We’ve lived here barely over two months & the changes, chores, & finding fun continue.
Last I wrote, we’d been here about two weeks. After the third week, Danny flew back to Kansas to pick up his Tacoma, deal with his trailer & head to his family’s lakehouse. He sold his trailer, which was bittersweet, but a decision he made pretty easily. It was a bit of a pain to get it done, but then it was checked off the ’to do’ list. Our lists have been soooo long of things to ‘check off’. He visited with some friends while back in Kansas, but spent the majority of his time at the lake. He works so hard when he’s there & I’m guessing he worked harder this time than ever before. It seems an endless list of stuff that always needs done but it’s his happy place, & he takes on all the responsibility without complaint. He ended up being there about a month & I missed him a lot.
So while Danny was gone, I tried to make a new routine for myself (I’m not really great at routine). Everything is still so new to me here. But, I’ve done my best to explore, get more stuff checked off our to do list & spent wonderful time with Sara, Emma & Claire.
Emma & Claire….
It’s been fantastic to be just a few blocks from them. They’ve stopped by, we’ve walked or biked over, we’ve met them at the lake, we’ve had dinner at Sara’s house a couple of times, had sleepovers here & they’ve come to our house a lot! We’ve loved every minute of that! Its been awesome to see them a few times a week rather than a few times a year. Having school out made it so much better!
And, we’ve had fun...
crafting...
reading….
playing dress up….
chilling out in the ‘cozy room’….
sewing projects….
swimming in the rain….
a luau….
cooking….
‘hair salon’….
playing with the cats...
just hanging out sometimes...
and some shenanigans!
Sara….
I have missed my daughter so much. Went shopping with her one day (& neither one of us are shoppers) but just hanging out with her was great. She’s stopped by the house to say hi a couple of times while finishing one of her runs & it’s wonderful. I realize the focus of the move is Emma & Claire, but both of us are thrilled to see Sara more often, help her out if we can, & just visit…really great!
Sammy & Bob; our elderly cats….
Wow! I have spent so much energy & time (& quite a few bucks at the vet) worrying & obsessing over our cats. After Danny left, Sammy got really sick. She’s already frail & has been diagnosed with a thyroid problem, but this was something worse. I took her in & left her one morning really concerned it was the end (because thats always where my mind goes…not just sick, but dying). But, it wasn’t her end. More meds, special food, an IV, etc. & I picked her up the same day & nursed her back. I can happily say, after two months I think the cats have adjusted pretty good. Sammy’s health is better, although I don’t think she’s gaining weight. But they are playing again, doing some of the things they did back home, have their own routine of morning & night patio time. I’ve found a cat sitter for when we are both gone & we’ll soon see how that works out. Keep your fingers crossed!
Exploring….
I am missing my travel time soooooo much. But I know I can’t be everywhere I want to be at once, or doing everything I want to do. I just need more patience (which I’ve never had) & to be 40 again!
I had been walking in the mornings or late at night (until it got too hot or I didn’t want to get up that early). I miss my dirt & tree lined trails, but these are lovely neighborhoods to walk around morning or night.
But I've been going places & doing things while Danny’s been gone & trying to get to know my new state more. Sara has lived here for probably at least 17 years & I have been to a ton of places in this state. But, there is always more to see, so I filled my time when Danny was gone & the girls were busy, exploring.
Took a day trip to St. Petersburg (although cut it short because I was still concerned about Sammy)
One of my fave Florida authors, Randy Wayne White, was doing a book tour for his new book. He also owns several restaurants named after the main character in his most popular book series. I have met him before (great memory) & been to three other of his restaurants, but hadn’t been to the St. Petes one. So I went. I didn’t ask for a photo, but got to see him & grabbed a copy of his new book!
Then I went to the Dale Chihuly museum & then to a glass blowing demonstration….I love these!
A day trip to Tampa & Clearwater…..
a wedding on the beach! (I love this…I have been on mountain tops, on a west coast beach, in the desert & seen a wedding & several proposals) This always brings a smile to my face!
Spent time at the beach…but a thunder storm was headed in.
Popped over to the town of Safety Harbor where I’d read there’s a house that’s pretty artsy….& it was!
Took a walk on what is probably the highest elevation in Tampa…one of their really nice pedestrian/bike causeways. Once over the top & one the other side, I was turned around by a thunderstorm, but I so appreciate cities that invest in these type of outdoor spaces & grateful not to be right next to cars flying by!
Stopped by the La Segunda bakery to buy my first loaf of cuban bread…wow! it was a huge loaf, for $3,85! They make 18,000 loaves a day & send out to a whole lot of cuban restaurants in the state.
Claire modeling just how long this bread was! (I gave 1/2 the loaf to Sara’s family)
Wekiva State Park which is not very far from my house…a 6.5 mile hike through the ‘forest’….(no one else on the trail)
a very chilly spring of crystal clear water to swim in after my hot hike…. (quite a few swimmers in the spring)
Went to Mount Dora one day….a cute little town if you like lots of small shops, but there was also some trails nearby.
