December 18,2025- It took all of ten minutes to get a thrift store dispatcher to schedule the pick-up of most of my furniture for the last week of the year. It took five minutes to schedule a cleaning crew for the same day. Drawers and cabinets were cleared and wiped clean. A lot more stuff went to the Disabled American Veterans thrift store. There is about three hours’ worth of work left, for tomorrow morning.

I changed my address with the Post Office, effective December 30 and said farewell to The Arizona Republic, after subscribing since March, 1992. (I had subscribed from June, 1980-August, 1986, but then Penny and I moved to South Korea for 5.5 years.) The Red Cross was informed of my new address, as was National Geographic Magazine. Other notifications will go out, in the next few weeks.

Visits with friends punctuated the day. I made one last visit to the Farmers Market office and left some items in the care of one of my first co-workers. Dinner with a colleague from the Soup Kitchen capped a very fine day, with talk of the state of the teaching profession-and his concerns about the shallowness of online dating. Yet the ninety minutes spent with someone who helped turn my life around, after I was wallowing in the doldrums in the early 2010s, was easily the high point of the day. M is a model of proactivity and sustained self-reliance. She has achieved, singly and alone, the transformation of a neglected property into an organized and comfortable residence-something that I saw eluding her for most of our 12-year friendship. I can say she is one of those I will miss the most in this community of bright friend stars.

Now, I will rest and prepare for finishing my downsizing and getting underway on the first stage of the move to Plano. It is all falling into place.