Sanibel and Fort Myers Beach

On Thursday evening, Carman and I had dinner at TerraNuestra, a great Italian restaurant, on the beach. Friday, after a Walmart stop, we toured Sanibel Island. It had an old lighthouse, but the weather was foggy, so the pictures are so-so. Since it was warm, we still went to the pool and Tiki bar. We watched some fools see how close they could get to the park alligator. The plant with the candy-looking red seeds is a cardboard palm. On Saturday we had lunch at the Yucatan Bar before we met Sandy and Linda. After hugs and changing for the beach, we had a great time catching up. The water was only 60 degrees, and Mr. Buffalo even thought it was too cold to do much more than wade. Sandy and Joe cooked us a great spaghetti dinner. The highlight was the greens and salad to die for. On Sunday, since the weather was great, we did the refuge on Sanibel. It was disappointing in that we see more wildlife at the RV park than we did there. That evening we had a great dinner at the Parrot Key. Carman had a mango margarita, and I bought some special sauce that they had for fish. Monday morning it was raining like crazy, so I stayed until Tuesday morning, and then headed back up to Blueberry Hill in Bushnell.  

Reunions

     On Sunday the 17th, Lane met me at the RV park in Christmas, and we went to Rudolph's for breakfast. It was so much fun hearing about what Lane has been doing since he left T or C. He seems very happy and has great plans for his future. Rudolph's full of local memorabilia and nicely decorated. Their food is great also. On Monday I left for Ft. Myer's. The traffic got a little crazy toward the end and Garmina got lost. I had to pull into a Walmart parking lot in rush hour traffic and called the park to get better directions. The park is gorgeous. I wish I could stay longer. The manager insisted on parking me perfectly straight, and he even let Marshall help him drive. On Tuesday, Sandy picked me up and took me to Snug Harbar for my birthday lunch. Then we went to her condo and a little shopping mall adjacent to her condo. The picture of the pool is from her 6th floor apartment. The weather was a little cool and breezy, but nice and sunny. Most people still ran around in shorts and bathing suits. Yesterday, I walked to a shopping center and got my nails down and then went back this morning to get a hair cut. It isn't as good as Annette does, but it's OK. There is also a Winn-Dixie close by and I now have my own card to get a discount on my wine. Very important move! The wind is blowing, but it's warm. Carman will be arriving around four, and Linda will be at Sandy's on Saturday. Plans are being made for a great celebration.

Gator Time

      Time to act like a tourist. Carman came for a visit and I gave him a tour of Titusville and in particular El Leoncito where we had some great Mexican food and a margarita. The next day after a great cheap breakfast at Rudolph's in Christmas, we visited Swampy the world's largest alligator and toured the Jungle Adventures Nature Park & Zoo. We got to hold a baby alligator and a snake. Todd the tour guide was great. He's really a science teacher, and he gave us a lot of interesting info aside from being very entertaining. Notice him in the swamp with Gummy, and Gummy sporting my sunglasses and another lady's hat. Today is Sunday and the weather is perfect. I've been waiting a while to say that.

Where's Florida?

     We are all getting tired of talking about the weather and are looking forward to later this week when it will be in the 70's. Yesterday we drove to Silver Springs the hard way, through every little burg and its 15 red lights. When we got there at 2:10, they announced that they were closing at 3. We took pictures of the outer grounds, but it would have been too cold to tour even if we had gotten there earlier. The turtles didn't seem to mind the cold. We took state route 40 to Ormond Beach, and it was very picturesque, in particular, the St. John's River. I want to do that trip again. Today we took pictures of the alligator park and Swampy, and then headed to Cocoa Beach. We ended up at Captain J's again and had a good lunch and went out on the beach. Then we went to Cocoa Village, and bought souvenirs and some jewelry for my wine glass. I didn't know such a thing existed, but I love it. Then we toured a Great Blue Heron Refuge, which is really the Titusville Waste Treatment Facility. Just when we were sure we would never see a live alligator, there he was. The bobcat posed beautifully, and the armadillo was busy eating. The birds are used to having their pictures taken, but I'm always hoping to get a really spectacular shot. Diane leaves in the morning for cold PA, as opposed to cold FL. Oh well, we had a really great time.

Touring with Diane

     My sister Diane arrived on Tuesday afternoon and we immediately started wandering around Titusville. We had grilled grouper sandwiches in a sports bar and toured the local Walmart for groceries and beer. Wednesday we headed for the Kennedy Space Center and had a very educational time. They had just hauled a new space vehicle out to pad 39a. It is due to go into space in early February. It was sunny, but the wind was cold. Still we wanted to see the ocean, and Cocoa Beach was the closest place. Captain J's had a view of the beach and we met a funny bartender and a guy from Pittsburgh. I thought the top of the bar was pretty, so naturally I took a picture. On the way back to Christmas, we saw a huge cruise ship in port. Thursday, we visited our cousin Larry Balewski at his real estate office, and he told us how to get to where the old store and gas station was on Ormond Beach. It's a restaurant now, but I can still picture my Aunt Jenny standing out in front. What was even more interesting was seeing the house behind it that I remember an old black lady living in. She taught me how to weave baskets out of palm leaves. Then we headed for Daytona Beach and ended up at the Deck Down Under. The sun was warm and we sat on the deck and watched the sea gulls and one pelican. It has been so cold that the aligators that were normally out at the Kennedy Space Center were hibernating. We checked out the Nature Park and Zoo which is located almost next door to the rv park. I think we're going to pass on the tour. After we dropped the boys off, we went to the Hard Rack Nite Club down the road. It was fun, and they had good music. We called our cousin Libby and are making plans to meet her on Sunday.

Time to play "Catch Up"

     The week before Christmas, Carman and I and the boys drove to Lake Alfred to meet Camille and Ed. We arrived at lunch time and I couldn't get a hold of the Provonosts to extend a lunch invitation. As it turns out, we had a wonderful meal at Luigi's, one of their favorite spots. Great wine and pasta! We got a tour of Ed and Camille's beautiful home and met her dad, a truly delightful man with a mane of white hair. Their Shelties welcomed us to the pack, and we took up warm residence on the south facing patio. I hope the pictures say it all.

     Christmas was quiet with phone calls to family and friends as a way of celebrating. The following week we went back to the winery to get some T-shirts. New Year's eve was balmy, and we sat outside while Carman cooked ribs. New Year's morning, we had torrential rain, but by afternoon, it was nice enough to tour Dade State Park just a short distance from Blueberry Hill. It is a battleground where they enacted a battle between the Seminole Indians and American forces back in 1835. Then I made some great gumbo for dinner. On Saturday, we had breakfast at local restaurant in Webster. It was quite good and the memorabilia was interesting. Then we headed for Lake Wales and Spook Hill. The idea is to put the car in neutral and drift BACK UP the hill. It worked! Don't know how. We stopped at a Best Buy so Carman could get his computer fixed and then headed for Bushnell. Saturday night was incredibly cold (27 degrees). Sunday morning Carman came over to check and inflate my tires. I then headed for Christmas, FL.