Retirement 101

My First Year

by Nora Kurmai

It is hard to believe that it has been a whole year since I have retired!   It has been a year filled with a little work and a lot of PLAY.

 The beginning of my  “school year” began with my fantastic retirement party at Testo’s.  It was so great to see all of my friends and colleagues and share memories.  Forty years of teaching went by so fast…I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to work with such a fine group of people. 

In November, I dodged the “Hurricane Sandy” bullet by escaping to Denver, Colorado.  My singing group, Harmony on the Sound Chorus, competed internationally in Denver during that week.  Fortunately I flew out of LaGuardia on one of the last flights, just before Sandy hit and closed the airports.  Although about 20 other fellow singers were not that lucky, we competed and came in 15th internationally!   Harmony on the Sound chorus is a Sweet Adeline chorus that is based in Trumbull, Connecticut.   We rehearse once a week and perform concerts 2-3 times a year.   If anyone has an interest and passion for singing, please feel free to contact me for more information.  You can also visit our website www.harmonyonthesound.org !

Throughout the course of the school year, I have been lucky to continue my literacy work by consulting with the Language Arts Specialists in each Fairfield elementary school.  It has been my pleasure to work with such competent and conscientious staff. 

I survived the cold, snowy, winter by reading and knitting.  Since my knee surgery, skiing has been removed from my winter activities. But it has been wonderful to have time to visit with family and friends during the middle of the week and even at lunch time!!  Another added bonus for my husband Mark… he has enjoyed many fine meals, since I have time for cooking once again.

In the spring, my chorus sang in our Regional Competition and came in second place.  Second place made us unable to compete internationally in Baltimore, in 2014.  But, we are now gearing up for the next international competition and hope to qualify and compete in Las Vegas in 2015!

In June I joined 32 other Sweet Adeline singers across the Northeast, the Tropical Harmony Chorus. We traveled to Germany, Austria and Hungary to tour and perform.  We sang in some beautiful palaces, churches and beer gardens in Munich, Salzburg, Mondsee, Vienna and Budapest.  Mark and I saw such beautiful sites and made some new friends.  We are hoping to travel again with this singing group next June, as they tour Northern Italy.

Mark and I spent much of this summer at our family cottage in North Stonington, CT.  Our rustic cottage sits on a small lake and it is a very peaceful place to kayak, swim, read and enjoy the solitude of Southeastern Connecticut. 

Our summer culminated with a week-long trip to Bermuda, where we stayed with close friends who live there.  I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the island with residents who knew the best beaches and best restaurants to visit.

 There were, however, many other things I DID not accomplish…cleaning out closets, attic, garage and basement.  Oh well, I’ll just have to think about those tomorrow!  LOL 

*Editor's note -  Click on this link to see a sample of a "Hamony on the Sound" competition performance:  

http://harmonyonthesound.org/11regionalcontest.htm

Betty Mulholland 14.09.2013 00:03

Nora,
What a great first year.
Hope you keep on enjoying it. Don't worry about the closets....