December Haze

The sky today was uninspiring.  For most of the afternoon the ceiling was overcast and sometimes hazy as the sun struggled to blaze through the mosaic of quilt-like clouds. It was a pensive day accordingly. Though there were people on the beach their purpose resounded more of determination than gratification.  So many people here for the Christmas holiday (especially school and university children) have a limited window to capitalize upon their southern sojourn. For me it was an opportunity to escape what is normally the compelling and overwhelming allure of the weather and instead aimlessly to ponder without further intention or interruption.

Our estate agent communicated with us regarding next year's plans. This naturally entailed the formality of document review. We have resolved to meet in the New Year to explore the sobering details, with a view to reducing the vulgar appearance of negotiation and legalese. Assuming we proceed as currently anticipated, the arrangement will capture the first time in the last seven years we've renewed residency in the same dwelling - though not beyond the same geographic environment. We appreciate being relatively close to Key West which is always a pleasant alternative resort for short periods (though it would be prohibitively expensive for longer stays in the winter).

In keeping with the unfolding business atmosphere of the day our financial advisor sent a projected annual summary. Budgets - that is to say, income and expenses - are not something I have traditionally embraced with either gusto or acuity. Most of my life was spent contemplating how to reorganize debt, which - though not a talent to be entirely diminished - is by definition largely little more than a study in protraction not absorption. It is a compensating consequence of aging that one's interest in expenditure declines commensurately. Luckily for me I have long ago exhausted my curiosity in matters material.  I am however similarly pleased to report that the things I have chosen to retain continue to galvanize me. But as for yachts, real estate and complicated watches, I see them as nothing but a burden. There is something disturbingly apt about the quip regarding a dog chasing a car and what he'd do with it if he caught it!  Meanwhile my only surviving possessory aspiration is a Chelsea ship's bell.

It is healthy to have at least some ambition. This item appeals to me in particular because the mantle clock we currently have at home has suffered mechanical challenges relating to the chimes which I have not been able to correct because the device is reportedly beyond repair (though the timing still works accurately). Given my age and the frequency of our absence from terra firma it is highly questionable to make this particular plunge. But it satisfies my unending commercial enterprise to know the possibility is there! It is as well an excuse to travel to Massachusetts.