Paddling around Homosassa

After waking up a little late, we had a cold cereal breakfast then took the dogs on a walk around “the cube” but because of the heat and humidity we wished we had walked them earlier.

The kayaks and gear were already loaded on Marks pickup so we drove the 16 miles to Ozello where we found the boat launch on John Brown Road. We were able to launch a little after 9:30 am. There was a strong wind blowing in our faces making progress paddling very difficult. In addition, we crossed several bays and other large bodies of water.

We paddled around many of the islands, oyster bars and mangrove growths as we made our way north back to Whittington’s house. As we paddled, we saw ospreys, young bald eagles, some herons and egrets. Several brown pelicans were diving for fish.

By the time we arrived back to the dock behind Whittingtons house, we were exhausted, and arms were sore from paddling against the wind. The time was close to 2 pm by the time we pulled the kayaks up on the dock.

Mark and I drove back to Ozello to get the pickup and see some of what was in the small town of Ozello.

Back at the house, Mark and I modified the door to the new corner cabinet to better accommodate the swing out shelving. It was a fairly straightforward job changing the direction that the door opened.

We all showered, changed and got ready to go out to the Marguerita Grill for dinner. We met neighbors, Kenny and Jody from Minnesota. We ordered three pitchers of Margaritas for the six of us. I ordered the Captain’s platter and Mary had the Aspen crab cakes then helped me with the platter. The owner, Sam, came around to tables welcoming everyone and checking that everything was good. Flags were passed our as Lee Greenwood sang “God Bless the USA” and veterans were recognized.

Back at the house, we refrigerated our leftovers and relaxed before bed.

Building a Generator Stand

After waking early, we walked the dogs before the forecast heat in the mid 90s hit.

After returning to the house, we drove to Home Depot for some 2X4s and four swivel casters. We planned to build a stand for the generator to keep it above potential flood damage. We wanted the stand to be about 4 feet tall and could operate without being removed from the stand. The stand was very easy to build and seemed to work well.

While we built the stand, Scott came to the house to complete installation of the kitchen cabinets and the vanity in the first-floor bathroom. Scott is the person who rebuilt the house before Whittingtons purchased it.

Mary had a great idea for lunch, so we drove to The Freezer to get two full orders of steamed shrimp. We sat at the back porch and enjoyed the peel and eat shrimp.

As Scott worked, Mark and I gathered the kayaks and paddling gear to be loaded into the pickup later this evening. Once Scott finished with the cabinet installs, Mark reconnected water to the vanity.

We needed a few plumbing items and a short section of baseboard for the bathroom. We were able to get everything quickly at Home Depot. On the way back, we stopped at Publix for a few items. Back at the house we cut the baseboard sections to length and nailed them in with the pneumatic nailer.

Dinner was a garden salad with boiled shrimp leftover from lunch.

By the time we were able to load the kayaks and gear into the pickup, the no see ums were bad so we loaded quickly and got the boats strapped down.

Cindy had the makings of ice cream sundaes out so we had an excellent dessert. As we ate the sundaes, we watched two specials from Idaho Public Television. The first program highlighted the many species of pollinating bees. The second program was on an Idaho project to make wildlife crossing overpasses at some of the state’s highways where collisions with wildlife are most common.

Fishing from Mark's Boat

After waking around 5 am, we did our morning language lessons then went down for a breakfast of cold cereal and toast.

Mark needed to run a few errands so we took the recycling to the county transfer center. We stopped at the Sportsman’s Wholesale to get a little gear for fishing. Our last stop was to the bait shop at Strickland’s Convenient Store for three dozen shrimp.

Back at the house, we had ham on sourdough with potato chips.

Kenny, from across the street came over about 4 pm and we headed out in the boat. Mark’s use of the Florida Marine Tracks program was very helpful in preventing hitting rocks or oyster bars in the shallow waters. We moved around many of the islands at the edge of the Gulf but didn’t have much success. Kenny caught a nice snook but it wasn’t quite large enough to meet the legal limit. Mark caught a red drum that was too small and had to be released. Finally, Mark caught a sea trout that was within the length acceptable to keep.

By 8 pm, we gave up and came back to the dock. Kenny cleaned Mark’s fish while Mark cleaned the boat and I cleaned gear and put things away.

Cindy had made an Asian chicken salad with toasted Raman noodles and grilled chicken breast. We finished with some of Cindy’s homemade brownies.

