A Long Day

We started out the morning with a visit to McDonald's for breakfast - two can dine for $7.98 (plus tax).  Sorry, you need the coupon book and it ends this weekend.

From there we headed for the border.  Clear skies until Fort Erie, when we encountered whiteout conditions.  Mardi took this picture from the bridge over the Niagara River.

The conditions didn't improve.  The trip to Buffalo Airport was a white nuckler!  And, when we got to the airport it wasn't much better.

Visibility was very limited and flights were being cancelled and delayed.  

We returned the rental car before the noon deadline and then waited - and waited.

Eventually, it started to clear.  Our flight, which originated in Orlando, was delayed, but we finally got into the air after sitting in the airport for about seven hours.

Once we got above the weather it was just fine.  And we arrived in Orlando, greeted by 16 C weather.

Waited for the shuttle bus to take us to the remote parking, and then headed "home" to Orange Lake.  A long day, but it all worked out.

Tomorrow we golf with Matt and Maureen.

Turn Up The Heat!

We got through our list of jobs as planned, went through the mail and juggled the bank accounts to make sure our obligations will be  met.

Sarah-Jean and Ewen were home today - too cold for school teachers or something, so I was able to drop off birthday cards, but I left my camera in Florida, so no pictures of the 17 year old twins.
To compensate, I have reached back to when they were just about 4 years old.

Still as good looking as ever (it's a genetic thing - thanks Sue).

After cleaning out the job jar, I managed to make the condo feel more like home by hanging three pictures that my daughters had given me some years ago.  They fit our indigenous theme for the living room very well.

As you can see from the middle picture, Mardi compensated for the lack of a camera by helping me with her phone.

And, finally, we headed to Theatre Aquarius to see "Crees In The Caribbean".  My Montana plated Accent says it was -5 F. when we left the theatre.  Get me back to Florida!  We plan to return the rental car by noon tomorrow, but our flight doesn't leave Buffalo until after 4 p.m.

We're Home

Left Orange Lake at 9:30 a.m.  Arrived home at about 5:45 p.m.

Some snow around Buffalo, which expects about a foot of lake effect snow tonight.  But bare pavement in Ontario.  Our rented Accent did just fine.

The condo has totally changed since we left.  Diane and Greg have done a wonderful job.  The red paint is gone.  Electrical boxes are replaced.  The place is bright and feeling like home.  We'll be working hard to make it up to them!

We have a full day tomorrow - doctor's appointment, bloodletting, lawyer re the condo purchase, lunch with A.J., birthday cards to the 17 (unbelievable!!!) year old  twins, Sarah-Jean and Ewen, a cheque to Fishgut member Moe for my June fishing trip deposit,   maybe some shopping for bathroom wallpaper, and finally, Theatre Aquarius to see "Crees In The Caribbean".

Then, on Thursday we head back to Florida.

Out and About

After being shut-ins for all day yesterday with our only activity being the viewing of the CNN movie "Three Identical Strangers" (an excellent show by the way), we decided to venture out today.  

After lunch we headed over to Disney Springs to see a movie, "On the Basis of Sex", based on the life of Supreme Court Judge Ruth Bader Ginsberg, a show we highly recommend!

Following which, we did a bit of a walkabout.  

And then, I took my chick to Sakura Asian Fusion, a restaurant that features a Japanese/Thai/Vietnamese/Korean menu.  

Our waitress.

Lots of beautiful Orchids on all tables.

I had Moo Goo Gai Pan and Mardi had Tom Yum Goong Noodle soup.  Excellent!


When we got back and I checked my emails, I found the following, sent by John Buckley:

Adam was hanging around the garden of Eden feeling very lonely.

So, God asked him, "What's wrong with you?"

Adam said he didn't have anyone to talk to.

God said that He was going to make Adam a companion and that it would be a woman.

He said, "This pretty lady will gather food for you, she will cook for you, and when you discover clothing, she will wash it for you.

"She will always agree with every decision you make and she will not nag you, and will always be the first to admit she was wrong when you've had a disagreement.

"She will praise you!

"She will bear your children, and never ask you to get up in the middle of the night to take care of them.

"She will NEVER have a headache and will freely give you love and passion whenever you need it."

Adam asked God, "What will a woman like this cost?"

God replied, "An arm and a leg."

Then Adam asked, "What can I get for just a rib?"

Of course the rest is history!!!

Mazel Tov L'Chiam!

Tomorrow is our 30th day on U.S. soil, and the end of our 30 day out-of-province health coverage.  So, we are flying to Buffalo, renting a car and going home for two nights to restart the insurance clock, saving about $4,000 Canadian in the process.  Dumb situation, but part of the process.  So we will be able to enjoy the balmy Golden Horseshoe for a bit.

Talk later!

No News

Rain today, cool and breezy.  End of story.

Addendum to Yesterday's Post

Forgot to mention that Barbara told us early in the games that she really didn't like losing the last game.  Even if she won several in a row, losing the last game was a bummer.  So......😈😈....Jo-Ann and I let them crush us in each of the first two games.  Then we blew them away in the third and last game...😃😃.  Sorry Barbara!

