April 30, 2010

I've missed a couple of days. No problem, because nothing much happened. Wednesday I was not feeling well and went to bed right after supper. Thursday I felt fine. We did nothing yesterday and nothing today except eat and do crossword puzzles. Britt worked on getting his new computer up and running. He bought a "super" computer that will handle his architectural renderings and other stuff much better than his old one. He bought it in pieces to suit his needs and put it together himself. Oh my, I can't imagine having to do that. He could make good money doing this for other people.
We walked around the circle after supper with the dogs, or rather I should say I was dragged around the circle by Tommy. There is a steep hill on the last portion and he literally pulled me up the hill, thank goodness. We must start doing this on Thursdays and Fridays when the dog park is closed. By the way, we volunteered to help clean the dog park one day a week on a rotating basis with other volunteers. This probably won't start until August or so. It's a small price to pay for having a place to take the dogs so they can play.
We were supposed to get rain today and it was mostly cloudy all day but we got only a little sprinkle. What a disappointment because we need rain!
Tomorrow we are going to Rainbow Springs and then to lunch somewhere. Joyce is going with us. She is on disability, like me, and about my age. She's had such an interesting life, growing up in New York with horses and spending many years working at the racetracks. When she came to Florida, she drove a school bus. She is truly a trip and I enjoy being with her. She and I went to a flea market a couple of weeks ago and we had a great time. We were talking about whether or not she and I would be able to do the walking at Rainbow and once we found out there were plenty of benches, we said, "no problem!" I hope I'll have pictures and lots to say about our day trip on tomorrow's blog.

Paynes Prairie March 19, 2010

Welcome to Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park

Paynes Prairie is biologically, geologically and historically unique. This park became Florida´s first state preserve in 1971 and is now designated as a National Natural Landmark. Noted artist and naturalist William Bartram called it the great Alachua Savannah when he wrote about his visit to the prairie in 1774.



Over 20 distinct biological communities provide a rich array of habitats for wildlife, including alligators, bison, wild horses and over 270 species of birds. Exhibits and an audio-visual program at the visitor center explain the area´s natural and cultural history. A 50-foot-high observation tower near the visitor center provides a panoramic view of the preserve.














There are more treasures in this welcome center, fossils and animal displays that are native to the area. One table caught my interest. Various fossils and other natural items were jumbled around on the table and there was a list - find this fossil or find that jawbone or find these eggs - it was there for the kids but I wanted to find all that stuff, too!


























Here we are up in the observation tower. It was quite a climb for a couple of us (Carolyn and I) but we made it and it was quite a view. It's an old wooden tower with about three long flights of steps. There was a family having a picnic lunch at the top of the tower and it made me wish we had thought of that. It was a gorgeous day, warm and sunny.

We had lunch at Blue Highway for the first time today. I've got to get Brad down here to try this pizza - it's quite likely the best pizza I've ever had. Also, we had key lime pie that is just to die for. This was a great find!

Homosassa Springs January 4, 2010

Homosassa Springs as a public attraction has been around since the 1960's. Homosassa as a town has a very interesting history and particularly during the Civil War.
It's worth going to the Homosassa website and reading.

Now, of course, it is best known for the "Fish Bowl" and the manatees that come to the springs for warmth during the winter.



It happened to be feeding time just as we arrived at the Fish Bowl. Whole heads of lettuce and cabbage are thrown into the water and the manatees swim lazily around sucking in the food.














Here we are inside the fish bowl looking at manatees up close and personal as well as the hundreds of fish - crevalle jack, snook, ladyfish, redfish, tarpon, sheepshead, sea trout, mullet, and black drum. I can remember coming here when I was a little kid and it is still an astounding sight. You can see how we are bundled up - brrr! By the way, you should read about how the fish bowl was built and installed - can you say lots of bananas?




It was so cold, we didn't stay long and only saw the fish bowl. We are planning another trip soon to see everything, including Lucifer, the 46-year old hippo, the last remaining non-native animal in the park. Luc, as he is affectionately called, was issued a special citizenship by the governor.















No trip is complete without the requisite photos of the participants. Here we are!!!

