Three-fourths of the Fourth Month

Posted on April 22, 2026 by TheJessicaness

We’ve managed a nice walk together every morning, except the day we skipped and the one we went on in the evening. We walked to Home Depot, Harbor Freight, and Publix on different occasions. I meet Priscilla (who loves to garden) and Marjorie (from Buffalo, NY), and walk a few laps with Mary Jo (and her swollen knee), which leads to coffee at her house. I changed the insoles in my Altra Lone Peak 9+ shoes a few months ago, but the soles are finally wearing out after their designated lifespan.

I logged almost three times their max mileage of 500, but some of that walking was done in flip-flops, slides, and barefoot (so definitely not an accurate measure of usage). It’s a good thing I’m replacing my shoes before a trip, unlike when I went to Japan and walked myself into foot pain (possibly plantar fasciitis and runner’s toe in an attempt to avoid the first injury). I walk Sarah’s dogs seven times, and we’re leaving for Europe the same day, about two hours apart.

Great Egret

Coming from the pool, I talk with Diana, who is usually on the phone while standing around with her dog (an ancient version of Toto). I spent some time with Sue C., had a glass of wine, recycled some large boxes, and was offered a large bird painting. I talk with Christine B. and check in on Dar and Grace while she’s away at a waterfront home watching a little dog named Lucy. I get more cookies and conversation from Penny, and a book to borrow from Jan, along with a swimsuit to try on. I’ll return the bikini to her at her 59th birthday celebration.

She had planned to bake her own cake, but with a busted thumb, Adrian helped squeeze the lemons for the two layers of curd and put the coconut frosting on top. I talk with Jen G. and admire the peach fuzz on her scalp in preparation for surgery. Then I met Jen H.’s husband, Ed, and their daughter, and her dog. I spent a few hours listening to Deb Y. talk about tailgate parties, travel in Mexico, and plastic sand. I sat for a couple of hours in Tina’s garage, entertaining Mike R. (over 80 years old) with my youthful energy.

Cuban tree frog

Roberto invites me to stay for pineapple because of the memories he and his wife have of getting such a sweet treat from a delivery truck in Brazil or Colombia. An invite to their home is never without aconchego or gemütlichkeit (a balance of inviting warmth) to the point where we have to walk away while chatting. I’m grateful for the time spent with them, never in a hurry but always busy. I chat with Susie while her 19-year-old cat Molly gets some outside time. Amanda tells me about trips abroad with her class.

Dawn shows me the latest homemade dress and towel set for the grandkids while I sacrifice my legs to mosquitoes. I sit with Linda on her lanai and discuss books, friends, and injuries. I hang out with Delight for a bit while she sells a lamp, one of a few she doesn’t need anymore. I finally met Dallas’ adult nephew while he was cleaning his truck. My talk with KaraLee is interrupted by a call from Helen. We spent two hours on the phone this month.

Dar and Grace

Anytime I see Tulie (a Cavapoo), it gives me an opportunity to chat with Pat and Mike about gardening, grandkids, and gnomes. I return Gary’s books and tell him I’ll wait to return from my trip to borrow more, but I’m glad I didn’t, so that I could enjoy another Sam Kean book, The Icepick Surgeon, before departure. I finished Life by Keith Richards and gained a new perspective on the musician’s lifestyle. I quickly read Maisie Dobbs for the book club by skipping the middle flashback, and was excited and disappointed by Trail of the Lost because I have a love/hate relationship with the PCT.

I met Chris D.’s grandson on his way to the mall to get his sunglasses fixed with his grandpa. I see more of Lisa walking with Harper or Lucas, sometimes both, dressed for her tennis court visit. I talk with Christine R. about Spanish (she’s also on Duolingo) and gardening (a popular pastime). I spent almost four hours on the phone with Fallon and close to 42 minutes talking with Dad on his birthday. I managed to finish four short posts about the rest of the trip from August 2019. We get invited to Al’s heated pool, and I enjoy talking with his son, Grant, about calculus while the guys move a table.

