Posted in Challenges

#SoCS – Jan 20/17

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Wow! What a week for a stream of consciousness post. What has overtaken my mind at this point is the fact that I’m in southwest Florida, on an island off the coast of Ft. Myers and it’s warm, dry, and beautiful! It’s January! I love the ocean and since we arrived, the weather has been tranquil and the ocean like glass. Actually, we’ve been here five times before at this time of year, but not for a couple of years. I’m so thrilled to be here again I can hardly think of anything else. I’m really enjoying it. We’re taking a side trip to the Everglades tomorrow, one of my favorite places. Primarily so I can see the wildlife…..then rant about how we’re killing our environment.

There are other things on my mind. When we got to our favorite place in the world here in Florida, we found that two of our friends had passed away since we were here last. One quite suddenly and at a young age. He and his wife came here from North Dakota every year for six months and were good friends. The other an older gentleman  that also spent the season here. He was an interesting story. He had two German Shepherds, trained only using German commands. They were the most intricately trained, and well trained, dogs I’ve ever known. It haunts me wondering what happened to the dogs as Hans was single, to my knowledge. I don’t know if he had any family or not.

The other thing on my mind is my desire to move to Florida. There are so many reasons to move, but there are a few reasons not to move. I’m having a mental battle between pros and cons. One concern is the fact I will have to spend a lot of the hot times indoors. That is due to a health condition. My particular health condition does not allow me to tolerate very high heat for very long at a time. However, there are positives about moving regarding that same health condition. This specific downside is the only downside to moving here, but it is a significant downside. Before I make a final decision, I have to talk to my doctor although I’ve been told not to worry about this side effect. We will see a realtor here in Florida several times while we are here. We aren’t yet picking out a house as our house where we currently live has to be sold first. We are picking out the community in which we want to live.

Last, I guess I’m a little worried about my dog, Betsy. She is doing well on this trip, but she is sleeping a lot. She had a seizure about three weeks ago, so I am watchful. Signing off for this week!

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Posted in Blog Series

#10: Adventures in RV Travel – January 20, 2017

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Hello, everyone! The picture above is of beautiful Matlacha Bay. Matlacha is the little island between Pine Island and the mainland of Florida. I took this picture off the Matlacha Drawbridge. Yes, Matlacha still has a drawbridge and ships really do come through the Matlacha Pass. You’re looking at one side of the pass and the Matlacha Bay. People are always fishing off this bridge and another bridge in Matlacha, known as the “fishingest bridge in the world.” Isn’t the bay beautiful? I spent some time “sitting on the dock of the bay” today. Hmmm…..sounds like a song. 🙂

I love to look at the ocean, gaze at the water, and look at the horizon. I took time to do that today. It soothes my soul.

The weather here today was wonderful. The temperature was pushing 80 degrees, calm wind, low humidity. The first thing I did this morning was to take my dog, Betsy, on a long walk. Almost everyone who owns a RV in these RV parks seems to have a dog! Dogs of all breeds, mixed breeds, and just dogs of all shapes, ages, and sizes. Betsy enjoys her walks immensely and I love walking her. It’s the best exercise I’ve gotten in a while. Not only is it cold where I live, it’s mountainous. It’s hard for me to walk and hard on Betsy. Love being in Florida! This island is flat and sandy. Great for walking and biking.

Another reason for my determination to walk Betsy is that she is just a bit chubby right now. Her vet prescribed three short walks per day. We’re doing that. I ride my bikes and take long walks on my own and, if it is early in the morning, I will take Betsy on a long walk before it gets hot.

One of my friends in Pine Island RV Park is an artist. She comes to Pine Island for six months every year. While she’s here, she makes crafts out of local materials like coconuts. I have several of her creations and I love them. I put them on my patio in the summer at home and, of course, on the patio of the RV. You will see a picture of the wonderful pink flamingo that Susie makes at the end of this blog post. 🙂 She makes other South Florida-related creatures as well. I met Susie, and her husband, Kelly, the first year we came to Pine Island. Kelly, unfortunately, is no longer with us. Susie keeps right on coming to Pine Island because of all her friends here. This year, I got one of the alligators she made. I will share him with you sometime! I also have a wood stork and a bee.

This may sound crazy, but I love to go to the grocery in Florida in the winter! Why? The grocery stores where I live just don’t compare, especially in the winter. I suppose it isn’t a fair comparison. After all, Florida is one of our bread baskets. I went to the big Publix Supermarket today that is about 10 miles from our park. Oh my goodness! I had forgotten about their produce. I wanted to buy every fresh vegetable in the store. We stayed in for dinner tonight. My husband grilled something for himself. I had crab and a huge salad made from those wonderful fresh vegetables. I was in heaven! The tomatoes here are to die for at this time of year!

Today was the day for my husband to work on the TV. We had cable TV in our RV but my husband, a TV buff, wanted satellite TV. Years ago, he bought a dish for the bus. So he spent most of the day trying to set up the satellite for the RV only to find out that he needs something from the satellite company to do it. It’s on its way to him at the park.

The days are starting to fly by here. By the time all this was finished today, the day was over and dark had fallen!

Tomorrow will be exciting. We’re going to go to the Everglades! This is a trip we take every time we come to South Florida. I’ll blog about the Everglades tomorrow night! More from “Adventures” then!

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