Blink

Holy crap…. where did the winter go? It seems that we were just starting to get excited about our first cruise and now here we are, the cruise is just a memory and March is already upon us. Our calendar looks like most of the events and activities are mostly dining out! Go figure!

One our favourites is McGuire's in Pensacola. The girls `needed` to find some fabric so we had a road trip to Jo-Ann`s Fabrics in Pensacola and to keep Bill and I from whining too much, we had lunch at McGuire's! Hummmm, cold beer (they have their own micro brewery), good food and great company are always the best ingredients for fun. It makes the road trip seem shorter.

 

Barb continues to put the finishing touches on the quilt for Jim. It is a labour of love and besides having fun doing it, Barb is doing an excellent job, it is turning out great. It is the first time she has applied photos to fabric and incorporated the squares into a quilt. As she progresses, we get more and more excited to see it maturing and closer to the end to send to Jim & Lydia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The group of us – our own little posse of Bill & Ann and Dick & Marcia are heading out for an evening of Blue Grass entertainment at Wales West, another campground not far from us. The group called TruGrass played lots of foot stomp’n Blue Grass with a little comedy thrown in. Of course, we had to go out for dinner first. The only spot near by was the Fish River Grill1. This was one of the places that captured us a few years ago. They serve great catfish and hamburgers in a more than casual setting. When we first went there, they had gravel floors and cafeteria style seats. It was neat then but now with plywood floors, it may have lost some of it’s ‘rustic’ nature but the food is still very good.

On Friday afternoons, Barb & I continue to host a Digital Photography class where we can all learn a little more about picture taking and photo editing. Our attendance numbers have gradually dropped off with the approach on spring and the snowbirds heading north. It has been an interesting group and hoping to continue next season.

 

As the weather warms up, we turn our attention to the yard work on our site. We are trying to prepare it so we don’t have so much work on it when we come back in November. We have taken out all the garden edging and laid our extra patio stones so the summer mowers can ride over them and not need so much weed whacking. That lummox you see is me under the Sago Palms, pulling off the saplings and digging in the patio stones.

Later in the day, we found a frog eating another frog! We thought they only ate bugs etc!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Barb & the ladies continue to quilt and sew, chat and kibitz – sometimes I think they socialize more than they sew but that’s what makes it so much fun here. After Mardis Gras was done, some of the guys suggested we put a new rear stage wall up to replace the older temporary wall. It would also be a good time to re-wire the area so we would not need extension cords to power the stage outlets when we had professional entertainment in. I jumped in to help out with that project. With all the volunteers to help out, we had it up, wired, fused and dry wall work done in just a few days.

My laptop is/was on it’s last legs. The lid hinges are broken through and one of these days, I will be holding a laptop screen when I open the lid! So, what to do…. well, after a lot of product research and online price and feature comparisons, we decided on moving to a different technology – paper and pencil! Kidding, we moved from a laptop to an All-In-One computer. Since Barb does the photo editing and creates our picture DVDs, she needs the computing power more than I – after all, solitaire doesn’t need a lot of computer to play! We stepped up to Windows 8 and the learning curve is almost vertical. To move all her files and programs to the new one and then move all my files to her ‘old’ laptop took more time than I expected – 8 days of pecking and testing and moving and testing and etc.

You may recall me mentioning a Four Point Posie quilt pattern that Barb was working on throughout the year, well she found the time to put the final assembly together. She has been coaching a couple of the ladies with their projects, helping them with sewing techniques and know how. Kinda supports the adage, want something done, give it to a busy lady! Barb then donated the quilt to Under His Wings, a new home for girls.

 

We even found time to host friends from Wisconsin for a happy hour.  It is funny that you plan a get-to-gether and it happens when everyone is getting ready to depart.  Maybe next year we can do this more often.

 

Of course, all this sewing and quilting depletes ones sullies so the ladies made a road trip to Gautier MS to one of the better quilt shops – Block Therapy Quilt Shop. Us men do not accompany them so they don’t feel rushed and can enjoy their shopping experience – yeah, right. We just wanted a head start at The Shed. We agreed to meet them there for lunch and dollar drafts! Yum…. again, and this may sound like a repeat but what else is there when you have good food, cold beer and good company. It’s just too much fun!

 

The quilt ladies had an afternoon of fun and chit chat at Anita’s Hen House. They had lots of sun, wine and munchies. A good time was had by all.

 

 

As the month winds down, Easter is upon us and we are having dinner with about 180 other RVers and friends. A cold/flu/respiratory bug has been whirring through the Plantation a couple of times and many folks were not able to make it for dinner. Some have even had to delay their departure because of illness.

Everything here is slowing down but the dining out is ramping up as we celebrate the end of the snowbird season with many friends. Life is too good and we hope all is good where you are too. Until next time….

