Places We Have Called Home In 2020

67

January 23, 2021

Temperature 58 Degrees

Playing Tourist, Part Two

What a difference a day makes.  This morning we awoke to a raw, wet and cool morning. Yesterday it was 80 degrees, today we didn’t even get to 60 degrees. All day it rained off and on.  The cloud cover was the heaviest it has been in a long, long time.  So much so that we lost satellite reception on one and sometimes two of our DISH satellites.  I know, I know not the end of the world just saying that is how bad it is today.

Jumping back to yesterday when it was so warm and beautiful.

This was our second stop yesterday afternoon.

Waterfront Park is conveniently located along Lake Minneola, nestled between East Avenue and Eighth Street.  Lake Minneola is part of the Clermont chain of lakes centered on Clermont, Florida.  The other two lakes in the chain are Lake Minnehaha and Lake Louisa.

There is a Splash Park for the kids, of course closed due to the virus.  Who knows how long it will be before it opens again.

A beautiful swimming beach.  No one was brave enough to test the waters while we were there.

A short pier allows you to stretch your legs and get out over the water.  The average depth of the water is just ten feet.

There are clean public restrooms and a nice area to just sit and have a picnic.  We’re hoping to come back another day for just that.

There is also a nice paved trail that runs around the entire lake which we didn’t try yesterday but maybe if and when we return we’ll give it a go.

We absolutely enjoyed our time at Waterfront Park.  It was a wonderful way to get out and enjoy the beauty of the world that God has created.

Our day has come to an end on The Road of Retirement.  Time now for a nice, warm cup of soup.  After that we’ll probably start another round of Mexican Train.  Hopefully, we’ll have a warmer day tomorrow.  Till then enjoy your evening.

Thanks for stopping by today.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!

 

 

 

 

Places We Have Called Home In 2020

68

January 22, 2021

Temperature 80 Degrees

Playing Tourist

We awoke to another beautiful day this morning.  Plenty of sunshine and nice warm temperatures.  A quick cup of coffee and a muffin and I was ready to face the day.

It was time to get out and about.  It didn’t really matter where we went, we just knew we had to go.  Where did we end up?

A bit of history about the tower. . .

That’s the equivalent of 22 stories!

It also contains 149,000 pounds of reinforcing steel.

How about those dresses!

It opened to great fanfare.

Remember, at that time there was no Walt Disney World or Universal Studios.  If you visited Orlando in those days and wanted to go to a Florida tourist attraction, you pretty much had to drive out to Clermont to see the tower.

 

Today, a smooth elevator ride is the way to the top.  It is sort of weird in that the elevator only has two buttons – for the first floor – the lobby, and the second floor – the glass enclosed observation deck.  No stopping anywhere inbetween.

The tower was built to showcase the hundreds of thousands of citrus trees that covered Central Florida in those days.  Back then, one third of Florida’s total citrus groves could be viewed from the top of the tower.

Today, there are no citrus groves to be seen.  They were destroyed by devastating freezes in the early 1980’s and later more were destroyed by a disease that continues to impact the citrus industry in Florida today.  Now, the land surrounding the tower has been developed into residential subdivisions and shopping malls.  Here is the view from the top today.

It was a wonderful way to spend a day out.  But we weren’t done, however, we’ll save our second stop for tomorrow’s blog.

That was part of our day today on The Road of Retirement.  We both needed a day like today.  All in all, we had a delightful time walking hand in hand, enjoying the beauty of the world that God created.  We’ve promised ourselves that we’re going to do this more often.  Where we’ll go, we’re not sure just yet.  But we’ll find places to visit rest assured.

Thanks for stopping by today.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!

 

 

 

 

Places We Have Called Home in 2020

69

January 21, 2021

Temperature 75 Degrees

The First Bump in the Road – Departure in Possible Jeopardy

Today was the Florida that I came for.  The moring was cool but comfortable.  The sky was deep blue with a wisp of clouds here and there.  And it only got better as the day went on.  The temperature eventually reached the 70’s by early afternoon.

