0072 - Hallelujah

Today we found the i-Ching of Floridian Mexican food: Taqueria Teocali. One woman, one mission, one deliciously limited menu. The salsa was fresh... the closest thing I can cite is Chuy's because theirs has that same bright, fresh tomato-y taste. The fried pork tostadas were delicious and it was just enough food. After all of our searching, this is it... this is delicious Mexican food. You can tell the little old lady who runs the place takes pride in it, the place is clean, the presentation is well done, prices are really good... If you are in the Wauchula area, seek it out and you will not be sorry. Just bring your high school Spanish... she can speak English, but she primarily spoke Spanish.

After lunch we drove around... no real destination in mind except that Mike saw a motorcycle shop and was trying desperately to find it again. We never found it, but we ended up in Winter Haven, which was a really nice lake town. We didn't quite get the thrift shop bug out of our systems the day before yesterday, so we checked out another three stores. The Meals on Wheels Thrift Store was kind of small, but turned out to be the winner, I found a couple of tops that were really cute... and oranges and lemons. If I had thought about it, I would have gotten whatever was cute, in whatever size, and tried to resale it on ebay... but... I didn't think about that until I got home. I'm just really happy with some of the stuff we've found... it's been good. I want to find an old-fashioned ice cream maker, that's the only thing really on my list. The new ones don't cut it... you have to plan ahead, and we don't have a big enough freezer.

Finally found some red clover. My hormones are all kinds of screwed up at the moment and I'm ready to try almost anything. So I'm trying a cocktail that seems to have worked for other women... red clover, fenugreek and saw palmetto. I just know I am not doing anything different, but I keep gaining weight, and I don't like it one bit. I look like a damn egg. It's time for something to change and I'll be damned if I'm going to become anorexic or kill myself working out for no results anymore. My stress levels have gone down, my eating habits haven't changed, I'm probably getting more exercise, and I'm definitely getting more sleep. So... this is my next attempt.

Got some great deals at Tractor Supply. Mike found some work boots that he really likes. The saleslady asked me what my shoe size was, and told me about some hiking boots they got in for $30 that normally retail for about $80... I looked online and they really retail for about $60, but I won't sneeze at half off. They are comfortable, and I need something for all the hiking we've been doing lately... my crocs are slippery... my tennis shoes are okay but they don't support my ankles. These are awesome. And we also found Mike a denim shirt for work... was $22 and we got it for $10. Score.

Dinner was foraged from our supplies... a baked potato, leftover steak, and salsa we brought home from Teocali.

Tomorrow we head for Charleston - woot! Excited to see my family, and excited about Charleston food. Honestly, we're also excited to get the hell out of this cabin... it's depressing. I wish we had our 5'er back, but it's going to be a while, so I am glad we get to spend time with loved ones in the meantime. :)

0071 - Wearing Crocs to see Gators

I want an airboat. They do things you don't think they should be able to do. They skim over lilies, they fly across sand dunes, they effortlessly blow through grass... they scare the crap out of ducks.

This one poor duckie was trying to outrun us, and he finally gave up and dove. It was so cute to see these little birds running across lily pads. The sound and vibration also flushed out larger birds... ospreys, herons and egrets.

So you may have guessed, we took an airboat tour this afternoon. It is the first truly Floridian moment we've had since we arrived. And it was the most fun. I could definitely do that all day.

We also met some really neat people. The bartender at Fred's Bar in Buckle Creek. Dutch, a Vietnam Vet with the 173rd Airborne Brigade. The guy who gave the airboat tour. All in all it was a really nice day. Until it started raining. Now that we're "home" I don't mind it, it will probably help me sleep, but when we're out, I don't like it.

Kinda tired right now, so I'm going to do the rest of the post in pictures and a video... if it will upload... the pics didn't load in order... I'm too tired to care about that right now.

Moo cow!

Me and the bartender, Dutch on the right.

Mike and Dutch, we sat and talked to him for an hour or two. Really neat guy.

We saw a couple of gators and they were uncooperative when it came to posing for photographs, perhaps that's because gator season opened a few days ago. This guy is probably eleven feet long, the other two were smaller.

Our tour guide drove us onto a sand bar. I love that a boat can do that!

We went through a field of lilies or lotuses, not sure what they are, but it was so pretty.

