Intuition
Tuesday March 31 onboard the Big M CasinoGreetings, and I hope this finds you all well and in good spirits. Spring is making its way up north, and I hope the return of warmer temps and longer days is bringing you more smiles and energy.
I can’t believe how quickly the time is flying, and it seems impossible that I have just a month left here before returning to Wisconsin. News flash: I renewed the lease on the Fort Myers apartment for another year, so I am all set for next season and don’t have to worry about packing and moving and/or storing furniture. The landlord (Bob Biasotti) was quite reasonable on the terms, and is only charging me an additional $30 a month on the “base rent” during the 6 months I am not here, and this is to keep the thermostat at 82 degrees to prevent heat and humidity damage. I was completely agreeable to this, especially since now I have furniture and a bed in the apartment.
Just to finish out today, I won $66 at the craps table. I had an ala carte lunch on the ship (not the buffet) consisting of a ham and cheese sandwich (about 8 ounces of ham on it) with Lays potato chips and a soft drink for $7. After the cruise, I drove over to Big Al’s Sports Bar in Bonita Springs to hook up with the widows and widowers social group. I just had a couple of drafts because I was still full from lunch. While six of the group went to different movies, I went to the Miromar Outlet Mall to look around, and then rejoined the group a little after 9 p.m. for ice cream at a place next to the movie theaters. The only thing I bought at the outlet was a potato masher (nylon so it won’t scratch my pans) at one of the kitchen stores, and the rest of the money was spent on dinner (slice of pizza and a diet Coke), candy from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Company, and a cup of Starbucks coffee. Four pieces of chocolate from Rocky Mountain cost me near $13. Granted, it was near 8 ounces of chocolate, but holy cow. While the chocolates were certainly good, I would say the chocolates from Hughes (out of Oshkosh, WI) were just as good, or in the case of the choc. covered toffees, Hughes are better. In all, I spent $33 on eating out food and drink that night among four eating establishments. Glad I had that extra $66 in my pocket.
In my car, on the drive between Miromar Outlet Mall and the ice cream place, I received a call from (sister-in-law) Karen that her sister, Betty, had passed away that day. She had a long history of health issues, so I don’t think it came as a surprise to anyone, but is still unwelcome news to those who loved her. Rest in peace, Betty.
Finally got home around 10:30. Abby met me at the door and seemed glad to see me, although her food bowl was empty and maybe she was scolding me.
Here are some notes from the previous week or so
Monday March 23. First class in my four-session workshop on “Jump Starting Your Intuition.” Instructor Roseanne Vrugtman, Ph.D., is very good. Erudite, and very articulate (her Ph.D. dissertation is on Intuition) but at the same time down to earth, approachable, and very at ease talking to her audience. It was very interesting learning about the studies that have been done on intuition, and some of her work on the subject as well. Looks like it will be a good workshop.
Tuesday March 24. I did a sailing on the Big M casino. For reasons unknown, the casino managers decided to raise the table stakes on craps to a $10 minimum, too rich for my blood, so I switched to a $5 blackjack table, and won $45. Despite low winds that day, the boat was nevertheless rolling pretty good, and one woman on the top deck got terribly seasick and had to be taken off the deck by her husband and one of the crew members. Upon return to dock, I had to drive right away to Bonita Springs to connect with a meetup group I joined, the Naples Younger Widows and Widowers, for dinner and a movie. Dinner tonight was as Buffalo Wild Wings (not my favorite place … sorry Amy) but I went with one of their burgers, and it was good but not great. For the movie, I went with Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and it was really quite enjoyable. I rejoined the group after the movie for ice cream at the next door ice cream shop, and we had a nice discussion and lots of laughs. Jake, our host for this particular event, is a very nice fellow, and from Brooklyn, NY (he how lives on Long Island, and has a place in Ft. Myers (close to me, in fact) so he is a snowbird like me.
Wednesday March 25. Second session (out of four) at my Intuition workshop. Interesting stories by those in attendance. Today’s topic was “How Intuitive Am I?”
