Another Boring Day Of Sun, Sea, and Sand

Rich and Linda Holzheimer, at the Prawnbroker

Walking The Beach, Early Morning 

It's about 7:00 and I have been up for a half an hour.  The sky is just becoming visible, gray clouds on a pink canvas, and I can hear the breaking waves on the shore line. It was in the 80's yesterday, sunny all day but today should be perfect, the high JUST 76º.  

We did not hurry out to the beach yesterday, though I wish I had been out walking early, around 7:30, as the sun was awakening from the ocean.  I did get some pictures but it's a perfect time to walk the beach, before the heat begins. The dilemma is it's also nice to just relax for a couple of hours in the morning.  So we compromised, and around 9:00, Evie and I decided to walk to the Light House and back, along with hundreds of others, as it was a great morning and Sanibel is very busy, lots of tourists and such.  It took us close to an hour to get to the Lighthouse Point, walking leisurely, no power walking, admiring the sea birds, the other walkers, in no hurry.  It was cool on our way out, walking into the breeze.  The way back, however, was much warmer, the sun higher, the wind at our back, so we could not wait to finish our walk and jump in the sea.  The water, like yesterday, feels cold until you are in it for a ten or fifteen seconds, then it's glorious, the salty taste a reminder of our life in Hawaii in the late 1960's, when I would get up before sunrise to go surfing at the Ala Moana break.  Linda and Rich were at the beach when we returned from our walk, so we all relaxed, read, and swam, for a couple of hours.  They introduced us to their friends from New Jersey, Murph and his wife, Jill, who they have gotten to know over the years at the condo. Both are really fun, and Evie and Jill really hit it off, as they both love games and played the shell, game, like bean bag, on the beach, and are already playing Words With Friends on the computer.

Why Old Guys Ought To Wear Shirts!

We came back to the condo around 1:00, for tuna sandwiches, a favorite of Rich's, relaxed for an hour, then Rich and Evie went back down to the beac where Evie took another walk while Rich read.  Linda and I stayed at the condo, watching some basketball, avoiding the mid afternoon sun.  We went down around 3:30, sat with the Murphy's and swapped stories about our grandchildren, our lives.  He was an architect in the DC area, has been retired for quite a few years. I like this hour at the beach, the sun is not quite so powerful, and it's just great to sit in the shade, read a book, under a blue sky, listening to the waves.  I don't much enjoy sun bathing, and want to be either reading or walking or swimming.

The Happy Couples, Enjoying Dinner

We went up to shower around 5:00 because we were going out to dinner at the Prawnbroker, a restaurant we used to frequent with my parents twenty years ago.  We were meeting my cousin Jim, his wife Barb and her sister Mimi for dinner.  They relocated from Cleveland to Ft. Myers about ten years ago and seem to enjoy the Florida life.  Like any good restaurant this time of year, it was packed, but we were able to get a table within ten minutes, fortunately, and had a leisurely dinner, catching up with the Lange's, their children and grandchildren.  We had not seen them in quite a while so it was fun to have dinner with them.  We all ordered fish, what else at the Prawnbroker, Linda and Rich a grouper with a special sauce, Evie a great salmon, and me, a decent but not great sea bass.  It was, however, a fun night, great to be with family, enjoying food and conversation.

My Cousin Jim Lange, and His Wife, Barb

We stopped at the grocery store Publix, on the way home, to pick up chicken for tonight's dinner as we probably will eat in the next two nights because of the NCAA tournament games.  

On a sad note, my favorite Aunt Peggy, died yesterday in Willoughby, Ohio, at the age of ninety two, my mother's younger sister, the last of the Camplejohn's, a sad day for all of her family.  We will miss her cheerfulness, her obvious affection for all her family.  

Peggy Lange, December, 2013, Ninety Two Years Young

Life At The Beach (Sanibel Island)

7:39

7:40

Yesterday's Cloudy Morning, 9:00

It's 7:00, sitting alone in the living room, as it's starting to get light outside.  I can just see the sky though the porch door, and it's cloudy over the ocean, light back towards the mainland.  It's not Chautauqua but it's still nice to wake up to sky and water, just a little warmer I expect.