 

April Fool's Day - Not feeling well - Staying in

We were awake before 5 am, had our morning beverages and did our language lessons then went downstairs where Mark had made oatmeal. Mark had arranged a fishing trip this morning with Kenny from across the street and several of his friends who were also involved in the iron mining industry in Minnesota. Kenny would be in Mark’s boat with us and his friends had their own boat. They would show Mark some of their favorite fishing locations in the area.

As the departure time neared, the less confident I became that I had the stamina for a 6–7-hour fishing trip. I felt like I was getting over whatever was bothering me this week but still wasn’t quite right. Mark left to pick up Kenny around 11 but I stayed upstairs and napped most of the morning. Mary and Cindy worked outside moving plants to areas where they might not be damaged when the house is lifted. They also relocated many monarch larvae to milkweed plants with more leaves.

We had deli ham sandwiches on sourdough with potato chips for lunch. Mary and Cindy showered after lunch then we all went out to run errands. We stopped by a gas station but saw prices had raised 40 cents overnight so we decided to put off filling up until later in the week. At Walmart we got a few grocery items and some postcards for the grandsons.

We returned to the house where I called Huntington Federal savings Bank and made arrangements for some banking to be done next week.

Mark and his neighbor, Kenny, returned around 6:30pm having caught only one fish in the seven hours that they fished. The others from their party in the other boat caught nothing as well. They reported that none of the boats that they observed appeared to be catching fish. Kenny filleted the 18-inch sea trout while Mark and I emptied the boat and rinsed seawater from the gear.

When we went inside, Cindy had warmed to the leftovers including the seafood from Stumpknockers for dinner. We found that the air fryer made the fish and seafood very crisp and delicious.

After dinner, Mark and I sat on the dock behind the house and used the leftover shrimp and cut bait to catch several catfish from the canal. My first cast produced a large cat that gave me a great fight.

We came in around 8:30 to shower, clean up and prepare for bed. I took what I hope was my last dose of Nyquil. We watched a few minutes of an old Johnny Carson show on Roku then turned in.

Preparing the boat for fishing

I felt a little better when I awoke not knowing if I was getting over what I had or if it was just the NyQuil that was making me not feel as sick. In either case I was happy to be able to move around. We all had cold cereal for breakfast then Mark and I started installing the swing out shelves on the corner cabinet.

We finished about lunchtime for a deli ham sandwich on sourdough with potato chips.

After lunch, we experimented with the Lowrance and Garmin displays on the boat to be able to follow safe boating paths in the shallow waters and to be able to mark points of potential danger or good places to fish. We saw a porpoise in the canal by Mark’s boat.

We sprayed down with Skin So Soft to repel the no see ums and went out to try the navigation systems. While we were out we saw two feeding porpoises

Back at the dock we renamed the tracks and readied the boat for fishing tomorrow.

Dinner was a delicious lasagna with a garden salad. Once again, I went to bed early after taking NyQuill.

Visit with Grant & Jodie Bell

We both woke early but I was really feeling bad. I altered between burning up and chilling. I skipped breakfast and lunch, staying up in the bedroom. Rain set in that would last all day and produce about 2 inches of rain. The constant rolling thunder kept the dogs spooked. Since the weather wasn’t great, I didn’t mind spending a day inside. I can only presume that I was fighting a cold that caused me to feel so bad. I just hoped that it would run its course soon.

Mark installed a slide out spice rack in one of the narrow cabinets. Marks sister, Jodie, and her husband, Grant, came over for card games. They had a good time playing, No Mercy Uno. Around 4:30 they left for dinner at Stumpknockers in Dunellon, which is about halfway to The Villages. Everyone enjoyed their seafood meals. I stayed at the house and dozed, trying to feel better. While they were out, one of the dogs peed on the floor apparently reluctant to go out in the thunder.

After they returned, they watched a little of the NCAA championships and I continued to sleep. I took a NyQuil before falling asleep.

Kayak Fishing near Homosassa

We awoke to the smell of bacon frying in the kitchen. Mark had made omelets with bacon for breakfast. It would be easy to get used to Mark’s excellent breakfasts.

After breakfast and a short walk with the dogs, Mark and got fishing gear ready and kayaks outfitted. Mark drove us the short distance to Strickland’s convenient store where we bought 3 dozen live shrimp for bait

Paddled up Battle Creek to fish along some oyster bars. The tide was dead low. We caught some small catfish in the shallow water before Mark caught a red drum that was under the slot limit. I caught a 21” red drum on a dead shrimp. Since one legal drum is the limit, I changed to a white plastic swim bait to try to catch sea trout. I caught another red drum that was under the limit and released it.