And, checking out the beer/cocktail scene everywhere I go…
The pics speak for themselves (yes, it’s been fun & yummy!)
There are more Meaderys in this state than I’ve seen in any other…yum!
Lots of stouts available, which has been a great surprise!
I’ve also been checking out the food trucks here…there are a gazillion & I’ve already found two that are fantastic! There are several breweries & restaurants within walking or biking distance from our house….seems like everything is like that which is fantastic.
Swimming…
Realizing it was too hot to walk or bike in the middle of day (overheated while on my bike one day…not good) I discovered the local swimming pool & this has been fantastic. Back at home, our pools, open from Memorial Day to Labor Day, are packed full of people, have snack bars & tons of lifeguards. But I discovered this gem right next to a park I’ve taken the girls to. They have lap swimming & open swimming…the open swim is free & open all year. And, there’s hardly anyone there. The pools are big enough for lap lanes…no diving boards or snack areas & only two guards on a time. But, it’s so empty! I have been there several times when I’m the only one or there’s only a few other people. It’s wonderful! So, I’ve been going to swim for about an hour each time, about 4 or 5 days a week…it’s about a mile from my house! It is great to be outdoors in the middle of the day & feeling the wonderful water instead of the intense heat & sunshine.
Danny’s back!…
He’s been home a little more than a week. We continued to get the mundane checked off…get his truck registered & re-titled. Then we started down the long slow road of trying to find a dentist, a primary care doc, a dermatologist & an endocrinologist. A bit of a crazy struggle, but little by little & hundreds (an exaggeration but doesn’t feel like it) of phone calls, trying to get records moved & appointments, etc. we’re getting there. (And I’m getting bitchy thinking if I can’t get a Doctor when I need one, I may just stop a treatment & say to hell with it!)
But we are back to having fun only this time together! I have wanted a kayak for years…constantly looking for used ones because I think they are sooooo expensive! We got to talking about going on a tour & renting some for a couple of hours when I found a great deal on some new ones, in a nearby town. So, we bought two! Yay! I’m super stoked since there are so many lakes, springs, rivers here in FL (now I need to get over my fear of alligators!). Sara & her family are out of town for the 4th of July holiday, so we knew we wouldn’t be seeing them. We took our yaks out on the morning of the 4th to a nearby lake & tested them out. Then we went back about 8pm that night & watched the fireworks from downtown only we were on the water.
That night we realized Danny’s kayak had a bit of a water leak. The next day we loaded it up, drove the 20 miles to where we bought it & exchanged it for one that didn’t leak. So, we made a day of exploring the area! We went on a wildlife drive, which was interesting but there were a gazillion cars going super super super S L O W.
Ewwww….it was eating something big, white & fleshy….just gross.
Lovely to see so many birds….
Just creepy…not sure how I’m going to get used to these.
The next day we had special plans….something I’ve wanted to do for years & it was very spontaneous. We’d met some kayak guides at the 4th of July paddle (I should say here, everyone we’ve met in Orlando has been super friendly & nice) that told us about a Bioluminescence paddle in Titusville…about an hour away. So, late night on the 4th we signed up for a tour.
On Saturday afternoon, we loaded up the kayaks & head to the east coast.
We went to someplace called Enchanted Forest Sanctuary & did a couple mile hike (you come out of these short hikes just drenched in sweat).
Then we visited the Playalinda brewery (south location) for a yummy lunch, beer & cocktail. We had lots of time of kill before our 11PM TOUR TIME…DID YOU GET THAT? THE ONLY TOUR WE COULD GET ON LAST MINUTE WAS AT 11PM! It’s a two hour kayak trip then an hour back home….it was going to be wonderful but very late night!
Then we went to the original Playalinda brewery for a beer Danny was hunting that was only available here.
After that, we went to a manatee viewing area on Merritt Island. I didn’t realize I’d been here before until I was there. Hard to get good photos of these giant beasts, but we got to watch a baby coming back & forth into this tiny cove.
We just continued to drive around Merritt Island seeing what was there. Then ended up back at the Playalinda brewery for a snack & another beer Danny wanted to try. I had their homemade root beer which was great!
Then we took off towards the place to meet our guides. The weather was perfect, the sky was dark & I was just a tiny bit nervous about kayaking in the dark down a river (which I know has alligators) but so stoked to see the bio.
We paddled fast & far with our group. There were about 40 of us (mostly just one big family from Wisconsin). The guides kept telling us that while it’s the “bio season”, the heavy rains we’ve had have surpressed the blue/green colors. I had never paddled to so far for so long & not taken a break. But we did great! Most everyone had rented yaks from the tour company…I think we were the only two that brought our own. But our guides were wonderful. But, in the end, we only got to see the white bio in the water. No ones fault & disappointing, but we’ll be back. The guides invited us to “just show up & hop on a tour with them anytime” & told us we didn’t even really need a guide & more info about that. They were really friendly & nice & super informative.
