Sunday, September 30, 2007

Beach Birds




It was a windy day at the beach today. Too windy to put up the umbrella. The sun was nice and warm but the wind kept you from feeling uncomfortably hot and sweaty. It was fun watching these birds....looking for food, doing a mating prance, chasing each other when one had food. There was one big one there....could be the turkey for Thanksgiving. Also saw a dolphin swim by.





Tom Turkey -->






<--- If the beach sands could talk, what a tale they'd tell...

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Saturday Ramblings: Out and About



Saturday morning was like almost all of the mornings here so far........beautiful! So after checking email, having breakfast, and talking to some of my friends back in Albany, I showered and cleaned up and headed out. There was a Folk Festival going on and I figured I'd check it out.

There were booths of folk art and artifacts, food and drink. I wandered around for a little while, then browsed some of the nearby antiques shops. There weren't a lot of people there so I got to park nearby. Next weekend the weekly Saturday Morning Market begins. I've heard good things about that so I'm looking forward to going.

Four floors of antiques packed in!
















I then took a drive down towards Tropicana Field ....home to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.








From there I headed East towards the University of Southern Florida (USF) campus at the Bay.


























And then thru downtown and along Beach Drive heading north to Old NE where I live. I stopped along the way at the bayside beach there and snapped some pics. Also included some of new construction and new condos.
























New boat docks under construction.








































Not sure if this is visible...but this white SUV is towing a trailer with 2 palm trees on it.

Friday, September 28, 2007

It's Friday and a New Space!


Now I can sit down, take a nap, get comfy and read a good book or watch a DVD.




I love this retro look. I'll probably watch Father Knows Best from this chair. Or maybe Rebel Without a Cause.



NOTE TO SELF: When Otto says, let's go shopping, be sure to take only $20 with you.

Thursday, September 27, 2007

The Bay, The Bayou and a Trigger Happy Finger



I decided I really need to get myself back to exercising now that all those *%@#!&^ boxes are all gone. (Well, almost!) It was such a beautiful morning and I thought I would actually put on my sneakers (*GASP!*) and take a nice long walk. I walked over to the park on the bay. Didn't have my camera and saw a lot of pelicans. Started walking north along the bay towards Coffee Pot Bayou. Decided to go back to my apartment and pick up my camera and head back out. So, here is today's gallery. And, eventually, I'm going to start running along here, so probably will leave the camera home!























And....back home again!

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Ho! Hum! The Beach and another Drawbridge

I met with one of the area managers yesterday with the credit union that I will soon be working for. Well, prividing I pass my drug screening, my background check and my credit check. Whew! A triple whammy! I stayed up all night studying, but I think I did OK. They gave me a list of all the labs that I could go to have the tests done. The only one in St Petersburg was actually down in South Pasadena on Gulfport Blvd. I figured, I'm almost to the beach, so why not? I was only there for about 10 minutes. The woman was mumbling most of the time and did not look happy. I was going to ask her if she liked her job. But after taking a second look, her there in her lab coat, surgical gloves and holding a big cup of my urine, I thought best not to.
I drove over to St Pete Beach, and then up thru Treasure Island to John's Pass. There is a little shopping area there with all kinds of touristy stuff. I bought some tank tops and tees and a pair of flip flops.....all half price and some at an additional 30% or 40% off! I also bought this 'lizard' to hang somewhere in my apartment. Maybe it will scare the cockroaches away? Kidding. (Hmmm?) The guy at the shop told me that these lizards are made from steel drums in Haiti. Seems that they had tons of these drums there from WWII, filled with petrol at the time. I always did like the steel drum music at Typhoon Lagoon. So, after the shopping I hit the deli there and had a 'California Wrap' I guess they call it California because of the black olives. I love that!












And then, heading from John's Pass back onto Treasure Island...guess what? Yep. Another little sailboat and a line of cars waiting in both directions. Luckily it was a short wait!






Anyhow, I then went to the beach and relaxed under my umbrella for a couple hours. This is so hard to take. But I know I'll be working soon enough, so I'm enjoying it now.






Monday, September 24, 2007

Watch This Space . . .



Coming soon! A place to sit and lay down and nap! Friday's the plan!

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Dinner and what else? The Beach



Umm! Umm! Umm! Last night Danny made a delicious dinner for us (himself, Ron, Otto, and me). It was to die for. Coquille St Jacques, cheese biscuits, green and yellow beans, and Key Lime Cheesecake for dessert! I think I gained 20 pounds! I've got some left over biscuits and cheesecake in my fridge...but don't think they'll be lasting long!










I went to the beach this afternoon for a few hours. Another gorgeous day there. The water was a tad bit cooler today. Maybe from the storm that passed thru the Gulf recently. I saw a dolphin swim by when I was out in the water. At first I thought it was a shark! Saw that ole fin boppin' in and out of the water. Turned around and headed for the beach! When one of the swimmers who was out there on a surfboard came back in, I asked him if that was a shark. He told me it was the dolphin. I didn't think sharks swam in the arches like the dolphins. I guess sharks just circle!!!

On my way to the beach (12 miles from my apartment...clocked it the other day), I hit the drawbridge being up. Every so often that happens. Lines of cars waiting for one stupid boat to pass.






The guilty party.




A parting shot...