Florida Part II

After lunch, we returned to Sun N Fun, where we were greeted by a very friendly staff. The paperwork signed and keys obtained, we headed to our home for the next seven days. Sun N Fun is exactly what it says it is. If the following sounds like an advertisement for them, well it's for good reason. We had a beautiful mobile home, practically new, (you could "smell" the newness when you walked in), extremely clean, fully equipped with brand new appliances, linens, cookware, silverware ,dishes, glassware; you name it, we had it.

I especially liked the little outside deck, where we ate most of our evening meals.

The park is huge (177 acres) and there are so many mobile homes and RV's it's impossible to count them all. The first thing you notice about the place is how friendly everyone is.
Most of the residents live there for nine months out of the year, some, like us, come for a week or two.


There were older areas of the park where people had owned their homes for years, knew their neighbors and created a community within the park. Everyone we passed as we walked about, spoke to us, said hello and were willing to help and answer questions. They made eye contact! They were smiling! It was awesome! People were comfortable and secure there, that was evident.
Although one could drive a car throughout the park (10 mph please!), there were lots of bikes and motorized scooters; but the favorite means of transport seemed to be golf cart. Lots and lots of golf carts. Not just your ordinary golf cart....
souped up/decorated golf carts,

golf carts painted like Nascar racing cars,

even a Model T golf cart!
You could always tell when the pool was crowded by the number of golf carts and such parked in the lot!
Speaking of the pool, it was enormous.
It was clean.
It was HEATED. It was heaven! There were two large hot tubs,
a Tiki Bar and a kids pool
and a Tiki Bar, oh and did I mention the Tiki Bar? Everything was well kept, clean and bright and the staff provided outstanding service. We had occasion to do laundry during our stay; yes that dull, boring chore, but right next to the laundry-mat was a rec room with nine giant pool tables, free to play! If we had been allotted more time to stay, I believe we would have tried our hand at horseshoes and the mini-golf course, perhaps taken a woodworking class or participated in the morning exercise class held in the HEATED pool. So much to do, so little time! There are several lakes and ponds suitable for fishing and boating, but we just didn't get a chance to do it all!

After we were unpacked and settled, had gone grocery shopping for the week, we decided it was time to take a ride down to the beaches. We drove out to Long Boat Key, just in time for a glorious sunset walk. I'll leave you for now, with these photos. More later.

Florida Part I

I'm back! and WOW what a great vacation! We had a blast! Florida was beautiful, warm, and fun! Our flight went smoothly, no delays; our cab ride to the rental car agency was a bit of a nail-biter but we made it in one piece; and our accommodations were as advertised, absolutely awesome!

My favorite part of the flight was when the plane descended close enough to see the ocean waters against the white beach sand all along the coast. My excitement could hardly be contained! One of the first things that I noticed when I got off the plane was how bright it was! My spirits soared, cheered by the sun and the sight of green plants and those magnificent palm trees! Having come from a rather dismal New England (brown, grey and dull), it was a pure joy to see the flowers and plants flourishing in a well groomed landscape. This was not my first trip to Florida. I have done several vacations in the Sarasota/Bradenton area and I used to live in Bradenton and Jacksonville back in the mid-seventies. Each time I have returned to the state, I am in awe of the brilliance of the sun and vivid colors of the native fauna.

When we stepped out of the airport terminal to catch a taxi, the heat of the day (80 degrees) blasted us like we had walked into a huge clothes dryer. It felt great! The four of us crammed ourselves into a cab; and held on for dear life as the driver ( a gentleman of Caribbean descent) made his way down the Tamiami Trail to the rental car office. Three lanes of traffic, weaving in and out, let's just say the yellow lights were bleeding red. Did I get him to tell us his story? Of course I did! His wife and kids were in Philadelphia; he was going to join them as soon as he could. Philadelphia was a much better place for them because there the government had better welfare benefits, free health insurance, etc. I bit my tongue. Hard. He showed me a picture he had on his cell phone, of a motorized scooter he had bought for his son's birthday. He was quite proud of the purchase, looking at it several times during our trip. (Hence the bleeding yellow lights). It was a bit of a drive from the airport, but it saved us nearly $250 each by not renting the cars from the airport location.

It was an easy drive back up the Tamiami Trail to Fruitville Road, then east for about 10 miles until we pulled into the Sun N Fun Resort. We were early they said, nothing ready until two p.m. so we parked one of the cars and all headed out for a leisurely lunch at the local Bob Evans Restaurant!
I've run out of time so will have to write more later....

