Jewfish Creek Bridge, The Video

Once upon a time, I made my trip to the Florida Keys.

There is a very stark break between the mainland and the Everglades in Florida City.  Everything simply "Stops".

You get past that and there are a very few businesses way off in the middle of nowhere.  A cement factory and a quarry come to mind.  A marina is just on the other side of the Monroe county line.  But until you get to Key Largo, there's practically nothing but grass and nature.

And this one massive scar through the landscape called US1.

Granted it is a scar, but you actually need it there to get to the Keys.

I am sure some people who are more ecologically aware would say that it does not belong there, nor do we in an ecological niche like those beautiful little jewels, but there are also people that would argue that nobody should live below the I-4 line where the land ceases to be land but more like a swamp.

Like I said, I'm not that ecologically aware.  My own feeling is don't expand it, and contract development in the keys where possible.  But no draconian solutions, please.  They are beautiful and we can enjoy them if we play nice with nature.

Just before you go onto the island that Key Largo is on, there's one big deep water gap.  A "Cut" so the larger boats can go into or out of the Florida Bay.  That is at what is now the Jewfish Creek bridge.

I realize I am being a small bit imprecise, but grant me that.

Since the old drawbridge was replaced years ago, they built an improved structure and then the bridge we have now.

The bridge itself is kind of minimalistic, maybe a bit stark, and painted in aqua blue, which is befitting of a place as knock down beautiful as the keys.

One of my earlier trips I took a picture and wrote about it.  For some strange reason in all the 8 or more years that I have been writing, that particular article gets read frequently.

What I did was revisit it.  I was down there for my birthday, a few days later.  Knowing that I was going there,  I brought my little video camera for the trip.  Hopefully this video will satisfy the area's fans.

Hopefully my color commentary won't offend too much and that my very shaky hand is not too awful.  But for now, I present the video.  For your pleasure or disdain.

Who's Vacation Is It Anyway?

When I lived in Philadelphia people would ask: "When's the last time you went to see the Liberty Bell?".

Normally when I heard someone respond they'd say "Oh back when I was a kid" or "A couple years back".

I did go to see it from time to time.  I have a great picture somewhere, probably lost to the ages, of someone walking behind it so that it looked like The Bell was walking somewhere.

I guess you had to be there.

But that's the thing.  The Locals don't do these sorts of things. 

Oh sure, I was at The Rocky Steps, the Art Museum Steps in Philly, many times.  It was a great place to cool down when I had a race or was just out training.  It's also a great place to rub shoulders and meet up with friends, or friends to be.  But to go TO the Rocky Steps to do that run up them?  Nah.  The Art Museum in Philadelphia is a totally different thing, a world class museum of Art that if you're there, you should go see it.  I did... Back when I was in High School.

Get the picture? 

Now that I've been here 9 years, I'm starting to grow roots.  Some of them are quite deep, the others may just be a bit grey, but they're sinking in.  I'm beginning to make those comments about my adopted home city of Wilton Manors and Fort Lauderdale area in general.

"The Beach?  Floridians don't go there except in their car to look at it.  It's pretty but it's just full of tourists!"

"South Beach is a nice place to go for a meal but it's such a hassle to get there.  You can drive through it though and look like you're in an episode of Miami Vice or Grand Theft Auto!".

"The Keys?  You have to do it at least once, that drive to Key West, but be careful.  It could last anywhere between 4 to 12 hours to get to Key West.  I heard once there was a fender bender in the island just above Key West and the traffic didn't clear for two whole days!"

You know, those comments "Locals" say when they have been there a while.

So add to it the general "Nice" factor and you know what I am going through this week.

"Whaddya wanna do?"
"I dunno, what do YOU want to do?"

Then suggestions are made, the nay sayers are heard, and eventually something happens to the day.

Nice to have a day to "kill" anyway, right?  You're in paradise, the sun is bright, the weather is warm, the Everglades are burning because the wet season paused.

Oh that last one happens around this time of year.  You see things dry up and burn out there on the river of grass.

But yeah, you'll see it.  We can go for a drive there.  Hit Federal Highway and maybe drive down to the Keys if it's not backed up. 

Lifeguard Hut on Fort Lauderdale Beach

It is difficult to think of a more South Florida scene.

Lifeguard Hut.  Beach chair.  Sailboat.  Sand and Surf.