What a Month

Here we are again, playing catch up with my writings. It’s not that we have millions of readers though, it is just a personal thing. After Mardis Gras, the activities here ramped up the next day without a breather break. It is kinda fascinating how so many seniors can have all this fun and everyone just keeps on tick’n – sort of like the ever ready bunny!

The ladies are back to  their quilting fun and projects. Of course that means more shopping trips to either Pensacola or Biloxi and as of yet, I have not heard a single lady decline the opportunity! Barb has been coaching other ladies with their projects and even put on a couple of courses teaching how to make a 4 point posie and how to make fabric flowers. The day she did the fabric flowers, she had a case of laryngitis and the ladies had to be real quiet to hear her – now that was difficult!

Barb has also been working with some online quilters and building monthly blocks, made a wedding gift for friends, mug mats and finished her `Carol Doak`final block. If you remember her summer project last year where she along with 5 other quilters from here at the Plantation built quilt rows and passed it along to the next quilter on the list – called a row robin. Barb has now arranged the rows and added a border to create the quilt. Here are some photos of her work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s been a coolish winter here and I haven’t had much ambition to work outside on the gardens or the rig. Lots have to be done – we want to improve our gardens so we don’t have so much work on them when we get back in the fall and the rig needs a wash and wax.

We have received air tickets to fly back to Toronto to surprise Mark for his 50th b’day party and what a party it was. We flew out of Pensacola on Friday with plans to meet at their local favourite restaurant to surprise Mark. On the way to the airport, we were notified by Delta Air that the plane is delayed by 30 minutes but that should not impact our connections or our arrival by dinner. Unfortunately, one delay lead to another and of course, a weather system slowly went through and we sat on the runway for 2 hours – apparently FCC rules say the airline can not hold us like that so we had to taxi back to the terminal so people could get off if they wanted to make other arrangements. So to make a long story short, we missed dinner with Mark & Terri and didn’t get into Toronto until about 1:30 AM, standing at the foot of Mark’s bed singing ‘happy birthday’ to him – some of you might think that would create nightmares!  Maybe Mark thought so too.

The party was on Saturday and the theme was James Bond and we needed to go to the party/costume store for finish Barb’s costume, complete some set up at Terri’s house before over 50 guests started to arrive. It was a surprise on how many actually dressed to the theme. The party was in full swing with the help of the bar tender mixing Bond’s favourite cocktail – a dirty martini, shaken not stirred. Being the ‘older’ Bond characters there, I’m sure you can guess that Barb went as ‘M’ and I was ‘Q’.

 

 

 

The flight home was uneventful – of course, we didn’t have a deadline to meet anyone. We flew into Washington DC for our connector to Pensacola. This was the first time we left a terminal building and got on a bus to our airplane. Up the steps and into a small plane – I couldn’t stand straight – for the ‘stormy’ ride to Florida. The plane was so small that we had trouble getting our carry-on in the overhead compartments. We landed in wet stormy weather, similar to what we took off in on Friday.

Elvis has left the building….. Yes, that is correct, we had an evening with an Elvis impersonator. He is a vice principle at the local high school. He would venture out through the crowd and hand an excited audience member with one of the many silk scarves he carried around his neck during the performance. It was good entertainment.

 

Our good friend Jim, is enduring chemo treatments and we thought we could help keep him warm and cozy with a hand made quilt from Barb. We decided an a golf theme and printed some pictures of the 4 of us on the back. Jim and Lydia called us the evening they received it with lots of emotion and thanks that we lost it too. This is a very difficult time for Jim & Lydia`s family and friends. Their mantra is to Stay Strong and Stay Positive.  However you derive your spiritual strength, please remember Jim and Lydia in your thoughts.

 

 

 

 

Well, that`s it for February, stay tuned for March….

A Little Behind…

Wow, I have lost all track of time and stuff since we have been back at the Plantation after our cruise. I kept procrastinating about updating here but as one day leads into another, one activity then another and then of course the lunches and dinners with friends.

When we arrived back, we hit the road running the next day. Barb has been working with some of the ladies on next years raffle quilt so spending time at the clubhouse. And of course, shopping for fabric which means a road trip to Ocean Springs and Biloxi. Biloxi was one of the communities hard hit by tornados and took out many trees. These carvings are part of the restoration projects using the broken trees to beautify the devastated area. Barb & I are hosting a digital photography session so we all can learn tips and tricks to improve our photos. And of course, our Mardis Gras celebrations are looming less than 2 weeks after our return. Spring has sprung and we want the yard tuned up to look nice so Barb plants a few blooms.