0070 - Goodwill Hunting

Today we were *going to* go to the castle. I was pretty excited about it. But wouldn't you know it... Florida thwarted us again. The castle is not open in July, August, September or on any Monday, ever. That made the castle a complete impossibility. Screw the castle. (that's just the disappointment talking)

Since we had a home on wheels, we never thought we'd need luggage ever again. Guess we were wrong. It pained me to think of paying retail for a suitcase, but grocery bags weren't exactly working for us, so we decided to check out some thrift stores. There are some deals to be found in a thrift stores... it's like a fossil dig, you have to work at it and you may end up disappointed in the end, or you could strike gold. In a town this size I wasn't hopeful, but I was bored and had nothing to lose.

We have nothing but time, people... nothing but time...

The first thrift store in town - there are three - actually had a nice duffel-type bag with wheels on it. Two bucks. Winner. And Mike found an almost complete backgammon set that was in excellent condition. Also two bucks. Plus there happened to be a pencil sharpener inside the bag with a reservoir for shavings... it was like opening a box of Cracker Jacks... maybe there is a hundred dollar bill tucked in one of the pockets... one can only hope.

Second thrift store had baby bunnies. Live bunnies. One black, one white with pink eyes. Adorable. Terrified. Fuzzy. If we were settled somewhere, we would have taken them, but alas... we are not.

Third thrift store... well, we didn't actually notice that one until we came home.

Turns out that the Goodwill in town is just a large donation center. They referred us to Arcadia, about twenty miles down the road. Since we had no other plans, we decided to kill some time.

We didn't expect to pack for 2-4 weeks, so our clothing options are a little lean... not to mention that we also thought we'd have been able to unpack our trailer from the move and switch out our wardrobes by now... so even the clothing we put in the 5'er was only supposed to be a stop-gap measure, it was not intended to get us by for several months. We've had to make adjustments.

Normally Goodwill is pretty hit or miss, and as far as their clothes are concerned... it's mostly crap... stuff that is worn out and sad looking with the rare gem. This place? Golden. We bought probably 40 pieces of clothing (mostly shirts) - nice stuff in great condition, plus a cast iron pan, and a wine bucket for a little over a hundred bucks. You can't even do that at Walmart. I'm beginning to really hate Walmart, but I digress. Four of those shirts were Indian Motorcycle t-shirts that Mike found, and those go for about $25/ea on eBay. He was giddy. And he knows which one I'm going to steal from him. He's psychotic like that. We were very happy with our haul.

We've decided that instead of being stuck in Florida while we wait for the 5'er to be ready... because Florida is nice, but we hate the humidity, we're tired of rain, and we didn't plan on residing here... we are going to slowly make our way toward Shreveport. Since we have a couple of weeks before the reunion, we're going to mosey over to the Charleston, SC area to visit with my aunt, uncle and cousin, step over to Augusta, GA to visit my aunt, and then slide on over to Mississippi to see my grandma, some aunts and a slew of cousins. Then, of course, on to Shreveport and probably to Beaumont as well. On the way back to Florida we will probably stop at Gulf Shores, there is supposedly a nice park in our network and we need a place to stay to break up the trip. Hopefully by then, the RV will be ready and we can resume our lives.

0069 - Wau-CHU-la

So here we are in sunny/rainy/sunny Wauchula... the daily rain showers continue to make it very sauna-like outside.

As usual, we're learning as we go along... we apparently needed to ask certain questions about our cabin... and I was so happy to have a place to stay that I did not think to ask them... Such as...

• Is the bed at least queen-sized? We ended up with a full-sized brick that we now have two egg crate cushions on and it is barely comfortable.

• Does it have internet access? No, it does not. Thank goodness for mobile hotspots. I have reactivated mine... Otherwise, you have to go to the office to get the internet.

• Does it look like the type of place where you might check out a dvd from the office, there are a bunch of random images that flash across the screen, and once it finishes, you get a creepy phone call that whispers "...seven days..." and then people start looking all smeary when someone takes a photo of them but by the time the week is over they're dead? Yeah, it kinda does... except you can't borrow a dvd from the office. (referencing The Ring, if it wasn't clear)

• Might there be alligators on the property? There might. There damn sure are mosquitos. The mosquitos are epic. One almost flew away with me the other night. Or maybe that was one of the thousands of vultures. Did you know that vultures love oranges? Apparently they do.

• Is your cat going to keep you up all night letting you know about all the raccoons, squirrels, stray cats and other night creatures outside the windows? Unfortunately so.