April 26, 2010

Today was grocery day and cleaning day. Mom dusted, Britt vacuumed, and I swiffered. Mom and I went to the grocery store, and just as we were finishing up, Mom realized that she had forgotten her debit card. Wonder of wonders, I had my phone with me and I called Britt. So he didn't get out of going to the store after all. Fish sticks for lunch again (I love 'em) then a lazy afternoon.
Dog park at 5pm. My leg is still so sore so I didn't walk again. I really miss walking now and I sure hope the leg gets better fast. Bonnie and I had a long conversation and she told me the circumstances of her husband's illness and subsequent death. So sad, but only four months from onset to the end and that was a blessing because it was a completely debilitating illness. We talked about going to movies or just spending a day at Mt. Dora so maybe we will. I like Bonnie so I would enjoy it. She is a counselor at one of the local high schools and thoroughly suited for that. Completely opposite from me!
We are talking about going down to see the next shuttle launch. It would be an all day thing but we're going to ask Carolyn and Joyce and anyone else who expresses an interest to go with us. That will be a fun day.
Cereal, soup, or asian noodles for supper, then lemon glaze cake and orange sherbet for dessert.
Britt and Mom are watching Survivor. I'm getting involved in spite of myself just by listening in. Ugh!

April 25, 2010

The Chuck-will's-widow, Caprimulgus carolinensis is a nocturnal bird of the nightjar family Caprimulgidae. It is found in the southeastern United States near swamps, rocky uplands, and pine woods. It migrates to the West Indies, Central America, and northwestern South America.

This bird is sometimes confused with the Whip-poor-will (Caprimulgus vociferus)^[1], due to the peculiar and somewhat similar names. Though rather closely related, they are two distinct species.

	Song of the Chuck-will's-widow (in background)
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

A fairly generic nightjar, it has mottled brownish underparts, a buff throat, reddish-brown feathers lined with black, and brown and white patterning on head and chest, differing from the gray and black of its more common cousin. Males have patches of white on their outer tail feathers. Its size ranges from 11 to 13 inches (28 to 33 cm) long with a 25 inch (62 cm) wingspan, large for a nightjar and like all of them with a short bill and long tail.

Its common name derives from its continuous, repetitive song that is often heard at night. This consist of a series of calls with a vibrating middle note between two shorter notes, not much shifting in pitch. It is slower, lower-pitched and less piercing than the song of the Whip-poor-will. "Chuckwuts-widow" is another common name less often found, but also imitating the rhythm of the bird's calls.

It eats primarily insects, particular those active at night such as moths, beetles, and winged ants. It will also eat small birds, swallowing them whole.^[2][3]

Females do not build nests, but rather lay eggs on patches of dead leaves on the ground. The eggs, which are pink with spots of brown and lavender, are subsequently incubated by the female.

© Richard Bird / CLO

A large nightjar of the southeastern United States, the Chuck-will's-widow is well known for its continous singing of its name at dusk.

We solved a mystery tonight. For the last two weeks, this bird has set up station right outside the pool area. He/she will call for ten or fifteen minutes and then fly a little ways off, still close enough to hear. The call is really quite loud. I thought it was a whippoorwill. Britt didn't think so, and tonight he looked it up. After hearing the whippoorwill's call, we knew that was not the bird we were hearing. A little research, and voila, it is a chucks-will-widow. Now who the heck named this bird? Anyway, it's quite an ugly bird, looks reptilian to me. If you have trouble making the call work, go to Wikipedia. We learned something new - bet you did too!

I had a rough day today. I fell getting into the bathtub this morning, landing on my right leg, right on top of the locking pin of my prosthetic. I was okay, a little sore, but went on to church. This afternoon, it's been getting worse, like a stone bruise, and I can't walk without pain. Hopefully, it will be better tomorrow.

Fish sticks and squash casserole for lunch today. Lemonade and Fritos for afternoon snack, and cereal for supper (ice cream for dessert). We are trying to think of new things to eat. We'll go to the store tomorrow and maybe we'll find something exciting and different.

We finally got some rain late this afternoon. Really not much more than a sprinkle but it has lasted a few hours now. There's quite a bit of thunder and lightning but only about 1/8 inch of rain. We need a little more than that! Very very breezy today as well.

Today was a sermon of song at church. The choir sang several songs with the pastor reading pertinent scripture between. Mom didn't go today and she would have enjoyed it. We all love music.

No dog park today because of the weather (and my leg) so the dogs will be excited to go tomorrow.

Britt has made a list of several places we want to see and restaurants we want to try. We are planning to attend the Mother's Day concert and will invite all our friends. It should be a lot of fun!

