Another Summer Gone By

Paul Morrone |
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By Thomas Morrone, CFP®, CPA

The Summers do go by quicker each year, I am convinced of that. In the Northeast, the warm weather months are isolated to only such a short time frame compared to other warmer climate regions of the country. Therefore, we attempt to cram as many outdoor activities as possible into such a condensed time frame. In addition to outdoor activities, there still exists the usual demands for our time that include chores around the house and yard, children and grand-children, exercise, recreation (golf and kayaking for me), work responsibilities let alone personal time of just hanging around. This flurry of activity lends to the calendar being packed with activities and there is never enough of a supply of weekends and free time to fully satisfy the demand. It sounds like a lesson in Economics 101 but referring to time instead of goods and services.

One area where we have adapted is getting together with friends for dinner. That event was traditionally reserved for Friday and Saturday evenings. We have expanded our horizons and added weeknights to our inventory of time slots as well as Sunday afternoons, especially a nice brunch. The weekends were still and will always be busy but at least there is more supply of time. I also have found that getting up early consistently allows for that morning walk and some yard chores to get accomplished without carving into everything else that rounds out the agenda for the day. It also makes up for the daylight lost at the end of the day to some extent. We had our time sitting by the pool with our beverage of choice in our hands. We saw some beautiful sunsets and still enjoyed time with family, neighbors, and friends. Life is good!

Sometimes it is not about what you have done but what did not happen. One thing that comes to mind was hurricane Henri, that was on track to a direct hit for our CT shoreline. I have lived through a few hurricanes in my lifetime, so Henri had my attention. All outside furniture, flowerpots, gas grill and anything else that could get air borne, was brought inside the garage, or secured under the house. Paul came over to lend a hand which was greatly appreciated. The storm timing was coinciding with a high tide, so we were getting nervous about flooding. The Saturday night before the expected landfall, our section of Branford was put on alert of mandatory evacuation, so Paul and Jill were going to have us as house guests. We packed our bags at night and woke early Sunday morning and when we looked outside, we were expecting torrential rain and high winds. I was pleasantly surprised that it was not raining and there was hardly any wind at all. As we all now know, when we turned on the weather station, Henri took an easternly turn overnight towards the state of RI. Thank you to Mother Nature for changing your mind. It was a rainy and windy day but thankfully not a hurricane. We did not need to evacuate and just hung around all day and were grateful for what did not happen. We prepared for the worst and received the best. That is a fabulous combination in my book. Paul and Jill cooked up a storm in anticipation of the storm and invited us to their house for a hearty Italian dinner. I could not think of a better way to celebrate the passing of Henri. We had some nice wine to accompany the wonderful meal. We discussed what could have been and how lucky we were that the track of the storm shifted so much. My blood pressure was back to normal. Life is good!

Now we look to fall with shorter daylight hours, cooler nights, pumpkins, mums, and the promise of a colorful foliage season. Also, looking forward to apple picking which is something our daughter Kelly still loves to do. Stay safe! 
Until the Next Tom’s Take………………………..
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