Settling Into the New Normal – Ohio Edition

Twelve days ago we left upstate New York for good, forever leaving behind our house, jobs, and most of our belongings. The months leading up to that moment were filled with stress as one can imagine, and now that the pressure has been released our new normal is starting to take form.

The last twelve days in Ohio have been busy, but things are starting to settle down. Temporarily settling in with Rhonda’s family and helping out around the house with things that only the two of us can do has, until recently, taken up most of our time. But that is to be expected, and we are happy to oblige.

Of course, visiting Rhonda’s local relatives has been a big part of this too. It has been great catching up with her extended family and integrating ourselves into their regular lives in a way that we haven’t been able to since we last lived in the area back in 1999. Since they all live so close together, there isn’t a day that we don’t see at least one of her parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, brothers, or sisters. It’s great and is a completely different style of living than we are used to, as we have been on our own and away from any family (aside from the yearly holiday visit) for the last 23 years.

It’s good to reconnect.

One great thing about the countryside near Dayton (where we are) is that there is a fantastic network of locally maintained trails and parks close by. The Five Rivers Metroparks, as they are called, are all free and open to the public, and we’ve already gotten into the habit of taking extended hikes several times per week. Because I am not always the sharpest knife in the drawer, it only occurred to me today that I should really be taking some pictures of how nice these places are!

This morning’s 6-mile stroll was at the Twin Creek Metropark and although it was a little muddy in spots after last night’s downpour, it was still a good time.

At the Twin Creek park entrance:

Lots of trails to choose from. We stuck to the orange and purple trails today. Rhonda says the purple trail goes by a Boy Scouts of America camp with some neat things to see.

Into the woods. 6 miles of green tunnels today.

At the Bob Gardner Lodge, which is found within the Camp Hook Boy Scout Camp. The camp and lodge look like they are reasonably well maintained.

At the Camp Hook amphitheater.

The Gilwell Oak. This white oak tree was grown as a transplant of the original Gilwell Oak in Gilwell Park, England. Gilwell Park was apparently ground-zero of the worldwide scouting movement back in the day.

This chapel was very interesting. It was built in the late 1950s and was dedicated to the Boy Scouts at Camp Hook to support their religious development. Curiously, it is made of a series of triangles within triangles, all resting on a triangular foundation. Although there is no mention of masonic influence on the commemorative placard, we are suspicious. Definitely had a Nicolas Cage National Treasure vibe to it.

The nice part about all of these hikes we are taking is that we can field-test our gear for our upcoming international travels and work out any kinks. I am absolutely in love with my discontinued ECCO Men’s XPEDITION III hiking boots!

Thankfully we finished up our hike and made it back home just before an afternoon downpour began, which is pretty common in the summer in Ohio. We’re spending the rest of the day doing odd jobs around the house, planning for dinner, and figuring out what to do this evening.

So it appears that our new daily routine has formed. It seems to be, in no particular order:

• Do something meaningful for others
• Do something meaningful for our mental/physical wellness
• Do something social

If this is the new normal, I approve.

Thanks for enduring today’s ramblings! Feel free to drop a comment in the comments section below.

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