The Real Residents

I've been trying to find out what the year-round residents think of the actions of the snow-birds. From what I can learn, they don't seem to think about them at all. They just put up with them as if they were a bunch of unruly children who sometimes get in the way, but mostly can be ignored. And after enjoying life snowbird-free for a few weeks, I can agree. They gradually fade away from our minds, leaving us free to come and go as we please. The most important thing to remember is that the snowbirds are here on vacation and all they want to do is play and have fun all day long. The rest of us live here and we have on-going responsibilities. We like to play but we have work to do, too.

Now that it's summer I've decided to try a few of the activities. My husband and I have joined the summer Bocce games, and we've become regulars at Friday night Bingo. It's fun but I'm starting to get bored. I never was much of a game player, and I like sports but Bocce is as slow as molasses. Watching it is boring but playing it is mind-numbing. It's a game for the elderly but in this park it's played by the younger men and women. I think they scare the elderly off.

Now what? Can I find happiness in a 55+ community? I think I can but in my own way. I like to sew; I like to read; I like to do crossword puzzles on my Kindle. I like to walk; I like to swim; I liked to play badminton when I was a kid. When I look at that list, I realize that everything except badminton is a solitary activity. Sewing can be a group activity but all they do here is quilting and that's during Season only. As I mentioned before I don't like quilting. There's also a knitting group. I don't knit well but I used to be able to crochet. I guess I could join the group and crochet, if they'd let me. Maybe I'll put a note in the Bulletin asking if there are any crocheters in the Park. Maybe we could start a crochet group, and keep it up during the summer. That could be fun. OK. I'm getting interested again. Book Clubs. I don't like them but maybe I should try it once or twice before I cross it out completely. I may find it's fun. Now that I've started thinking about it I may start having fun after all. It's all in the mind.