Perhaps if you added a pod of Dolphin or a Manatee?

This is the sort of thing you see when you're stuck in traffic on A1A on a late weekend afternoon.

The sun blazing, people enjoying some time off from whatever keeps them occupied, and being outside never hurt.  The beach is always busy, people come from far and wide to be right there.  I can honestly say it was one of the reasons why I moved here, although I haven't put foot to sand since 2006.

But it is there, 2 miles from my home, and I can get there any time I want. 

Bill and Marjory Share a Seat at Fairchild Gardens - Picture

If you are walking around a large public area and happen across a seat, you're going to borrow it for a bit even if you don't necessarily need it.

If you own that public area and want to tell a story, put a piece of public art there.   It will engage people, tell that story, and give them a chance to learn more about your story.  

That's all rather common, people have done that sort of adornment for as long as there have been people.  Cave paintings started it all, and we have progressed from that.

In the case of the bench, this is a bit more than a random occurrence.

I told my cousin Bill when we had our visit to have a seat next to the little old lady and we'll get a picture of you for when you go back home.  A digital souvenir.  Bill doesn't like having pictures taken of him, something I can understand.  I tend to be that guy behind the camera and not in front of it, which is why you see very few pictures of myself on this blog.

So we had our curmudgeonly grumblings back and forth and didn't see a sign explaining why there was a bronze representation of a little old lady under a giant Gumbo Limbo tree enjoying her morning, but eventually we figured we'd find some rather insistent volunteer who would tell us all about her.

It turns out that this particular little old lady absolutely deserved the honor of place and presence.

She was the writer of the book that drew the rest of the world's attention to the beauty of the Everglades and was responsible for Florida becoming the tourist attraction it is today.   If you visit Florida, love or live here, it is in part because of this woman.   She was Marjory Stoneman Douglas, who worked as a writer, Secretary for Fairchild Gardens, and quite a long resume of works for the public good.   Certainly deserving memory and a visit from us and the attention that she gets every day at Fairchild Gardens.

A rather pretty spot to sit down, have a regroup, and a sip of water from your canteen under the shade of a spreading tree.

Fairchild Gardens Water Lily Picture

I am normally disappointed with the concept of a Botanical Garden. 

Oh grant you, the beauty is amazing, the education opportunities are many, and they serve an incredible purpose. 

I always find myself wondering "Where can I get THAT?" when I leave.   It is like window shopping when you are in another city and you've left your wallet at the hotel.

I had been resisting going to Fairchild Botanical Gardens for quite a while.  Finally with my cousin in town, I had no excuse to not go so I went along. 

The place is simply put, breathtaking.   Absolutely worth a visit.  We walked into the front gate after being asked why we weren't members.  Cousin Bill found that they were not in a Reciprocal Agreement with the botanical gardens in Omaha, Nebraska. 

After we managed to get past the volunteers, we entered a little court yard.  The building was being guarded by a hand sized lizard with a red head, grey body, and white rings that I had never seen before.  It wasn't too happy with my trying to get a good view and focus on it with that little camera of mine.   I really do need to get a proper digital SLR one of these days.

Stepping under the breezeway, we saw the water feature.   In the feature were these water lilies.  If you have the plant in bloom, and you get the right angle and light, it is next to impossible to get at least a "good" picture of a water lily.  Playing with the angle with my digital camera and zooming in, the sky reflected back as an inky darkness into which the pinks and yellows of the blossom of this plant shown.

Looking at the Lily Pads I realized where they got camouflage patterns from.   It looked like we borrowed this right from the leaves of the plant in order to be able to hide in plain sight.  The inky dark of the water looking like motor oil that is just about ready to be changed, and the natural purples and greens of the plant showing off against the reflections of the palm trees and the clouds made for a view that had me stop and ponder the scene.

Sometimes it's a good idea to sniff the roses.  Even if they are water lilies.

Mai Kai Grotto - Picture

When the family comes in from out of town, get off your high horse and do some touristy things.

Here in Fort Lauderdale, there's a One Of A Kind gem of a restaurant called Mai Kai.  It's one of the last few large scale Polynesian themed restaurants in the nation.   They were all over the place in the years after the Second World War, but faded away.  Tastes changed, and it's labor intensive to do it right.

