March Update - Finally Got My Camera Out

 

When I got my camera out, I found just a few pictures of our trip home still on the camera SD Card.  Here is Indy in the Motorhome looking at herself in the mirror.  This is the same type of behavior she still shows with the mirrors in the condo...but she does not interact with her reflective image nearly as much now as she did at first.  When I toss her ball or chew stick for her to fetch, she will watch the mirror to see if dad really threw it or not...she is a smart little dog for sure.  A few times I have seen her just looking at herself in the mirror...

Three weeks ago I grabbed my camera, got Indy, and we went over to the dog park.  Problem, no dogs there.  Waited about ten minutes and decided to tour the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks, which are only a half mile away from the dog park.  Indy was fascinated with all the activity there (which is about 60% of what a normal Tuesday Winter Day is on the Docks in pre-Covid terms). 

As you can see, it was a nice, very nice, pre-Spring day at the docks.

Just off the main drag of the Sponge Docks is a side street where 5 Branches Brewery is located...this is where Marcia's son John works.  This brand new Brewery opened just as COVID was hitting last year.  However, they did takeout, added some food so they could sell beer-to-go, and made it through the worst of it all.  They won a silver medal at the 34th Annual Great American Beer Festival, and they also took home awards for “Very Small Brewing Company of the Year” and the “Very Small Brewing Company Brewer of the Year.”  

"IF" you ever make it to Tarpon Springs, park your car at the Dog Park on Live Oak Street, just east of North Pinellas Ave (also known as Alt 19), walk to the Sponge Docks, and if you wish, you can catch one of these electric trolley cars which, for $5, you can ride all day long.  From Tarpon Springs it will take you through Palm Harbor, Dunedin, to Clearwater, including Clearwater Beach.

Just be sure to spend some time at the Tarpon Sponge Docks, and be sure to buy a REAL Gulf Natural Sponge...it will be the last sponge you will ever need in your lifetime as long as you rinse it out after each use...they really do last forever.

Back to the Dog Park and low and behold, still no dogs.  The white arrow is the bench that I normally sit on while Indy (Skruffy and Bubba before) would play.

Finally Nilla arrived and her and Indy played and played and played.  I got so busy talking with Nilla's mom and dad that I did not get very many pictures.  Indy plays with other dogs so well, I am happy for that.

 

I did get a few pictures of her looking at a dog in the large dog park, and he inspecting various parts of the dog park.  Unlike Skruffy, Indy never barks at the other dogs...for that we are very happy with that.  Indy and I returned to the Dog Park a few times since then, and this past Sunday we hit the jack pot with nine dogs there...boy, did she have fun...but I did not take my camera to capture it.

Today I took Indy over to our local Library, which we can nearly see from our backyard.  Here is the large pond that is between the Library and the street.  Indy, on leash, can wander around and enjoy the smells...enjoy the birds (although today they were lacking), and just get away from the boring backyard smells that she in inundated with daily.

Today there were only two birds...normally we see six to eight, and there have been a few times that there have been twenty or more.

Unfortunately there are a number of indigent and homeless people in the area.  I have seen six or seven people on the far side of the pond at one time, and noticed that many of them are the same people I see out along Highway 19 asking for food and money to survive on.  It is too bad that poverty exists, but it is also too bad that able bodied people are not working, while businesses along US-19 have "help wanted" signs in their windows.  (The bottom picture is the same guy laying on the grass walking with a friend headed for home). In another few months many of these people will not be out due to the Oppressive Heat and Humidity of Summer.  

Got this picture from sister Patti a few weeks ago.  They opened mom's assisted living facility up to where residents can go out, but visitors can not come in.  A week ago or so they lifted the visitor restrictions, so now, with appointment, up to two people at a time can visit as long as the visit is in her room.  So they can go out...but they can't go to a restaurant because those are still shut down...but she can go over to Sandy's for Liver and Onions, which I think is where Patti was taking her since Parker is on mom's lap.  Slowly but surely things are headed back to normal...and the "new normal" will be an ancient nightmare.

Voting, A Walker, More Condo Association Stuff

Home in Holiday / Tarpon Springs area, FL

Today we got around to voting…five days before voting day.  Line was non-existent…which was great.  We vote at the Public Library.  The picture above is the front of the Public Library…but they want voters to go around to the back.

We proceeded to the back, parked where the red and blue lines meet in the parking area.  Not seeing that if we followed the blue line, back by the dumpster, between the dumpster and the air conditioning units, behind the AC units, we could have avoided the red route over the grass.  However, there are NO SIGNS telling you that this blue route exists.  So Marcia struggled over the grass to the back door.  Now….how much would it cost to put in 15-20 yards of a concrete path?  Or put up signs showing the route along the sidewalk, by the dumpster, behind the AC Units…something any disabled person loves to do considering this could be a hiding place for someone with evil intentions to attack older, disabled patrons.  Anyway, we voted, and I showed Marcia the way through the Library to the front door, and I drove around and picked her up…and before she got in the car she got the sand out of her sandals from the sandy grass she walked over earlier. Voting early was easy…no line...staff was nice…and other than struggling to get inside the building, all was well.  BTW, the front door had a sign telling voters to use the back door…even though it is an easy walk through the front door to the meeting room where the voting takes place.  So instead of having Library Displays showing all these voters the benefits and resources of the Public Library…they would rather have their patrons (remember, all county residents are their patrons) to walk around back, vote, and walk back to their cars without visiting the library.  (Ok, I will get off my Library Soap Box…but after 23+ years working in a library, nearly 23 in a Public Library as a Director, I just can’t help it.

