Floridaland 2

After the last incredible post, I'm sure many people are muttering "How can John top that?!"

Thanksgiving was pleasant. My mother (who was sick, by the way!) spent the first half of the day in the kitchen, preparing a great meal. Turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce (straight from the can, yum!), and dinner rolls. Desert was a pumpkin pie with pecans. After dinner we demanded Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on cable. About half way through the movie, however, my brother called from Raleigh, North Carolina, and, after a 20-minute conversation with three people on our end and four people on the NC end, we returned to the movie only to discover that the on-demand service was no longer working. My Dad called the cable company, but after half an hour the service still didn't work. The second half of the movie has still been unwatched.

Several games of pinochle were also played during the day.

Today, Friday, we didn't go to any stores. The local news stations mentioned the phrase "Black Friday" so often that by the end of the day I wished the American economy would collapse in order to prevent that phrase from ever being uttered again. I awoke shortly before 10 AM, and when I stumbled out to the living room, my Mom had decided that today was the day to go to a local sandwich shop and get Cuban sandwiches. So, after a morning spent with mugs of coffee, sudoku puzzles, and quiet lounging by the pool, we headed out for lunch... only to discover that the restaurant was closed for the holidays. So, instead, we went to a small BBQ joint for pulled pork sandwiches.

My Dad had some chores to take care of at my parents' church so he was out most of the afternoon. My Mom fell asleep right away. (She was feeling worse than yesterday.) So, I hit the on-demand service, discovered it to be working today, and watched the latest Hulk movie. I know I'm going to catch a lot of flack for this, but I like the previous Hulk movie a little better than this one. This one is very entertaining, but there's not much Hulk in it. I like the fact that the Edward Norton Bruce Banner is a lot like the Bill Bixby Bruce Banner, but I was never a fan of the TV show. It gets a thumbs up from me, but- hold on to your socks!- I liked Iron Man more than this movie.

More pinochle and other card games after my Dad returned.

Dinner was pizza at Guido's, the local pizza joint. By 'local', I mean 25 miles away. Did I mention that my parents live in a fairly remote subdivision? The nearest market/store, is 3 or 4 miles away. We were joined by my Uncle Richard and Aunt Dot, who live a few streets away, and their daughter Sheila and her family. Sheila and family are visiting for the holidays. It's always a delight to see my cousin Sheila. Age-wise, she is between my brother and I, who are otherwise the youngest amongst the cousins on my Mom's side of the family.

More pinochle after we returned home.

Are you seeing the pattern yet? Tomorrow we may go out and do something other than eat and play pinochle. I suppose it depends on how my Mom feels. There is also talk of going to see the shuttle land at Cape Canaveral on Sunday afternoon. That plan is completely up in the air, though, as thunderstorms are predicted for Sunday.

Thanks for the comments you've been leaving. I enjoy them all. Excuse me for not having responded to any individually yet.

"As a child, my family's menu consisted of two choices: take it or leave it." - Buddy Hackett

Floridaland 1

My second night here in Homosassa Springs. My parents have gone to bed and the final minutes of Iron Chef are on the TV. Nothing much to report yet... except that my favorite Carolina BBQ restaurant has gone out of business. We stopped there on the way home from the airport only to discover the restaurant was gone. That would have been bad news, but we went to a German restaurant instead and had a delicious meal. If you ever get a chance to eat a creamed potato and carrot soup, I recommend you do!

We didn't do anything today. My Dad showed me the jukebox he has recently restored. It's pretty amazing. I'll try to take pictures and post them at some point. My parents had to step out for a few hours after dinner so I checked the movies on demand stations and watched "You Don't Mess With The Zohan." Thumbs up.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I hope you all enjoy the day!

The Road To Florida

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I'm leaving for Florida soon. In fact, the shuttle taking me to the airport should be here in just over 4½ hours. 4½ hours? Yes, that's how dedicated I am. I am staying up to write a brief post tonight with only hours in which to get a night's sleep. That's dedication... and I'm lately accustomed to not going to bed until 2 or 3 AM anyway.

