Pet Peeve-Dog Poop

I am a responsible dog owner. That means I pick up after Sedona when she goes poop. Mind you she poops the size of tootsie rolls but I still pick up after her. I have been here for over a month and I have never seen poop in the dog park, on the walking path or anywhere like I have the last two days.

I went to take Sedona for her morning constitution and there was a "horse" size pile of poop on the walk. I went to the dog park and there were two unpicked up piles of dog poop. What is wrong with these pet owners? It's irresponsible. Pick up after your dog no matter where you are. No one likes to see it or step in it.

The park has filled up with people wanting to enjoy the Memorial Day holiday and I understand that but it doesn't mean you leave your good sense at the door and let your animals poop wherever without picking it up. The park furnishes plastic bags for you. USE THEM!

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The Marqueses Keys

For our last outing on the pontoon boat we went on a long journey to the Marqueses Keys which was to have good reefs for snorkling. We were about 30 miles west of Key West and only 36 miles from Dry Tortugas. It was a smooth day just perfect to be on the water. We decided we needed to go again because if will be a few years before we get back down here and we just don't know if the oil spill in the Gulf will impact the reefs down in the Keys. It doesn't sound as if it will get this far down but one never knows what a hurricane or other storm could do to the spill.

Anyway, it was a perfect day and I had wished I had an underwater camera because the fish, turtles and coral were just beautiful. It was so serene, peaceful and graceful. WOW! some of the best snorkling I've experienced.

On the way back we were surrounded by porpoise, lots of them. It's like they wanted to entertain us. We cut the boat off and just sat there and watched them play and swim around us. It was meant for us to be there on that day for all those dolphin to bring us well wishes.

I can't thank Bobby and Sharon enough for including me in their trips on the boat. They were a God send to me on my journey.
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Salt Water Fishing and Sedona

Went on the pontoon boat and Sedona was invited. We went to West Washerwoman's Key and Boca Grande Key. I took her life jacket and put it on her but she was too hot so I took it off. She wasn't going anywhere. She stuck to me or Sharon like glue. When we anchored I took her out and let her swim a little and she would head right toward the steps. She knew where she wanted to go and it was out of the water. So I took her out a little farther and around she turned and headed back to the steps. She's a smart little one.

Then we walked to a sand bar and I carried her and when we got almost there I put her down and she turned around and started swimming for the boat. Finally she was convinced when her feet touched the sand. She then took off and started running and playing, chasing birds and wallowing in the sand. It was good to see her romping and running and having fun. After we were finished looking for treasures, Sedona was ready to go. I carried her part way and then when we got close to the boat she swam right to the steps. She's a good water dog. You will see that she wore herself out and slept for the rest of the day.

While she was sleeping, Sharon decided to fish and she caught several small grunts. So named because when you take them off the hook, they make a noise like a grunt. Bobby decided I needed to fish too. I told him, I don't do baiting of hooks and I don't take fish off the hooks. He had no problems with that. He baited my hook with a live shrimp,yep the kind you eat. Anyway, 2 seconds later I pull in a little yellow fin. Yippee, but it's so small. That's why it got thrown back in. A few little grunts for me and then the big one, a parrot fish. So pretty but those can't be kept either but the fun part of watching Bobby get it off the hook. See the teeth are very sharp because they chew the coral that makes sand. I'm sure those teeth would hurt if they got hold of you finger. See why I don't do taking fish off the hook. Oh but it was so pretty. A blue parrot fish, I think.

After we finished fishing, Bobby went into the water to do a little spear fishing. He got a hogfish big enough to keep and a few grunts to use for additional bait. He was hoping to get a cooler full of hogfish to take back to his "buddies" at home, guess to prove he was actually here. LOL No cooler full but a pretty good mess.

This was a good day on the water. It was a little rough to snorkle so when we got back a little early, I did what Sedona had done all afternoon! Snoozed.
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Randy & Debbie's Trip

Oh the excitement was building on Tuesday, I couldn't wait for my best friends, Randy and Debbie to arrive for a visit at my little piece of paradise. They flew into Ft Lauderdale and drove down the keys. Randy brought along his golf clubs to he could go hit a few and that gave me and Debbie an opportunity to do whatever we wanted. Uh, can you say pool time? Only thing was the time went too quickly.

The managers of the .net part of Bluewater Key RV Resort, Ken and Candy, had been fishing that day and offered some tuna steaks and fillets of dolphin fish. Of course I would take them, just in time for my friend's visit. So that's what we had for dinner with Randy cooking, of course. I fixed a few lemon drops and mango & strawberry daiquiris while we waited for dinner. But what birthday dinner would be complete without a birthday cake, Randy celebrated his ?? birthday with us in Paradise.

