Today we finally made it to the beach! We have been here two full weeks so we made a point of visiting the beach just to remind ourselves that we are truly blessed to live here half the year. When you can drive to the beach in 2 minutes, it is fantastic. With only 2 weeks before we leave on our cruise we need to get as many beach days as we can – need a tan for sure!
It has been another great week here – and Thanksgiving was a big part of it. Earlier in the week we played dominoes with Molly/George at Gus and Mary Evelyn’s. On Tuesday we headed to cheap night at the movies – Dave saw Thor while the MacIntyres and I saw Delivery Man. Whenever we were in the mood, we continued to work on the yard. Dave began the big task of pressure washing the stone patio so that is a work-in-progress. Last year I bought fabric for the outdoor chairs and it sat in a bag all season. For some strange reason I became motivated to sew them up sometime in early May so when we got here this year they were ready for use. Once we get the pressure washing over, we will be able to set up with all those nice new cushion covers.
For Thanksgiving we were invited to dinner at Doreen and Bob’s next door neighbours of Molly and George.
Fourteen of us dined on turkey, dressing, ham, potatoes, asparagus, roasted tomatoes, zucchini, squash, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, sweet potato casserole, creamed corn, green beans and mandarin orange salad. All of that was topped off with pumpkin, pecan and apple pie.
Sadie, their dog, likes to hide under the table and in the hope that things will be slipped to her.
By 3PM we rolled ourselves home and would have stayed there except the need to walk off some of that meal sent us to Grey Thursday at Sarasota Square Mall at 8PM. Are you having as much trouble imagining Dave voluntarily going shopping as I am? I actually chuckled when we sat outside Sears for 10 minutes with about 20 others waiting for the doors to be opened. He bought himself a great new cordless drill for 50% off and new sneakers to boot. On Black Friday we also made a few stops and got some small items at good prices. We saw many carts loaded with huge TVs in Walmart. The mad rush of Black Fridays of the past was certainly tempered by the Thursday openings.
Today we met with Carol and Stephen Hiltz for lunch at the Red Lobster. They are headed home tomorrow (Sunday) for Christmas. We will be sure to do some things with them when they return in the new year.
The week has been a busy one – but the biggest battle was with my sciatica – yuck! Dave managed three rounds of golf and I did some unpacking and cleaning but until today I was not able to do much. On Tuesday we did Senior Movie night and then Friday it was off to supper with Molly/George and Mary Evelyn/Gus. Saturday we attended an 80th birthday for a golfing pal of Dave’s. Thankfully my sciatic nerve was much better today so we spent the early afternoon cleaning out the lanai and getting things ready to use. Since we use it to store all the outdoor furniture and bikes, it takes some elbow grease to wash the floors and dust the furniture etc.
One of the interesting things we have noted here is the upswing in construction and fix ups. The theater we visit is in a strip mall that has had a major facelift. Across the street from our trailer is a large church campus that has been under construction since last winter. One of the new things which greeted us was the removal of a playground and many large live oak trees. So now when I look down the street I see a parking lot and lots of blue sky.
Finally just before dark we made a quick drive to see the new structure at Sharky’s. For those of you who have not visited here it is the only restaurant on the beach and a must for visitors. It too has been under construction and today I saw the nearly finished project. It will be interesting to see what will be available there but it most certainly is adding to the seating both inside and out. It should be finished by Christmas time. As long as they don’t change my favourite drink – the mango-bango – I will be happy.
The new part is the one on the left of the pier – not sure what if anything will change on the right-hand side where there is outside seating.
New structure from the main front parking lot.
These colourful chairs face the beach and the tables are surf boards – really neat new space for sure.
Venice Pier
This upcoming week is Thanksgiving here so the main focus is on the Black Friday sales. We, however, are looking forward to getting some work done in the yard so that we can enjoy it.