Thursday March 26. At about noon, (friend) Nora drove to my apartment, and together we drove in my car to Matlache (pronounced mat-la-SHAY) which is a neat island community connected to Pine Island via bridge, and it has lots of interesting artisan studios and restaurants. We saw some awesome works of art, and not the tacky cheap stuff, but real one-of-kind works of art, and prices into the thousands of dollars. Southwest Florida is truly a magnet for artists, particularly those who enjoy nautical and sea nature motifs. We toured about half a dozen galleries, then had lunch at a place called “Bert’s,” which is favored bar/restaurant in the town. I enjoyed two ice-cold drafts, and a delicious fried grouper sandwich. We then drove on to Pine Island because I wanted to see the “draw” there. It is an interesting island, with a variety of people from all rungs on the economic ladder. The reason it’s not strictly a rich person’s habitat is that fact that there are no beaches on the island like there are on Fort Myer’s Beach, and Sanibel Island. Plus, there’s only one town of any size on the island (in the middle) so if you live on either end of the island (there are small communities on either ends of the island, but no commerce) it’s a 10-mile trip to get supplies, and if you need larger shopping options, you must drive into Cape Coral. It’s certainly a different lifestyle, but one that apparently many people enjoy, as we saw many options, from mobile homes (and even travel trailers) all the way up to multi-million dollar homes. If you have a dock and a boat (and many do) you can sail (or motor boat) all the way up and down the channel and right into the ocean if you want. After that, we drove back to the apartment, and Nora kind of surprised me by inviting me to her home for Easter dinner. She said there will be about 10 people there, a mix of male and female friends of hers. The only thing I was told to bring was beer (if I want beer), that wine and all food would be provided, and the main course will be ham.
Friday March 27. Rained all day today, so no farmer’s market for me. I spent the day reading, writing, and surfing the ‘Net. I did escape for a while at the local Starbucks, and they were celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Starbucks Frappaccino beverage. How did civilization ever survive before the invention of this concoction? I was sitting in the café when a veritable squall blew in, complete with a downpour and 40 mph winds. You should have seen all the patio folks rush into the place to avoid being soaked!
Saturday March 28. I attended the March meeting of the Southwest Florida Writers Association. This particular meeting did not have an educational session (bummer) but instead was their annual meeting to elect officers, and also to announce winners of their organization’s writing contest in various categories (fiction, NF, poetry, etc.). So we only had about a half hour for socializing/networking, but I used it to my benefit and introduced myself to both the outgoing (Denise) and incoming (Michael) program chairpeople to find out about upcoming educational programs and offer my help/ideas for the April meeting, and when I return next November. Denise also put me on to the current issue of Writer’s Digest magazine, which is devoted to nonfiction, and I promptly went to Barnes & Noble after the meeting to pick up a copy. (Single copy, $6.99, by the way. What is happening with the price of magazines, anyway?) Right next to the Barnes & Noble was a Tiger Direct retail outlet, and they were going out of business and offering an additional 10% off their already low prices. (For those who don’t know Tiger Direct, they specialize in selling electronic goods that are closeouts, refurbs, discontinued models, etc. They most often sell via mail catalog and Internet, but they have some physical locations as well, and apparently they didn’t do very well!). Anyway, I was in the market for a new digital camera, since my current one is starting to act up a little bit, and I want to have one “at the ready” when it finally gives up the ghost. So I found a nice Canon Elph model, similar to the one I have, for just $80 with the closeout price and the bonus 10% off on top of that. Nice. Just for trivia’s sake, my first digital camera was a Sony Mavica that used 3.5 inch floppy disks, and you could store up to 12 lo-res photos on a disk, and the camera cost $750. When I got the new “Elph” back to the apartment, I charged the battery and did a start-up just to make sure the camera was in good operating order. So that was a good score, and good timing too because I was looking to buy a camera on amazon.
Monday March 30. Third session today on Intuition, and we had a few new people join us today (you could either sign up for all four sessions, or go to individual sessions ala carte). Some more interesting stories from people, and some advice on how to be more receptive to intuition (the key is to relax, by the way!). Then, lunch at BurgerCue, which I’ve mentioned in previous blog entries. It’s a cross between a burger place and barbecue. And the food is pretty good and reasonably priced. I sat out on the patio, because we had a beautiful day following the soggy Sunday.