Mai Kai does it right.  Complete with stunning Polynesian dancers in grass skirts.   The food is simply put, amazing.   I have a speed bump on their menu since I always get their Pork Tenderloin - I just can't get past that pork!  I also have a rule that I will not order a meal in a fine restaurant that I can make at home as well as they can.   Their pork melts on my fork which is why I have it.

When Cousin Bill arrived from Nebraska, we were sitting around debating where to go for dinner that night.  We wanted to go somewhere that you just can't find anywhere else and absolutely no chain restaurants.   Mai Kai absolutely fit the bill.  Or the Bills since there were two of us. 

The thing is that when you are in a restaurant that has tropical gardens that are strewn around water features, tiki torches, icons and statues, and a "Chinese Oven" that cooks your food in a wood fired chimney you will want to bring your camera. 

When we go, we always sit outside.   The show is amazing, but the idea of being able to sit next to a waterfall and watch the skies go from blue to black over the palm trees is a rare show that you should not pass up.   It's also much more private since the gardens are not what the place is known for.

It is easy to get obnoxious with a camera.  To get the pictures "right" in low light you really do need a tripod.   On the other hand, since it's dim in there half of the challenge is seeing the scene and setting up the shot.  That makes the actual picture secondary.

After all, your dinner will be waiting once you get back to the table and that is why you came.   Try the pork tenderloin.  It's amazing too.

Planning Someone Else's Vacation

When you live in a place that has amazing weather when the rest of the country has, well less desirable weather for some, eventually people visit.

In this case, People would be a cousin who has my first and last name that I don't know so well.   Nice guy, we've chatted quite a bit on email, phone, and yesterday Skype.

When I was a child, there was this weird device that The Phone Company had that would let you do what you can do on a cheap 50 dollar tablet.  Video Chat.  If that isn't a little Buck Rogers in our 21st century, it's getting close.

After getting through most of the morning nonsense yesterday we started up on a video call that lasted about an hour.  I think we concluded that each of us lives a life that is completely different from the other and it's fun to talk about the differences.

Oh yeah and he's coming down soon.   Time to leave the rural Nebraska winter where it can get so cold that the Carbon Dioxide will freeze out of your breath and thaw out in the Florida Sun.  Being fully acclimated to the weather here, winter can be a cold thing.  Almost freezing.  Not quite, but almost. 

Ever want to freeze your tail off?  Come on down and visit a house that has a heater that isn't as powerful as the heater in a 68 Volkswagen Beetle with leaky windows.

On the other hand, you can sit in my leather desk chair, put your feet up on the futon, and look out at the Bougainvillea as birds that other people keep as pets land and inspect the other side of the glass while wondering why there's this moose looking back at them.

Hi Green Singer pair.  Squeeeeeee back at you!

I'll make coffee and we can debate the world while the sun comes up and warms our bones just like a pair of lizards under glass.

Being that helpful kind of guy I made suggestions.  Oh you can sit in the pool but you really wouldn't want to do that since the water temp is SO cold at 60F this time of year.  Oh we can go down to the beach so you can get salt water and sand in your toes but we don't do that since the pool can be so nice. 

Hey wait, I thought you told me that it was 60 in the water?
Yeah I did, Hmmm maybe we need to rethink this mindset!

I'm making a list of things to do when he's here in a couple weeks.   They mostly involve getting into the Jeep and visiting all those touristy things that the Locals Don't Do.

People in Philly don't usually visit Independence Mall having done that when they were in Elementary School.

People in New York took the boat to see the Statue Of Liberty back when they were a child and it really IS in New Jersey Anyway, but don't tell them that.

San Francisco?  Don't forget to bring me back a sourdough loaf when you get back from Ghirardelli Square and don't get lost on the Cable Cars!

I guess the nice thing about having people come for a visit is that in reality you can get that stick out of your ... back, and actually do those things that people come from 1700 miles to see.  I found myself looking forward to taking my tripod and camera to the beach to beat the Sunrise and take some pictures.  Maybe getting to see the Fairchild Tropical Gardens will be a nice thing?  After all, how often does an American get to see a Durian Tree growing without leaving the country?

Just don't eat them on the mass transit in Singapore, they may cane you.

I'll get to be a tourist too for the first time since I moved here.  Don't tell anyone but I'm looking forward to the trip.  After all, I Chose to live here.  I certainly can choose to vacation here too. 