We'll let you have a do-over when we get together again in Davenport.

Relaxing Day

After a slow start to the day, we walked 3 miles around part of the resort.  

Nothing exciting after that until daughters Barbara and Jo-Ann came over for some Hand and Foot games.  They had been staying on the Atlantic coast for the past three weeks, but this week are in Kissimmee.  The exciting part is that Jo-Ann and I finally won the third game after being blown out of the park in the first two games.

No pictures today.  Maybe tomorrow.

The Worm Has Turned

Feeling better today, Mardi agreed to take me on at The Legends here at Orange Lake.  Big mistake!  In the end, my 106 was not impressive, but it was persuasive - crushing her by one stroke...............OK, she won three more holes than I did - but that's not relevant!

Not wanting to press the issue there will be no golf photos today.

After golf we met up with brother Roger and Lynn at Millers' Ale House.

And, following that we were invited to their timeshare, 3 bedroom house at Summer Bay Resort for games of Sequence.  Through devious subterfuge, Roger and I were beaten 6 games to 5.

Altogether though, a pretty good, enjoyable day - and we certainly had better weather than we are reading about from home.  

We're Seniors

We acted like the old folks we are today.  

Mardi walked over to the club house to check her weight.  Apparently, the ice cream cone yesterday didn't have a bad effect.

Then, we walked to the cash Bingo.

Came up empty-handed once again.

Following that, we headed for the North Village to see "Paul from Texas".

Excellent entertainer.

We then headed to Miller's Ale House.  Even at 5:30 p.m. there was a lineup for a table.  Our wait was about 30 minutes.

And, in a final "senior moment" we got boxes to take half of our dinner home - rare (I would call it "raw") prime rib for Mardi and shrimp scampi linguine for me.

Spent the evening watching the ridiculous side show that they call federal politics down here.  No wonder they didn't score well on "quality of life"!

Tomorrow we golf at the Legends course here at Orange Lake.

We Venture Out

After spending yesterday in hibernation, we tried to get back to normal today.  Temperature in the mid 20's and sunny.

We golfed at the Reserve course here at Orange Lake.  Below, a picture of the 5th hole.

Strategy:  aim for the sand trap, pitch out and settle for a bogey.  This is one of the three holes I won today (don't ask!).

Our heroine - does that look like gloating?

There is a lot of construction going on at the resort.  These units are being gutted and renovated.  Units get a soft upgrade every six years and more major upgrades after twelve and eighteen years, so quality is always maintained.

Hole #16 starts with a chute to what looks like a benign fairway, but "you ain't seen nothin' yet".

Approaching from the right, as I did.....

...my sixth lost ball of the day.
Or, from the left, as the straight shooter did.

We skipped the last hole - both of us were wiped by then....Mardi due to her cold, me due to all the strokes I took.  Thank goodness we don't play for real money!

It was announced today that Canada has been voted the country with the "Best Quality of Life", so we decided to celebrate.

Nothing special planned for tomorrow, but we'll venture out somewhere if Mardi continues on her path to feeling better.

P.S.  I won both games of 500 Rummy tonight.  Apparently, she's not invincible!

A Walking Day

This morning I walked with Mardi to her weigh-in at the club house.  She came out smiling - there apparently is a benefit to being sick.

On our way we saw a flowering Cassia tree beginning to put on its show.  Apparently, they bloom twice a year - spring and fall.

This afternoon we walked back to the old folks' pool for the cash Bingo games.  Close, but no cigar.  Afterwards, Mardi returned to the villa for a rest and I went on a nature hike.

Saw these two Osprey circling for food and managed to track them down.

Next up - a Wood Stork.

And, four Sand Hill Crane couples - they mate for life.

And our personal gator.

Yesterday, I told a couple of guys who started throwing food to the gator that it was against the law.  It teaches the gators to come to people for food and puts kids at risk when they approach one.  The gator then gets euthanized - they can't be relocated because they have become potential man-eaters.  They accepted my admonition.

Mardi managed over 7,000 steps today and I passed 10,000 (according to my new golf GPS/fitbit/heart monitor/etc.).  She's feeling better.  In a couple of days she'll be ready to hit the golf course again.

She beat me at 500 Rummy tonight.  'Nuff said.

Alone At Home

Jo-Anne Vanstone's flight yesterday was finally cancelled and she has given up on finding a flight down this week.  So we are alone for a few days.  Weather is cool and very windy here.

Mardi is still dogged by her cold, cough and occasional fever, so nothing exciting is happening today.

We'll hope for more interesting news tomorrow.

A Quiet Day

Jill and Ron left this morning for Miami and their Caribbean cruise.

Mardi is still under the weather, so we limited our activity today to a small shop for food.

At time of writing (8 p.m.) Jo-Anne Vanstone is still sitting in the Hamilton airport, due to the weather, waiting for her flight to be given the go-ahead.  It's almost three hours past her departure time, but her latest advice is that one flight has been allowed to leave, so hopefully hers will be next.