Sandhill cranes

I’m learning the difference between alsjeblieft and alstublieft (informal vs formal, please) so that I may ask for een kopje koffie while in the Netherlands; not that they won’t speak better English than me. I spent a few days working on two 1000-piece boat-themed puzzles while still working out some travel logistics for our time in Europe. I haven’t played the piano for but two hours, but I love having it available for when I’m in the mood or a friend who plays comes over.

I called USF, since it has been months since I first applied, and the delay is that they “lost” my one-class transcript for five weeks in their online system. I’m not sure how this happens, and it doesn’t give me hope, but others have assured me it’s difficult to get into a Florida university; that, or people simply move on to another school that is willing to do the work on time, so they can coordinate their schedules and get on with their education and the rest of their lives. I might be taking another business degree if I haven’t been accepted by May.

North American wheel big nymph

We go paddleboarding at Sunset Beach, and I see a sea turtle, a cute medium one with barnacles on its back. We both see many sting rays, some calm and others disturbed by the giant shadow passing over them, causing them to stir up sand in their getaway. It was a lovely high tide, and we beat the crowds. I look forward to going out again next month and also going to the park to paddle among the gators. We eat at Fireside again, and after we learn that it’s Dawn’s favorite place that she visits weekly. Our neighbors are super supportive of our upcoming trip and are looking forward to the photos.

I moonlight as employed on a Sunday, so that Mitchell, whom I haven’t seen in a year, can take his new fiancée (also named Jessica) to get baptized at a beach over an hour away while I watch his two kids, Layla and Brodie, five and three years old. I give them a ride to/from the park, which is only a few minutes farther from their old house. They have moved at least four times in two years. They have fun playing in the fountains for an hour, so they change when we get back to the house for an evening of making chalk rainbows, helping cook eggs, playing with magnetic tiles, and hide-and-seek (in front of me).

Caleb rotates the tires on the car, as he had forgotten how difficult it was last time with the size jack we have. At least we are remembering to get it done with these tires. Caleb is gifted a bread-loaf-sized eggplant parmesan, so we cook that for dinner. That vegetable is difficult to cook, which is the same reason I don’t make hash browns. Caleb will throw two soccer or volleyballs back into a schoolyard just for there to be even more when we pass by the next morning. It’s too bad the guard can’t add that simple task to his list of duties. Caleb gets a haircut because he’s not used to having it on his neck.

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In the Nictate of an Eye

Posted on March 31, 2026 by TheJessicaness

I’m still on a learning streak on Duolingo, 176 days. Although I can tell my Dutch is improving (Mijn olifanten dragen een broek, which means ‘My elephants wear pants’), I’m not sure how I will use this vocabulary in the land of tulips, canals, and windmills. I have learned klompen (clogs). I’m excited about this trip, though we have plans in between that distract from my usual full focus on this itinerary alone.

snail and white-marked tussock moth caterpillar

I can tell the temperature is increasing, and though we spend time outside, our walks have been decreasing. Perhaps when our neighbors ride their bikes, we should hop on ours and join them, since someone is always putting on a helmet and going. I was maintaining my running, but that too has fallen off the to-do list, and the same goes for my workouts that leave my legs sore for days.

Sunset Beach

I’ve been writing about the road trip I took in August of 2019 after I graduated from SDCC (San Diego Community College) and met up with Caleb’s family in Virginia. A lot of memories were made, and I’m glad to recall the great times had by all, as the kids would otherwise only have photos to know they were there at all.

I spent 5.5 hours on the phone with Fallon, 55 minutes with Dad and Caroline, 32 minutes with Uncle Chuck, 11 minutes with Christine B., 9 minutes with Sarah, and less on various other calls. We watched the Predators (2023) five-part docuseries about cheetahs, lions, pumas, polar bears, and wild dogs (which are the cutest). I read: The Secret Life of Sunflowers and Heartbreaker: A Memoir, and listened to I am Malala, which focuses on art, music, and education, respectively.