Now I'm thinking about a sunrise at the ocean and a sunset dinner at the Gulf of Mexico.  It will just take some planning.  Better stock up on little jars to get a sample of the water and the sand for Souvenirs!

Herding the Smartphone Addicts

You know who you are.
We see you, and we shake our collective heads.
You travel thousands of miles to reach our Island, park yourself, and immediately go into your own little electronic cocoon.

Yes, you are a Smartphone Addict.

I live close enough to a rather excellent Coffee Shop, Java Boys, in Wilton Manors, that I walk past the place roughly twice a day.  When you live close to a shopping center, you end up walking through it.  My neighborhood tends to funnel everyone who wants a long walk past the place on one side of Wilton Drive or the other. 

Plus it's just fun to point and watch people.

There was a walk the other day that I was on my own.  Just Mrs Dog and I.  It was the Dinner Hour, so I expected a host of people milling about, but when I approached the place, I had noticed that everyone there had Joined The Herd.

They became Zombies, attached to their little smartphones.  Every one of them outside was head down, concentrating on their games, or their web pages, or their Apps trying to meet someone new.  The other hand was typically hooked up with another addiction since it was the outside smoking zone. 

Smoking in 2012?  Really?  Enjoy being a social outcast and ruining your health?   Ahh ok.   Well soldier on Mc Duff!

Weaving through the scattered detritus of the castaway smokers, I looked into the shop.  Up on the TVs was a program of music, so it predictably didn't require too much attention.  That was a good thing because nobody was watching the TVs anyway, they were all focused, yes, you guessed it, on their smartphones or laptops.

I guess you really don't want to interact with others do you?  After all, they're big and scary!

I will admit I am a contrarian when it comes to this smartphone "thing".  I didn't get my first cell phone until 2003 and even then it was to make sure I could have one with a Florida Area Code to make life easier when I moved later.  I just got my own smartphone, and it is nice to have access if I need it.  I'm still getting used to having Joanna Lumley say from my pocket "You've Got Post!" in the middle of the walk when it is still dark and someone writes to my professional account. 

On the other hand, I usually have a smile on the inside when I see one of the Smartphone Zombies walking along weaving around on the sidewalk, texting to someone miles away and heading right at me.  That would be when I put on my strongest most projecting voice and say a loud "Hello!".  I have just saved another Zombie from certain demise as they would wander into another immovable object, me, instead of off the curb and into traffic.

Worse, you really don't want to step on the dog.  Trust me, you don't.

So when you're on vacation, take a little vacation from the whole texting thing.   After all, you spent all that money to get here, enjoy it.  Or just save the money and text from the couch.  Much easier that way.

Bikini Babes in the F-ing Bar

Living in a resort town, and this is definitely a resort town, you get to see some rather amusing escapades.  No matter what, if you have a chance, come on down for a visit, it can be fun to watch the tourists have their own little slice of heaven.

Sometimes you just want those tourists to go home, back over the river and off the island.  Other times you just want them to chill out.

You'll see what I mean here.

You see last night on our evening dog walk, we took a long lap around town.  We walked past Hagen Park and as we neared the Wilton Towers, we saw a commotion.  Then the commotion fell out of the building and saw us.

It was one of those laugh out loud then grab the pepper spray moments you sometimes see when someone's not exactly having a good time managing reality.

Falling out of the main doors of the Wilton Towers was a rather pretty young thing.  A brown haired babe, beautiful woman with long hair in a tropical floral style bikini.

Now, if you were out last night with us on the dog walk you'd have thought why is this beautiful woman stumbling out of a tower block of apartments into the cold February chill?   This being Wilton Manors, Florida, "cold" is a relative thing, but I think even those in Anchorage Alaska will admit that 64F or so is too cold to be outside on a breezy night with the wind off the ocean.

Nudging Mrs Dog onwards we were entertained.  I laughed and that was when her ire was directed at us.

You see, this particular woman, beautiful though she may be, was an unhappy wench.   She was most likely "impaired" as she was stumbling around on the darkened street in bare feet screaming more F Bombs than the Germans had dropped on London during the Blitz.

Naughty girl then looked at us and said loud enough so we could hear even if we were a block and a half away "F" You Too!.   I mean she was LOUD.  Who knew that such a little thing could make that much noise.

