Bruce's Travels

Tuesday Jan. 24  Phoebe seems to be OK today, and I need a fun day after a couple of days of drama, so I decide to spend the day (well, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. anyway) on Sanibel Island. I start with breakfast at the Sanibel Café (a new place for me) where I have a HUGE breakfast of 2 eggs over medium with hashbrowns, and pan seared (not deep fried) alligator tail. It came with choice of toast or pancakes, so I went with the pancakes and got their special "pina colada sauce" to put on the pancakes instead of the awful Log Cabin syrup that comes "standard." The pancakes were great .... very similar to how mine come out ... light and fluffy. OK, I’m sure everyone is wondering about the alligator tail. It tastes similar to clams or calamari ... a chewy rubbery texture. Most places bread (or batter) the chunks (about dime size), deep dry it, and serve with any number of sauces, from tarter to cocktail sauce, to buffalo (hot) sauce, BBQ, honey mustard, etc. So I have a ...

Monday Jan. 23 I awake and see that Phoebe is still hobbling on her left leg. I call the Cat Hospital, and they can get her in at 2 p.m. After breakfast, I head over to Harbor Freight tools for a Crescent wrench and some duct tape, because the seat on the bicycle keeps sliding down. I figure I will wrap the "tube" to the bike seat in a layer of duct tape, then tighten the nut extra hard. I give it a good tighten, and hope that will do it. I also secure the basket rack to the frame, because I notice that if I go over a nasty bump, the entire basket and rack will fly off the frame of the bike! I LOVE Harbor Freight tools because I HATE buying tools. I don’t consider myself a “handyman.” When something goes wrong, I usually (99 times out of 100) will pick up the phone and call whatever professional is required for the job. Yes, it costs money, but to me it’s worth it for what I save in “time and torture.” I’ve done enough DYI projects to know that they usually involve a dozen tr...

Sunday Jan. 22 I have dreaded making this blog entry, dear readers, because I feel very bad about this and very embarrassed, but into every adventure some rain must fall, right? There is some stuff leading up to this, but I won’t keep you in suspense. Phoebe got outside and got into a cat fight with one of the free roaming cats in this condo complex. Her left front paw was injured with multiple clawings and several claw pieces actually getting stuck into the skin. She is limping on her left paw, but is being treated with an antibiotic, and the vet believes all the claw fragments have been removed. As I write this entry on Jan. 28, she is still not out of the woods, but I remain hopeful that this is the end of it, and that all she needs now is time for the inflammation to go down. But I need to back up. The day started happily enough – a return to the Fleamasters Flea Market where I bought a bike from “Randy” at “Randy’s Bicycles. It’s a single speed Murray coaster bike, 1980s vintage, ...

Saturday Jan. 21 Today, I have registered via the Intenet with “Redbox” so that I can reserve movies at their vending machines, and get a free movie rental, all in exchange for giving them my email address so they can bombard me daily with commercial messages, and sell my name to hundreds of merchants selling worthless products and services.   Seems like an equitable trade to me (wink!). Oh well, I’m a sucker for movies, and even with my landlord’s “deluxe” cable system here with over 100 channels, I still find myself idle some evenings with nothing to watch. (I know: I should either be listening to music on Pandora, keeping up with my blog, or both. But, hey, some nights you just want to veg.) I reserve a movie called “Columbiana,” which I think is one of those that went direct to DVD with no (or limited) theatrical release. However, I remember seeing a preview of it in the theaters, and seeing that “This Move Has Not Yet Been Rated,” leading me to believe it might be one of those...

Friday Jan. 20 Today, I am off to the Fleamasters Flea Market, advertised as Fort Meyers’ largest flea market and one of the largest INDOOR flea markets in SW Florida. It has 900 dealers and about a dozen walk up food vendors where you can get everything from lobster rolls to fried ‘gator tail. I get there, and right away I can tell you this is no “ordinary” flea market by Wisconsin standards, where   most flea markets there are antiques and vintage collectibles. This flea market has vendor who carry a little bit of everything, from new to antique. And there’s lots of people selling produce, potting plants, and cut flowers. The new stuff is mostly tools and household goods, all stuff from China and displayed in their large cardboard shipping cartons. There’s T-Shirts, men’s and women’s clothes and fashion accessories (belts, wallets, purses, etc.) There’s lot of people selling watches, though these are all $10 Chinese fashion watches and also factory overstocks and closeouts by the...