We watched as a large boat became stuck on an oyster bar in the low water. There were lots of airboats out causing a good bit of turbulence for us. We started back as the sun was going down. I was having a great deal of trouble paddling against the current when I realized that the large fish in the mesh bag on the side of the boat was acting like a sea anchor. After I lifted the bag with the fish into the kayak, a was able to move forward normaly.

I was starting to feel like I was getting sick, so mark cleaned the fish while I took first shower. Cindy and Mary had made pork loin, air fried potatoes and garden salad for dinner. After calling to wish Gran a Happy birthday, I went straight up to bed at 7 pm and slept until 4 am.

Arriving in Homosassa

We were awake by 5 am and went down to the breakfast area of the Microtel by 5:30. A sign indicated that breakfast was free except for students in the truck driving school who would need to pay $4 for breakfast. We presumed that the trucking school got a lodging rate that didn’t include breakfast. We had cold cereal, bagels and the ubiquitous waffle along with our morning beverages. The Microtel here in Ft. Jackson, SC was fine but not exceptional. The room was clean and quiet but the light coming in the window was bothersome.

We showered and did our morning language lessons and checked out. We filled up at a Gulf station in Columbia before getting on the road. Gas was $2.89 which was only a little more than we were paying at home.

We took I 26 south to the intersection with I 95 which took us through Georgia to I 295 around Jacksonville, Fl which connected us to I 10 west for a short distance to US 301. We had a small lunch of a McDonald’s chicken sandwich near the exit in Baldwin, Florida. We had been snacking most of the morning and didn’t need a large lunch. We picked Rt. 121 north of Gainesville then Rt. 98 south to Homosassa.

When we arrived, Mark and Cindy were at The Freezer with Mark’s nephew and two of his friends. We took our things up to our room and played with the dogs until they returned a short time later.  

Mark showed us the work he had done in the loft area of the garage and Cindy showed us the newly replaced cabinets and dishwasher. We were pleased to see that most of the new cabinets were in place and that the new dishwasher had been installed. It turns out that the cabinet installer was the previous owner of the house on Standish Drive who had done the remodeling of the home before Whittingtons purchased it. Mark and I talked fishing and politics while Mary and Cindy played cribbage.

Mark fixed chicken enchiladas and salad for dinner which were excellent. We did our evening language lessons and watched an episode of Blackshore on Acorn before going to to bed.

Leaving for Florida

Our previous trip to Florida in December and January was a great one but we spent most of the time doing repairs to the house caused by Hurricane Helene. Whittington’s invited us back this time to spend a few days recreating. We look forward to seeing them and, hopefully, going out on the water some.

We got up early and went to Planet Fitness for some treadmill time then left home 8 am. We were happy to fill up at the Grayson Speedway for $2.44/gallon. We arrived at Grans around 10:30 for her birthday celebration. Ron returned from chiropractor about the same time. We gave Gran her birthday gifts (Ferrell’s – KFC gift card and Thomas’ art, Koehler’s – potted plant, us – purse and Buffalo Trace bourbon). Lunch was at Monte Alban Mexican Restaurant a little after 11 am. Mary and Gran had the Popeye, chicken with spinach, Ron had a burrito and I had the Speedy Gonzales combo. We all had dessert while we sang happy birthday to Gran although her actual birthday is on Saturday.

We were on the road before 12:30 and heading for I 77 south. Each of the three tolls on the WV Turnpike were $4.50 although our EZ Pass got us through without charge. There was major construction near Chelyan causing an hour long delay. Another construction on the southern end of the turnpike resulted in nearly hour delay. Once through the tunnel leading into Virginia, there was heavy smoke just inside the state. The short drive through Virginia was otherwise uneventful. We were in Charlotte, NC around rush hour and fought major traffic there.

We arrived at the home of Gary and Kim Sigmond at 7 pm. They have only been in their new home since January and it is a beautiful place. Kim’s 101-year-old mother lives with them. Mary and Kim enjoyed catching up during our short visit. We were back on the road south by 8 pm.

We arrived at the Microtel near Ft. Jackson in Columbia, SC a little after 9 pm and checked into our second-floor room. The room was clean and quiet. Our only complaint was that the room darkening shade wouldn’t come down, so the room didn’t get very dark. We did our evening language lessons and turned in.