I manage 4.5 hours on piano, and I’m ready to learn some new songs or play these familiar tunes until I have them memorized. I walk Snicker and Doodle 18 times so that their usual walker could have a week off. On one of the walks, Chris and her son and his wife will walk with us to get Snicker moving, as they are neighbors and know how stubborn the dogs can be about walking in the same direction. Sarah gifts me some homemade rice krispies.

Christine R. will be dog-sitting the same week, so this allows us to chat more than we usually do. I also get to walk a lap with Helen and her black golden doodles, Ramona and Frankie, twice. I’ll walk the dogs a lap one afternoon, so come the planned evening, after a lengthy conversation with Sarah, I forget to grab a poo bag, but luckily Mike (Tulie’s dad) had just gotten home, so I knew which door to knock on. We have plenty of pet owners in this neighborhood.

We’ll spend many hours and a few coffees at Mary Jo and Roberto’s, mostly in the shade of their lanai. Caleb helps Pat move his washer and dryer, and Chris will lend me some brochures for Key West. I see more of Amanda, so she thinks of me for the book club meeting when she gives me some free appetizer footballs for Carrabba’s, even though she’ll be too busy volunteering to make it this time, either.

I chat with Jen, gift Penny an apple, stop by Jill’s, meet the new Dave, and say hi to Harper, Lisa U’s three-month-old granddaughter. I’ll meet my neighbor Tammy, get introduced to Laurie and her dog, get invited in to see Deb Y’s feathers and mirrors, and Dawn’s many craft spaces. I talk with Gary and Joyce, returning one book and getting three more, with Rick about his daughter finishing med school, and with Jan about her bread and visiting the beach.

Shawn Mackey

Helen gives me a box with some outfits she hasn’t worn in twenty years, and is happy to see how well one of them fits on me. This encourages her to give Caleb a shirt with rhinestones that her husband used to wear. We ride bicycles to Cool Beans with Jan for coffee, and we will have to go back once they get more of their menu on offer. Holly invites us over, and Tina’s garage is always open for conversation. I met Susan, another new resident, with two cats, a bird, and a 14-month-old grandson.

Caleb and Mr. Slithers at Fireside Pizza

We go to Sunset Beach to listen to OysterBone with Fallon and her daughter, Addison. We have the perfect stage-side view to watch the dancing crowd and our bikes to escape on before the vehicle rush. This also gives us time at her place for me to play with Zeus and feed him treats. I’ll spend the next weekend with Cheryl, Amy, and Asta at Lucky Lobster listening to Frank on vocals and guitar, and Señor Rita’s eating overloaded bowls of chips and swinging from their rafters.

Caleb, Jordan, Tristan, Kris

My legs are still sore, so we’re taking it easy on our 18th anniversary. That, or neither of us planned much, so we spent the morning reading with coffee. We’ll walk around our favorite park and see gators and deer, and then find a bench in the shade where I can watch the tufted titmouse family flit about while Caleb reads. Our REI dividend from all our PCT purchases arrives in time for shoes (we still have more than we need), a magnet and bra for me, and socks and stickers for Caleb. Dinner is had at Brick House so we can try their fried deviled eggs by their fireplace.

We only visit the hot tub once, as just being outside now can be cause to rinse off. Caleb’s dad is officially diagnosed with dementia, which I thought meant losing your memories, not creating mean ones to excuse behavior and throw tantrums in public. I spend time coloring and looking through a National Geographic from 1997. I called the university because it’s been four more weeks and they still haven’t reached a decision. Class registration opened on March 25, but I’m told I can sign up in the summer, so we will see how that goes.