Thursday Jan. 19 It was a day to more or less blob today. I wrote the blog, did some reading, and also overhauled my profile on match.com. I figured it was time, with the beginning of a new year and all. I went through a few drafts, and finally came up with a rendition that satisfied me. Let’s hope it works. I am reading the Steve Jobs biography, by Walter Isaacson (Xmas gift from Dawn) but also “Pandora’s Clock,” by John Nance, which I picked up a Goodwill Store on the way back from Sanibel Island on Monday. This is for more light reading.   It was written back in 1995, so some of the story setting is dated, but the basic plot is still very much relevant --- the idea that a plague could be set loose aboard a jumbo jet, then easily spread to the four corners of the country (or the world) where it could cause a pandemic. How would the U.S., or other country, react? Nance’s premise is that it would cause worldwide panic, and nobody would really be equipped to handle such an emergency...

Wed. Jan. 18 – I awake, and have a fresh grapefruit, peeled and sectioned, and check out Tripadvisor for a little excursion to Fort Myers Beach, to which I have not yet been. The beach is very popular with tourists and locals alike, and at the peak of “high season” (like in Feb. and March) can get crazy crowded, so now is a good time to make a "r econnaissance" mission to get the lay of the land while the crowds are still manageable. Fort Myers Beach is a long narrow “key” with basically one main street running along its length, which is Estero Blvd., which actually begins in Fort Myers, and continues after it goes over a bridge to the key, which is Fort Myers Beach. The term “boulevard” is actually is misnomer, as far as its stretch along the beach is concerned. There is no wide median with palm trees growing. It is two lanes in either direction, with an occasional left turn lane, accessible by traffic in either direction (which I refer to as “death lanes.”) All of the side ...

Tuesday Jan. 17 Today is a “light day” as far as activities go. We have to keep our eyes on the clock because I must get Julie to the airport at between 4 and 4:30 for her 6 p.m. flight back to Milwaukee. Isn’t it amazing (in that frustrating sort of way) that you spend 3 to 4 times the amount of time PREPARING for a flight, than what the actual flight time is? I mean, here we have this magnificent airplane that can get you from Fort Myers to Milwaukee in 3 hours, once you're actually in the air. But it basically sucks up an entire day: drive to the airport; park at the airport; stand in to do your ticketing and check your bag clear security load the passengers unload the passeners pick up your bag pick up your car (or rental), and get to your final destination (which for Julie is another 3 hour drive from Milwaukee to Stevens Point). Is it any wonder more and more people are driving instead of flying when the destination is under 500 miles? So anyway, after breakfast, Jul...

Monday Jan. 16 Julie and I awake, and after her morning walk, we take a drive over to Sanibel Island for breakfast and to bike around part of the island. We need to watch our time, as we need to be back to the condo by 2 p.m. for our massages. We start with breakfast at the Lighthouse Café, where   I had lunch previously. We both order pancakes, and I pop for the upcharge on real maple syrup, which costs me $3.50. I also have a side of bacon. My pancakes are very good, but they use a very thick batter which results in “cakey” pancakes that soak up a ton of syrup, and I need about a gallon of coffee to wash them down. I like mine better. On my next visit, I think I will do an omelet or other kind of egg, or maybe some French toast. There are other places on the island that need trying, too! We then each rent a bike for a couple of hours at Billy’s Rentals for $5 apiece. I take Julie on the same “circle tour” that I did before, but with an extra stop at Gulfside City Park to see the ...

Sunday Jan. 15 We awake, and over breakfast I ask Julie what she thinks about my friend’s proposal to give us each a full body massage. Julie says it’s fine with her, if it’s OK with me. I phone my Catwoman friend, and we agree on 2 p.m. Monday (tomorrow). This should prove interesting. Today, Julie has arrangements to see her friends, Joe and Arvilla Glinski, from Stevens Point, who are both wintering in Punta Gorda, just north of Ft. Myers. Arvilla is a “Curves” friend of Julie’s; Julie has met her husband Joe a few times. Arvilla was also helpful and sympathetic to Julie right after Ken’s death in 2008. In addition, Arvilla is a quilter, so the two of them have become quite close over the years. I agree to go along and also play chauffer, but first I head over to Anytime Fitness for a workout, because it’s been Wednesday since I’ve had a workout, and that was on the cruise, and it wasn’t the best workout anyway. So I have a good workout, shower, and get cleaned up. Back to the condo...

Saturday Jan. 14 Julie and I wake, and I make a banana/strawberry smoothie for us to share, and we complete the breakfast with some oatmeal and fruit. We head over to the Edison/Ford Winter Estates, and take the full guided tour for $25 apiece. You can also do a self-guided tour for $20, but the extra $5 is well worth it, and I recommend it if you ever go. Our tour guide, Larry, was full of little stories and historical tidbits that you don’t get otherwise. Larry guided us for about an hour, then we were left on our own with these compact audio devices that were keyed to numbers that were posted at various points along the estates. You just punched in the number on your audio device, push the “play” button, and hold the device up to your ear to listen. I say “estates” because Edison purchased the original estate in 1885, and Ford did not purchase the adjoining property until 1916. Edison was only 38 years old when he bought the property, but was already suffering from several ailments,...