So that brings you up to date.
Bruce
I can’t believe how quickly the time is flying, and it seems impossible that I have just a month left here before returning to Wisconsin. News flash: I renewed the lease on the Fort Myers apartment for another year, so I am all set for next season and don’t have to worry about packing and moving and/or storing furniture. The landlord (Bob Biasotti) was quite reasonable on the terms, and is only charging me an additional $30 a month on the “base rent” during the 6 months I am not here, and this is to keep the thermostat at 82 degrees to prevent heat and humidity damage. I was completely agreeable to this, especially since now I have furniture and a bed in the apartment.
Just to finish out today, I won $66 at the craps table. I had an ala carte lunch on the ship (not the buffet) consisting of a ham and cheese sandwich (about 8 ounces of ham on it) with Lays potato chips and a soft drink for $7. After the cruise, I drove over to Big Al’s Sports Bar in Bonita Springs to hook up with the widows and widowers social group. I just had a couple of drafts because I was still full from lunch. While six of the group went to different movies, I went to the Miromar Outlet Mall to look around, and then rejoined the group a little after 9 p.m. for ice cream at a place next to the movie theaters. The only thing I bought at the outlet was a potato masher (nylon so it won’t scratch my pans) at one of the kitchen stores, and the rest of the money was spent on dinner (slice of pizza and a diet Coke), candy from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Company, and a cup of Starbucks coffee. Four pieces of chocolate from Rocky Mountain cost me near $13. Granted, it was near 8 ounces of chocolate, but holy cow. While the chocolates were certainly good, I would say the chocolates from Hughes (out of Oshkosh, WI) were just as good, or in the case of the choc. covered toffees, Hughes are better. In all, I spent $33 on eating out food and drink that night among four eating establishments. Glad I had that extra $66 in my pocket.
In my car, on the drive between Miromar Outlet Mall and the ice cream place, I received a call from (sister-in-law) Karen that her sister, Betty, had passed away that day. She had a long history of health issues, so I don’t think it came as a surprise to anyone, but is still unwelcome news to those who loved her. Rest in peace, Betty.
Finally got home around 10:30. Abby met me at the door and seemed glad to see me, although her food bowl was empty and maybe she was scolding me.
Here are some notes from the previous week or so
Monday March 23. First class in my four-session workshop on “Jump Starting Your Intuition.” Instructor Roseanne Vrugtman, Ph.D., is very good. Erudite, and very articulate (her Ph.D. dissertation is on Intuition) but at the same time down to earth, approachable, and very at ease talking to her audience. It was very interesting learning about the studies that have been done on intuition, and some of her work on the subject as well. Looks like it will be a good workshop.
Tuesday March 24. I did a sailing on the Big M casino. For reasons unknown, the casino managers decided to raise the table stakes on craps to a $10 minimum, too rich for my blood, so I switched to a $5 blackjack table, and won $45. Despite low winds that day, the boat was nevertheless rolling pretty good, and one woman on the top deck got terribly seasick and had to be taken off the deck by her husband and one of the crew members. Upon return to dock, I had to drive right away to Bonita Springs to connect with a meetup group I joined, the Naples Younger Widows and Widowers, for dinner and a movie. Dinner tonight was as Buffalo Wild Wings (not my favorite place … sorry Amy) but I went with one of their burgers, and it was good but not great. For the movie, I went with Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and it was really quite enjoyable. I rejoined the group after the movie for ice cream at the next door ice cream shop, and we had a nice discussion and lots of laughs. Jake, our host for this particular event, is a very nice fellow, and from Brooklyn, NY (he how lives on Long Island, and has a place in Ft. Myers (close to me, in fact) so he is a snowbird like me.
Wednesday March 25. Second session (out of four) at my Intuition workshop. Interesting stories by those in attendance. Today’s topic was “How Intuitive Am I?”
