Bruce's Travels

I went to a bar/grill last night (Cadillac Jacks) to introduce myself to the leader of the "Singles and Couples 40 and over in Southwest Florida" group, and ended up had a very nice time. I arrived early and had dinner at the bar of something they call the "Italian burger" which is one of their most popular sandwiches. It's a half-pound hamburger on a bun, and they top it with about 1/4 pound of their sliced Italian beef, and then finished off with Mozzarella cheese. Downed with a rum and coke, and Diet Coke after that. Yum! I introduced myself to "Ed" the group leader, and showed the required ID to join the group. The group had 36 reserved seats for the band's performance, and all were full though Ed put me on standby in case there were no-shows, but everyone made it. So I ended up sitting at the bar, but found some company there to talk with, including a lovely gal about 10 years my senior, who I think was out trolling on her own. The place was...

Friday: I started the day with a bike ride to Lakes Park (my first major bike ride since arriving here) for the Friday farmer's market, and was greeted with the first strawberries of the season. I bought a pint for $2.50 and ate them along with a raspberry danish and a good strong cup of Joe from the coffee vendor there. All very delicious. Faced a helluva head wind on the ride back to the apartment, but made it, and now I have my workout done for the day! I sent out my "email blast" to my customers announcing 10 new watches on the website, wired in three prescriptions via computer to the CVS pharmacy, then headed over to the Fleamasters flea market to see what I could find. I talked with a couple of the watch vendors there, and bought a watchband from one of the guys for $12, and got him to loosen the back of one of my vintage watches at no extra charge. A nice fellow, but no vintage watches for sale. I had lunch at the one of the food vendors called "A Taste of M...

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving. I started out the morning with a fresh grapefruit (peeled and sectioned) and a strawberry banana smoothie. I then photographed some eBay lots, and then tuned into the Macy's parade on NBC. It got off to a bit of a slow start for me, with that song and dance number by Tony Danza from the Broadway musical Honeymoon in Vegas. My god, who told that guy he could sing? Or act, for that matter? But after that, it was most enjoyable, and I certainly thought the Madison Scouts hit it out of the park with their rendition of Happy just before Santa Claus' arrival. By the way, I have to say Abby enjoys the new recliner, so much so that I have to boot her out occasionally. Also, she made it outside the confines of the lanai today, wedging her considerable bulk through a tear in the screen. So the lanai is now off limits until I can find a way to mend the tear ... probably a combination of duct tape and a few bricks lined up along the outside edge o...

I returned to the Community Thrift Store today to pick up my dresser, and got it back to the apartment safely, but the bigger news is that I found and bought a La-Z-Boy recliner through an ad on Craigslist. The sellers were a retired couple in Cape Coral who are refurnishing their home, and they simply need to get rid of the existing furniture. The chair is a rocker/recliner combination and, get this, it has a back massage feature built in. The chair plugs in, and then you have this remote control to activate an inflatable air pillow that rolls up and down your lumbar area. I wasn't really looking for a recliner with any "extras," but it is a very comfortable recliner if you just sit it in unplugged, and besides the guy only asked $100 for it. So I didn't even haggle with the price. The chair is in such nice condition ... even has the original arm and head covers came with it, and it looks like they took really good care of it. So here are photos of my new dresser and...

My return trip to the Community Thrift Store (next to Planet Fitness) today paid off, as I found a cute little dresser for the bedroom. Actually, I think it's a nightstand to a really large dresser/nightstand pair, because the actual dresser was at the thrift store also, but they had each priced individually, so I think for $40, this "nightstand" will serve just fine as my dresser. I'm trying to keep things on the small side for easier moving/storage, or whatever. Anyway, the TV is now off the upside-down Rubbermaid tub, and the cable box and modem are off the floor. The Rubbermaid tub is now serving as a temporary nightstand, and I bought a lamp to go on top so I can now do some bedside reading. Also scored a TV/entertainment stand from a craigslist seller in Estero (just south of the Fort Myers) which I picked up for $20 and have all set up in the living room. The scale is just right for the space I have. I'll post photos of both pieces on the next blog entry,...

Sunday Nov. 23 Kind of a hot humid day today, so I pretty much stayed inside. I did manage to put the new seat on the bicycle, so here is a photo of that: Upland Beach Cruiser with comfort seat and removable basket Monday Nov. 24 Another hot and humid one today. I googled a list of thrift stores within a 10-mile radius of me, and figured out the most efficient route and drove to all five of them in the hopes of finding some furniture, but came up empty. One place, the Blessed Pope John XXIII Thrift Store, was like a boutique with prices to match, which I found ironic in that sort of "poor-people-can't-afford-to-shop-here" way. Another had a nice overstuffed chair with ottoman, but it was $125 which I thought was a bit pricey, and I really want a recliner. One store was closed, so I will return to that one tomorrow, which according to plan was right next door to Planet Fitness. So I got a nice workout for the day, and afterward I was hungry for Dim Sum. There i...

Thursday, I made good on my threat to buy a printer. I have four eBay lots ending tomorrow, and I just can't bear the thought of standing at the print desk at Office Depot any more. I bought a Samsung bare bones laser printer and hooked it up to tablet that night. I can only print with the cable connected between the printer and the computer; I cannot print wirelessly due to the operating system of this tablet computer. But that's OK. For the small (but vital) amount printing I need to do,, this will work fine. For $84, it has saved me a $1,000 worth of headaches for the time I will be here. Best of all, the dry toner powder will last indefinitely, so I can leave the printer here for next season. I contacted Cape Spirits in Cape Coral via email to tour their rum distillery at 1 p.m. This is the place Heather (my former landlord here) told me about and said that her boyfriend, Danny, is the head distiller. Their main products are "Wicked Dolphin Rum" and "Rumshi...