Bits and Pieces

Friday Meanderings

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It’s cold.

Right?

Cold.

Even here in sunny FLORIDA!

I’m okay with the cold.  I have grandkids in North Dakota which I occasionally visit in Winter.  So I have the clothes.  Snow boots. Warm gloves. Cozy hats.  Puffy coat.

But the grayness. And the wind.  And the rain.

Not so okay with that.

Yesterday we had cold but there was sun.  Last weekend there was NO sun and we had friends visiting.

Our entire life is about living outdoors.  We don’t even have a kitchen table or dining room because we ALWAYS eat on our screened deck.  (YES. EVEN WHEN IT’S 90 DEGREES AND 100% HUMIDITY IN AUGUST BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT WE DO)

Well almost always.  Even with the space heater we have out there when it’s 36 degrees or below, dinner is on the kitchen island!

And it’s been below!

We’ve had a lot of company since the beginning of December.  Which makes us very happy.  But every time someone arrives so does the ugly gray wet cold weather.  (what is with that?) Terry had a fishing charter scheduled to celebrate his birthday with Alan and Andrew and it was about 45 degrees.  Windy.  Rainy.  They went bowling. And Terry bowled 192.  Happy Birthday!

Jes and Andrew came.  Nasty weather showed up too. We went bowling. (Terry did not bowl 192) And we played a lot of board games. Then went to Top Golf in Brandon.  Indoor driving range.  Brilliant!

Terry and Phil came last weekend.  And so did the ugly weather. Yes.  There were a lot of board games. (I even won at Scrabble.  lost at every thing else.)

Terry’s one of my blog followers.  Comments on both of them. Spent a couple days.

(Okay.  Terry and Phil are also my son-in-laws parents and good friends.  So if you are one of my followers–you might not get the same reception!)

We had planned on going on a cocktail cruise when they arrived because it was warm and the water was in.  The boat wouldn’t start.  (Sheesch) Took them on a golf cart ride to the Shed.  It started raining.  (Really?)

The next day was U-G-L-Y and cold.

Took them to the Citrus County Courthouse Museum.  Yeah.  We were really reaching for something to do indoors!

But…..

In case you didn’t know….

“Follow that Dream” with Elvis Presley was filmed right her in Citrus County.  Yes.  Hard to believe.

There’s even a street in Inglis named FOLLOW THAT DREAM!

The courthouse scene from the movie was filmed at the Citrus County Courthouse.  And Elvis is prominently featured throughout the museum.

Did you know that when they were restoring the courtroom they actually went to the movie for reference??????

Friday Meanderings

And here’s Phil with Elvis!Friday Meanderings

 

And Terry!

Friday Meanderings

Now.  I gotta say the cold weather was really good for us when we went to Three Sisters Springs that I posted about Monday.  This is such a wonderful experience.  We go whenever we can–with or without company!

It was a super weekend.  (and gotta repeat I won at Scrabble).

Hey,  It’s Friday and Steve Jervee–my favorite weatherman–says that it will be in the 70s!  Yippee!  I live in Florida!

Have a GREAT WEEKEND!

Kathy

 

 

Manatees for a Monday

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We went to “Three Sisters Springs” in Crystal River this past weekend.  It was one of their “free” days. We try to go to these whenever possible–especially when we have guests!  Otherwise, the only way to get into the park is to pay to ride the trolley from the Visitor’s Center.

This time the buses were running from the Manatee Festival in Crystal River.  We went to the Manatee Festival a few years ago specifically to get on the bus and go to the park.  By the time we had got through the crowds to the pick up spot, there was a very long line.  We left and drove to a shopping plaza that’s directly across the street and walked into the park.

bus line
That’s the line for the bus at the 2016 Manatee Festival!

This year the charge for the Manatee Festival is $5.00.  And it was really cold.  So we parked at the plaza and walked in. Along with dozens of other people that had figured this out.

We went to the park back in December with Lauri, Piper, and Adley but it was a warm day and the manatees were out catching the rays somewhere else.

But Saturday was a cloudy, windy, COLD day, and the manatees were on view all along the boardwalk!

This is at the mouth of Three Sisters Springs. Hundreds of manatees huddled together.

This is the only entrance for the manatees into Three Sisters Springs

The boardwalk goes by the Three Sisters (Big Sister, Little Sister, and Pretty Sister) and Idiot’s Delight.  A path continues from the boardwalk to Magnolia Springs.  This was the first time we walked down to Magnolia.  According to the guide, Magnolia is a deep spring so the manatees just float on top of the water.

Manatees for a Monday
Magnolia Spring, those are not rocks, those are backs of manatees!

Like I said, it was cold.  Here’s Terry and Phil Prior and my Terry. Terry and Phil were visiting us from South Carolina–no manatees there!

Manatees for a Monday

The cold didn’t keep the tourists away!

It was a great day with good friends.  But we were happy to get out of the cold!