Returning home to snow and ice

We were awake by 4:30 so we showered and checked out of the Forsyth Travelodge to continue north toward home. There was a light rain as we drove on I-75. By the time we were through Atlanta, we were ready for breakfast so we found a McDonalds near the exit and we both had sausage biscuits and hash browns although we had trouble getting the kiosk to work for us so Mary just ordered at the counter. We laughed because the drink station had five large containers of sweet tea and one small dispenser of unsweetened tea. This is clearly the South. 

Our GPS showed us that we would be home a little after noon but we figured that our arrival would be later considering stops along the way. We saw that gas was as low as $2.49 through much of Georgia and Tennessee but the average was probably $2.89. This was much better than the $3.29 that we paid in Crystal River, Florida.

Snow had already started by the time we reached Tennessee. Because we heard of heavy snowfall, ice and near zero temperatures in Central Kentucky, we stopped at a Kroger in the Knoxville area of Tennessee for a few grocery items. Because the outside temperature was in the 20s, we weren't concerned about keeping things cool in the trunk. We made a quick bathroom stop at the Kentucky Craft Center in Berea, Kentucky. The visitor center wasn't open, but the restrooms were available. We pulled into our driveway at 1 pm.

The snow and ice were so thick that we could get the car into the garage. There was a two-inch layer of snow with a two inch layer under the snow. Under the ice was another layer of snow. I used a large shovel to clear a way for the car to get into the garage.

We needed to be able to get on the road on Monday morning. My mother's friend, Ron, was to be released from Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital after receiving a pacemaker. After several unsuccessful attempts to get the car out of the driveway, I got the tractor ready.

Because of the single digit temperatures, the tractor wouldn't start. After briefly warming the battery I was able to get it to start. As usual, lining up the loader on the tractor took some time, made even harder by the cold and gloved hands. I worked on the driveway for another two hours before it was clear enough for the car to pass. I will certainly have to straighten out the gravel surface of the driveway once the snow melts in a week or so. This snow has already been on the ground for over two weeks and is expected to persist for another week. Temperatures for Monday through Wednesday are expected to be well below zero with wind chill factors as low as -11. Some schools haven't been open since December 20 because of the weather.

Once the driveway was clear enough for the car to pass, I went inside to a cup of hot cider and to stand by the gas log fire. When we tried to turn the heat up on the geothermal furnace, we noticed that the thermostat wasn't working. In the basement, I found that one of the breakers was open so the thermostat appeared to work and we turned the heat up. The house didn't appear to be warming much despite turning the heat up a few degrees. We had heard that the temperature should only be adjusted up by a few degrees at a time to avoid using the emergency resistance heat. The temperature inside the house just wouldn't go up and the air coming through the registers wasn't warm at all. After a couple of hours, I turned all three breakers for the heating system off and left them for a few minutes. When I turned them back on again, the furnace appeared to function correctly, and heat came from the vents. However, the breaker kicked again but after another reset the furnace worked throughout the night. We had Comfy Club scheduled for next week so we would be sure to ask the technician about the issue. This could have been a major problem if we hadn't been home with subzero temperatures and the furnace not working.

Once we warmed up, we watched a special on the Presidency on one of the free over-the-air channels. President Trump's inauguration is tomorrow so stations are running specials on the presidency.

We turned in at 10 pm and planned to leave for Huntington by 8 am tomorrow.

Hiking Annutteliga Hammock

We woke at 4:30 as Mark and Cindy were preparing to leave for the Tampa Airport. They were out of the house by 5 am for their flight to Eugene, OR with a stop in Phoenix.

Mary and I had cold cereal then took the dogs on a walk around "the square" in the neighborhood. As we walked we discussed the weather forecast for the coming week. A huge cold air mass is heading for most of the Eastern US including Florida. Mush of the Midwest, including Cincinnati, Georgetown and Huntington have been in deep snow and ice for over two weeks already with more in the forecast. This would bring near freezing temperatures to the Homosassa area as well as wind and thunderstorms. We decided that the best plan would be to leave for Kentucky after the dogs were fed and walked this afternoon.

Mary spent the morning cleaning, doing laundry and continuing to pack for our return home. I spent more time trying to clean the adhesive from the side of Mark's boat. I carried most of our things out to the car and into the trunk.

The neighbor from the house on stilts came over while we were loading. She had her father, Jimmy Williams, with her. He is a nice 92-year-old man who is a lifelong Florida resident and was a logger for many years. His daughter was trying to turn the water main off in anticipation of subfreezing temperatures. The saltwater and mud from the Hurricane Helene flood made the valve difficult to turn. I sprayed it with WD-40 and was able to turn it off with a crescent wrench after soaking for a few minutes.

