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Some twenty eight years ago I retired! Cleo and I had been married for 30 years already! We built the house that we had planned for 25 years just the way we wanted it, lived in it for seven years, had it paid for and were happy--except for one thing---- I retired, having been used to having a bunch of men to do my beck and call, and all of a sudden, all I had was CLEO!!!! That didn't work for EITHER of us.
Cleo said, "We can put the house on the market, if it sells we can go somewhere closer to a major airport where we could ship puppies and take our hobby into a business. If it doesn't sell we can stay here and find something for you to do beside manage ME".
We found 80 acres of rolling land near Tylertown, MS and lived in a 5th wheel travel trailer while I built our 21 run kennel. I had the concrete poured and I built all the rest of it by myself, roof and all. That kept me busy for a while. Some of the 80 acres was in pasture, but some of it had been severly cut over and burned (forest land) This had to be cleaned up so I could train dogs on it. I bought a second hand John Deere tractor and bush cutter and cleared anything I could push over with it, (See I'm staying out of Cleo's way)
We had a bull dozier come in and built a training pond (and deducted the cost on income tax) Traing ponds are not tax deductable, catfish ponds, yes, but not dog training ponds. The next structures built were levies to create wetlands and soil erosion structures--they were deductable. The second hand John Deere died and I traided it in on a brand new John Deere 2253 that Cleo referred to as "Her Green Van" because the cost would have been about the same. Also got a new bush cutter and a 6 foot estate mower (That's where the mowing comes in) It take a lot of time to keep 65 acres of training ground mowed in the Summer (and a pretty good bit of fuel too), but it kept me busy.
In the meantime we also raised a few litters of pups which I helped scoop poop etc. and Cleo did too (puppies make lots of poop) and she shipped them to whereever they were to go. She cooked, I stayed the Hell out of HER kitchen. I had a new kitchen added to the place so she could see what was going on.
Then she got me a new zero turn mower so I could ride around and mow the grass more professionally. That woman Is a dream!! Also got a 4 wheel Chuck Wagon so she could find other things for me to do in my spare time.
In all this time she let me run the dogs in some HRC Hunt Tests and to judge a bunch of them too! She ran some of them and judged some too.
So you see, I have been kept busy enough so I have not worried the stew out of her and we have been happily married (Had two children somewhere along the way) for 57 years and that has been the success of a good marriage. Stay busy and don't don't worry your wife. Best advice I've given tonight, Bill
Cleo said, "We can put the house on the market, if it sells we can go somewhere closer to a major airport where we could ship puppies and take our hobby into a business. If it doesn't sell we can stay here and find something for you to do beside manage ME".
We found 80 acres of rolling land near Tylertown, MS and lived in a 5th wheel travel trailer while I built our 21 run kennel. I had the concrete poured and I built all the rest of it by myself, roof and all. That kept me busy for a while. Some of the 80 acres was in pasture, but some of it had been severly cut over and burned (forest land) This had to be cleaned up so I could train dogs on it. I bought a second hand John Deere tractor and bush cutter and cleared anything I could push over with it, (See I'm staying out of Cleo's way)
We had a bull dozier come in and built a training pond (and deducted the cost on income tax) Traing ponds are not tax deductable, catfish ponds, yes, but not dog training ponds. The next structures built were levies to create wetlands and soil erosion structures--they were deductable. The second hand John Deere died and I traided it in on a brand new John Deere 2253 that Cleo referred to as "Her Green Van" because the cost would have been about the same. Also got a new bush cutter and a 6 foot estate mower (That's where the mowing comes in) It take a lot of time to keep 65 acres of training ground mowed in the Summer (and a pretty good bit of fuel too), but it kept me busy.
In the meantime we also raised a few litters of pups which I helped scoop poop etc. and Cleo did too (puppies make lots of poop) and she shipped them to whereever they were to go. She cooked, I stayed the Hell out of HER kitchen. I had a new kitchen added to the place so she could see what was going on.
Then she got me a new zero turn mower so I could ride around and mow the grass more professionally. That woman Is a dream!! Also got a 4 wheel Chuck Wagon so she could find other things for me to do in my spare time.
In all this time she let me run the dogs in some HRC Hunt Tests and to judge a bunch of them too! She ran some of them and judged some too.
So you see, I have been kept busy enough so I have not worried the stew out of her and we have been happily married (Had two children somewhere along the way) for 57 years and that has been the success of a good marriage. Stay busy and don't don't worry your wife. Best advice I've given tonight, Bill