Tristan and Vicki

I spent a weekend by the pool meeting more neighbors and eating cupcakes, brownies, and chocolate mint cookies. Roxy made us a loaf of apricot-walnut bread, and though Caleb thanked her for it, I’m not sure he even got to try any. I met Serena, who is moving her parents in so they can be closer to each other. I’ll talk with Toni, Linda, Pat, Agim, Leo, and Sue. I planted a crown-of-thorns and an aloe plant in the little space under the garage window. We had basil and a Poinsettia, but they didn’t make it.

Jordan and Tristan

I take a box of Sarah’s books to donate, as all the little libraries are full, including the one by our pool. I vacuum Dar, Christine’s cat, while Caleb helps her hang some art. I ride with Helen and Linda to the book club, and Deb F. asks some good questions: What would you want to find in a mystery box? What would this chapter of your life be called – vacation mode. It was a nice way of getting to know more about each other while still discussing the book by Marta Molnar.

view from The Great LEGO Race ride

We scrub the pollen out of the car’s crevices and order a car cover. We take a trip to Key West, which is another post. My blog no longer supports the pink and gray background, so I changed to blue and yellow. We have dinner at Fireside Pizza, and Caleb plays with some dough, like the two kids at the table by us. He makes Gumby and Mr. Slithers while another kid is being told to read aloud. Sue invites me in to see the painting of her dog, Sugar, done by Sarah, and to play with the pup for a while.

Jess and Caleb in front of LEGO Kingdoms

Jan coordinates a successful lunch at Benedict’s with Sarah, Deb F., and me. Caleb and I will end the month by spending the day at Legoland with Kris, Vicki, Tristan, and Jordan. We leave the house before sunrise, have breakfast at Little Johnny’s Diner, where you can add two eggs for $2.75 or get a side of one egg for $2.95. You also have the option of a third egg if one over-easy is brought to the table broken. We park the motorcycle for $25, and the longest line will be the one at the gift shop eight hours later.

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Key West with Karley and Terry

Posted on March 23, 2026 by TheJessicaness

THURSDAY/FRIDAY
Caleb changes the oil while I shower, and then we drive down to Ruskin for dinner with Terry and Karley at Sunset Grill. This lets us sleep in on the boat and get mini burritos delivered via Karley (properly wrapped in a paper towel and foil) before the four of us, and Macaroni, make the drive to Key West, in two cars. We stop at Wawa to use a $25 gift card on gas, and since the milkshake machine is missing, we order frozen coffees instead.

Traffic slows down on the Overseas Highway so that each car has a moment to take in the man in a bucket hanging from a helicopter working on the power lines. We pick up our discount diving tickets and switch passengers after dropping most of our gear at the dive shop, Lost Reef Adventures. The guys gave the gate guard Karley’s ID, and he told them I was good to go as long as I’m not Argentinian. Not sure what the deal there is, but Caleb gets us checked in, and we walk to Waterfront Brewery for dinner.

We stroll into an art gallery, and as we have a look around, this group of four guys comes in. They are looking for their friend, and I say he’s the one putting something in his pants. They loved it! The gallery assistant wouldn’t let us leave until he brought us into a small room with a large sunset painting, by the artist, Shawn Mackey, working on another piece up front, and dimmed the lights to darkness, recreating the scene, something I would do if I also had the five grand to spend.

We continue on our way to the Southernmost Point as we attempt to get there by sunset, even if online says it’s temporarily closed. Mission accomplished, and we get to join in a couple’s argument in a fun way for us and a couple of guys who also hear the “fuck yous” flying by the count, “fuck you, three!” We’ll keep it up for the rest of our night in hopes we reach their ripe ages and become all right with arguing like that in public, but that’s still quite a few decades away, even by the oldest guy in our group.

Caleb and I remember finding the three-story bar for our first time and the view the rooftop provided, so we were looking forward to showing our friends, but the Bull & Whistle, with no changes to the live music stage on the first floor and billiards on the second floor, decided to add planters, benches, and speakers to keep guests a good two feet from looking down on Duval St. The Garden of Eden is a clothing optional bar, with no nudes this time, but a man dancing with a lemur. His pet is considered Class III and requires an annual permit to protect the most endangered group of mammals.