Linky Love

Take a moment to visit Jim over at Nobody Asked Me. He's posted a great video that you should see. Make sure you've got your Kleenex nearby. Hope and Joy. Powerful stuff.

Win Number 50!

Bruins 2, Senators 1
The Bruins hit 50 wins for the eighth time in franchise history and the first since the 1992-93 season; they reached 110 points for the first time since '82-83. And it's just two years since they missed the playoffs entirely. Milan Lucic and Marc Savard scored for Boston, which would clinch the best record in the East with its next victory or the Washington Capitals' next loss.
David Krejci, a 22-year-old forward who has 22 goals and 50 assists, was named the winner of the Bruins' Seventh Player award for going above and beyond the call of duty and exceed the expectations of Bruins fans. (Nice to see that young talent on our team!)

Sun and Fun!

My vacation this year, is unscheduled, unplanned; it has no itineraries, no time lines to adhere to, nothing but pure unadulterated leisure! My aunt and uncle live in Englewood so we will be spending some time hanging out with them. The rest of the time is open to fancy and whim. We've rented a couple of beautiful mobile homes in an RV park in Sarasota. The place is loaded with stuff to do, a huge lake to swim, boat and fish; mini golf course, tennis courts, horseshoes, fitness center, woodworking shop, stained glass window classes... you name it, there's something going on there at all times! The gorgeous beaches of Bradenton, Sarasota, Siesta Key are only a few miles away, and Florida has many museums, animal exhibits and water cruises to offer. I doubt we will be bored! However, we are dedicating this trip to relaxing and trying to de-stress ourselves, so you might just find me parked somewhere reading a book or two and sipping on a nice icy Pina Colada!
I'll have my camera, so hopefully will have some good pics for you when I get back!

Recognize this Guy?

Maybe you'd be more apt to if you saw him doing what he does best.....




That's right... The Sham Wow Guy! You've seen those annoying commercials haven't you?

Well.... apparently Vince was doing something he shouldn't have been doing....
like battering a hooker in his South Beach hotel room
Kind of a career ending move on his part....
Maybe he'll find a way to say his job drove him to it.


H/T to The Smoking Gun

It's Official!

I just finished my shift, and I don't have to be back to work until April 12th at 15:45! I leave for FLORIDA in four days and I do believe I might actually get in a post or two before I leave! YAHOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

A Public Service Note

This was in my work email today.... thought I'd pass it on to you.

How to Lock Your Car and Why
I locked my car --- as I walked away I heard my car door unlock I went back and locked my car again three times. I looked around and there were two guys sitting in a car in the fire lane next to the store. When I looked straight at them they did not unlock my car again.
How to lock your car safely -
While traveling, my son stopped at a roadside park. He came out to his car less than 4-5 minutes later and found someone had gotten into his car, and stolen his cell phone, laptop computer, GPS navigator briefcase.....you name it.....
He called the police and since there were no signs of his car being broken into - the police told him that there is a device that robbers are using now to clone your security code when you lock your doors on your car using your key-chain locking device.

They sit a distance away and watch for their next victim. They know you are going inside of the store, restaurant, or bathroom and have a few minutes to steal and run. The police officer said to manually lock your car door-by hitting the lock button inside the car, that way if there is someone sitting in a parking lot watching for their next victim it will not be you.
When you hit the lock button on your car upon exiting...it does not send the security code, but if you walk away and use the door lock on your key chain - it sends the code through the airwaves where it can be stolen. Something totally new to us...and real.
Be aware of this and please pass this note on...look how many times we all lock our doors with our remote...just to be sure we remembered to lock them....and bingo someone has our code...and whatever was in the car...can be stolen.
Snopes Approved. Please share with everyone you know... Good information!!!

Out Sick

I've stumbled out here to the computer just long enough to send my apologies for not responding to emails etc. I have a nasty case of strep throat and am headed back to bed. For now the cat has control.
A.

It's Not Spring Yet....

The Korean War Memorial in Hyannis on a cold day in early spring.

Veterans Beach was nearly deserted. The light of the sun from behind the clouds danced on the water.
Just around the corner at Kalmus Beach, the waves were choppy and the winds were blowing a steady gale.
Back at home, my indoor Azaleas and a hot cup of coffee took care of my Need for Spring Fever!