We had a lunch of leftovers with coconut shrimp and fries from Thursday's dinner at Marguerita Grill. We also had some leftover potato soup from earlier in the week.

After scanning a map of the area, we decided to walk around an area about 30 minutes to the south that is a part of Chassahowitzka Wildlife Management Area that we hadn't visited. The Annutteliga Hammock area has 570 acres with 8 miles of easy trails through sandy soil. It was a beautiful day with temperatures approaching 80 degrees but there was a slight comfortable breeze. As we walked, we saw a lot of tracks but three deer were the only wildlife that we saw.

When we returned to the house, we took the dogs on a short walk on Standish and Battle Creek then put the last-minute items in the car, locked up and left by 3:30 pm. We hoped to get to Atlanta by the time we stopped for the night.

The drive north through Crystal River took longer than we expected because the Manatee Festival was going on. We were listening to playlists on my old iPod Touch to make the ride go by faster, Clouds were rolling in as predicted before the forecast storms to hit the area.

We took US 98 all the way to Chiefland then cut east to pick up I-75 north near Lake City. We stopped for dinner at an Arby's Restaurant near Lake City, Florida. The restaurant was attached to a TA gas station and was very slow but we enjoyed our sandwiches as we continued driving north.  We enjoyed the break before driving on to Forsyth, Georgia where we stayed at a Travelodge near the exit. The room was only $50 for the night and was an older motel in need of a remodel but it was clean and quiet, so we were fine with the room and the rate.

Preparing to leave Florida

We went downstairs after doing our morning language lessons for a breakfast of scrambled eggs and maple bacon. The morning temperature was 57 degrees but the forecast was for a sunny 70 degree day here in Homosassa, Florida.

We had planned a kayak outing today, probably to see manatees in the Crystal River nearby. However, Cindy hadn't been feeling well so we considered other plans. Mary knitted most of the morning and I helped Mark straighten tools and building materials in the garage. I took the tools that Mark wouldn't need out to the trunk of the car and left one of the nail guns for Mark. He would be installing trim around the doors and windows as well as putting down baseboard in the room above the garage. We also configured the internet capability of the garage doors. The MyQ system is easy to use and allows the garage doors to be opened and closed from anywhere.

We had been watching the monarch caterpillars on the milkweeds in front of Whittington’s house. As the caterpillars grew, we noticed that we no longer saw them. We assumed that they crawled into the nearby palm tree to form a chrysalis. We wondered if the adult monarch butterflies that we were watching today were the same as the caterpillars that we were watching a few days ago.

We came in for lunch when Mary called us in. She had used some of the leftovers in the refrigerator to make chicken quesadillas. Cindy came out for some leftover potato soup but continued to feel ill. We decided to scrap the kayak trip for today and do a few more things around the house.

After lunch, Mark and I started removing the chrome lettering from the boat. Some of the letters had fallen off over the past year due to what the dealer says is a weak adhesive. Mark decided to completely remove the lettering. Getting the chrome letters off was very easy. We used a blow dryer to heat the letters and pop them off of the boat hull. However, the adhesive adhered well to the paint. We tried alcohol, Goo Gone, WD-40 and charcoal lighter fluid to remove the adhesive. We had the best luck just using a plastic putty knife to scrape it off. We decided to get some acetone this evening to remove the adhesive.

Since we decided to forgo on the paddling trip today, we unloaded the kayaks from the bed of the pickup and replaced the paddles, seats and other gear into the garage. One kayak went out to the dock, the other was hung on the wall of the garage.

Cindy was feeling a little better so we went out to run a few errands. Cindy and Mary went to Walgreens to pick up a prescription while Mark and I sat in the car and looked for candidates as “Florida Man” as people went into Walgreen’s spirit store. We drove to the nearby True Value Hardware where Mary and Cindy found some drawer pull knobs for a bedroom dresser and Mark got a quart of acetone to use to try to remove the adhesive under the boat lettering. Our last stop was at Publix where we picked up a few grocery items and a bag of dog food,

After returning to the house Mark and I tried using the acetone to remove the acetone with mixed results. The acetone softened the adhesive but seemed to smear it over the side of the boat rather than removing it.

