Brian O'Donnell:  

UPDATE Jan. 2011: As of the end of 2010, we completed our move to Bradenton on Florida's Gulf Coast. Karen retired last summer and we mostly downsized everything in the Mid-Atlantic except some clothes and artwork to bring along with us. It's like being newlyweds again. Karen's gone with all-black furniture this time around (no more antiques)--what I jokingly call the "edgy-mellow" modern look. Being about 8-10 miles from several great beaches is handy fun. Believing this real estate market will be soft for a good while to come, we rented a condo in a 55+ mid-rise community on a lake (including the obligatory alligators!) with heated pool, clubhouse, etc. till we find that "special place" to settle long term. We may well be the youngest oldsters here! Visit Karen & me on Facebook, it's under my name. Happy New Year! LIFE OVERVIEW High school was followed by the Marine Corps, college and law school. After graduating high school, I hopped in my 1960 Plymouth with about $100 in cash and an ESSO gas card (courtesy of Dad) sleeping bag and lots of bread and peanut butter and headed to California. Among other adventures, I happened to end up for a while in The Haight-Asbury District during the '67 "Summer of Love." That was a wild experience! I spent the better part of two months cruising the beaches of California and Mexico. Sleeping on the California beaches and under the desert stars was great. Open fires weren't a problem. Those were "heady" days and the country was a great place to road trip. After one more road trip to California and back, and some more playing around and part-time working to fuel the party, I joined the Marines in 1968--about a year after I graduated high school. After the Marine Corps, it was Northern Virginia Community College (at the original--long gone--Bailey's Crossroads campus), American University and George Mason Law School; working my way through school without student loans. After graduating American University in 1974, I moved out of Georgetown (a great place in the '60s and '70s) and have lived in Crystal City, Old Town Alexandria, and McLean since. I'm retired from solo general law practice. Being self-employed had its ups and downs; yet I'll always be thankful I chose that career route. I don't miss any of that much except the courtroom action. Karen, bright and beautiful, an American Airlines Flight Attendant from San Diego, and I have been married (March 12th, 1977) 34 years--yes, like swans, lifetime mates. We met in the fall of 1970 in our first year of college in English 101 AKA "Communications Skills" and, on our 2nd or 3rd date, I flat told Karen we were going to marry someday; I was that sure she was the right gal for me. Karen, no doubt thought I was crazy about that notion being so clear to me. As it turned out, over six years of dating on and off convinced us both we were meant to be. I still believe now, as I did then, that none of us makes any decision more important than with whom to spend the rest of our life. Although no kids showed up in our marriage, it allowed Karen and me a lifestyle few of our friends were able to begin so young. We seem to always be in a playful mindset--lots of laughter. Karen loves, and knows well, her wines; I got off the alcohol merry-go-round many years ago. No regrets there, though--I rarely denied myself anything along the way! After riding motorcycles over 25 years, I haven't really yearned to have one since my early 40s; although I still keep the motorcycle endorsement on my driver's license active in case I have a change of heart. I still enjoy occasional high diving into the water from any decent precipice (remember Dickerson Quarry?!) that makes itself available--also still enjoy performing some fairly fancy (albeit slower!) springboard diving that darn few "adults" seem up to any longer. Little wonder only a handful of kids learn to dive nowadays since the diving boards continue to disappear. Early in our marriage, I gradually stopped flying small planes, tennis and golf to enjoy recreation that Karen and I could regularly share together. Winters we enjoy snow skiing; much of the rest of the time we boat the Chesapeake on our slow diesel trawler and hang out with other boating friends. Any SCUBA I do now is mostly done to keep the running gear of our boat clean; I've pretty much seen enough reefs, springs, caves and quarries. Also, most years since the '80s we've enjoyed big ship cruising trips to the Caribbean--nothing like the colors of those tropical waters to soothe one's soul. Big time pet peeves include worrywarts, the self-righteous, born-again zealots, hypocrites of any faith or political persuasion, whiners, and folks who take themselves and their opinions far too seriously. Having been in the Mid-Atlantic most of my life, I'm ready for a change. When Karen decides to retire, we're heading south--somewhere tropical. We've always been a shorts and bare feet kind of couple. I look for FUN and humor in most everything; let's face it, much of the stuff that otherwise takes up our lives is mostly silliness anyway. Having gone to three different high schools--MD, VA & DC--has allowed me unique chances to run into former classmates just about anywhere. Yep, I'm still a good dose flippant and cavalier--and always upbeat. Hope each of you and yours are happy & healthy; very little else matters more! SCH...Expand for more