Do I or Don’t I?

Hellllooo, how are you doing as we head into Thanksgiving week? At least on this side of the pond, in the U.S., the holiday season kicks off with a day of gratitude and blessing – only it looks a bit different this year. Just like everything else in 2020.

The question facing many of us “do I or don’t I gather for Thanksgiving?” I wish it was easy. But the decision is filled with land mines and can be just as deadly. The recommendation from the experts, of course, is to NOT to. Sigh. But that’s not an easy thing to do, is it? After all, who wants to spend the holiday alone? Well, maybe some of us but that’s not ok, right? AnyHOO.

For me I’ve decided to get tested tomorrow at CVS which offers rapid testing before I makeup my mind to head to the bungalow to share a few days with my daughter and her in-laws who are visiting. I’d love to walk the beach and share a festive meal, escaping my very solitary-work-from-home-life. But that’s just me. My situation is a bit easier since my travel includes driving 90 minutes from my home to the bungalow on Galveston Island. No public spaces or stops. But I do want to make sure I’m not carrying the virus. By the way, my daughter and family tested negative too.

And that’s not the only decision I’m waffling on…oh, no. Because life is an adventure and my next adventure just might be building a garage apartment behind my bungalow in Galveston. Who knew, when I bought my tiny island home, a few years ago that it would be a popular destination for my family! That usually means I’m the last one who gets to enjoy the retreat by the sea and my adult children have claimed it in rotation. With last years’ travel I was never in the States long enough to give it much thought and always happy to share Driftwood Cove. But this year, as COVID runs rampant and I’m not traveling, it would be nice to call Galveston home. But it’s tiny!

Thousands of dollars later, plans drawn and lending options explored, I’m now trying to decide to pull the trigger and build an addition to Driftwood Cove. The cost, due to lumber and materials and COVID, is crazily higher than I imagined. I had first imagined a simple garage with living quarters…how much could that be!?! Well, A LOT! But wouldn’t it be nice to have more space for everyone to pile in?

Do I? Or Don’t I?

What would you do? Would love to hear…should I step out on this adventure or hit the pause button?