Mark made a stir fry with mixed vegetables, Asian noodles and Korean beef that was very good. Cindy didn't join us for dinner since she was still not feeling well. Everyone was hoping that she would be able to make the trip to Oregon in the morning. Mark and Cindy are buying a house near Eugene to rent to Robert and Sheena. They will also celebrate Robert and Michael's birthdays while they are there. We had planned to take them to the airport in the morning, but they found that it was less expensive to leave the car parked at the airport for the five days that they would be gone than to pay Airport Dan to transport them back home next week.

Since Whittingtons plan to leave before 5 am, we did our language lessons and turned in early.

Manatee Springs and Fanning Springs State Parks

We took the dogs on a walk around the neighborhood after doing our language lessons and a breakfast of oatmeal with nuts and craisins.

We decided to drive north to Manatee Springs State Park near Chiefland, Florida. The drive took a little over 90 minutes on US 98 through mostly agricultural areas of Florida. Mark's annual Florida State Park Pass got us into the park without charge. We walked on a few short trails in a wooded area then out a boardwalk where we saw three manatees including a calf, an alligator sunning on a log, many turtles and fish of all types. The boardwalk took us from the springs out to the Suwannee River. The water from the spring was absolutely clear allowing us to see a lot of aquatic life. There weren't many people at the park, but one couple was snorkeling in the area near the springs. So much water was coming from the springs that they were unable to swim back up to the springs and had to go to shore with the current and walk back. There were several sets of scuba gear near the spring. As we were leaving, we saw several people coming in with scuba gear so we supposed that there was a program starting this afternoon.

The day was starting to warm up, so we sat in the sun to have peanut butter on Ritz crackers, nuts and corn nuts for lunch. The temperature was up to nearly 70 degrees, so we were able to shed jackets and sweatshirts.

We drove the short distance from Manatee Springs State Park to Fanning Springs State Park. As we walked toward the boat launch area, we saw a young armadillo that didn't appear to be afraid of us. We watched it for a while then walked to the boat launch in the park. This is a small launch that is suitable for canoes and kayaks. Fanning Springs State Park is about 7 miles up the Suwannee River from Manatee Springs State Park so we discussed taking two cars there and dropping one at Manatee Springs then launching kayaks at Fanning Springs to float downstream to Manatee Springs.

We walked through a wooded area in Fleming Springs Park and noticed a good bit of damage from wild hogs. There is a variety of local vegetation throughout the park that we noticed as we walked. The 70-degree weather was perfect for our walk. We got to the springs area and walked around the area where swimming is permitted and out toward the Suwannee River. We saw two manatees in the water that surfaced from time to time. We also saw schools of fish swimming in the clear water.

When we got back to the parking area the armadillo was still digging around looking for food. I stood trying to get a photo when the animal came toward me and almost walked across my foot.

The drive back to Homosassa went well, and we arrived back at the house by 4:30. I took a quick shower and changed clothes for dinner at Marguerita Grill.

We go to Marguerita Grill every time we are in Homosassa. The restaurant and bar are decorated in patriotic themes with banners from each branch of the military as well as fire, police and EMS logos hanging throughout the restaurant. The restaurant's owner is very conservative and makes a point to display the commitment to patriotic causes.

I was hungry so I had Gavin’s Seafood Platter that included fish, shrimp, scallops, clam strips and a crab cake. My sides were French fries and a garden salad. Mary had Aspen’s crab cakes for dinner with fries and a side salad. I had one of her lump crab cakes and she had some of my shrimp, fish and clams. When ordering a margarita, I learned that a "medium" margarita is served in a beer pitcher and serves four. We got four glasses and shared the margarita. We all enjoyed our meals. The food and service were excellent as always.

This was another great day with the Whittingtons.  We have really enjoyed our time here in Homosassa.  We aren't ready to face the subzero temperatures back home but we look forward to seeing family and friends at home.

Back at the house, we did our evening language lessons then watched two episodes of Vienna Blood on PBS before turning in for the night.

Hiking at the Hog Pond area of the Withlacoochee State Forest

We had cold cereal and a bagel for breakfast after doing our morning language lessons. Mark and I took the dogs on a walk around Eldred, Bassett and Cedar Gate then came back to the Whittington's house on Standish Drive. The walk was short since we planned to take the dogs on a longer walk this afternoon.

The weather at home continues to be cold and snowy.  The thermometer at home showed -1.3 degrees this morning.  We are happy to be in Florida with much warmer weather.  All of the locals think that these days in the 60s are cold but we are enjoying the escape from the extreme cold at home.