We'll report tomorrow.

Swiss Fairways

We took Jill and Ron to Swiss Fairways today.  Still no water skiers, but enjoyed the scenery.

For the March golf guys, we have an alternate to Oakwood.  Golf on Friday, Saturday and Sunday is just $30, and you can have a steak barbecued after golf for $10. more on any of those three days.  We didn't try the food this time, but will certainly give it a go later in our stay.

Mardi had me on the ropes again with her opening 9 score of 48, but her persistent cold and cough was too much today and she went back to the car while we finished the back nine.

This is the par 3 eighth hole.  The elevation change is not too apparent, but this is a challenging hole with sand front and back.

Did I mention that I birdied the hole?

The next hole, #9, has a tree in front that almost always comes into play.  You can see the green and flag under and beyond the tree, but the waste bunker which goes completely across in front of the hole can be a nasty surprise.  Most approach shots are blind on this hole.

Nevertheless, Swiss Fairways got a thumbs up from Jill and Ron.  

Mardi and I will be playing here quite often I think.  Especially since we have found out the Palisades course is now a subdivision and The Legends of Clermont has been closed for almost a year.  Choices are diminishing.

As I write this, Mardi has arisen from her sleep after golf and says she wants to play cards.  

Postscript: Ron and I got trounced once again at Hand and Foot, but we prevailed at Euchre, including a skunk (two lone hands and a euchre).  

Tomorrow our guests head to Miami for a cruise and we pick up Jo-Anne Vanstone at the airport.

Bok Tower Day

Edward Bok was an immigrant boy when he came to America.  He rose to become the Editor of Ladies Home Journal and in his later years purchased a property on the highest point in Central Florida.  He had the 205 foot marble and coquina Carillon Tower built amidst 50 acres of gardens and, in 1929, donated it to the American people.

Before he left Holland, his grandmother admonished him:
Make you the world a bit better place or more beautiful because you have lived in it.
This is indeed a beautiful place.  He added to that:

One of my favourite experiences is to walk on the River of Stone - it's like having a foot massage, and helps to get you into a calm mood.  Note the air plants hanging on the right.

An awesome property - one we return to every year.  And, it is even better when you can share it with new visitors.

The Carillon Tower is a real work of art.

With beautiful colour tones in the marble.

The tower tolls every half hour, and twice a day the Resident Carillonneur performs a concert on the 60 bell "instrument".

The box in front of the crowd is showing his performance on a closed circuit TV.

There were no seats left, so I wandered over to the moat that surrounds the tower and fed the greedy Koi.

Even with the bells ringing it is a tranquil spot!  Bok's grave lies beneath the flowers in front of the brass door.

There were lots of flowering plants and butterflies were plentiful.

From Bok Tower we made the short journey to Oakwood Golf Course to see if they had started their Friday golf/dinner specials.  The answer is "No, the dinners are now held at the Lake Wales Golf and Country Club and started two weeks ago".  Lake Wales is their other course - purchased last year.  So, off we went.

Bad news for the golf guys who come down in March.  It is no longer a package deal.  At Lake Wales the golf fee, from 1 p.m. on, is $42. and the dinners are separate and extra - the choices this week ranged from $14. for a bacon cheese burger & fries, to $26. for Prime Rib.  Last year we got golf and the meal for $44.

Next stop was at Davidson's Citrus Candy store in Dundee, to pick up some candied ginger and other nice things.  But they didn't have regular fudge, so another stop had to be made at Del Webb's Candy Store.

And, finally, we headed for Miller's Ale House for the Prime Rib dinner.  Fantastic, for $14.95. ($11.05 cheaper than at Lake Wales Golf).

No cards tonight.  Tired bodies heading for an early exit.
Tomorrow we play Swiss Fairways with Jill and Ron.

Losers!

We played golf today 😡.

Then we played Euchre 😊😒😡.

Then we played Hand and Foot 😡.

Then we played another stupid card game 😡.

Tomorrow, things will be better.  We will visit Bok Tower, another favourite spot.

Excursion Day

We started off with a "must do" trip to Golf Passion.  The ladies were successful in finding some classy duds.

Ron and I made our fashion statement with new golf gloves.

We had lunch in Winter Park and then headed for the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum to see their Tiffany display.

Mardi and I go to the Morse every year, sometimes more than once, and enjoy every visit.  Tiffany was an accomplished artist in several media, but he was an absolute genius with glass.

His most famous work is the Chapel that was put together for the Chicago World's Fair.  Unfortunately, you can't capture it all in one picture.  Stained glass windows on three walls and in a side alcove are also awesome.

This "window" is one of my favourites.

A partial recreation of his dining room.

And his final work - The Tree Of Life.

The museum is filled with his windows, lamps, vases, paintings and other works, and it gives a unique window into his life and his art.  Well worth the many visits!

We stopped at WalMart on the way home to buy a deck of cards for Euchre, so we don't have to break up a deck from the Hand and Foot game.  I'm sure some card games will break out tonight.