This years MG theme was the Roaring Twenty’s so we scoured the used clothing shops for possible costume materials. Barb along with several other ladies made their own flapper dresses and many of the men found gangster looking suits. The Friday night dinner is where we crown the king and queen that rule over the festivities for the 5 days of MG. Well over 150 people were served dinner. The process is the man and woman that find a small baby doll in their cupcakes are the chosen ones, Linda Payne and Darrell Patterson, are this year’s Royalty. That’s when the party and craziness begins. Barb was asked to be the unofficial videographer for this years event.

Saturday, after breakfast with the King and Queen, sees us going to the MG parade in Pensacola with other SKPs from the Plantation. Naturally as with all other activities, SKPs like to arrive early, being sure not to miss anything like the tailgate party that we took with us! We traveled with Dick & Mary – they have been going to this parade for more years than they can remember and have the perfect place to park – that’s one of the reasons why we have to go early so we get that spot! Dick backs into the space and we drop the tailgate and the food and beverages over flow! The only thing missing is a grill but it is not required as there is more food and drink that we can consume. The parade lasted about 2 hours of non stop floats, music and the air was filled with trinkets and beads being thrown from the floats. After the last float went by, we were off to the famous Joe Patti’s fish market – it is an experience just to go there. Wow, I’ve never seen that much fish in one place. Yes, John, they do serve ice cream and after our shopping spree, we sat on their deck and relaxed with a cone!

Sunday, we are in anticipation of the arrival of Larry & Judy to stay with us for a few days. Judy is my cousin from London. They arrived in late afternoon, in time to have a chat and beverage to clear out the road dust then we’re off to the ice cream social and skits. The skits have been good this year. I’m sure, due to my stage and acting skills, was asked to be in one – I’m sure it had nothing to do with me being an unattractive woman but you be the judge by clicking here!

Monday we expected to watch our own MG parade then an early evening dinner (we are seniors you know) then more skits. The inclement weather caused a cancellation of our parade so under gray skies, we show Judy and Larry around the neighbourhood, taking in Fairhope and the pier. These Pelicans were very tame – there was a fisherman nearby that fed them with a few morsels.

 

 

Tuesday`s schedule included the caned chair auction that men and women have been working on to raise funds for the CARE Center at the Escapee head quarters in Livingston, Texas. And the evening was filled with dinner – do you see a theme here – and more skits and finally the resignation of our King and Queen for 2013. Several folks were dressed in the era attire and Barb & I were no different. The evening ended with the introduction of next years MG theme – Flower Power!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m still a long way behind and will really try to do more catch up soon. Yàll come back for more…..

Cruise’n Home

It’s our last day at sea and we’re head’n back to New Orleans. There are fewer activities but we manage to keep ourselves busy and entertained. We had breakfast in the dining room today and heard some of the comedy act so looks like we’ll take in that show tonight. We meet up with Jerry and Dianne and had a round of miniature golf. The mini golf ‘course’ is on the top deck and it was windy. Too funny, sometimes the ball would roll off on its own with the wind pushing it along. There was also a towel folding lesson so we could learn how to create those nifty little critters that met us in the room each night.

Of course, there was always the meals. Wow, we were certainly well fed. Also, we had to do our last minute shopping on board the ship for souvenirs and wait a minute, the dreaded duty free shop! It was touch and go but I did manage to find something there. Barb & Dianne went to a tea in the dining room and I hung out at the pool bar, people watching….

This was our last 5 o’clock gathering before dinner and everyone was in anticipation of our last night and arrival home. Our last dinner in the dining room was a celebration of sorts. The menu was head lined with steak and lobster with an equally decadent dessert – correct, I can’t remember but it was very nice. After, many of us gathered in the comedy club for lots of laughs. The first set was for a family audience and the second set was for an adult audience – yes, I had to show my ID to be admitted! Of course, we ordered a beverage between sets and were surprised that we found Louisiana state sales tax on the bill – we were inside the 12 mile limit now. And yes, we had our last midnight pizza and ice cream with a stroll around the deck before turning in. We were surprised to see we were already out of the Gulf and in the mouth of the Mississippi river.

Getting off the boat was as well organized as getting on. We had to have our luggage out side our room the night before and were to pick it up in the terminal just before we went through customs. We were all staged in the theatre and as our zone was called, we exited via the lobby and headed down the gang plank to the terminal. We hired a porter to help make life easy since this was our first cruise experience and that was one of our best decisions. We breezed through customs and out to the bus for our ride back to the plantation. As with most excursions, the chatter was much less than our departure – must be less excitement. Anyway, it’s funny how we all get to the same seats we had coming to New Orleans. We were across from Jerry and Dianne and as you can see, we must have been a bit tired!

All on loaded from the bus and starting the short walk back to our site but Spencer insists that he drive us so we weaken and rode home. What a great trip.

Hope all is well there.