Really difficult to get a photo of the bio...
then we headed back to shore.
So, that brings me up to date.
Random thoughts…
In the past six months, we’ve had more changes than the past 40 years! It’s been a whirlwind. But so much to be grateful for.
My health…I am getting closer to feeling back to normal every day…& I never take that for granted. One year ago, my life was hell, so very scary & I felt like shit. So. I NEVER take feeling good for granted.
People in Florida, don’t wear rain jackets…they use umbrellas or nothing. I found myself the only person in a Target store during a downpour…everyone else had an umbrella. As a hiker & outdoorswoman, a rain jacket is essential. But, it’s just too damn hot to wear down here in the summer. But, I still grab it first, while my umbrellas stay tucked away.
And, not yet in habit of putting my windshield shade on…so many new habits to form.
Orlando is such a melting pot of cultures, ethnicities, lifestyles, & languages & that’s become one of the things I LOVE about this town. Everyone we’ve met has been friendly & seemingly friendly to each other, Its a great place to work on my Spanish…something I’ve been wanting to do for years, but Im not a very disciplined person. But, I’m trying & really enjoying it. I’ve gone out of my comfort zone a few times testing my new language out.
Danny is doing an excellent job of cutting my hair! Yay!
Lots of people will tell you that if you don’t bug the alligators, they won’t hurt you. This is followed by some random but gory story about someone being attacked by an alligator….yikes…I really don’t like them. Will I ever?
You all know I’m a huge Chaco sandal fan…I own 10 pairs of them & some are about 15 years old & some have been resoled. When I go to Colorado or Utah or Wyoming I see so many fellow Chaco wearers. But down here? Hardly anyone. I saw a few people that had some on the other day & turns out they were visiting from Wisconsin. This is flip flop country. Everyone is in flip flops! But I doubt I’ll become a flip flop person anymore than I will become calm around alligators, But an interesting thing is happening regarding my feet…back at home I never went barefoot. I always wore slippers in the house , but down here I’m barefoot or in my chacos. Around the house, out on the patio or front porch, it’s naked feet. Weird.
While I’m not sure Danny’s retirement is quite like he thought it would be, I can definitely say he does not miss his former yucky job. Its been a little more than 6 months since he retired, but between the downsizing, packing, selling of the house, the super hard move, a trip back to Kansas, a month of lots of work at his lake property, then a long drive back here, he’s not had a ton of retirement-relaxation. But, when he does get down time, he reads. He has become a beast of a reader! I’m so happy for him to enjoy all that books give us.
Yes it’s hot here. They had an abnormally hot couple of weeks (as is lots of parts of the country right now) in June. Now we’re into the rainy season. For a week or so we had rain everyday for at least a couple of hours…torrential downpours with loud big thunder & lightening. But then it just stops. And when you walk outside, your glasses fog up & you can’t see anything! The weather apps always seem to be wrong. We’re too new here to figure it out. But, we need to because I don’t want to be caught out in the kayaks in a thunderstorm. But the mornings & evenings are nice enough to spend out on the patio, or a walk around the lake.
And, I’ve been working on a baby quilt for Peter & Leia’s baby. I haven’t quilted since Emma was born. And while the midwest lacks a lot of things, quilting & fabric stores are not one of them. I super struggled to find fabric here & in the end, I didn’t. I had to order it online. And those of you who know me well, know when I’m freaked or stressed out, wonderful quilt shops like our Sarah’s in Lawrence, calm me down. I just stroll the store looking at the wonderful prints. I always thought it would be awesome to be a fabric designer. I met Tula Pinks Mom once on a road trip & that was fun to hear about her life as a fabric designer. It’s weird I know, but fabric seems better than Xanax…at least it works for me. But I just must not get stressed while living down here…I found one fabric store & it was ….meh.
What’s coming up…
Danny & I have made the decision to not (at this time) leave our cats for more than two weeks at a time with the cat sitter. There’s just been too much change, their health is fragile & we don’t know how they’ll do with the new cat sitter. So, this decision means we will tag team most of our travel, for now. Sad & disappointing, but we love our fur babies & will not abandon them.
I’m in pre-travel mode…which I love. I have missed my deserts & mountains this spring & summer (I missed them all last summer too). Towards the end of the month, I will pack up my 4Runner & head towards Colorado…a 30 hour drive. Danny will fly out a few days later & we will camp, hike, see our friends & relax in the mountains! After a couple of weeks, he’ll fly back to FL. That’s the plan for now. More plans in the works…so that should be fun.
Thats it for now….I’m really looking forward to being back on the road & headed to my happy place.
Safe travels & good health to all of you!