Well, she was someone's baby once, and now she's all grown up and learning how to party like the big girls.

Wilton Towers is rather close to the South end of Wilton Drive.  Between her and traffic was only the laundromat.  She's stumbling her way forward and shrieking F Bombs at everyone, telling them that they can F themselves, and having a great deal of trouble remaining upright.  Whatever she was on, it wasn't alcohol since her F's were perfectly unslurred.



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I turn to Kevin and laugh and say she's heading for the drive, I hope she doesn't end up a hood ornament when she disappears around the corner and in front of the Tropics bar.

Thanks to distance, the F's got quieter so we knew she was still alive.   Looking for her we rounded the corner.  After all, being entertained by a little babe throwing Fs is one thing, having her come at you, your partner, or your 11 year old dog was entirely another.

When we rounded the corner we were able to see her bikini bottom just disappear into the outside bar of Tropics.  Apparently this Floor Show was going to entertain the older gentlemen there.

We took the time to wander up past her and into the City Hall Police Desk and fill in the woman at the desk about our entertainment for the night.

I don't know how it all ended up, but the person at the desk agreed with a laugh and wrote down the particulars and handled it professionally.

I wonder what kind of fun we'll see tonight?  It's a Tuesday night so it should be a quiet one, but living in a resort town means that quiet can be a very different thing.

Border Collie is my Co-Pilot

All the cliche's are right.   Adopt a Shelter Dog, you will find a friend for life.

I will say, Adopt a Shelter Dog, they may save your life.

Before I moved to South Florida, I was, sigh, a snowbird.  I'd look forward to the yearly trip to South Florida in February.   February in Philadelphia is the dismal dark bowels of winter.  I don't care how beautiful a blanket of snow can be, after three months of it, I want it gone.

I'd load up the Jeep and all my gear that I thought I needed and come on down.  One year I was fortunate enough to find a place that was "Dog Friendly" so I drove down with my faithful sidekick along.  Lettie is a better driving companion than pretty much every human I've ever driven with.

Sorry folks, the T Shirt was right as far as being in a car is concerned - the more time I spend with people the more I like my dog.  At least in that cramped Jeep Wrangler.   Cramped for me, she was luxuriously able to curl up into a dog ball and sleep.

The trip from Philly to Wilton Manors was 1206 miles, exactly.  I'd stop somewhere as far South as I could get.  The midpoint is Florence, SC, but the further I'd get the better I'd be the next day... so I'd push myself.  The last couple trips I took got me as far as St Mary's just on the GA side of the border north of Jacksonville.  Starting at 2AM got me past all the big cities in the morning without a hitch and would stretch the day, but it meant that I'd be a zombie until the sun came up south of Washington.

Reading all of that I'm thinking what a fool...

By the time you get to South Carolina, the road is long, straight, and boring.   The North Half of the state is a swamp save Florence, and I found that by the time I got to Lake Marion I needed out of that Jeep.   Every hour or two, I'd stop, Lettie would want OUT and we would both stretch our legs.  It would stretch the inevitable need for a final stop of the night but we had a rhythm. 

Being an athlete, I'm familiar with Hitting The Wall.  Your body says you need rest.   In this case, mid afternoon, 12 hours after starting this marathon.  In South Carolina you start to drift.  White Line Fever. 

Lettie knows me better than just about any human being out there.   It was in South Carolina where she started to pay attention to me.   I felt the wet nose on my right arm that was resting on the shift knob and would comfort her for a while and she'd be happy to curl back into her dog ball.  Subconsciously I would make a mental note to hit the next rest stop and stretch our six legs.

I guess her sleep and relaxation rubbed off.  More like the 700 or 800 miles of road but I began to fall asleep at the wheel.   She realized what was happening from the rhythm of what was going on and I awoke to a violent head butting that right arm.  Now, Fully Awake, I realized I'm done.   This particular trip, Done was in Darien GA where I stopped for the night. 

My furry angel saved me from my own stupidity.   We went into the little room and after the adrenalin rush of driving ended, we both went to sleep.

So what have I learned after 8 years of being with her?  Stop driving like that first off - you just don't need to punish yourself to get on a vacation that you may not survive the first day.   Second, Trust in Dog, Dog Knows Best.  Third, get your silly butt out of that Jeep once an hour and consider stopping in a shorter time. 

