Environment =========== As you know, our house is near the James River. In fact on our street, Hardware Rd, and about 50m from the end of the driveway runs the railroad; on the other side of that is the Hardware River Wildlife Management Area (HRWMA)* operated by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF). On quiet days, it is almost like having a personal property that large! This is essentially a state park, with a boat put-in to the James River. I am taken down there every morning by one of my dogs (Heidi) for exercise. So I am permitted by the present covid-19 orders to spend time there. As Adrian said, how convenient! Although I said that we lived near the James River, the nearest river is actually the Hardware River. The Hardware is a small tributary of the James, and flows into the James after passing through the HRWMA. When we walk down to the James, we have to cross over the Hardware bridge. The small settlement of Hardware used to be at the end of what is now our driveway with its own railroad station. It is the reason for the name of our road. * 1,034 acre/418 hectare or 1.62 sq.mi/4.18 sq.km Retirement activities ===================== As I have explained, I became qualified as a Virginia Master Naturalist (VMN) to have interesting and useful projects to do. The VMN is roughly equivalent to an associates degree, giving enough training in many subjects to be able to assist with naturalist activities. The VMN program presently reports $26 per hour for all volunteer hours. So I use my time measurably productively. Gareth Hunt, 08 April 2020