The Weekend

Friday March 2 - Sunday March 4

Friday -- The article I'm writing for NAWCC Bulletin is coming along nicely. I've obtained permission from a couple of "watch guys" to use their images on the Internet for inclusion in my article. I'm pleased at how most people will grant permission if you simply ask them. And I think the promise of a credit line (e.g., Image by Joe Blow, used with permission) helps, too. Sort of gives them a little slice of immortality, I guess.

I head over to the flea market, and the highlight of my day is that I find my "beer koozie," for which I've been looking for awhile. This little zippered jacket that goes over a standard beer bottle helps keep the beer colder longer when you're at the beach, or at tail gate party, or anywhere outside where it's hot. I find a booth at the flea market that has a whole wall of them. Just shows you how big this particular flea market is. This about my 5th or 6th trip to the flea market, and I only just discovered this booth today! Anyway, I was forced to pick a sports team for my beer koozie, because there were no blank ones, or ones with Corona Beer on them or anything, so in picking the dog with least number of fleas, I went with the Green Bay Packers. I will proudly display my koozie at the beach (sounds kind of obscene, doesn't it?), and who knows, it may be the perfect conversation starter with some beautiful 50-something woman from Wisconsin (I should be able to tell by the pale skin), or could start an argument with some rabid Chicago Bears fan. It could go either way. But since they didn't have a beer koozie that read "I have no interest in sports; I just like to keep my beer cold," I had to go with the Packers.

I also pick up a copy of "Leatherheads," (the movie) from the DVD lady. It looks kind of fun, and I think this is the movie debut of the television actor John Krasinski, who plays the likable "Jim Halpert" in "The Office." We'll see how this goes. I also stop and see my buddy "Chris" at his book booth, and give him my copy of "Isaac's Storm" as a gift as a gesture of goodwill. I also pick up a bag of grapefruit.

Also today, I write a nice review on tripadvisor.com of  "Coconuts," the pool bar/cafe at "Casa Ybel." It's partially a favor for my landlord, Heather, who works there. But partially because I really enjoyed my time there and want to spread the word. If you want to read it, click here.

Saturday March 3

Not much going on today. As is my "routine" that I've established, I kind of cool my heels during the weekend because so many people are at the beach and over to Sanibel Island, and just generally out and about clogging up the streets, shopping centers, and restaurants. This is the big weekend of Sanibel's "Shell-a-bration," so I know the island will be especially packed today. My weekend routine is an example of how I like to "zig" while everyone else is "zagging."

Heather, my landlord, contacts me to confirm she will be showing the condo on Monday morning between 9 and 10 a.m., and makes one last effort to offer the condo to me on a year's lease. I think she would give it to me for $900/month if I took it for the year (I'm paying $1650/month to rent it during the "high season.") As tempting as this is, I have to decline. There are simply too many variables, not the least of which is the fact there are other areas of Florida still to explore, including more of the west coast (Sarasota and Tampa/St. Petersburg come to mind). Heather makes all kinds of tempting suggestions, like how I could enlist family and friends to use the condo for part of the year and help offset expenses, and so forth. But I really don't want to get into this kind of situation, in effect becoming a landlord myself, of sorts. So, for better or worse, I decline, but I think it is the smart move at this point.

Tonight, Lindsay Lohan is hosting Saturday Night Live. Even though I find her antics acutely annoying, I confess a certain perverse interest in her, of the sort where you see two trains on a track barreling toward each other for a head-on collision. You know a disaster is coming, but you cannot take your eyes off it. But I do not make it. I figure I can watch any highlights tomorrow on Youtube (or some other source), and besides SNL does not start until 11:30 here on Eastern Time. So I defer to my body's biological rhythms, and head to bed at 10:30 p.m.

Sunday

I awake, and check the Internet for SNL clips, and sure enough find a highlight clip titled "Real Housewives of Disney" with Lohan as one of the princesses. It is absolutely hilarious, and one of the best skits I've seen in recent years on SNL. This will surely become one of SNL's "classic skits," ranking up there with Alec Baldwin's "Schweddy Balls" and Dan Akroyd's "Bass-O-Matic." If you haven't seen the "Housewives" skit, check it out. You'll never look at Cinderella, Snow White, Belle, Ariel, et. al., the same way again!

I decide that tomorrow morning, during the condo showing, I will make myself scarce and try a family restaurant for breakfast that my landlord, Heather, has recommend, called "Marti's Family Restaurant." It's on San Carlos Blvd., on the way to the beach, and is supposed to be real "locals" hangout. I email my friend, Carol, and ask if she would like to join me, and she says yes. So I am looking forward to this.

I spend some time at the condo pool today, and finish "Sanibel Flats," by Randy Wayne White. White has officially become my new fav "action/adventure" author, replacing Clive Cussler. Cussler has sadly retired Dirk Pitt, who has been my hero for many years. I can't fault Cussler for sending him off into retirement. Like all of us, Pitt can't stay young forever. But Cussler unfortunately did not find a suitable replacement for Dirk. His current books, which involve a lot of collaborations with various co-authors, simply do not interest me.

White's protagonist,  "Marion 'Doc' Ford," is an immanently likable character, like Dirk Pitt in many ways. But he is also more complex than Pitt, in that he is a flawed hero and, as much, is more multi-layered than Pitt, who is perfect in every way and, thus, a much more "flat" character. Ford has his demons, a past that he can't quite come to terms with, and his relationships with women are "complicated." He is brilliant, but has no need to show it off. He comes to the rescue of the downtrodden and the underdog. And in the end, he does the right thing, even thought it hurts, because he will not sacrifice his core values/beliefs for the sake of a compromise that may provide some short-term satisfaction. I'm looking forward to getting more acquainted with White and "Doc Ford," and there will be plenty of opportunity because, at last count, there are 18 "Doc Ford" adventures! I am going to try and read them in chronological order. The next two are "Heat Islands," and "The Man Who Invented Florida," and I have them both in paperback, thanks to my book buddy, Chris, at the Fleamarket.

I email (niece) Kris, and tell her that I am done with "Sanibel Flats," and that she should go ahead and loan me the e-book "The Cat Manual" on Kindle. She sends me a link via email. I click on it and, bingo, it's loaded onto my Kindle. I love this kind of technology, and promise Kris I will read it first thing, now that my attention is temporarily diverted from Doc Ford. I am also looking forward to giving my eyes a rest by reading a book on the Kindle. The one bad thing about "Sanibel Flats" was the absolute horrible quality of the print. I realize I am 55, and my eyesight (which was never good to begin with) ain't what it used to be, but I'm telling you Sanibel Flats was one of the "hardest" books I had to read in terms of the print quality.

An eBay auction of mine ends this evening, an early Swiss-made military watch that brings a measly $20.50. I was hoping for more, but this is how it goes sometimes. The watch is broken and needs servicing, and I know first-hand how expensive this can be, especially with the very early wristwatches, for which parts are difficult (and often impossible) to obtain. Obviously, many eBay watch buyers are getting wise to this, also, and aren't bidding like they used to for "mechanic's specials."

Expenses: flea market, $10.

Bruce