Thursday March 26. At about noon, (friend) Nora drove to my apartment, and together we drove in my car to Matlache (pronounced mat-la-SHAY) which is a neat island community connected to Pine Island via bridge, and it has lots of interesting artisan studios and restaurants. We saw some awesome works of art, and not the tacky cheap stuff, but real one-of-kind works of art, and prices into the thousands of dollars. Southwest Florida is truly a magnet for artists, particularly those who enjoy nautical and sea nature motifs. We toured about half a dozen galleries, then had lunch at a place called “Bert’s,” which is favored bar/restaurant in the town. I enjoyed two ice-cold drafts, and a delicious fried grouper sandwich. We then drove on to Pine Island because I wanted to see the “draw” there. It is an interesting island, with a variety of people from all rungs on the economic ladder. The reason it’s not strictly a rich person’s habitat is that fact that there are no beaches on the island like there are on Fort Myer’s Beach, and Sanibel Island. Plus, there’s only one town of any size on the island (in the middle) so if you live on either end of the island (there are small communities on either ends of the island, but no commerce) it’s a 10-mile trip to get supplies, and if you need larger shopping options, you must drive into Cape Coral. It’s certainly a different lifestyle, but one that apparently many people enjoy, as we saw many options, from mobile homes (and even travel trailers) all the way up to multi-million dollar homes. If you have a dock and a boat (and many do) you can sail (or motor boat) all the way up and down the channel and right into the ocean if you want. After that, we drove back to the apartment, and Nora kind of surprised me by inviting me to her home for Easter dinner. She said there will be about 10 people there, a mix of male and female friends of hers. The only thing I was told to bring was beer (if I want beer), that wine and all food would be provided, and the main course will be ham.
Friday March 27. Rained all day today, so no farmer’s market for me. I spent the day reading, writing, and surfing the ‘Net. I did escape for a while at the local Starbucks, and they were celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Starbucks Frappaccino beverage. How did civilization ever survive before the invention of this concoction? I was sitting in the café when a veritable squall blew in, complete with a downpour and 40 mph winds. You should have seen all the patio folks rush into the place to avoid being soaked!
Saturday March 28. I attended the March meeting of the Southwest Florida Writers Association. This particular meeting did not have an educational session (bummer) but instead was their annual meeting to elect officers, and also to announce winners of their organization’s writing contest in various categories (fiction, NF, poetry, etc.). So we only had about a half hour for socializing/networking, but I used it to my benefit and introduced myself to both the outgoing (Denise) and incoming (Michael) program chairpeople to find out about upcoming educational programs and offer my help/ideas for the April meeting, and when I return next November. Denise also put me on to the current issue of Writer’s Digest magazine, which is devoted to nonfiction, and I promptly went to Barnes & Noble after the meeting to pick up a copy. (Single copy, $6.99, by the way. What is happening with the price of magazines, anyway?) Right next to the Barnes & Noble was a Tiger Direct retail outlet, and they were going out of business and offering an additional 10% off their already low prices. (For those who don’t know Tiger Direct, they specialize in selling electronic goods that are closeouts, refurbs, discontinued models, etc. They most often sell via mail catalog and Internet, but they have some physical locations as well, and apparently they didn’t do very well!). Anyway, I was in the market for a new digital camera, since my current one is starting to act up a little bit, and I want to have one “at the ready” when it finally gives up the ghost. So I found a nice Canon Elph model, similar to the one I have, for just $80 with the closeout price and the bonus 10% off on top of that. Nice. Just for trivia’s sake, my first digital camera was a Sony Mavica that used 3.5 inch floppy disks, and you could store up to 12 lo-res photos on a disk, and the camera cost $750. When I got the new “Elph” back to the apartment, I charged the battery and did a start-up just to make sure the camera was in good operating order. So that was a good score, and good timing too because I was looking to buy a camera on amazon.
Monday March 30. Third session today on Intuition, and we had a few new people join us today (you could either sign up for all four sessions, or go to individual sessions ala carte). Some more interesting stories from people, and some advice on how to be more receptive to intuition (the key is to relax, by the way!). Then, lunch at BurgerCue, which I’ve mentioned in previous blog entries. It’s a cross between a burger place and barbecue. And the food is pretty good and reasonably priced. I sat out on the patio, because we had a beautiful day following the soggy Sunday.
So that brings you up to date.
Bruce
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