Sunday January 12
Julie arrived yesterday (Friday) and we are preparing to leave on our cruise tomorrow. We spent part of today at Lakes Park and rode a dual recumbent bicycle around the park which was very much fun, and a good workout as well. After that, we went to Pincher's Crab Shack at the downtown marina and had a lovely lunch of fried clams (me) and broiled grouper (Julie). We came back to the apartment and watched the remainder of the Packers/Cowboys game because Julie is a Packer's fan. We are just hanging out now; I'm doing a load of laundry, and finished packing my suitcase and (carry-on) backpack. We may go out for a light bite before bedtime.
OK, I took a little break from this entry, and Julie and I headed down to Mel's Diner, where we split the special of the evening -- a roast pork dinner with stuffing, mashed potatoes, red cabbage, and salad. It was plenty for the both of us, and we each got a mini dessert -- creme brule for me, and a mini chocolate sundae for Julie. The total bill with tip was $22, so it was definitely one of the best meal bargains around, and there was plenty for each of us as the portions at Mel's are insanely huge.
Backtracking a bit, on Wednesday, I finally hit my favorite Mexican restaurant (La Casita) on the day they make homemade tamales. And oh my god, they were delicious. I will probably mark Wednesdays on my calendar as tamale day.
The big news for me this past week was that my Microsoft Surface tablet computer died on me, and I spent the greater part of two days Thursday and Friday) running around town trying several solutions (which did not work), including a trip to the much-dreaded Best Buy, which always gives me cramps whenever I enter their store, but sometime you gotta do it. Eventually, on Friday, I bought a used laptop computer for $175 at the Fleamasters flea market, which I am using now. The tablet computer I sent off to Microsoft via Fed Ex, and they promised to either fix the problem, or send me a totally new computer. While at Fleamasters, I broke down and bought two pair of Sketcher athletic shoes, and ponied up the $140 for two pairs. There was just no getting around it, and Julie told me not to feel bad, because with her size 12 narrow feet, she had to pay $150 for just one pair. So anyway, I'll be going on the cruise with new shoes. One pair is grey, and the other bright red. Wanted to do something different this time rather than the usual white.
Through a little investigating on the web, I found a group of watch and clock collectors that meets every second Saturday of the month. So I met up with them on Saturday at 10 a.m., and found a couple of other guys who are into watches (the rest of the 20 or so people who were there are into clocks) so was able to do a little buying and a little trading. Nice group of people. I got snagged into volunteering for an "expo" that the club is putting on Feb. 14 at the Fort Myers public library. I will display a few watches from my inventory, and sit at a table for part of the day and give informal appraisals to anyone that might walk in with a watch. I stayed for the club's luncheon, at $12, which consisted of of a cold cut sandwich, chips, cole slaw, and ice tea.
Julie's plane was due in at 5:10, so at about 3:30 I was hungry again, and so went to a Five Guys Burger, and had a regular burger and soda, and then headed out to the airport and waited for Julie's flight to come in, which was delayed by about a half hour. We collected Julie's luggage, then headed back to the apartment, where I made us some sandwiches and macaroni salad. We watched a little TV, then headed off to bed, as Julie was kind of tired from all the travel.
I haven't decided whether to take this heavy laptop on the cruise ship with me or not. I may just keep a handwritten diary while on the cruise. But regardless, I won't have Internet access, so you won't hear from me for a while. But the week ahead looks to be one of relaxation and pampering. I have four books I'm taking along, and hope to finish at least a couple of them. This cruise has two full days at sea, so it should be very relaxing in addition to our two ports of call --- Georgetown Grand Cayman, and Cozumel, Mexico.
Take care, everyone,
Bruce
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