Beaching It

Yesterday was the kind of day we have been waiting for, lots of sun, sea, and warm weather, just what we expect from a visit to Florida.  We all got up around 7:30, relaxed over a coffee, before deciding to walk the beach before breakfast.  It was very foggy out, even cool, so we wore long sleeve shirts just in case it was breezy.  Lots of people on the beach at 9:00, despite the fog and cool weather, a good time of the day to walk actually because of the cool weather.  Sanibel, of course, has great beaches stretching for miles both ways, so you could walk for hours if you wanted.  We were out for about an hour I would say, watching, along with many others, cameras poised, the dolphins, glide through the water, about twenty feet off shore.  I would guess there were hundreds of people walking at this hour, up and down the beach, lots of young runners of course, healthy and tan, making us oldsters wish we were young again.  Evie took some great pictures of shore birds, though we were not sure what kind they were.  The pelicans are about it for our knowledge of Florida birds.

A White Ibis (down curved beak, orange/red face), Looking For Food

We got back around 10:00 and Rich made his speciality, an omelette with tomatoes and cooked bacon, a great way to start our day.  Around 11:00, we went off to the local supermarket, shopping area, about a ten minute drive, dodging the hundreds of bicyclers on the road, enjoying the exercise on a beautiful morning.  The store was great, prices a bit more than the mainland but still fine.  We picked up some necessities and two thick, juicy New York strips for dinner, Evie's favorite steak.  We browsed a bit in a couple of shops, but were anxious to get home to the beach.  We went down to the beach, like everyone else on Sanibel, with our chairs, and read, walked and even swam for a couple of hours. The water was cold but once you got in, it was great.  Few people seemed to want to swim, and would rather walk or just bake in the sun, getting that savage tan to show off when you return up north.  I don't love sitting in the sun much, but it did feel good.  I would rather walk or do something.  We went up around 1:30, for lunch, some leftover shrimp pasta and sandwiches.

"King and Queen of the Pelicans we;/No other Birds so grand we see!/None but we have feet like fins!/With Lovely leathery throats and fins!" - from  Edward Lear's THE PELICAN CHORUS

After lunch, Linda and I stayed up at the condo, watched some basketball and took a nap, while Evie and Rich hit the beach.  Around 3:15, Linda and  I went down, and the sun was just beginning to lose its heat, which I liked.  We read, took walks, what else, and cracked open a couple of beers around 4:30, the good life, a beer, sea, and sand.  We finally went up to the condo around 5:15, after a final salty swim, washed off the sand and we all took showers, to freshen up and get the salt off.  A great way to end the day at the beach, get you ready for a fun evening.

Getting Ready for Dinner

We relaxed for about an hour with wine and cocktails before Rich and I went downstairs, to grill the steaks out on the public grills, four of them for the condo residents.  They were close to two inches thick but Rick grilled them to perfection, and Evie remarked they were the best steaks she has had in a long time.  Evie sauteed some mushrooms with soy and butter, to compliment the steaks, and Linda made potatoes, and with a salad, we were content, what else, after a great day in Florida.  It was worth the drive of twenty two plus hours.

A Long, Seemingly Never Ending Drive Through Florida

Driving Florida

Slow Beauty of A Florida's Long Cut

 Well, it's 7:33 and we are in Florida, finally, and its either overcast or foggy at the moment, no sunrise apparent at the moment.  I assume it's supposed to be sunny and warm later, what else in Florida, right.

Yesterday was an utter bore, one very long day in the car.  We forget how long is the State of Florida.  Once you hit the Florida line you think you are finally there, but it depends on where 'there' is.  And in the case of Sanibel Island, it's another six plus hours of four lane highways.  And, of course, we took a couple of wrong turns, plus what I assume would be called a long cut, so we must have added close to an hour to our trip, just what we wanted. We also picked the only back road that was down to one lane, and we waited to get by for at least fifteen minutes.  Anyways, we left about 7:00 from Columbia, South Carolina, had some traffic on #95 but it was not bad, the same for most of our way through Florida.