SATURDAY
We grab coffees for breakfast, everyone else having had camp granola in the room, and pack sandwiches for lunch. I’ll only be able to eat half of mine. We are one of two dive groups, the other being two dads, each with their son, and a lone diver who will join them. The first dive was stressful with one eye burning from sunscreen, but it went better than expected after a 15-month surface interval, and we returned to the boat after 45 minutes.

We see a reef shark on the second dive, but cut this dive short too, as the high current leaves me exhausted, so Caleb helps tow me back to the boat. I only use about half a tank on each dive. Usually, I stay fully suited, but today, I change out of my gear, leaving only my swim top on with a jacket over and sweat capris. After a short lunch on the pier, we are back to sea with a couple that is snorkeling. I’m wearing a 5/4mm wetsuit (thick body, thinner on arms and legs) with a 1mm sharkskin top while they float on the 77.8°F surface.

The third dive was the best. I get cold on the fourth, so I’m over it. We don’t need a safety stop as our max depth was 32 ft. I feel more confident in my diving and my ability to handle situations underwater. Karley and I will walk back to the room while the guys rinse and hang our gear at the shop. We can stagger showers this way and stop at Boat House for appetizers before moving on to Thai Cuisine and Sushi Bar for rolls of Sassy Girl, Sunset, and JB. Karley and I head off again, this time to the Margaritaville gift shop while the guys wait for a to-go order of mango sticky rice.

SUNDAY
We grab breakfast from Old Town Bakery and return to the room to eat since our morning dive has been canceled due to a lack of available divers. Our friends are returning to Ruskin since one is still in the workforce and another is awaiting her first shift at a new job. Macaroni is ready for another car ride. We walk to Divers Direct to get Caleb a new pair of boots as he has outgrown our matching ones. I was going to get a slice of key lime pie, but we opted for strawberry pie on a stick instead.

Caleb and I will spend our first afternoon dive cutting fishing line that is choking out coral, but some of it is just too tangled for us to remove safely. I was surprised at the haul, but I know how much more we left, which makes me sad. We see a turtle before the second dive that magically disappears as soon as I enter the water. The visibility was six to 25 feet, but that’s just a measure of my poor gauge of length, as the internet says that March offers double and triple that distance. One of these dives, I’ll have to bring a tape measure.

On the second dive, we swam east for ten minutes and then flew by the boat in the other direction in three minutes. I checked on the boat’s location, stayed closer to the surface, and then called the dive when I realized how tired I was. I didn’t want to get so detoured again and have Caleb tow me back again. We were in the water for 98 minutes today and almost three hours yesterday. Upon return, I help Caleb rinse gear, we grab dinner, then walk to the room for showers and laundry, since the rental comes with a washer and dryer.

MONDAY
We packed up the room and were hoping to continue drying our stuff in the room for a couple of hours, but without a crew going out, the shop doesn’t open until 9. We’ll spend that time instead on checking out of the room, getting gas, and waiting for the MWR office to open so they can refund yesterday morning’s dive tickets. We grab our gear and head east. I stopped for an iguana to cross the road, only to have it hit by an oncoming truck while I watched. It’s those types of people that the famous slasher villains should be hunting down in their next film.

We stop in Key Largo at another chance at key lime pie, but this slice is lackluster. I’m not sure if my taste buds are changing or the recipes are different, but Caleb says the piece I got was frozen, which is why the texture was off, too. We’ll join Terry and Karley by their pool for a community dinner of tacos and dips. I appreciate being able to eat around our regular meal time, and we skipped the bar birthday party invite to continue home. Caleb finds us a detour around the parked train so we can unpack and leave all but our BCDs, SPGs, and regulators soaking overnight.