    

The BIG races in Florida are for Senate and for Governor…and they are both very close, well within the error margin, so who knows who will win.  Today we had no less than 14, yes 14 political flyers…all ended up in the garbage bin.  We have over-the-air TV, and normally watch either GRIT-TV (old westerns), MeTV (old sitcoms, Perry Mason, etc) or Laff (comedy sitcoms) …and thank goodness they don’t run political commercials.  However, when we turn it to the news (rarely), Blue Bloods (won’t miss it) or Last Man Standing (Tim is not the only funny one on that show) we get bombarded by political commercials.  And the radio as we drive…well, many times it is just turned off.  Now that we voted, we had hoped that this would all stop…but they won’t.  And the worse thing…one of the candidates for Florida Chief Financial Officer has sent out text messages to my cell phone.  This is against the law, FCC website says:

Political campaign-related autodialed or prerecorded voice calls, including autodialed live calls, prerecorded voice messages, and text messages, are:

• Not allowed to cell phones, pagers, or other mobile devices without the called party's prior express consent.

I reported them to a TV Station, to the Tampa Bay Times, and to the campaign directly…but still got another today.  GRRRRR….  Why would anyone want to vote for the CFO of the State when they openly break the law like this???  Saw articles today that other politicians in other states are resorting to this tactic too…shows just how dirty politics are today.

Last Monday Marcia finally broke down and we bought a walker for her.  Over the past few years, it has been harder and harder for her to walk with her cane.  On the way back from Bible Study a week ago Monday, we stopped at a Medical Supply place so that she could look at what they had…and she liked one very similar to the one above.  Under the seat is a pouch to hold her purse, Kindle, or whatever she needs.  It folds up real easy and fits in the backseat or back of the HHR.  She is walking much better since we bought it, and it is probably the best thing we bought for her disability since we got the electric scooter.  She has rarely used her cane since we bought it…only in the walk-in closet where the walker does not fit. Even with this walker, getting over that grass at the Library was pretty hard…something she could not have done with her cane.

Yes, another Condo Home Owners Association situation.  Today we got a mailer…sent out to EVERYONE.  Seems that some of the units (not us) have people under the age of 55 living in them…not visiting (limited to 30 days) but living in them.  I have noticed this since we got back, but have not said anything because it does not bother us.  Well, the letter they sent out says the following:

The state requires the enclosed survey from be completed every two years by each resident.  If more than one resident resides in a household, all residents must be listed with date of birth.  ALL RESIDENTS MUST BE 55 TO LIVE AT [CONDO NAME] AS STATED IN THE DOCUMENTS.  Any refusals to complete the survey form will be turned over to legal counsel.  Please drop off or mail…[gives unit number/address]

Well, I understand what they are trying to do here…but the Librarian in me says, “I wonder if there really is such a state law.”  So far, I have not found one.  Also, not only do they want ages and vehicle information, they want actual birthdates, occupation, an emergency contact name and number, and the final question:  “ARE YOU IN AGREEMENT WITH THE RULES AS STATED TO YOU AT THE INTERVIEW?”  (YES OR NO)

Frankly, I am tired of a Condo Association which thinks they are “God” and act more like “Hitler”.  Yes, they need to verify the age of occupants.  However, when we went through our “Interview”, which was first called an interview until I said something such as, “You mean you can decided ‘if’ we actually can live here or not even though we own it???”  At which time he (old President) said, “It is more like an orientation…if you are over 55, then you can live here, but we need to orient you to the rules.”  Anyway, at this “orientation”, we actually were asked, and we consented to, showing them our Driver’s License.  Of course now, they know just how much older Marcia is than I am…which I think was his intention to begin with.  So “WHY” do we need to provide our birthdates now?  And state if we are married or not. (we are), but it asks “Married, Single, Divorced or Widowed”.  WHY do they need to know this???   What an invasion of people’s privacy.  This is going to take a bit more research…and perhaps a call to a state agency or to HUD.  (Just because someone has to take a stand….)

Goodbye Clifford

Tonight on the news I heard that Norman Bridwell, the author of the “Clifford the Red Dog” books, had passed away Friday at the age of 86.  It immediately brought back memories of my Library career, and of my Children’s Librarian “Miss Ann”, who passed away at the young age of 57 just nine years ago, on December 11, 2005.  I wrote about Miss Ann and about the Library System I was the Director of previously, and you can read that account here.

The picture above is the outside of the recently remodeled White Hall Library back in 2006.  When originally built back in the ‘80s, it was a library and also garaged the bookmobile.  We built two more Libraries while I was there, and no longer needed the bookmobile.  So we gutted this library and ended up with a remodeled Library with nearly twice as much usable space for patrons than we previously had.  

  

   

The top two pictures are of the adult area, and the bottom two are from the children’s area.  Due to the influence of “Miss Ann”, I tried to be sure the kids areas were always colorful and fun looking.  “Children are our future,” she would say.

Miss Ann died in December, 2005.  The White Hall Library re-opened in May, 2006.  But Miss Ann was there……

…..during the spring/summer of 2005, not knowing if she would still be around or not when the White Hall Library remodel took place, she had a book salesman get this “Very Large” Clifford the Red Dog as her “gift” to the White Hall Library.   You don’t know how many little boys and girls I saw give Clifford the biggest hug over the years….hugs which use to be reserved for Miss Ann when children their age came to hear her tell one of her stories.   Good bye Clifford creator … give Miss Ann a big hug from Dave.