Friday Jan. 13 We wake up in our cabin a little earlier than usual – 6:30. I am so glad I have brought my little alarm clock that I bought in Orlando back in December.   It has proven handy since there are no windows in the cabin to give you a clue what time it is. The ship provides wake up calls, but I kind of don't like them, especially since the phone is not within arm's reach of the beds. We have breakfast in the dining room rather than the Windjammer Buffet. The Buffet is typically jammed with people on departure day with people. And most of these folks are toting their suitcases with them, making it darned near impossible to maneuver through the seating area. So for about the last three cruises, I’ve done the final breakfast in the dining room, and this is a much more civil experience. We leave the ship about 8:30 and pick up our shuttle for the offsite parking in pretty fast order. The Prius survived the five days/four nights in the open parking lot just fine, and soon ...

Thurs. Jan. 12 We   docked at Key West. We have no shore excursions, so we’re on our own. I take Julie around to a few of the places I know. First, to the Mel Fisher jewelry and treasure store, and we poke our head into the museum but do not take the tour. If you do not know the story of Mel Fisher and his discovery of the Atocha shipwreck, it's worth Googling. Next,   to the Key Lime shop. The have moved down two doors from their previous location, but still have the best key lime pie on the Key, according to many. Then we walk up and down Duval Street, into a few shops, and a quick spin around Captain Tony’s Saloon, which many people do not realize to this day was Ernest Hemingway’s TRUE hangout during his years on Key West (1928-1938) during which and huntime Captain Tony’s WAS the original Sloppy Joe’s. Sometime after Hemingway left Key West in 1938, through some weird combination of events, the original Sloppy Joe’s on Greene Street became Captain Tony’s, and ANOTHER bar,...

Tuesday Jan. 10 We rise at 7 a.m. Julie takes her daily walk on deck 12 while I secure us a table in the Windjammer Cafe and start my day with coffee, a bran muffin, and plate of fruit. We are now docked in Nassau, with a Carnival cruise ship docked on either side of us. Julie joins me in about a half hour, and I complete the rest of my breakfast with a couple of over easy eggs, hash browns, bacon, sausage, and a croissant. Our shore excursion gets under way at 9:45 on the dock, so we gather our beach gear and head to dock and wait for our escort to take us to the shuttle busses to Atlantis. They take us right to the front door, where an Atlantis employee escorts us to the resort's beach, where we receive our rented towel and told we can take a chair from the number of stacks of them and basically "park" them anywhere we want. We find a shady spot, and proceed to get changed into our swim suits. I change in a little "cave" that is actually the underside of a gaz...

Hi all: I know I'm horribly behind on my blog entries, so what I am going to do is insert some "mini entries" and then flesh them out a little later with some additional details. This way, the blog will remain sequential, and I can insert some highlights and "key words" that will remind me of what happened on a particular day before I forget! Sorry for the delay, but I guess it's a good indication that I'm having lots of fun! Bruce

Monday January 9 We awake at 7 p.m. (I set the alarm) and I make a big breakfast of fresh fruit (including fresh grapefruit), pancakes with real maple syrup, bacon, coffee for me, and tea for Julie. I change out the litter, leave a note for Heather to eat the rest of the orange cake along with $40 for taking care of my kitty girls (2 visits). We're out the door by 9:10, and Julie needs to stop for some sunscreen, so we're on I-75 headed to Miami by about 9:30. We make good time, arriving in downtown Miami at about 12:30. I've picked a   "park and shuttle" lot in downtown Miami because I don't want to pay $20/day for parking at the dock. It's not that I'm cheap; I'm just frugal. The parking downtown will run me $6/day, and I'd rather spend the difference on rum drinks aboard the ship! We have a little trouble finding the parking lot, but eventually make it. It’s outdoor parking; I was hoping for covered, but I guess for six bucks a day, you don...