*Some of the sealife we saw: lizardfish, anemone, great barracuda, trumpetfish, French grunt, stoplight parrotfish, bluehead wrasse, damselfish, scrawled filefish, longspine squirrelfish, hermit crab, horse conch, canary wrasse, Christmas tree worm, flame streaked box crab, Atlantic blue tang, spiny lobster, reef shark, stingray, and sixbar angelfish.

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A Thought Experiment

Posted on March 3, 2026 by TheJessicaness

The idea started with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, established in 1948, and agreed upon by 48 nations that were UN members at the time. This included 22 from the Americas, 14 from Europe, ten from Asia & Pacific, five from the Middle East, and just two, Ethiopia and Liberia, from Africa. The nations that abstained were the USSR, Byelorussian SSR, Ukrainian SSR (individual freedoms over state authority), Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, South Africa (apartheid), and Saudi Arabia (marriage, religion, and freedom of movement).

The 30 articles agree that all humans are free and equal and have the freedom from discrimination, slavery, and torture. They are a person before the law, have a right to seek justice, freedom from arbitrary arrest, and the right to a fair trial. They shall have privacy, freedom of movement, a right to asylum, full consent to marriage, and the right to own property. They may hold beliefs, have freedom of expression and assembly, and participate in governement. They shall have fair working conditions, a well-being standard of living, education, reasonable working hours, and cultural participation.

These ideas were established in a world of racism, sexism, communism, classism, antisemitism, ageism, ableism, and fanaticism to name a few. These nations agreed to uphold these articles for other nations while not delivering it to their citizens. Then I thought about how religion has affected history with so many nations fighting for God and greed, and the Catholic Church owning over 170 million acres, and so much more in assets while people who follow the doctrines continue to go hungry, uneducated, and without proper medical care.

My next search led me to an updated version of the Ten Commandments.
1. Honor the dignity and equality of every person: no discrimination, dehumanization, or exploitation
2. Protect the Earth and all living systems: safeguard air, water, soil, climate, and biodiversity
3. Do not take more than you need: limit waste, overconsumption, and depletion of shared resources
4. Tell the truth and value knowledge: promote science, honesty, and transparency
5. Resolve conflicts without violence: prioritize dimplomacy, justice, and restorative solutions
6. Respect bodily autonomy and consent: no one may use another’s body without consent
7. Care for the vulnerable: children, elders, the poor and displaced, and future generations
8. Use power responsibly: leaders must act with accountability, fairness, and stewardship
9. Preserve cultural heritage and human creativity: honor traditions, languages, arts, and histories
10. Act with compassion toward all beings: empathy towards humans, animals, and ecosystems

The original commandments were written for a small society and a culture focused on tribal survival. Minus the don’t lie, cheat, steal, or kill, they mostly demand that God be the only one. And though each religion seems to tell its followers to love thy brother, it condemns everyone who is different in any way possible. There are also all the hypocrites and those who couldn’t be bothered to read the religious text, either due to illiteracy or a modern acronym, TL;DR (too long, didn’t read). Both of these are societal issues, but if someone would’ve come along sooner and preached differently, where would we be?

The first changes that come to mind for me: less unnecessary deaths for people fighting to not be treated like property; safe air and water without fighting industry; no fast fashion and piles of plastic; companies being honest about the detriment of their products; no wars; more consent during life than we receive in death; no human trafficking; no leaders starving their citizens for control; no book burning and sign removal to delete history; and no hunting anything to extinction for a dollar. These ideas are all large-scale, and had the original books of faith addressed any of these, perhaps I would be a devotee.

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Walk, Talk, Sip, Repeat

Posted on February 28, 2026 by TheJessicaness

There’s a saying somewhere: we are what we do every day. I’m glad that I find different places and people to do the same things with. This is how I spent a part of February, where the temperature ranged from 32° to 78°F. I’ve been updating my blog from trips in 2019 and spending the other two weeks planning trips in 2026. I’ve fallen off the piano practice bandwagon, as it’s more difficult to find inspiring songs to learn scales than it is to play the ones I already like. I appreciate the challenge and hope that March will bring more than 3.5 hours of practice.