I haven't driven out of Florida since I got here in 2006.  I don't expect to leave Florida before 2011 on any vacations, and the next trip I will take will most likely be Key West, a gentle 190 miles away.  Sleep won't be a problem, in fact if the weather is right, I'll do it topless.  

Hopefully I'll have my co-pilot.  See, she knows me better than I know myself... there's this time where she saved my life....

Driving in the Keys

I found myself driving to Key West over the weekend to rescue 5 computers and get someone "back on the air".  The problem with Key West is that it is at the end of a 106 mile cattle chute known as the Overseas Highway, also known as US1. 

The drive goes through many islands, over bridges, and the road itself is beginning to deteriorate.  This being one of the most beautiful parts of the country, you don't notice how annoying it can be to drive there until around half way through.  This was where I hit this particular bridge.  The nice thing about it was that I could hop out and stretch my legs.  I had plenty of time, it took around 10 minutes.

I found myself also on the other side of a discussion.  Here we're trying to turn Wilton Drive into a place to drive to not through.  I was trying to drive through the Keys to get to Key West.  Since the undersea tunnel shortcut was still under construction, I had to share this road with people trying to go about their own daily business.   When the main road through your town is two lanes, and you have only a short way to go, you end up not driving quickly.  For me, the guy in the pickup ahead of me, the Sysco truck heading to a delivery in Big Pine or Marathon, that short hop local gets wearing.  Especially after 3 hours of driving, and two to go.

Seems that the rule of the road in the Keys is always drive 5 to 10 mph slower than you really want to.  You do this because Mom is trying to pull out into traffic without getting caught on the rust covered manatee mailbox or stuck in a line of cars without a turn around.    Like in this picture.  This is the Seven Mile Bridge.  While it is a passing zone, you really don't want to do so because if you make a mistake, you could end up over the edge seeing what the Florida Straits look like close up. 

Mom was stuck in front of that BMW and she was driving 45 in a 55 zone.  I can imagine that all the way to Marathon on that bridge she was "oh my"ing and "Gees!"ing about how she got caught. 

Bottom line is that if you're planning on driving a long distance, have plenty of music on the radio, and expect to be there an hour later than you would normally.  The road was under construction on half of the islands, and the other half it should have been.  Between the washboarding and the need for four lanes, Florida has a lot of work to do just to make that road safe.  No matter that Key West is a destination and there are only 30,000 or so people at the end of that particular road, it needs to be four lanes all the way.  The state is widening it in specific spots, but they've got a long way to go.

Network Trouble in Paradise

I'll be coming back to Wilton Manors today.

Spent the weekend in Networking Paradise.  Four different PCs, each with a virtual machine on them.  One Macbook without a virtual PC on it.  Getting all of that straightened out so that they can all see the network all at the same time using Virtual PC and VMWare can be a trial.

My own machine, which the blog is written on, gave me some fits in the middle of it all.  Actually the Virtual Machine that runs on the laptop all the sudden decided to forget how to network.  After a couple of virtual cycles, the machine saw the network and all is well. 

That's how I'm writing this.

I'll have the whole network purring before I leave here in the morning Monday.  The nice thing about Laptops are that they're portable.  You can have a network running in the space of a desk if you know what you're doing.  Sometimes, I know what I'm doing, other times... I'm scratching my head.

At least the lot will be working, I'm winding down and it's been a long weekend for me.  If you don't want to pay someone like me, go to a computer store or computer website and buy yourself an external hard drive around 1TB in size.  Find where your machine sets up the backups, and make sure you get a full system backup.

Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Eventually you'll find yourself getting a virus and you'll be glad you did.  In home support like this is expensive in time and in money.  Sometimes you get your data back, sometimes not.  This time, my friend lost nothing but the use of his machines for a weekend.

I may even have gotten to see Duval Street tonight... I haven't gotten that far yet.  It's Sunday Afternoon, and this post is set to go live right around when I'm loading the car to come back home.  I missed the Volunteer Appreciation lunch on Saturday, and really wanted to go see it.  All the reports I have gotten about it were that it was a great party.  This makes...two maybe three years I've missed it.  Next time!

Parasailing at the Beach Picture

This morning, one of my Facebook friends, Norma, mentioned that she was going to the beach.  She had a friend up in Springfield, Mass that said he wanted to go too.  

