I love to plan! Just ask my wife Carol. She'll say that she's never met anyone so passionate about the joys of planning ahead. She's right. For instance, when we celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary and renewal of vows, at the Lafayette Park Hotel I started making arrangements a year ahead and she supported the effort fully--booking the venue, figuring out whom we wanted to invite to celebrate with us, contacting and coordinating with all the vendors, deciding on the menu, selecting the music, etc. Everything worked out perfectly and everyone, including the two of us had a fabulous time! When my plans go awry, I can get pretty upset--again, ask Carol!
Yet, as I reflect on my life before Carol and I were married and in the years since then, we both remember oft-repeated words of wisdom from our parents. When some unexpected event occurred in Carol's dad's life, his standard response was, "you just never know". Likewise, under similar circumstances in my or my parents' lives, my mom would remind me, with a twinkle in her eye, "life is full of surprises".
How true that is! In fact, the more I think about it, unexpected events have turned out to be some of my happiest times. Here are three examples:
1. In February 1995, my life and career were in the doldrums. I had just returned to work after a 5-week bout with pneumonia. I disliked my job as a paralegal with Social Security. My boss knew it and sympathized but said that there were no openings in the agency for jobs for which I met the qualifications. He said he'd keep an eye out but advised me not to hold out much hope.
About a week after my return, I got a phone call from Social Security's regional civil rights director, Isacc Williams. I had told him a couple of years earlier that I wanted a different job with Social Security. He'd gotten me some interviews, but nothing had panned out. When I answered the phone Isaac told me to come to his office right away to discuss "some options". I had no idea what Isaac was talking about and asked if he could come to my office because I had just gotten over pneumonia. Isaac said "no", that I needed to see him. I left my office and traveled to his, several miles away. We talked for a few minutes, mostly about minor details concerning my job, then said that he wanted me to meet the Public Affairs Director, Leslie Walker. He introduced us, then left.
Leslie asked me whether I liked my job. I told her honestly that I didn't, and she asked me why. I explained that I found my job tedious, did not enjoy doing nothing but legal research and writing, and had no opportunity to advance. At that point, Leslie stated that she wanted me to meet her staff. When they all had assembled in her office, Leslie announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, I want you to meet John Larimore, the newest member of our staff." I was stunned! That is not how jobs are filled in the federal government. It turned out that Leslie hired me solely on Isaach's recommendation. I had never applied for the job and Leslie and I had not met previously. I started working for Public Affairs a month later, stayed 16 years, and loved my job!
2. In the spring of 2000, Carol and I decided to move from our condo in San Francisco, where we had been living since our marriage the previous August, to the Walnut Creek area to buy a home close to Rossmoor, where my mother lived. At that time, the real estate market was hot, with prospective buyers competing fiercely with each other for the few available homes. Carol and I looked at three homes in Walnut Creek one day in early April, submitted an offer on one we liked, but were outbid.
A week later, Carol and the realtor went again to look. They happened to turn down Oak Park Lane, a small street in Pleasant Hill. Carol noticed a "for sale" sign at 273 and asked about it. The realtor said she was previously unaware of the house, and thus had no plans to show it to Carol. The realtor found out that there would be an open house two days later. Carol called me and we agreed to come to the open house.
We went to the open house, there were no other prospective buyers, and we made an offer that was accepted the next day. Carol and I spent 23 happy years there.
3. Six months ago, as far as Carol and I knew, we thought we would remain in our Pleasant Hill home for the foreseeable future. Moving was the farthest thing from our minds. We had explored several senior living communities in previous years but none of them appealed to us.
In early November of last year, our next-door neighbor Jerry advised us that he would be moving. When I asked where, he said "The Heritage in Walnut Creek. I decided to look online, found the website of THD, and scheduled a tour. We were not looking to move to THD but thought it might be fun to tour anyway. When we came, Carol and I were amazed by the ambience, the friendly staff, the delicious food, and most of all, by the friendly and welcoming residents we met, who, entirely on their own, offered their hospitality and assistance. We looked at a few more communities, but it didn't take us long to realize that THD was where we wanted to live--so here Carol and I have been for the past couple of months. We love it here!
John and Carol Larimore- Photo Taken April 2, 2024
In closing, I encourage all of us to remember, reflect upon, and be grateful for the unexpected events that have enriched our lives.
- Meanwhile here are some of my Favorite Quotes on Unexpected:
- All creative people want to do the unexpected. ...
- If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must Man be of learning from experience. ...
- Resilience is all about being able to overcome the unexpected. ...
- To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect.
- One event in my life that I did not expect was winning a creative writing contest in 2008. It inspired me to start blogging. For details read the link below:
https://chateaudumer.blogspot.com/2023/10/my-childhood-experiences-during.html
- Personal Notes: Did you have unexpected events in your Life you would like to Share? I will like to hear from you! Watch out for my future article on John and Carol Larimore.
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