Mary and Cindy continued to work on their genealogy in Familysearch.com while Mark and I went out to the garage. Mark cleaned and straightened in the upstairs room while I sorted the things that I would leave for Mark to continue working on finishing the room. I know that he would need one of the finishing nail guns but he has plenty of tools and supplies for finishing the drywall. I packed up the MantisX laser academy shooting system and my two pistols to come home with us.

Mark came down and we put another coat of primer over the patch in the garage partition. We put a large fan on the floor to speed drying then used a can of orange peel texture spray on the wall. It didn't give quite enough texture so Mark tried his can of knockdown texture. This would normally give a lot more texture than the orange peel but he set the spray to the lowest setting and moved quickly to get a texture matching the rest of the wall.

While the texture dried, we went in for a lunch of cheddar cheese and leftover beans in a tortilla wrap with salsa. We discussed afternoon plans for a walk to the Hog Pond area of the Withlacoochee State Forest.

The texture spray was dry after lunch so we applied a coat of white Behr Marquee Satin Paint. To get a match, we painted the entire wall, ceiling to floor rather than just the patch. The wall looked good although it would require another coat in the patched area.

We gathered a few things and loaded the dogs into Cindy's Toyota Highlander to go on a walk through the nearby Hog Pond area of Withlacoochee State Forest. There was only one vehicle in the parking area when we arrived, and we put the dogs on leashes to take them on a walk on the trails..

This area has a variety of habitats including palmetto thickets, areas wooded with live oak trees, scrub meadows and sandy prairie. We saw a lot of evidence of tortoises in the area but the day was just in the low 60s so we didn't see tortoises. Two armadillos were very near us and appeared to have little fear. Of course, there were a lot of squirrels to excite the dogs. We saw tracks of raccoons, deer and wild hogs but no other animals. Two young men came by us, one on a Segway electric bicycle and the other on an electrically powered skateboard with one large wheel. By the time we were back to the car, we had walked between 6 and 7 miles.

After the short drive back to the house, I vacuumed and cleaned the inside of Cindy's car while Mark got dinner started then came out to brush down cobwebs on the front of the garage. I put one last coat of paint on the garage partition wall.

Dinner was cheesy potato soup made from Bear Creek soup mix along with a garden salad and hard rolls. Everything was very good.

We watched two episodes of Vienna Blood on PBS after doing our evening language lessons. We turned in by 10 pm.

Lunch at The Freezer

Mark was making some of his excellent breakfast burritos when we went downstairs. We had finished our morning language lessons and had our beverages before going down.

We checked the weather at home and felt bad (a little) because temperatures were in the single digits and they snow and ice continue to pile up.

Mary and Cindy had a morning of shopping planned but would take the dogs on a walk before they left. They shopped for swimsuits at Lands End so Mary found three that were 70% off that she liked and put the order in to arrive after we returned home next week. Cindy was also expecting the cabinet installer to come for a final measurement before ordering the replacement kitchen cabinets. They hope to have a small dishwasher included in the cabinets and would like to keep their granite countertop.

Mark and I loaded the drywall scraps and old trim boards that had been flooded into the pickup. When we arrived at the Citrus County Landfill we were pleased that the line was short. We dumped the drywall and trim sections. When we weighed out we learned that we had over 200 pounds of material and the fee was less than $20 for the dump fee.

We stopped by Gulf to Lake Marine Sales so Mark could check on ordering a cover for his boat. From there we stopped at Lowe’s to see options for trim and moulding for the room over the garage. We found that the pine planks at Lowe’s were less expensive than the ones we bought from Home Depot. The boards were also in much better shape than the Home Depot stock. We bought some drywall corner bead, trim for the doors and windows and a tube of construction adhesive. Our last stop was at Crystal River Marine, the boat dealership where Mark had the hull of his boat painted with a coating to resist growth of marine organisms.

On the drive back to the house we saw Cindy and Mary driving out to go shopping. Mary had moved her car to the neighbor’s driveway so Mark could back the boat trailer onto the gravel pad. He was able to park the boat and trailer easily so we chocked the wheels and put the jack down to disconnect from the pickup. As we were doing that, FedEx arrived with a nightstand that Cindy had ordered from Wayfair. We carried it into the first floor bedroom so Mark could unpack and set it up. I moved Mary’s Camry back to the gravel pad where we had parked earlier but parked parallel to Standish Drive in front of the boat.

