2019 Life Logs, Day 151: From Nyack, NY to Dedham, MA and Then Home
Date: Friday, May 31, 2019
Weather: Partly Sunny; High 77, Low 58 degrees F
Location: Back Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA

My visit with Lynne was wonderful, but this morning it was time to say my farewells and head to Boston. I got across the Tappan Zee Bridge with no problem, but then my GPS headed me in what I thought was the wrong direction. Then five miles later, it had me turn around and head back the same five miles. I carefully set my GPS before leaving Lynne’s, but I struggled with it all the way to Hartford, Connecticut. When I get a chance, I’m going to retrace the trip to see what happened, but even with the confusion, I arrived at Alan and Helaine’s new home in Dedham, near Boston, by 12:45 pm. They live in a Hebrew senior life center called Newbridge on the Charles. It is known as one of the most successful senior living centers in the country and is celebrating ten years of success this year. It is associated with the Harvard Medical School, has a variety of living situations—cottages, villas, apartments, independent living, assisted living, and continuing care. It has a K-8 school on the grounds, a fantastic central building that has restaurants, a state-of-the-art gym, an inside pool, a theater, meeting rooms, and an auditorium. And the Charles River runs through the grounds with nature walking paths alongside it. In fact, Helaine and I took off to walk on those paths having no idea where they headed. We enjoyed the walk and eventually we found our way back home. There’s even an area on the campus where residents can claim a raised bed to plant. I was quite impressed with what I will call the village and, in particular, I was impressed with Alan and Helaine’s cottage. Compared to my little cottage, it felt HUGE. It has vaulted ceilings and lots of tall windows making it light and airy. And most importantly, both Alan and Helaine already love their cottage and their new life at Newbridge. We had lunch in one of the restaurants and while there saw many people that Alan and Helaine have met. Everyone is friendly and the staff helpful. It is easy to see why Newbridge has been so successful. It was 5 o’clock on a Friday afternoon when I was ready to leave, not the best time to head south to Cape Cod, so I drove through Dedham to a shopping area that had both a Whole Foods and a Costco and did a little shopping while waiting for the rush hour traffic to calm down. From my little explore of the town, it seems it has unlimited shopping opportunities. In the future, I’ll drive to Dedham for my off-Cape shopping trips and include a visit with Alan and Helaine.