room was still steamy, I began to pull the wallpaper and border off my bathroom walls. I looked again at the OLD BATHROOM CABINETS and VANITY and yuk, do they need updating. They are beyond repainting, and the sink has it’s share of dings that we’ve painted over with porcelain repair several times. I have just finished browsing a website called “Spacify” and was amazed at the different designs for bathroom cabinets and vanities. Everything from modern like the one pictured, to warm wood tones. I am very interested in two different vanities, I like the wood tones, they will be perfect for our country cabin. I am going to do a little more pricing, but I see there is free shipping, which will be a real savings! I’m starting to get excited about this project that I’ve been putting off.