With My Sister, Linda, Sanibel Island

We have been to the Ft Myers area many times before as well as Sanibel, but the last time we were down must have been twenty years ago because I recognized street names, but not the area as it has built up so much.  Traffic was horrendous in the other direction, not bad in ours, as people seemed to be fleeing Sanibel and the beaches, heading home.  We finally pulled into my sister Linda and brother in law Rich's condo at 6:30, happy to finally arrive.  I am not sure why the trip seemed so long this time, perhaps because we are getting older, maybe less patient, or I just forgot.

Rich and His Amazing Shell Collection

The condo is on the third floor, two bedrooms, with a great porch that has an expansive view of the beach and ocean.  They have rented in this condominium many times but this is their favorite apartment, with morning sun, nicely furnished.  We sat out on the porch before dinner, enjoying the setting sun, with drinks of course, before dinner, a great way to end the day.  For dinner, Linda made a great pasta, with shrimp, tomatoes and feta cheese.  With bread and a salad, we were all happy to be in Florida.  All were tired so we went to bed around 10:30, looking forward to what today will bring, the sun, we hope, and warm ocean waters.

Banded Tulip Shells

Whelks, True Tulips, Banded Tulips

It's now 8:00, still very foggy, with moisture on all the windows, so it will be awhile before the sun burns off the gray, brings the blue skies.

On To Sanibel Island, Florida, For A Week...The Good Life

Enjoying Applebee's, Columbia, South Carolina

It's 6:15 and I am one of four down in the dining room of our Hampton Inn, enjoying the free breakfast buffet, especially the coffee and omelet.  I took a couple of coffees up to Evie, so she could relax in our room, take a shower, before we take off for part two of our drive, to Sanibel Island, roughly ten hours from here depending on traffic in the Ft. Myers area.  We are anxious for the sun, the beach, the warm weather, the green.

Not much to say about yesterday's long drive, other than the weather cooperated, no snow or ice, some sun, but mostly overcast, and it took us, as predicted, 12 hours from the lake to Columbia, South Carolina.  We left at 6:00, stopped briefly three or four times, arrived at the Hampton Inn at 6:00.  It was a nostalgic drive in some ways, because we used to drive parts of it when we lived in Ohio and every Spring Break, would head somewhere south in Florida.  West Virgina and Virginia are spectacular at all times of the year.  Yesterday, fortunately, only the hills and mountains were covered with white, as snow and ice coated trees, like something out of the movie Doctor Zhivago, the roads were fine. Traffic was always busy, the worst towards Charlotte, not bad around Columbia, though we were going against the rush hour; the other side of the road was backed up with cars.

Evie' Favorite

We weren't sure where to eat but about 6:30, we drove off a couple of miles and like anywhere in a US city, the chains restaurants appeared, from BW3, to Ruby Tuesdays, to Applebees, which was on our side of the street, so we went in for dinner.  We sat at the bar, par usual, and the restaurant was busy but not crowded.  A different crowd from Chautauqua, lots of African Americans, no Swedes or Italians.  We ordered a couple of beers, looked at the menu, and I ordered the Cowboy Burger, Evie an Asian salad.  Usually we meet someone at the bar but it didn't look good.  On either side of us sat two guys, both on their iPads, busy typing away or reading, which made me laugh.  How different from the way it used to be in a bar, where it was easy to strike up a conversation because no one had a toy, in fact, most came looking for a conversation.  Anyways, Evie was cold, so we switched chairs, which was the charm. She managed to catch the guy's eye sitting next to her at a pause, and that was all it took.  We ended up talking with him non stop for at least a half hour.  He lives in Marietta, Georgia, but started out working in Rochester, a salesman whose territory was the entire Southern Tier, so we had lots to talk about.  Now he has his own company, Randyland, a high end jean company and he's on the road a good part of the month, selling his wares.  A neat guy, we had lots in common, as he's lived all over the East, a good part of his life in Cincinnati, where he went to college.  It's always fun to meet someone new, with a life story and occupation so different from our own.  He was waiting for a call or email from Vancouver, so we said our good byes.  A fun encounter.

