Last night I finally found definitive information regarding the "Schengen clock." The question was does it give you 180-days after you first arrive or does it start after your 90-days in Schengen are up? According to travel guru Rick Steves the "clock" restarts 180 days after you arrive, which for us was on November 15. So now, our self-imposed exile over, we can return to Western Europe whenever we are ready, which will be Sunday night on a ferry sailing from Split to Italy.