I cannot believe that our six months in Nova Scotia has come to an end and we are already back in sunny Florida. We had a scheduled flight (3 legs – New York/Atlanta/Sarasota) on Monday but got a call late Sunday night to say that the first flight was delayed from 9 AM to 11 AM. By Monday morning that delay was moved to 2 PM. Thanks to Garth Sanford we got to the airport and headed on our way. The airport experiences were all unique. To get to the first plane we walked outdoors, across to the runway, and up a narrow, wobbly staircase. The last time I walked outdoors to a plane was the 80’s. When we deplaned in New York, we caught a bus to take us to the terminal only to find out that our second plane had already taken off. Delta was terrific and in less than 5 minutes after arrival we had new flights and boarding passes. With only enough time for a bathroom stop we were off on flight two to Atlanta. Now that is an airport! There were thousands of people scurrying everywhere. After landing on Concourse A we headed down a steep escalator, on a subway car, up a steep escalator and arrived at Concourse B. Quite a place for sure. We managed supper and then it was onto the last plane. This is the shot out of my window as we left New York!
On the last plane Atlanta to Sarasota!
During the day we each had 12 boarding passes (each place needed to update or change them LOL). We got to Sarasota at 11:03 and Molly Carter and George Pothier met us and took us home. Gus and Mary Evelyn had our place open and ready for business – even supplies for a great breakfast! We are happy to be here and even a long plane ride beats the three days in a car!!!!
We left sunny Florida and travelled from Sarasota via Chicago to Halifax yesterday. Although there were several flight delays, we were only 2 and a half hours late arriving. Those who know me well were amazed that I could be content with the limitations of suitcases and carry ons BUT I did survive and am truly glad that I didn’t have to spend the last week packing the car and then this week unpacking it. You would have been very amused by the number of times I weighed the bags and how David smiled through the whole ordeal. I cannot begin to tell you how great it felt to be home in so few hours – compared to the gruelling 36 hours over 3 days and 2 nights. Of course, after doing the trip for 8 years it had lost its appeal and now we will consider those 4 full days that we gain as great beach ones! I expect that we will get fussier about the flights as years go on but for now we will be happy to spend 2 days on air travel.
Our last day at the beach!
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Closed up house – so sad!
Can you believe that I managed to pack everything in these!
Today we ventured to Siesta Beach which is a half hour north of Venice. It is well worth the trip and since it is off season there was available parking close to the main beach. The beach is an expanse of pure white powder sand that has made it the winner of many #1 beach designations. With only one day left here in sunny Florida, it was the perfect place to spend an afternoon.
Time here is quickly coming to an end so we decided a beach party was in order and the whole gang gathered at Nokomis Beach for supper and sunset. There is a great pavillion at the beach that we love since it is covered, has lots of picnic table space and overlooks the beach. 
It is hot here in the sunny South and we have been making a daily trek to the beach. Somedays we only stay for an hour and others we linger. Either way it is glorious to be able to sit in or near the water’s edge. There are lots of choices and we mix it up between the many beaches that are less than 2 minutes from our house.
Nokomis is about 15 minutes away and is always a nice spot this time of year.
Nokomis Beach
Brohard Beach is just 2 minutes from us and south of the pier – next to it is this Paw Park so we usually make an annual visit to see the dogs at the beach.
There are so many dogs running free that it is a blast to be there.
These guys went in to retrieve and then out to bring them to their owner. I watched them for quite a while.
Cute guys sniffing all the sand!
Me at Service Beach
Dave and Mike have been working for several days on a construction project at Molly and George’s place.
While there, they had to work around a mourning dove and the nest she had built on top of a Rubbermade cabinet. On day one mother dove was in the area where they were hammering, sawing and generally making a racket. She was sitting on the nest waiting for the eggs to hatch. On day two they hatched and then mother and father dove alternated on the nest and with the feeding. The guys moved the cabinet into the middle of the carport and the doves just carried on with their business.
There are several canvas sacks with lawn chairs in them up there and she is wedged between them.
From above – the two chicks are alone for a few minutes and I am able to sneak a picture – they aren’t making a sound!
Mother and one of the two chicks
Close up of the chicks
Today was the last day in Venice for Mary and Bob and it was a fun filled one. The guys went golfing and Mary and I headed to the beach for her last chance at the sun and surf. The water was gorgeous and the temperatures hot. I even got a chance to get a pic of the little birds that Mary loves so much.
And no day is complete in Venice without yet another meal – so we ordered Ntino’s pizzas and headed to the beach for supper and sunset (and champagne). Mary even talked me into paper plates (but I held out for real cutlery) LOL We are sad that the Daniels vacation is over and they are heading home to Dartmouth.
Adventure Logan 