The Seven Plagues of Florida and How Our Heroes Prevailed

Last week was the hardest one we've endured so far.  In the depths, we thought of the Seven Plagues of Florida.

1. The End of the World, which is what Flamingo campground in the Everglades, was proposed to be named.  Someone thought it was maybe a bit extreme, so they named it Flamingo and painted the visitors' center pink.  We vote for End of the World!  You've already read about the hordes of mosquitos but print does not convey the true torture of the reality.  Buzz buzz buzz!!  Bite bite bite!!! Suck suck suck!   Splat splat splat!!!!

2.  Heat.  It is some solace that there have already been snow and ice storms back home, but this heat was hard to take!

3.  Humidity.  This is a no-brainer because we were in the largest fresh-water system in the U.S. and next to the ocean and gulf, but the combination of heat and humidity made it hard to breathe and harder to think!

4.  Loooooong red lights.  I guess the median age must just about equal the temperature, so reflex time is waaaaay down.  But I swear you could read a book!

5. A**hole drivers!!  I learned to drive in Chicago, and I know NYC is supposed to be combat-driving, but the people down here delight in honking and cutting each other off.  I guess it makes sense, because most Floridians probably come from Chicago and New Yawk!!  There were a couple of times where I put on my blinker and tried to switch lanes as the light turned green.  Probably a dozen cars just kept on going, with one guy just about ramming me!  Not to mention the F-bombs exploding everywhere!!

6.  Monsoon rains!  Already covered, with a photo, but we took between 6 and 7 inches in 2 days near Miami.  The camper sprung a leak by the pop-out.  We talked with a couple the next morning who said that just about everybody had sprung a leak!  We had a lake outside our door.  I think my brain sprung a leak!  It just about sank the ship!!

7.  We're not sure yet because we're still in Florida.  We're sure something will make itself known.

HOW OUR HEROES PREVAILED...(BTW, that's us :)

Karen: We couldn't take the Glades any longer! We had reserved Flamingo for 14 days...little did we know!!! So we found the Larry and Penny Thompson Campground, that we mentioned previously and stayed there. We were supposed to go back to Flamingo, drop off the camper and head to the Keys to tent camp for 5 days, however, the forecast was RAIN, RAIN AND MORE RAIN!

We decided to get the HELL out of dodge! Jim couldn't even bare the thought of driving the 50 miles back to Flamingo to drop off the camper. Instead, we headed north. Jim had never been to Miami so we drove through South Beach, and  yes, it's everything they say it is. Young, Hip, Cosmopolitan everywhere! Of course we knew we fit in perfectly, but we left the checkbook back in the camper.

So onward to visit an old high school friend of mine, Carolyn, who stays at her condo in N. Miami once or twice a year when she wants some sun and sand away from Colorado.

Carolyn's Condo, Lauderdale By the Sea

Condo was The Hampton Beach Club

Lobby of HB Condo: Condo or Camping???? Hmmmmmmmm ????

No caption needed!

The best part...she had no idea we were going to descend upon her! As shocked as she was "Reinhardt, what the hell are you doin here?!" She invited us to stay the night. We ordered pizza in, snuck Tank in the condo and proceeded to have a libacious time...just like the "good ol' days!"

One of the views from Carolyn's condo on the 7th floor

Jim: I have always said, "You don't need to own ocean front property, you just need to have a friend that does!"  Amen, and thank you, Carolyn!  Seeya next year!!














The next morning we drove back toward our friends Skip and Terri (and Kevin the Highway Man) near Venice.  This time we stayed at Oscar Scherer State Park, about 20 miles down the road from Ramblers' Rest.  Nearly $20 a night cheaper...

Woke up the next morning and it was like an early fall day in Minnesota!!  Clear blue sky and about 65 degrees, with low humidity!  OMG!!  Our heroes have prevailed, at least for now!

Karen, reading in the den!

So we did some things around camp, then headed toward Skip and Terri's place.  While Skip and Kevin worked on Skip's new ride, a Honda Gold Wing,  Four Flat Fantasy and water cooled, we set up the amps and got out our guitars for a practice of our new band, LoveStrong Jammers!

Then Karen and I headed for Siesta Key, a place where my sister Mel and her dos amigos Nancy and Sara, had gone for their 50th birthdays.  The beach is fine white sand and a mile wide!!  Almost like snow..  hee hee!!

We celebrated happy hour at the Old Salty Dog on Mel's recommendation, then headed to SKOB (Siesta Key Oyster Bar), where Skip and Terri met up with us for our debut performance at the Open Mic.

Jim on guitar, Karen on bass( a debut within a debut!), and Skip on conga, with all sharing vocals.

We played 5 songs (Pride and Joy, Once in Every Lifetime, Human Condition, Let's Talk Dirty in Hawaiian, and a FOMA song called The Six Fears).  We had a blast and were well received!

The next day, Wednesday, we had an unusually relaxing day (o.k., I know that sounds strange, but it was a trying week! ;) We woke late, went for a long hike on the trails here with Tank then biked the Legacy Trail (once a railroad) for about an hour. Back off to dinner with the three Stooges (Skip, Terri and Kevin) where I made a luscious meal of sauteed veggies, spaghetti squash on the grill and chicken on the grill with a mole rub. Yummy.

Catching up on the Blog in our "office."

Today we are on our way back to Homestead, a stepping stone back to the Keys (no rain?!?!)