They loved my site. Guess pictures just didn't do it justice. Gee, do you think I may have talked them into giving this lifestyle a try? Never know but I'll definitely let you know if that ever happens.

We also went to Old Town Key West and did a little of the Duval crawl beginning at the Sunset Pier so Randy could shoot a few pictures of the sunset. Then we headed to Sloppy Joes with a stop in a few stores to shop. Debbie found a pretty cool top that was made in FL. She has lost so much weight that she can shop in stores now that don't require plus sizes. Good for her.

Our stop at Sloppy Joes was a good one. Turns out the music that was playing was music we could all relate to, our era. We were getting into rocking down but I thought we couldn't leave Duval without going down to the Green Parrot Bar. They always have great entertainers so off we go. We get there and the music was a bummer and there wasn't a lot going on there so we head out again, making our way back to the car.

The next time we went to town was to celebrate Randy's birthday with a show at the LaTeDa. It's a cabaret and Christopher was sure to entertain us with all his characters. I kept telling everyone it was Randy's birthday hoping he would get good and embarrassed but alas, not to happen. Debbie and I were able to sit back and relax while Randy was not sure when the shoe would drop for him. Ha, Ha, it never did but it was a fun night. A little expensive but worth it all for the fun we had.

While Randy & Debbie were here they were invited out on the pontoon boat to enjoy the keys from a different perspective. The evening before we went on the boat we had a potluck with new friends, Bobby and Sharon. I cooked some ribs and Sharon brought some potato salad and fresh tomatoes. It was a good evening meal. For dessert we had smores. I pulled out my little campfire I won at the Fl womens forum get together and roasted marshmallows. We added a twist of bananas and strawberries on them and they are quite tasty that way. Seems that Bobby had never had a smores before. WHAT? I didn't think there was one person in this world who had never had smores. Oh well, now he knows what he is missing.

I put Randy to work. Yep, right up on top of Somewhere to give her top a bath. So he worked hard that day but he also played hard. He took my kayak out to give her a spin. Took him a little bit to get used to it but then he settled down when he figured out he wasn't going to tip over. So a big thanks to Randy for getting my roof clean. Of course after he did that, I had to was the rest of it to get everything from the top off the sides.

I would be remiss if I didn't tell you all how well Sedona is doing meeting new people and being a friendly little girl. She is shy and puts her head down and her little but up for anyone to pet her but she is not snapping anymore and she is becoming more social.


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A Pontoon Boat at the Keys

I want to apologize to my regular readers for not posting in such a while but I have been a busy little beaver.


I have had the privilege of meeting a great couple, Bobby and Sharon Sarvis of North Florida. They were staying in Bluewater Key RV Resort. They invited me to spend some time on the water with them. They said you can’t really enjoy the keys until you get out in them. Wow, were they ever right. The first day we went to Marvin and Snipe Keys. We did some playing and some snorkling. We anchored and got out at what I think would be party cove in a fresh water lake. It was so pretty and there were a lot of boats anchored with children and dogs. You just meet the nicest people in campgrounds.

Anyway we got to spend more time together at lunch and dinner on various occasions. They even decided to stay a little longer. Here are some additional pictures you can enjoy of the surrounding keys and the beautiful water. As usual click for larger images. Later...

RVing Women Rally

As it turns out while I am in Key West, the Florida Chapter of the RVing Women came to the Keys for their monthly rally. This was the first rally I have attended since I became a member. Lynette Birch was the wagon master and she put together a terrific rally complete with 2 seminars. One on fire safety in an RV and the other on personal safety. I met so many wonderful women and fur babies that I can't wait until we get together again. There were 17 rigs there and they ranged from a Burro, Class B's, Class C's and Class A's. Every type of rig was represented. I think I was the only one there who full-timed.

The rally was held at the Geiger Key Marina & RV park about 4 miles down the road from where I am staying. It made it convenient to just hop in the car and run down there. We ate some good fish and barbecue ribs & chicken. We also had some great entertainment at the bar.

The first night was had a puppy shower for one of the ladies, Nichole, who was going to get a new puppy. The Marina furnished snacks for us to eat during the shower. Everyone brought their fur babies to celebrate the new baby. Mary was our fisher woman. She brought out some pretty good mango snapper. I understand that she has fish fries at several rally's throughout the year. We had planned to go kayaking one morning but the wind didn't cooperate so that had to be canceled.