Great Beer

We were back at the Hampton Inn by 8:30, in time to watch some TV, read, relax, and get to bed early, as we were both really tired from getting up early and the long drive.  But our goal is in sight, ten more hours today and we'll be on the beach, enjoying the good life with my sister Linda and her husband, Rich.

Road Trip South, To Lands of Sun and Sea

Jupiter, Florida, with My Parents, in 1979

We were up by 5:00, way too early, as we have a 12 hour drive to Columbia, South Carolina today, so we want to be on the road by 6:00 if possible.  No sunrise picture this morning, so I came up with something else, a couple of old photos from our spring breaks in Florida back in the 1980's,

Yesterday was a typical day before a vacation, making a lot of lists, then checking things off as you pack or get things done.  While Evie stayed home and got organized, vacuumed, organized our clothes and beach things, I drove off to do various errands, short but necessary, like canceling our mail, doing some last minute shopping at Wegman's, returning books to the library, taking money from the ATM, and getting my new skis fixed at Jamestown Cycle.   As I said, none took long, but I did have five different stops.  Once these were done, all I had to do was pack my bag and I was done.

We did work on both cars, cleaning them, putting the Pilot in the garage, getting all our tech stuff in order, Sirius Radio, GPS, power cords for Evie's iPad, and EZ Pass.  None of this would have been part of our vacations back in the 1980's when our family would stay with my parents in Ft. Myers for one or two weeks...a map was it!  We had the car packed and ready to  go by 5:00.

Beth, Jill, and Evie, Back When Getting A Savage Tan Was Cool, Ft. Myers Beach, 1981

For dinner, we had sweet potatoes, a salmon salad, and portabellos stuffed with spinach and cheese, much leftover from last night but still good.  I finally finished THE QUIET FLAME, by Philip Kerr, one of my favorites by him.  We were in bed early, knowing we would have to get up early but slept pretty well until the alarm went off at 5:00.  Yuk

Still Cold, Clearing Skies, Sunny Monday (Dobbins Woods)

7:40 

Our Son, Tom and wife, Mary, Cruising the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico

I woke to the sound of a laboring snow mobile on the lake, at least that's what it sounded like.  When I looked outside, I could not see a light, the sound was in the distance, a harbinger of summer, waking to the sounds of the bass boats pulling out of Long Point Marina at 6:00, starting a bass tournament.  It's 9º at the moment, a line of clouds over the far shore, clear skies above.

Yesterday was cold but mostly sunny, a good day to enjoy the basketball on TV as well as get some exercise.  So, about 10:00, I went for perhaps my last country skiing of the winter in Dobbins Woods. Unfortunately, it was difficult to ski, the trail icy, filled with ruts, and lots of dead fall from the heavy winds the past couple of days.  It took lots of energy and care to circle the woods without falling or slipping and I even had to take my skis off once, to cross a couple of ice bridges over creeks, not wanting to risk falling on them.  Still, it was good to be outside, despite the 17º temperature, with the sun glistening on the fallen snow.  The trail looked as if no one had been on it for quite awhile in fact the last skier might have been me a couple of weeks ago.

Cross Country Skiing at Dobbins Woods

About noon, we had our Sunday breakfast, watched CBS Sunday Morning, before Evie decided to go for a workout at the YMCA, getting one last workout in before we head to Florida.  I watched basketball on and off the rest of the afternoon, not that interested in any of the games but it gave me something to do.  If you remember the squirrel picture from yesterday, either he or a sibling have been relocated to Ellery, happy in their new environment. Relocating squirrels is perhaps a 'task of the absurd,' like Sisyphus pushing the stone up the mountain, knowing it will fall.  There will always be another squirrel!