I probably won't go to the beach.  If I go out into the sun, I tan so fast that I'd end up looking like a surfer dude.   I don't mind that, but when you're interviewing for Project Management positions, looking like you spend your day sitting on the beach isn't exactly the best thing for portraying your professionality.

On the other hand, we have a great beach.  I used to drive 1206 (yes exactly) miles from my place in Pennsylvania to this particular beach to do what these folks are doing now.  I'd lay out and bake and turn nut brown and come back and make everyone jealous.  I wouldn't lay out flat on the ground here facing the street again though, the beach is angled fairly sharply to the water's edge.  One time I hit the perfect storm of time of day, sun angle and my laying feet toward the street and managed to sunburn my sinuses.  I never want to go through that again!

Although this picture was taken in June, I would bet that the beach today will be just about as crowded.  There are no tarballs yet washing up here, no Kiss of BP's Incompetence destroying the beach yet, and plenty of sand to lay out on.  This may not be forever since the Gulf Stream is only 8 miles off shore here.

If you're planning on coming, now's a good time to do it.  You can even go up and parasail like one person did in this picture.  I've wanted to do that but have always wondered how I'd taste to a shark.   It looks like a wonderful adventure, I'd have to take a camera up in a plastic bag if I went, but I think most likely it will just be a wonder rather than a memory - I'll probably never do it.

Fort Lauderdale Beach at Sunrise Blvd

For most snowbirds, this is one of the first views that you get of Fort Lauderdale Beach.

The oil hasn't gotten here, yet.

It is still clean, there are still people coming to the beach.  It is summer, and while it is what most people would consider hot, it has been hotter in the big cities of the Northeast. 

The summer isn't the time most people expect to go to Florida, this is a "cold weather destination" - people come here when their own places are miserable and it is beautiful here. 

I call this our secret season.  This is when the locals come out to play and bring a few select friends.  The water is still blue and warm.  The breezes are still refreshing.  The sand still gets between your toes.  You can walk the beach without having to step over too many college kids from Michigan and Iowa and you can get a seat at any restaurant you like without too much trouble.

Sure it rained all weekend, but this is the Wet Season.  There are four areas to watch in the Caribbean Basin and the Gulf of Mexico, but nothing is going to amount to anything here yet.  It may later, but for now it is all clear.

After all, its nice to go outside dressed like that guy and walk out to the beach on a "Beach Day" and play tourist.  Millions have.  Millions will.

Anticipating the Snowbirds

The Snowbirds are coming, the Snowbirds are coming!

You know who you are.  I was one too!

Snowbirds are those people in Northern areas who have had enough of the winter weather Back Home and decide to fly South to warm up for a little.  They usually come, spend and then return reinvigorated .

My own way of doing that was to drive South to Ft Lauderdale every second week of February and spend a week or two thawing out.   Usually by February, I'd have chapped hands and lips, a low grade head cold from the weather, and be pasty white.   I'd hit the hot tub that first night and not care.  Two day drive down, a week in the hot tub and two day drive back.  Every year until I had had enough and finally moved here.

With the snowstorms that have been all over the weather and the news lately, I haven't yet seen an uptick in the cars with Canadian and Northeastern license plates, but the parking lots are filling a little more at the bars and the drive home is a little slower each week.  It will be this way until April, so I guess the best thing to do is hope that they help the economy and try to stay "Off Peak" with my travels!

New Post, New Month, Last Picture

At least the last one from the Keys.   When you're driving along that ribbon of black top, you are wondering "Am I There Yet?" for quite a long time.   This is "There".   This is the end of Monroe County and the end of the Florida Keys.   Oh sure, there's places like Key Biscayne, and a few islands on the west coast with "Key" in the name, but they aren't "THE" Keys.   You're looking at the few feet on US1 that is in Monroe County, FL.   From this point onward, you're on the Mainland, and still in the Glades.   There is a sign for a restaurant, another saying chill out to pass in 2 miles, and the last one, to the left of that boat near the road is the sign announcing "Entering Miami Dade County".

I hit that spot, thought that this would be a good place to stop taking pictures and just drive.   I relaxed, turned up the radio, smiled at the sun and made it up to South Miami for a tank of Gas, and another 55 or so miles to home. 

