{"id":3565,"date":"2023-02-19T07:38:17","date_gmt":"2023-02-19T12:38:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.tubridy.net\/newblog\/?page_id=3565"},"modified":"2025-02-01T05:14:40","modified_gmt":"2025-02-01T10:14:40","slug":"home-again","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.tubridy.net\/newblog\/home-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Home Again"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Cocoa Beach from the International Space Station<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Florida – Home Sweet Home<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I divorced Sally and moved back to Florida in the summer of 2014. The rental market in Cocoa Beach sucked, but I was able to find a nice, newer home for rent close by Sattelite Beach. It was an excellent place to reestablish myself while I found something to buy back home.<\/p>\n\n\n

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I rented a house at Satellite Beach. It was nice living in a new, modern home close to the beach. I drove the scooter everywhere.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Sammy and I moved in with the M Coupe as our only car. I drove the scooter all the time. The house was one of the nicest I have ever stayed in, which made it even more enjoyable. It was a five-minute walk to the beach, and Sammy and I would go twice daily. There was a swimming pool in nearby Indian Harbor Beach, and I would swim in the early morning. I had a nice office setup to do my work with IBM. It seemed I was home again and happier than I had been since leaving.<\/p>\n\n\n

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My office in Satellite Beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

I stayed there for a year and a half after moving to Valhalla. I started drumming again in earnest and played with one of my old childhood friends in the area. I bought my kayak Serenity<\/em> and did a lot of paddling in Indian Harbor Beach and my old stomping grounds, the Thousand Islands.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Paddling in the Ocean off Satellite Beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In 2015, I started looking for a place in Cocoa Beach. Something quickly came up, but it was an older, run-down house on A1A – the only highway that passes through Cocoa Beach. You will end up in Key West if you follow it far enough.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Valhalla<\/a>
Valhalla 2014<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It needed a shit-ton of work before I could move in. However, it was one block from the beach and less than 1\/4 mile from Ramp Road Park, a gateway to the southern Thousand Islands. It also sat on a .quarter acre lot that was 150 feet deep. The house had many bids, but my realtor did a great job and got me the house. Thanks, Robin!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It would be named Valhalla<\/strong>. I moved there in early 2016. Unfortunately, Sammy passed away at 12 years old, right at the same time. I got a new Tibetian Terrier puppy, Buddy, soon after that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Buddy at the Beach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We started fixing up our somewhat run-down new house. Tragically, Buddy died during the surgery to neuter him. It’s unclear to me now if this was a congenital heart problem he had or just the fact that my vet fucked up.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Jake<\/a>
Jake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Regardless, I got Jacob from the same breeder that August. He was a little older, but we bonded quickly. I now affectionately call him my son, and we spend all our time together. <\/p>\n\n\n

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My new TD-50 drums (mixed in with my older drums and cymbals at this point). I would eventually drop the low-volume cymbals. Jake got used to drumming at a very early age!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

I enjoyed playing the drums again but grew increasingly frustrated with my electronic drums. I discovered that Roland had come a long way from the kit I bought in the early 2000s and had addressed my big complaints with what I had. I purchased a new TD-50 kit, and – boy, howdy – it sounded great! I started trying to learn how to play songs – especially now that I could hear everything well. My playing improved, and I’ve been playing constantly ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Custom Vanity<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

I worked a lot on the house in 2016 & 2017. I had a brick driveway and patio installed. I reworked the garage, replacing walls and shoring it up as much as possible. I eventually had almost all of the windows upgraded. I remodeled the bathroom, closing off one doorward and replacing the crappy vanities. It came together nicely. I worked a lot on the backyard, filling in the mysterious depression and establishing my garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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