Remember if you want to see the picture larger, click on it. A good time was had by all.
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The Flowers of Bluewater RV Resort

Thought I would give you a flower tour of my RV resort. If you want to see a larger picture, just click on it. First the signage and the gates to enter.
























































Fat Albert is the blimp shown in the last picture. It is full of radar equipment that helps airplanes, drug boats and other federal agencies in the area. Be sure to read the explanation on the link provided.

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Happy Mother's Day

 

To all the mothers out there, hope your day is special. I miss my Mama. Martha Moore was such a loving, giving and caring person to everyone. I got my values and beliefs from her. This pictures was taken some time ago and it shows Mama (far right), Sisters Shirley and Wanda and me. If she were still here, she would be going on some of my trips with me. I love you, Mama!

What's was up this week?

My friend, Theda, left on Wednesday. Here she is in the pool getting news that her park was flooded from the recent rains. It's been hot, hot, hot! But thank goodness for the pool. It's really not that hot, it's only around 85 degrees but the humidity must be about 110%. Also being on the water with the breezes help when I'm back home (aka RV.)

I don't have it as bad as my friends have it back in Nashville. In case you have been in a cave lately, Nashville flooded last weekend. Thanks goodness for a computer because the news coverage on TV was nothing. My friend, Sandra, had to be evacuated by boat. She said it came up so quickly it was frightening. She lives in a townhouse and the first floor was completely underwater. When she went back to her townhouse the next day, there were volunteers walking through the neighborhood helping move furniture to the street, ripping carpets up and doing whatever needed to be done. She didn't have flood insurance because, get this, if you are not in a flood plane you can't get flood insurance. Does that make sense? She has made application to FEMA but they won't know for a while if they are approved in that neighborhood. Keep her in your prayers. It sure feels strange for all that going on and me down here in paradise.

Another friend, Becky, has a sister Pat who also had to be evacuated. Not sure of their status but I did read on facebook that they had flood insurance.

My friend, Margie, is in TN too. She and Roger are headed West or Westward Ho as they say. They are on dry land as they are on a hill in their son's driveway. Thank goodness everyone I know is okay. Things can be replaced. Everyone has their health and their lives.

The Women's RV forum, that I read and respond to all the time, adopted the flamingo as their mascot. Tuesday, Theda and I went to a great little store, Neat Stuff. They really do have neat stuff. I got a flamingo hat and shirt. I'm ready for another Women's RV get together (gtg) whenever. Sedona wasn't too sure about the hat. Notice that the flamingo on my head, Ezmeralda, has flip flops on. Yep, I think she is ready for a gtg.









Here are some new pictures of the sunset taken from the car on the way back from downtown.



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Bahia Honda State Park

Yesterday was a beach day and it was decided we would go to Bahia Honda State Park. I have heard many times about this beach being on the top 10 list as best beaches for the Travel Channel and travel magazines. The Atlantic side of this beach reminded me of St Kitts in the Caribbean. The waters are beautiful.

We chose the bay side beach as the winds were blowing and being in this cove gave us protection from so much wind. This cove was between the "new" road and the "old" road/railroad. The park has has preserved the old road/railroad as an interpretive model to show the beginnings of the area. They have good signage telling what went on when the railroad was built and then the road over it. When camping began in 1966 cost of a campsite was $2.06 per night. No that is not a typo it was truly that inexpensive. So those of RVer have been traveling down US 1 for as long as they opened it. The saying "build it and they will come" is true down here.

There is a lot of sea grass in the water and along the shore. We saw many little fish swimming around people. Guess they are used to this many visitors. We drove over to the cabins and they looked very nice. There are only about 8 and they rent for $120 per night + taxes. That's comparable to the cabins in TN state parks. If they are anything like their camp sites, you can't ever get a reservation because of the popularity. A surprise to me was the entrance price for the park. It was $4.50 per person not per car. All the other parks in FL where I've had to pay was per car. We paid it and it was well worth it. Seems like this might be a potential for a work camper place some time.

The park has an amphitheatre with a big screen facing the Atlantic. It would be great to watch movies by the sea or for a sunrise service for worship. It is tucked into a nice area on the Atlantic side. There are plenty of bath houses and an interpretive center. The kisok's that explain the bridge and surrounding area is very interactive.

I would highly recommend this as a stop over on the way to the keys or as a place to backtrack and spend a little time, if you can't get a reservation. I'm gonna try that 11 months out of when I want to come back.

One of my readers asked me about the "skeeters" down here. So far, knock on wood there have been none nor no seeums. Maybe the breeze has kept them away or maybe it's not the time of the year but I haven't been bothered by them. Hopefully I won't 'cause I did in Titusville and it wasn't pretty or comfortable. LOL

Later...