Well, 2016 has already provided us with three tumultuous months, but Suzanne, Rudy, Gretchen and I are on the road in our motor coach, again for just over six months and about 10,000 miles. We plan to visit 17 states, with Suzanne scheduled for 25 events so far – it seems the list grows weekly. You can find her schedule of events on her web site, www.loveatthecenter.com. I apologize for not having blogged recently, but it’s been insanely hectic…
Having moved about 30 times since leaving home for the Navy, I had always intended that our home on Little River Path would be my last. That intention remained valid for 8 years, longer than I had lived in any house since I was a kid. We were comfortable there, Suzanne had the house just the way she liked it, and Rudy and Gretchen loved chasing geckos on the lanai. The garage was even (relatively) in a modicum of disorder. But there was this itch to scratch… could we find a place with a better view? Colorado, Wyoming and Minnesota were out; I’m too old to shovel snow. Utah and Arizona? Nah, not enough trees. How about something closer? While on a bike ride, we saw a “For Sale” sign on a house here in The Villages with an amazing view, and only 5 miles away. Fast forward a few weeks, two contracts were signed and we were planning our move. Our new house is a bit larger and has a nice view of some old live oak trees dripping with Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoidies). 
March also provided us with an unexpected crisis for our 11 year old long-haired Dachshund Rudy. An abnormal blood test following a 15% body weight loss and a prolonged upset tummy had us driving up to the E.R. of the University of Florida Small Animal Hospital. Two overnight stays and many tests later, Rudy was diagnosed with a probable severe food allergy, and is now on a hypoallergenic diet. No more regular treats, chicken or cheese, but after 2 weeks on his new diet, he is gaining weight and acting like his old self. 
Suzanne has been busy preparing several new workshops and presenting one to an Energy Meditation Group here in The Villages. She is also working on a DVD of her Your Emerging Soul workshop that will be available within the next month. My “paperwork drills”, as we called them in the Navy, were mostly new mortgage and IRS tax form-related. (I am still praying for a flat tax; hope springs eternal with every election cycle). 
The last 14 days have been a whirlwind. We packed up our household goods, put them in storage for a week, cleaned the house, made some minor repairs, closed on our old house, lived in the coach for 8 nights at Grand Oaks (a local horse farm and carriage museum), moved into our new house, and started our road trip… there was even time to get a few hours sleep in that schedule, but anyone who knows My Lovely Bride knows that when she has a major task at hand (I think moving into a new house qualifies under that term), she can be focused like a laser beam. I remember the first night in the new house, when we got to bed around midnight, I woke up at 4:00 AM to find her up emptying boxes and filling closets. But I must now mention that my sanity in particular was saved during this move by our good friends Elizabeth, Bob and Jan. Elizabeth spent two days unpacking most of the kitchen boxes and refilling our cabinets, while Bob saved my aching back when he provided his wonderful F-350 truck for hauling mirrors and garage cabinets from Lowes, and helping me put one of the 189-lb. beasts together.
The most important thing: MLB is happy. As we left our new home after sleeping only five nights in it, Suzanne said that she could feel the love that surrounds our new abode and is looking forward to sharing that love with all who enter it in the coming years.
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