Where There's a Will, There's a Way

cemetery

The proverb where there's a will, there's a way is said to mean that if someone has the determination and desire to do something, they will find a way to achieve it. So, a strong will can overcome obstacles and lead to success. It seems to me that this applies equally well to a different kind of will - a last will and testament. Having one of those will help your heirs overcome legal obstacles and will help you succeed in making sure your estate goes to the people you intended without being tied up in court.

Today my community had a lunch and learn that discussed wills and trusts. We have had two wills done in the past - one when our first child was born, and the second as we neared retirement. They both were filed in Missouri, and it has been weighing on me that things might not go smoothly when one of us dies since we now live in North Carolina. The presenter today confirmed my fear. An out of state will is better than no will, but a death will be incredibly difficult for either one of us without complicating things having to go through probate.

The presentation was very good. I picked up some new information, and some additional things we should take into consideration when we update our will. Or go with a trust, which was not recommended by our attorney in Missouri. But years have gone by and we are in a different jurisdiction, so I'm not sure which direction the new document will go. The sponsoring organization offers a free one-hour consultation to Imagery residents, so I signed up to be contacted for that. This was just the motivation I needed to jump-start the process of updating our estate.

A Tropickle Vacation

Turks & Caicos

That's not a typo in the headline. We just returned from a pickleball trip to Turks & Caicos put on by Travel Shark, a local travel agency. They set up Tropickle Vacations to take pickleball enthusiasts to beautiful, tropical locations. This was their first trip, and it was held at Club Med, which boasts 10 dedicated pickleball courts!

I believe there were 24 in our group, which consisted of players who are rated 3.5 and above. We had folks from Alaska, Utah, Florida, New York, Connecticut, South Carolina and North Carolina. Most of them are in their 30s and 40s, and I had suspected that we would be the grandparents in the group. That was close to being the case, but we are used to playing with the younger set so it was no big deal.

While the Club Med is showing its age, you just can't beat the location. It is a short 3 hour flight from Charlotte, and the islands are gorgeous! I had requested a balcony ocean view room, and that is what we got. We could see the sunsets from the balcony, though we usually chose to go to the beach for a broader experience. The resort is on the small side, with only one swimming pool and a restaurant, though a bar called Sharkies serves a few items a couple times a day.

beautiful sunsets

Eight of the pickleball courts were installed on two tennis courts. While they are dedicated courts, in order to get that many on they had to orient the courts east/west. This makes it miserable in the early morning and the later afternoon as the sun is in your eyes. That is really unfortunate. The other two dedicated courts are properly oriented north/south.

The weather was nice and sunny, with the high hitting 78 degrees each day (the low was always 77). But the winds! Each day they were 20 mph, with gusts up to 25-27 mph. That made play very challenging, especially with the pickleballs being so light in weight. Sometimes you just had to laugh as you anticipated the ball being in one place and the wind would blow it to another. Generally the pros will not play if the wind exceeds 15 mph.

Tropickle players

We had some time to snorkel, which we always enjoy. They had a big party for the Super Bowl, and while I didn't necessarily care who won the game, it was fun to watch the game on the three big screens with a lot of other people.

Overall, it was a relaxing and fun trip. While I would definitely go back to Turks & Caicos, I would probably look for a different place to stay. Club Med was built in the 1980s and has only been updated once since then and it shows.

Hoping for a New Dawn

Sometimes when the world gets crazy and the news headlines make my heart beat too fast or shatter all together, I just have to take a deep breath and go outside to let Mother Nature do her thing.