Yes, I am back, did ya miss me? Oh I gotta tell ya, escaping to Florida was wonderful. Bit of a temp shock tho -- leave 38 degree weather and arrive to 87 degrees, definitely shed your light coat damn fast! For most of my visit the weather was wonderful but we did experience a few overcast days and some rain. The best part was no snow, green lawns, flowers blooming and birds singing. Come to think of it, everything was blooming and pollen was in massive amounts –yikes!
Now I happen to love Siesta Keys – located somewhere near Sarasota. I love the beaches and even the people who are friendly, carefree and just normal folks. Nobody is putting on airs and they all tend to mind their own business. It is on these beaches where I can and do truly relax. My nephew and I spend considerable time in the water as this year the water was warm enough to accommodate my love of splashing around. It didn’t matter if you wore sunscreen or not, I still managed to get a sunburn and would pay the price for this too.
Only one day for the Siesta Keys, and now we headed toward Tampa – and yes, I like the Tampa area too. My sister lives in New Port Richy and she was anxious to see us too. She was the most gracious host and it was here that my Vietnam roommate and I met up again after 40 years. Oh man, did we enjoy seeing each other after so many years and laugh, we laughed at so many memories it was just wonderful. We definitely plan to stay in touch, visit each other in the near future and of course, we’ll burn up the Internet with emails too. Then my sister had a treat in store for us the next day. We got up early, got into the car and off we went.
For serenity and seclusion, Caladesi Island State Park is hard to beat. Shore birds and sea turtles build their nests undisturbed among the dunes. Gulf breezes ruffle the tresses of auburn hairgrass. It is a place of silence and simple pleasures, and on one of Florida’s most beautiful island showcases. The only way to reach this island paradise is my boat and once there, you can chose what you wish to do. Fishing, shelling, nature studies, picnic, or just plop on the beach and enjoy the fun of sand, surf and water. As I love the water, I was in it a lot and adding more “red” to my already sun burnt skin. Oh well, I kept telling myself this will tan up eventually!
All in all it was a wonderful visit, seeing nephews, nieces, sister and friends. However I caught a cold and that sucker just will not let go! At first I thought it might be allergies as everything is blooming in Florida but as my sister also was having the same feelings, we both knew it was a damn cold. We still had a couple days left in Florida and we practically took any cold medicine anyone would suggest in the hopes of knocking this sucker out of out of our bodies. Went golfing on Monday (I don’t golf but I watched and took photos) and the cold just would not allow us to enjoy the day! Couldn’t drink this cold away either!
So I am back, still with this damn cold but slowly recovering. Oh my tulips are sprouting and I’m so excited – something I planted is actually alive and thriving, amazing! Oh ya, I got plenty coming up and more popping through each day. I can hardly wait to see them bloom.
More another day – time to nurse this cold or doctor this cold. Oh hell, whom I am fooling, the meds make me sleepy and rest is good. So while I recover from this cold – take a look at this turtle – ya, ugly sucker is right!
Now I happen to love Siesta Keys – located somewhere near Sarasota. I love the beaches and even the people who are friendly, carefree and just normal folks. Nobody is putting on airs and they all tend to mind their own business. It is on these beaches where I can and do truly relax. My nephew and I spend considerable time in the water as this year the water was warm enough to accommodate my love of splashing around. It didn’t matter if you wore sunscreen or not, I still managed to get a sunburn and would pay the price for this too.
Only one day for the Siesta Keys, and now we headed toward Tampa – and yes, I like the Tampa area too. My sister lives in New Port Richy and she was anxious to see us too. She was the most gracious host and it was here that my Vietnam roommate and I met up again after 40 years. Oh man, did we enjoy seeing each other after so many years and laugh, we laughed at so many memories it was just wonderful. We definitely plan to stay in touch, visit each other in the near future and of course, we’ll burn up the Internet with emails too. Then my sister had a treat in store for us the next day. We got up early, got into the car and off we went.
For serenity and seclusion, Caladesi Island State Park is hard to beat. Shore birds and sea turtles build their nests undisturbed among the dunes. Gulf breezes ruffle the tresses of auburn hairgrass. It is a place of silence and simple pleasures, and on one of Florida’s most beautiful island showcases. The only way to reach this island paradise is my boat and once there, you can chose what you wish to do. Fishing, shelling, nature studies, picnic, or just plop on the beach and enjoy the fun of sand, surf and water. As I love the water, I was in it a lot and adding more “red” to my already sun burnt skin. Oh well, I kept telling myself this will tan up eventually!
All in all it was a wonderful visit, seeing nephews, nieces, sister and friends. However I caught a cold and that sucker just will not let go! At first I thought it might be allergies as everything is blooming in Florida but as my sister also was having the same feelings, we both knew it was a damn cold. We still had a couple days left in Florida and we practically took any cold medicine anyone would suggest in the hopes of knocking this sucker out of out of our bodies. Went golfing on Monday (I don’t golf but I watched and took photos) and the cold just would not allow us to enjoy the day! Couldn’t drink this cold away either!
So I am back, still with this damn cold but slowly recovering. Oh my tulips are sprouting and I’m so excited – something I planted is actually alive and thriving, amazing! Oh ya, I got plenty coming up and more popping through each day. I can hardly wait to see them bloom.
More another day – time to nurse this cold or doctor this cold. Oh hell, whom I am fooling, the meds make me sleepy and rest is good. So while I recover from this cold – take a look at this turtle – ya, ugly sucker is right!
3 comments:
Hey!! WELCOME HOME!! You were Missed! :0)
Hi Pat,
I live in Miami, Fla. most of the time but I was born and raised in the North Country and now have a second home in South Colton, (SOCO!). Thank you for your blog!! Whenever I get homesick for North Country people, humor and spot on perspective, which is most of the time, I just immerse my self in your blog and great pictures.....and I feel better. Many thanks.
Anonymous --Florida-South Colton -- glad you like the blog. I'm sure you find S. Colton nice when the weather is decent -- like summer? Done some great fishing and camping in that neck of the woods.
Blogging is fun and I wish I could convince others to join the fun. What the hell, voice you views and let the chips fall where they will. Thanks for visiting my blog.
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