7:26 PM

We enjoyed the late afternoon, with some wine and hummus with crackers, and looked at the great pictures our daughter in law Mary sent about their cruise this past week on the Oasis Of the Seas (6125 passenger capacity), the largest cruise ship in the world, a floating hotel, restaurant, and recreation park... an amazing ship.  The family all seemed to have had a fabulous time, were ready to go on another one, as there was lots to do, great food and service, a real vacation.  What a contrast to the Stefan Batory (775 passengers), the ship we took in 1977, when we returned to the US from Turkey.

Oasis of the Seas

Recreational Areas

Stefan Batory

For dinner, Evie made portabello mushrooms stuffed with garlic spinach and cheese, and I cooked a salmon fillet out on the grill...it fired up this time. We watched the gritty movie THE DALLAS BUYERS CLUB, a true story about an HIV patient who bucks the system, by selling illegal drugs, exposing the often silly, slow bureaucracy of the FDA, saving hundreds if not thousands of lives.  Matthew McConaughey won Best Actor for his role, and Jared Leto, as a transvestite won Best Supporting Actor.  The movie was hard to watch at times, with its realistic scenes of HIV patients and their sufferings.  Not a fun, light film, but worth watching for the performances, the story of one man's fight for life.

A Technicolor Dawn On A Sunday Morning

7:15

It's 7:30 and both Evie and I have been up since 7:00.  It's another morning with an amazing sky, pinks, creams, grays, puffy clouds, blue skies up above and 12 º.  It is going to be cold today, low teens most of the day, just warm enough to get in some cross country skiing, probably the last  of the year because we are leaving for Florida on Tuesday.  I don't think we will mind the warm weather!  By the way, I have forgotten to mention that most mornings now, when I get the paper, I can hear song birds, a sure sign that spring is near.

The Squirrel That Got Away

Smarty Pants

Yesterday was a typical Saturday in some ways, a visit to the Transfer Station but no yoga with Chris.  I miss the routine of going off to yoga most mornings; it leaves an empty hole in my day, with nothing necessarily to fill it.  We are starting to think seriously about our trip South, organizing what we may need in Florida, then later in Virginia.  We always take too much, overpack, like most people and we are determined to avoid that this year...no way.  I already have three pair of water shoes ready to go when I only need one...but which ones?  For me, the afternoon was another Joey Bimbo sort of day, sitting in front of the Boob Tube, watching another basketball game, wondering what else is there to do.  Evie got smart and went off to the gym, for a workout, and to Sam's, to pick up what little food we will need for the next two days...salmon and spinach, a great combination.

I finally rose from my couch, like Lazarus from the dead, and walked the Woodlawn/Victoria woods, something I have not done in awhile so it was good to reacquaint myself with my favorite walk near our house, rarely traveled except by a few neighbors.  Part was snowless, with dead, matted leaves covering the woods' floor, other parts still had snow, sometimes four for five inches thick.  It was good to be outside, to breathe the cold air, enjoy the sky, the trees, the sounds of the forest.  Evie returned home about the same time as me from my walk and while she showered and got ready for our night out at the McClures for dinner, I did a half hour session of yoga, following a series on the Internet, which energized me, like always.

Dinner a la Linda

Photo a la Linda

We drove to the Mc Clures at 6:00, stayed until 10:00, having as usual, a great time, great food and wine, and good company.  We never seem to tire of each other and when they are up at the lake, we do things together every three or four days...muy simpatico.  Dinner was a tasty pork stew with lentils, squash and salad, with brie and grapes for dessert.  After dinner, we watched three Oscar nominated short films on TV, each very different from the other.  The first, about a relationship between a hospital worker and a dying child was extremely moving, sensitively done, so that when it was over, none of us had much to say.  The second film was like a Twilight Zone episode, the third an intense film about a woman who has decided to leave her abusive husband, with her children.  She is frantic with fear, afraid he will discover her plans and we are right there with her, on the edge of our seats, hoping for the best.  The film ends with doubt, as we are not sure if the family is safe.   All of us enjoyed the films, a good way to end the evening.