I was on the phone with Fallon for over four hours, my dad and Caroline for almost 38 minutes (now that he finished the first draft of his 1700-page book), Christine for a combined half hour, and Susie for four minutes. I’ll talk with Tina, Sue, Helen, Deb, Pat, Penny, and Gary when I see them in the neighborhood or when going to Christine’s for madeleines, Susie’s for trail-mix oat and chocolate chip oat cookies, Penny’s for cinnamon oat cookies, and Sarah’s for cookies stuffed with Snickers pieces (and to walk her dogs Snicker and Doodle seven times).

I walk a mile with Linda, complete 13.31 miles with Jan (Caleb joining us for 70%), for 48.7 logged miles, but a total of 128 this month. I completed strength, cardio, and yoga workouts, averaging 80 minutes a week. I only covered 13 miles on my bike, but doubled my running distance to 16 miles. Caleb collected and planted some ear tree seeds; only one sprouted. We sat in the hot tub twice. The first time, because we were told it wasn’t hot (but it was), and the second time, because I wanted to soak, but it wasn’t hot (because too many leaves had gotten into the pump).

I finished listening to Night Magic by Leigh Ann Henion, an audiobook that I started on December 1st, returned to the library, and re-rented. I didn’t mind certain parts while I was puzzling (I finished two and Karley helped with one), but found it difficult to listen to otherwise. I’m still reading Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker. The reason this book is taking me so long is that I find something to research on every other page that leads me astray or further along, but that is why I love this book so much. I’m debating reading it again, but I’ll return it along with some others to their owner, Roberto, when I’m done.

Southern Black Racer

an ovenbird — builds domed nests that resemble a Dutch oven

The bike ride took us to Dunedin on Fat Tuesday, so we didn’t have to worry about parking, just a car running a red light in front of an officer who couldn’t be bothered. The rest of the night wasn’t much of an improvement, but the parade delivered plenty of lights, honking, and beads. Caleb started using an app, Too Good To Go, to get us discounts on donuts and bagels that bakeries would throw away at the end of the day. There are also grocery stores and restaurants that participate. We went to Dunedin, Clearwater, Largo, and Tampa for food.

Monarch butterfly

I went to Sea Sea Riders again for another book club, this one to discuss The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens, which is part of a three-book series featuring the same main character, with three more books focusing on a detective. I went to Jerome’s Bakery with Jan and Sarah for some French creations. I tried the iced caramel apple butter bliss latte and a crepe suzette of orange and caramel on buckwheat. I left with a slice of chocolate something with fresh raspberries inside. The Wat Mongkolratanaram Buddhist Temple invites guests on Sundays to donate money in exchange for Thai food, which we gladly did, then sat by the water.

We took a day trip to Bok Tower Gardens. The founder was born in the Netherlands in 1863 and purchased 14-acres in 1922. Edward W. Bok hired Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. to spend the next five years transforming an arid sandhill into an exotic location under the native oak hammock. The gardens now encompass 80 acres and include a 205-foot marble and coquina Singing Tower with tile mosaics, animal carvings, and custom ironwork. There are daily concerts of the carillon, comprised of 60 bells ranging in weight from 16 to 22,400 pounds.

We walked through the Chao Exhibit Hall to see parts of the tower upclose, by the kitchen garden and sampled fresh green onions, birdwatched at Window by the Pond, then ambled around the tower before returning to the parking lot for a picnic lunch. We finished our visit with a stroll on the Sunset Trail Loop. We paid the deposit for the liveaboard, booked our flights to Amsterdam and Sydney, and applied for the ETA (electronic travel authorization) to Australia. My school application is still under review since they wanted a transcript of one class I took in 2006, as if my degrees weren’t enough.

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