Radically Retired

Category: Mindfulness

  • Spring Weekend 2026 – Day 3: The Best Laid Plans …

    Spring Weekend 2026 – Day 3: The Best Laid Plans …

    Neither hubs nor I have ever been involved in a spring break celebration, so we thought that a Sunday visit to South Padre Island during spring break might be a good way to wrap up our weekend of welcoming spring 2026.

    Out of curiosity, the morning that we planned on leaving, I decided to consult professor Google as to what we might expect in terms of crowds. I’m so happy I did that.

    Sunday, March 24 this year just happened to be the apex of the Texas Spring Break and this is what we should expect: possibly fifty thousand high school and college students in full and noisy party mode, heavy traffic (including complete jams) for both South Padre Island and the causeway going to and from the island, two hours or more waits for food, and zero parking at the main venues.

    We decided to nix the trip and spend our last day of celebrating spring by watching nature programs on TV in the comfort our A/C’d living room, with snacks available immediately, and silence on demand as soon as we decided to mute the TV and have a nap.

    The header photo for this post came up in Google Images when I looked for Claytons Spring Break Celebrations 2026. Claytons is one of our favourite stops for food and entertainment.

    This photo was all that either of us needed for a “hard no!”

    I guess we’ll complete life with never experiencing spring break.

    I’m perfectly OK with that.

  • Welcoming Spring 2026

    Welcoming Spring 2026

    Because the official first day of spring fell on a Friday, hubs and I decided to spend the weekend welcoming the new season by doing new things.

    On Friday, we visited the Veterans War Memorial of Texas in McAllen, TX.

    Hubs and I have passed this park many times over the years, but have never stopped to take it in.

    The 3.5 acre site was opened in 1990 and pays tribute to the 1.4 million Americans who were killed or missing in action in every conflict the nation has been involved in.

    There are 160 tall granite panels, each engraved with a plethora of historical information. To read it all, one would have to spend several hours there. Because it was a hot day, we browsed and read a bit from each plaza and I took photos of every block, so we could read them later.

    Each plaza is made up of several granite panels arranged in a circle and has its own theme.

    At the centre of the site is a 104 ft tall granite monolith. It’s named the American Spire of Honour.

    There is a statue of a female officer at each entrance
    A Sobering experience
    Memorial to WAC and WAVE members
    General Bernardo de Galvez
    Patrick Henry
    George Washington
    Martha Washington
    This shows the amount of engraving on each panel

    This was well worth the stop and we’ll definitely visit again on a cooler day.

  • Addictive

    Addictive

    Everyone, both here in the blogosphere, and among my family and friends back home have been talking about ChatGPT.

    I’ve been resisting… until two days ago when my closest sister posted on Facebook, the cutest caricature of herself.

    I called to ask her how she made it, and of course, it was through ChatGPT.

    I succumbed and downloaded the app.

    I spent the next several hours making caricatures and laughing so hard at the results.

    I then submitted a photo of my kitchen here in south Texas, and asked for ideas for cabinet paint and countertops.

    Before I knew it, I was asking for a printed schedule for my hourly and weekly activities.

    Every single experience was interesting, fun, and rewarding.

    I can see how people can get addicted to this stuff … because after just two days, I already am.

    More on that in an upcoming post.

  • New Year, New Approach

    New Year, New Approach

    There’s something about a new year that drives us to want to make significant improvements in our lives.

    Resolutions for a new year are usually made with the best intentions.

    Unfortunately for me, and almost anyone else I’ve spoken to over the years, these New Year’s Resolutions all too often morph into New Year’s failures, disappointments, self-doubt and self-chastisement.

    I later moved on to setting goals. This was somewhat less discouraging, but still never 100% successful.

    This year, I’m trying yet another approach. This one is about asking intention questions and then working with the answers to set daily affirmations. The affirmations are a guide instead of a hard and fast rule or goal. I like that.

    These are my questions and affirmations for 2026 and beyond:

    1. How do I want to live my life? Affirmations: I’m thankful for my many blessings. I’m happy, I’m healthy, and I’m eager to continually learn new things and develop new skills.
    2. What personal qualities do I want to embrace? Affirmations: I continue to care about my health and that of others around me. I share what I know and learn, in hopes of helping others.
    3. How do I want to experience relationships with others in my world? Affirmations: I make regular contact with friends and family. When necessary, I set healthy boundaries. I experience joy in my interactions with others.