Such a beautiful day for just sitting on the patio with a book in hand.  Which is exactly what I did.  I also popped a new propane bottle on our portable grill and grilled up a steak for our mid-afternoon meal.  Oh yes, life is good.

I knew from experience that despite this being a New Year as in years past there were going to be bumps in the road.  However, I wasn’t expecting the first one to come so soon.

  You can hardly be alive without being aware of the number of things that can befall you just because you exist. For me, prostate cancer was not high on the list.  Yet, I have just recently been diagnosed with Prostate Cancer.

Research tells me:

According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in American men, after skin cancer. It is also the second leading cause of cancer deaths in American men, after lung cancer. One man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, about two-thirds of whom are over age 65. Yet, fewer than three percent of American men will die from prostate cancer.

So far so good.

As to what happens from this point on I’m not exactly sure of yet.   This past Monday, following an earlier MRI, I had a biopsy of the prostate.  When the results of the biopsy come back we’ll then make a decision as to what course of action to take.  There are basically three options when dealing with prostate cancer—radiation, surgery and active surveillance.  When all the results are in we’ll make an appointment with a cancer specialist – possibily at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa – and we’ll go from there.

The reassuring thing is, my neighbor Eddie who is 84 had Prostate Cancer over twenty years ago.  He shared with me that at that time he had his prostate removed and he is doing just fine today.

Bottom line, I don’t believe I have anything to get all worked up about.  It is what it is and it will get taken care of.  We might end up spending another month here in Florida – maybe – but it isn’t going to spell the end of our time on the road.  Oh no, you can bet on that.

That is where we are on The Road of Retirement.  We’ve hit a small bump even before we’re out of the gate.  But better here while we’re stationary.  I still believe we are two of the most blessed and fortunate people in the world.

Thanks for checking in with us today.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!

 

 

Places We Have Called Home In 2020

70

January 18, 2021

Temperature 69 Degrees

Turning Back The Pages Of Time

Remember you said you wanted to try living in an RV?

Well, there is no time like the present.

With no jobs and no house to tie us down we decided we were going to go for it.  Never mind that we had never owned an RV, much less spent a night in one.  I mean what did we have to loose?

We found our first rig in PA.  It was a 2007 Itasca Sunrise that was 36 feet long. We scheduled a visit, liked what we saw, made a lowball offer, and we owned our first motorhome.  An inspection revealed that there were no major issues so a month later we went and picked it up.

October of 2017 we moved in.  Did I mention we were still in NJ?  It was winter.  And it was cold.  The fact that we made it through those first three months still amazes me.  We ran the furnace.  Wore multiple layers of clothes.  Blankets, we had mountains of them on the bed every night.

Finally, time to move south.  We were headed to Florida.

Our first winter home in the Escapees Park in Bushnell, Florida.  Guess what?  It was warmer but not by all that much.  At least there was no snow.

Finally, the day came when we could put away the coats and all the blankets that had been on the bed.  Oh, what a happy day it was.

In due time we were on the move.

Our first stop heading north was at this beautiful state park in GA.  As we set up we soon discovered that we had a lot to learn.  And we’re still learning today.

We moved up the coast to North Carolina.

We discovered this unique park which we spent a delightful afternoon visiting.

Continuing north we made it to Vermont.

This was our home for a couple of weeks during our stay in this state.  This, by the way is the total campground.  When we pulled in we looked at each other wondering if maybe we were at the wrong address.  This, though, would become one of our favorite stops that first year.  The campground was owned and managed by a young couple who went out of their way to make you feel like family.  Moreover, they put on a July 4th fireworks display that put the Macy’s display to shame.

We visited a number of places in this state but this cemetary remains etched in our memories for the many unique gravestones found here.  Here are a few. . .

Finally, we made it to Maine.  Here we discovered this guy.

It was also during our time in Maine that I got to feast on lots and lots of seafood.

And this was a first for me.

That my friends was an oh so small part of our first year.  We survived,  We adapted.  We laughed.  We cried.  But through it all we traveled along, hand in hand, singing our song.  And ask us today and we will tell you that we are two of the most blessed and fortunate people in the world.

Thanks for checking in with us today.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!