Sunday July 9 Today is the day Julie arrives from Stevens Point, and I'm looking forward to this because tomorrow is our cruise. I spend an hour trying to dispose of prepaid priority mail box that I've prepared for a customer, and damnit if I don't stop at four different places asking if anyone knows where there is a mailbox (I don't even need a post office) and NOBODY knows where there is a regular old fashion blue mailvbox. I'm beginning to feel a little like Aunt Pat and what she is going through … that feeling that I’m getting old and nobody knows what I’m talking about when I ask about a mailbox or where I can buy a Sunday New York Times, or if there is a drinking fountain around somewhere. I mean, I'm not looking for the entrance to Atlantis, for God's sake. I'm looking for a frickin' mail box --- of the type that used to be on practically every corner of every city. I guess I can partially blame the post office for this ... they have removed m...

Saturday January 8 Today I have a third "first date" with another woman, and this is it for now. This is a lunch date, and we're supposed to meet at an upscale grocery market at a nearby mall, and the woman is supposed to pick me up in her Jaguar and take me the rest of the way to the restaurant, because she says it's in the back of the mall and it's hard to find. This is a mall just kind of down the road from me the Bell Tower Shops at Daniels Road and Highway 41, close and easy to find. So I'm standing outside the grocery store, and this Ford Escape (or Explorer; I always get those two confuse) and my date rolls down the passenger window and asks me if I'm looking for a woman from match dot com, and I recognize her and climb into her SUV. Of course the first thing I ask her is what happened to the blue Jag, and she says she is visiting her horse after our date (I didn't know she had a horse; she didn't include that info in her profile) and she di...

Thursday and Friday, Jan. 5 and 6 Thursday: I have another nice workout today, but I kind of have to keep my eye on the clock because I have another "first date" at 4 p.m. with another woman, and we've agreed to meet at a nice little bar/restaurant down the road from me for cocktails. It’s in Estero, about a 15 minute drive from here, at a mall called Coconut Pointe. It’s an upscale mall, but not top scale. There’s about a dozen restaurants to choose from, and she picks a place called Hemingway’s Island Gril.   This turns out to be a much more"conventional" first date, with the usual conversation you would expect from people meeting for the first time. She also offers to drive me around and show me the neighborhood, but by this time it's dark and I don't see too much. But it's a nice gesture. We have a couple of appetizers together at the bar, but it's not enough to hold me, so i have a bowl of granola back at the condo. Friday Jan. 6 Today I de...

Wednesday Jan. 4 Up, and following a nice breakfast, decide to head over to Sanibel Island and check it out. Heather (my landlord) has been saving take out menus for me in a little cigar box, so I pick one of the "Lighthouse Cafe," and decide this will be my lunch place. I go across the big 5 mile bridge/causeway and my $6 bridge toll registers on my Sunpass. First stop in the Lighthouse, and at 1 p.m. the place is pretty busy (but still tame by usual standards according to a couple of the locals I speak with). I order a Grouper sandwich, blackened, with fries and bleu cheese slaw. The Grouper sandwich is delicious, and I 'm quite certain the fish was swimming in the ocean 24 hours prior to me eating it. The platter and an ice tea come to $17, and a I leave a $3 tip. I ask a local couple about a bike rental, and they recommend "Billy's Rentals," so I head over there next, and they set me up with a nice "Beach Cruiser" (big seat, high rise handl...

Tuesday Jan. 3 Fixed myself a nice Denver omelet for breakfast, then head over to the gym for a nice workout. They have a really neat recumbent exercise bike there by the name of "Expresso," and once you hit a few buttons on the touch screen, you find yourself riding a bike on your choice of virtual "trails," including one called "Evening Bliss" which I choose. The ride takes you along a bikepath out in the country as the sun is setting. There are some gentle inclines, and as you ride "through" these, the pressure on the bike pedals automatically increases! It's sort of like "exercise bike meets Playstation" or something along those lines. Anyway, it is very cool, and I am "hooked," but of courrse there is only one of those machines. But fortunateey, I can come at slow hours. And to be honest, the club is mostly filled with senior citizens who I don't think could figure it out anyways. This afternoon (4 p.m.) is my...

Monday Jan. 2 I wake to sunshine and warm temps. After a full breakfast, I go over to the Walmart "Neighborhood Market" and buy needed supplies, including a new change of litter for kitties. I look for a local produce market, and find a neat place on College Blvd. just a stone's throw from me. It turns out to be a Korean War era Quonset hut, with goats grazing in their backyard, and it's called "Pitts Produce." I walk in, and the first thing I see is a large, 8 foot tall bookshelf filled with books with a sign that reads, "Free Books for our Customers. Limit Three." So I scan the shelves and find a near perfect condition hardcover copy of Thomas Harris's "Hannibal," which I have not read yet. So I put the grab on that one, and start looking for produce. I go over to the checkout with four grapefruit, one green pepper, and one vine ripened tomato for $3.25 and walk out with all the produce and a $28 hard cover book. You gotta love...