This is not what we had envisioned. Having seen the cabins at our Home Park, we thought we were getting a light-filled living room with a large television, a full kitchen, a bathroom, a bedroom and a loft. Something with a small porch and lots of windows. Something that doesn't make you want to cry unless it is out of sheer happiness that your cabin is so cool. The first cabin they put us in was horrible, it was like an efficiency with wooden walls, so small we felt claustrophobic. At least this one is more spacious, but my fantasies about baking biscuits for breakfast and trying my hand at baking Cuban bread flew right out the window as soon as I saw the hot plates. Yes. Hot plates.

My computer screen is as big as our tv.

I am not amused.

The park wouldn't be bad if we were in our RV, it's quaint, it has trees and trails, the kind of things we like in a park. The town is small, I joke that it's WauCHUla - bless you (cuz I say it like a sneeze), and if you sneeze, you've missed it. And by the way, if you clicked on that link THOSE CABINS ARE NOT AT ALL LIKE THE ONE WE'RE STAYING IN.  Thankyouverymuch.

The 5'er will be in the shop for a minimum of two weeks if they can repair the fiberglass in sections, possibly a little less depending on the work load. If the whole ass end of the 5'er needs to be replaced, we could be looking at a month because they have to order that from Forest River and then it has to be shipped here. We already miss having our stuff with us and our own familiar space. And now we also have to figure out how to handle the family reunion at the end of the month... whether we drive down and drive back, or if Mike flies out by himself, or if we rent an RV... This sucks. Maybe we'll get lucky and they can spot repair the back and everything will run ahead of schedule. Surely we are owed some good luck for a change...

So in other news... after we dropped the RV off at Lazy Days, we had lunch at the Cracker Barrel just outside the gate. There was this little old lady who was having problems walking. She had a cane, but she was trying to carry a to-go box and a drink, so she wasn't using it, and her knee kept giving out. I felt bad for her so I helped her to her car... she almost fell at least five times... she had a granddaughter sleeping in the car - not a kid, someone close to my age... How the hell do you leave your grandma in the restaurant and go sleep in the car if you know she's that frail? And when we got to the car she didn't even get out, she just sat there and watched. People need to start acting right... she's everything that is wrong with this country.

We got to meet up with one of Mike's buddies this afternoon. He flew in from Miami to visit with us which was really nice of him to do. Really cool guy, he gave Mike a hard time and that's always fun for me to watch as I'm rarely able to get one over on him myself... I married a smartie and a smartass, it's an unfortunate mix sometimes, but he keeps me on my toes for sure. After that we went to Charlotte's Web (if you click on the site be aware that it has sound) and had a couple of bloody marys... the drink that is also a snack. It was the best BM I've ever had... hahaha. They put horseradish in it and garnished it with a pepperoncini and an olive. We smell like smoke now and I can barely stand myself... but it was a fun place, cool people, and the BM's were only $2/ea.

So tomorrow we'll probably visit a local bike shop... find a winery... there is a castle in the area... and there is a wildlife refuge in the area that we're going to attempt to visit (they only give tours twice a month so it depends on our luck). I don't know, but Florida makes me tired... I didn't used to be able to sleep past 7 or 8 am... now I'm lucky to get my ass out of my before 10 or 11 am. Mike is an early riser so he is very patient with me, and sometimes I get breakfast out of the deal. :)

Pictures:

A black swan. For real, none of that ballerina bullshit.

Peace River. Now sing that to the tune of Moon River and you are privy to my private hell.

Eek! Alligator! Oh. Hello Mr. Lizard.

If this doesn't give you a warm fuzzy, I don't think you're capable of human emotion.

Kinda looks like a quilt patter in the sky. Hello Nancy!

Attack of the yellow butterflies.

Cool flower ball Mike found.

It's weird to me to run across a forest of palm trees.

Roots.

Looking up a palm tree. And so the series of palm tree photographs I began in the early 2000's finally regains momentum...

Bunny rabbit!

Is it just me or does this tree remind anyone else of that demented bunny from Donnie Darko?

But the back is even cooler.

Angel hair.

Pretty hawks. We see them flying by all the time. Mike finally caught them on film.

A cardinal flirted with me.

We have critters in our cabin. Or perhaps we are bored. Anyway... there is a parrot...

... a goose looking up at the sky...

... and a squirrel... and I swear there is also a bass, but when I photographed him, he didn't look much like a fish after all...

Vulture anyone?

Mmmmm... dead armadillo... it's what's for dinner.

Colin coming in for a landing.

When did we start hanging out with tall people?

Do you really want to go here for service?

Florida hates white people... cracker hunts? Really? It's almost as funny as The Cracker Plantation Restaurant... I don't make this stuff up, I really don't...