This Is It!

My last post on my blog. It's been 6+ years since I began Wandering Wisconsin at the advice of a friend. And five years of posts. I stopped regaling my readers with stories of our adventures about a year ago but never stopped formally - until now.

It's been a great deal of fun but I'm hanging up my keyboard in the blogosphere and will just concentrate on writing for which I actually get paid!

Rick and I bought a place in The Villages - America's fastest growing retirement community in Central Florida - this past January. We decided we didn't want to spend any more winters in Wisconsin so we'll be driving south in October to return to Wisconsin in early May.

This is our place - two bedrooms, two baths with attached garage. We added
pavers for 2 1/2 feet alongside each side of the driveway so we could park both
a car and a golf cart there side by side. More pavers were installed in front of the door
on the left side for a patio. We also did landscaping in the front, changed out a tree
on the side, and removed lots of junk trees in the back. Our fingers are crossed
that the lawn will be lush and green now that the rains came over the summer.
We should be seeing some colorful flowers next spring as well.

Rick sold his house this summer but is holding on to his 1976 Argosy camping trailer which will be stored in Central Wisconsin while we are in Florida. Considering the investment he made in repairs and upgrades this past winter, the trailer is a keeper for many years to come. We'll still wander Wisconsin in the summer, but probably not as much as we've done in the past. 

Look for the sixth "Birds & Bovines" vintage camping trailer rally next June at Ledge Park near Horicon. It's become a tradition that rally participants are looking forward to having us continue.  

I'll be leaving Madison and my work with Dane Buy Local. However, I will continue to write stories for Madison Essentials. (Click on the link for two more of my stories in the latest issue.) While I've done most of the interviews in person for stories I've written the last two years, I'll do telephone interviews in the future. The magazine is changing from a quarterly publication to a bi-monthly one, so that means even more assignments.

Amazingly, I've come full circle. When I began my studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison I was a pre-journalism major. I ended up getting a degree from the School of Human Ecology, which at the time of my graduation was called Family Resources & Consumer Science (aka Home Economics). Granted, a feature story isn't hard straight news, but the skills required to write both kinds of stories overlap. So, after all these years, I'm back in journalism.

Writing this blog was a good way to hone my skills and a fun way to share what I love about my home state and always will. A big "THANK YOU" to everyone who subscribed to, followed me, and/or read my latest post when I put a notice on Facebook. 

And if you're ever near The Villages (a little over an hour northwest of Orlando), give us a call, maybe spend a night or two. I'd love to show you around my adopted community and introduce you to some terrific people who've become good friends.