Pretty Flower pots April 22, 2010

We just can't wait for spring. We've been to Lowe's and bought lots of flowers. These pretty pots were painted by my daughter, Kim, who is very talented. She made them for my mom, and they really brighten up the pool area, where we spend a lot of time.










The flowers look kind of wilted in the picture, but I promise, they are beautiful golden marigolds!

Blue Springs November 6, 2009

Blue Springs State Park is in Orange City, Florida. It is a refuge for the manatees and although the water is a constant 73 degrees, swimming is not allowed during the winter months when the manatees come into the springs looking for warm water.












It is so gorgeous, with crystal clear water.


This is my mom, Loraine, and her friend, Callie. I was not here but wanted to show the pictures anyway.

April 24, 2010

Today was a perfect lazy day. We went nowhere until 4:30 when we went to the dog park. I walked my mile and a half, then visited with our friends for about an hour. Lunch today was green beans with creamed new potatoes, sliced fresh tomatoes, and fresh squash casserole and some cheese bread, all from the farmer's market. Yummy! Supper was leftover fried chicken, potato salad, cheese, pickles, and biscuits. After mom watches Lawrence Welk, we will have apple pie and ice cream. How much better can life be?

April 23, 2010

Today we went to the Farmer's Market in downtown Ocala. It wasn't much of a market, very little produce to speak of, but we bought some tomatoes, new potatoes, and squash. We hear that so much of the produce was lost this past winter that there won't be much to choose from this spring. Hopefully in the next month or so, more will be available. They did have some lovely strawberries, but we didn't get any this time. We got some homemade breads to try also. A quick trip to Kmart to return a couple of clothes items that didn't fit and a quick foray to the grocery store for just a few items and back home for lunch. We did get a Mrs. Smith's Apple Pie and we had pie and ice cream for an afternoon snack. It really hit the spot since we really haven't had dessert other than cookies for quite a long time. Ham and cheese sandwiches and potato salad for lunch. Mom and I spent the afternoon lazily doing crosswords and computering while Britt worked on the sprinkler heads. A bowl of cereal for supper. Mom and I watched "Changeling" tonight and we both enjoyed it. It's almost two and a half hours long but we didn't feel that that much time had passed. I recommend it.

First, a little background on why I am here. I came to Ocala, Florida for a six-week visit in November, 2009, just before Thanksgiving. My mom, stepdad, and brother have lived in this house for almost ten years and it is a perfect house. In the past six or seven years it has been a haven for me, a respite from many upheavals and hardships I have experienced since I had open-heart surgery and, as a result from a heparin reaction, lost both my legs mid-shin in 2002. My own health problems became secondary to other circumstances that have occurred since then, financial and personal situations that make getting away from home a joy. My stepdad passed away on November 15, 2007, and now it's my mom, Loraine, and my younger brother, Britt. I was looking forward to a wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas with them.

Our first big outing was Thanksgiving dinner at The Ivey House in Williston, Florida. Joyce, a friend of theirs, went with us, and we all enjoyed a traditional Thanksgiving dinner and it was really good. We WILL be going back there to eat again.

On December 9, I think, Mom had an episode of chest pain. She refused to go to the hospital but a couple of hours later she had another one and decided something needed to be done. We drove to the emergency room at Munro Regional Medical Center and they admitted her. Two days later she had open-heart surgery at age 90. I had planned to leave right after New Year's but stayed until mid-January until she recovered enough for me to leave. I had to return to Semmes and handle business. Mainly I just gathered up stuff to bring back here since they had asked me to come and live with them basically. So in mid-February I came "home". Of course, I have always enjoyed my visits with my family, but I also have come to love this area. Ocala and surrounding environs are beautiful with the magnificent horse farms, parks, forests, and numerous other natural attractions. I feel that this is a gift from God to be able to come and spend time with my mom and my brother. If this is His plan, then I pray that He shows me what to do with this time.

Juniper Springs November 2009

Juniper Springs is not far from home and the November day we went was a pleasant day, not hot but warm enough to remove jackets after walking the half-mile boardwalk nature trail. This was the longest I have walked at one time in eight years and I was a little proud of myself. Although we didn't see the first animal, the surroundings were enjoyable.





As you can see from the pictures, the water in the springs is so blue as to look artificial. And it is so clear!
























Juniper Creek has one of the best canoe runs in the whole state.