My parents live in Florida, in a town called Homosassa Springs, about an hour north of Tampa, on the gulf side of the state. (It's also about 90 minutes west of Orlando.) This is "old Florida". There is a river which leads from town out to the coast, and that river looks like every episode of Flipper. There is Spanish moss draping from every branch. There are alligators (or crocodiles) in the water as well as manatees. I actually saw a dolphin once while we were having lunch at a restaurant on the river. Bears and bobcats roam the dryer areas. (My uncle, who lives a few streets over from my parents, took a picture of a bobcat in his backyard a few years ago.)

It being Winter, however, the most commonly seen wildlife will be the snow birds. For the next week, I will be the youngest person I see.

My Mom will be putting out a traditional Thanksgiving spread on Thursday, and I almost feel guilty about that. She had planned on a quiet day with my Dad until I called a few weeks ago and asked if I could come visit them. I'm sure a few pounds of turkey and potatoes and sweet potatoes and gravy and dinner rolls and cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie will assuage my guilt however.

So, this is it for me pre-flight. I hope to be able to grab some computer time while I'm away and write up a few posts. If none appear, you know why. Please, enjoy your Thanksgiving, and know that I am thankful for all the friends I have.

I look forward to your comments!

"My parents didn't want to move to Florida, but they turned sixty and that's the law." — Jerry Seinfeld

Lost Weekend 1

There's nothing less optimistic when writing about the present than using a number to describe the first of what one assumes will be many wasted weekends. It's like waking up from a creepy dream and knowing the same dream will be back to ruin your sleep in six months.

This weekend truly was lost. I didn't do anything of value or note. I read a few chapters of a Jack McDevitt novel, The Engines of God. I played WoW (World of Warcraft). I played Fallout 3. I watched an episode of South Park, an episode of The Clone Wars, an old episode of TV Funhouse, and The Comedians of Comedy documentary. This afternoon I did three loads of laundry so I could pack clean clothes for my trip to Florida in a few days. Now I'm listening to the CryoSleep channel on BlueMars.org and trying to figure out something entertaining to write about.

Just as a curious note, when I used to ride home from work with my friend Jon, we frequently wondered at all the people on the road. I used to shake my fist at all the "no-job-havin'-motherfuckers". A few days ago I was on the road when it occured to me that now I'm one of the no-job-havin'-motherfuckers.

And I have no intention of getting off the road. Deal with it.  :)

This Wednesday will mark three weeks of being unemployed. The overwhelming state, day in and day out, is one of loneliness. Not pathetic loneliness or disturbed loneliness— not yet at least. But whole days go by without me talking to anyone other than saying, "Yeah, I'll have the number 4, macho sized, with a Diet Coke, and a Del beef burrito. That's all." Remember that triangle in your health classes? That triangle of health with 'Physical', 'Mental', and 'Social' each written on one side? My friends at Del Taco are really letting me down on the Social health side.

So, I have been looking for 'friends' on that most respectable of websites, CraigsList. Yes, CraigsList, because I'm too cheap to pay a real dating website, and I feel that a romantic encounter with me is easily equal to buying a used digital camera or bicycle. Now, mind you, I don't fill my days with this activity, but every couple days I feel the need to be around another living human being. Occasionally I even post an ad of my own.

This is where you should pay attention in order to benefit from your friend John's experience. It's like my last big blog, when I was serving my time with the County on the side of the road. Learn from my experiences. Repeat them only if they call to you. Otherwise, consider the vicarious experience to suffice.

The first rule when posting an ad on CraigsList is: If you post an ad with a face picture, don't be surprised if someone writes back... someone who recognizes you, that is. I'm sure I don't need to explain the rule any further than that.

As always, feel free to comment.

"Loneliness adds beauty to life. It puts a special burn on sunsets and makes night air smell better." — Henry Rollins