This reminds me of the old jokes that people would say about going to visit a friend's house to watch their slide shows of their vacations and listen to their monologue.   Terribly boring way to spend a night, so I hope that this isn't as bad.

At any rate, I'm done with my Keys pictures.   There's other things to put up from around here, hopefully they won't be too dull.

Jewfish Bridge leaving the Keys

I published a mate to this picture about a month back.  It was the first in the series because it was the first I took when driving South.   This is the Northbound view from just North of the crest of the bridge.   Shows you a good view of the Glades.   Flatter than New Jersey or any other "flat" state.  Green as it gets.   The land is absolutely lush, choked with sawgrass, mangrove, and other tropical foliage, stuffed with wildlife both natural and exotic.   Beautiful area.   Way off in the distance lies the Florida Mainland and Miami to the North.   My home beyond that.

This is a view that you just don't seem to get in many places.   An almost unspoiled view of wildlife.  Untouched lands where there are no farms or buildings for about as far as you can see.  I'm glad I'm so close to something that I was only once able to dream about visiting.  I can only hope that the State is able to reclaim the wetlands that were taken away to build this metropolis that stretches about 100 miles from North to South, about 20 miles from East to West from the Agricultural Interests.  A one of a kind jewel that can not be replaced.

Islamorada Hurricane Monument

When driving up US1 from Key West, after about 80 miles or so (I'm doing this from memory so don't hold me to it), you hit the middle to upper keys.   The land and road changes from being East to West to bending toward the Florida Mainland to the North. 

In 1935, on Labor Day, an extremely strong hurricane hit this spot.   What it did was inundate the land and wash everything that was not strong enough to manage the storm surge out to sea.

That hurricane is why US1 goes to Key West and doesn't stop further North in Dade County.   What happened was that the Railroad that was built from Miami to Key West, Flagler's Folly, the Florida East Coast Extension was basically erased.   The storm surge washed out the tracks in the Middle Keys, but left the bridges intact since they were built to last through some rather durable concrete.   To this day you can find remnants of the tracks and a Caboose or two here and there from Islamorada on South, and the bridges were left in place.

The entire railroad right of way was sold to the state of Florida for a dollar, and the road was paved over the tops of those bridges.   In places you can tell that the road was built on a right of way since it is slightly elevated, and absolutely flat.   Others, you get on the more modern replacement bridges and can look down on the old Flagler FEC bridges and see the road bed.  They're used for Fishing platforms for the most part and are quite popular.

This monument stands for all those who lost their lives on those days in 1935 in that horrific storm.   It ruined a railroad but made the lower keys what they are today, Accessable... after a LOT of work.

Blue Skies meet the Florida Straits

By this time I had left Key West.   Beautiful day for a drive.   When you get out on the bridges on that thin ribbon of concrete you see blue and palm trees.   That's about it, but boy was it a lot of beautiful blue and palm trees.  

You just don't get these kind of views up North.   The water is clear and blue because it is too warm for the Algae to live in it.   Green seas are what you get when you cool down the water as anyone in SC or NJ or MA could tell you.  It doesn't necessarily mean the waters are any cleaner in FL although they are for the most part, it means they're just warmer.  The rare days it would get to 72 in the ocean at the Jersey Shore, everyone would be sweltering in the heat and running to the "warm" waters.   When it is 72 in the ocean off of the Florida Keys, it is winter.  

But as I said, there are only a few Keys Trip Pictures left, so enjoy!   I've been back in Ft Lauderdale at the time of writing for more than a month and just putting these up so family can enjoy them.

Tropical Paradise or just another Weird Cemetery?

When you have an island that is made out of solid Coral stone, and practically no real soil to speak of you make allowances.

This is the Old Town Cemetery in Key West.   They made allowances for all of this by building little crypts on the surface of the ground like they did in New Orleans.  Having a gravedigger with a shovel is normal elsewhere, but in this situation you end up with a very frustrated person with a bent up shovel. 

The other thing to keep in mind is that they don't really have a lot of real estate there.   This place is literally crammed solid with crypts and graves.   I'm not one for claustrophobia, but walking past the place I found myself looking for open spaces.   This was the most open view I could find, the rest of it was literally packed like sardines with old tombstones from the 1800s and beyond. 

Probably an appropriate place for me to end my travelogue, in a cemetery.  I've finished with the pictures of the island, and have only a few more on the trip back.