We put a skim coat on the concrete board that we installed on the garage partition and hoped to get it completed before we leave on Sunday. About the time that we were finishing, Mary called asking us if we wanted to meet them at The Freezer for shrimp. We didn’t hesitate to agree on lunch so we cleaned up and drove the short distance to the dockside restaurant. We had a pound of shrimp boiled for the four of us. Mark and I also had cups of their clam chowder. They were out of smoked mullet dip so the four of us shared a cup of salmon dip with crackers. Lunch was very good. We have always enjoyed our meal at The Freezer every time we have visited. We only wish the day were warm enough for us to eat outside on the dock where shrimp is brought to the restaurant by boat.

After returning to the house Mary and Cindy worked on genealogy. Both of them had some things on ancestry.com so they consolidated their research on familysearch.com, a free genealogy site supported by the LDS Church. Mark and I put a coat of primer on the inside wall in the garage where we patched the concrete wallboard.

I used some of the leftover exterior paint for the garage to touch up the wall near Mark’s sauna. Mark used the same paint to paint the mailbox post and an area where saltwater from the flood caused a short circuit in a power line going to the heat pump. A relay blew making a scorched spot on the wall that covered nicely with the paint.

Mark & I loaded the two kayaks and boating gear onto his pickup in anticipation of paddling on Crystal River or another nearby location in the next few days.  We knew that the temperature would be cool in the mornings but would warm up into the mid 70s each afternoon.  We have several things that need to be done but a trip to see manatees would be nice one afternoon.

Mark made chicken enchiladas for dinner but made them casserole style like Mary sometimes does. They were very good and we all enjoyed them. After dinner we went out to the garage to challenge Mary and Cindy with the MantisX Laser Academy shooting system.  Both did well once they became comfortable with the pistols.

We did our evening language lessons and watched two episodes of Vienna Blood on PBS before turning in.

Completing the room over the garage

After waking early, we did our morning language lessons, and texted birthday wishes to Sarah. She said that she would video chat with us after the boys got home from school.

We had Great Grains cereal for breakfast and started back to work on the ceiling in the room over the garage. The paint was dry on the planks that Mary and Cindy had stained yesterday afternoon, so we carried the 8-foot boards up to the second floor. The boards went up fairly quickly, so we moved to the last section that were 9’ 3” wide so we had to use the 10’ boards. We slowed down to cut around an electrical box for a ceiling light. We cut an access hole to for the ventilation fan in the attic. We had to rip a thin board for the last row on the ceiling, but it went into place fairly easily.

We stopped for a lunch of turkey sandwiches with tortilla chips and queso dip, then went back to work.

We finished the ceiling by around 3 pm and were pleased with how it looked. Since we had some stained planks left, we ripped pieces to enclose the windows at each end. The boards required some fine tuning to fit around the windows, but we got them nailed into place. Then we cut a plywood cover for the ceiling access then covered it with stained planks to match with the ceiling. The room still needed to have the Sheetrock finished and trim to be put up around the doors and windows as well as between the drywall and the stained pine planks. We started cleaning up the space since it was covered with sawdust and tools were placed around the room where we were using them.

Mark could tape and finish the drywall when they return from Oregon in two weeks. They were going to Oregon to finalize the purchase of a new house where Robert and Sheena will rent from them. They also planned to celebrate the boys’ birthdays and visit some of their Oregon friends. Mark does a good job with drywall and should get the room looking good soon once they return from the trip.

Sarah and the boys video called for a video chat, and it was great seeing them. We look forward to having them down for a sleepover soon.

We decided on leftover red beans and rice with a garden salad for dinner. We did our evening language lessons then watched two episodes of Vienna Blood on PBS.

Putting up the garage ceiling

After waking around 5 am, we did our morning language lessons and had a cup of tea. Mark made sheet pancakes with pecans and blueberries for breakfast. I had soaked a pound of red beans in water with baking soda the night before. I rinsed the beans well and added them to five cups of beef broth. I brought the beans to a boil then set them to simmer until dinner.

Mary and Cindy took the dogs on a walk through the neighborhood before going to Seven Rivers Presbyterian Church at Lecanto, Florida. Mark and I went to the room over the garage the continue installing pine planks on the 27’ long front side of the garage. Since we had the starter strip of planks already in place where the pine meets the drywall sheets the process of nailing the 8- and 10-foot planks on the wall went quickly. We noticed that we had incorrectly mitered one of the 8 foot boards after we had nailed it down with 16 gauge finish nails in the nail gun. That is when we were convinced that the holding power of the nails was more than adequate. That board was difficult to remove. We worked quickly and efficiently getting the wall completed by lunch.

We came in for a lunch of turkey sandwiches and tortilla chips with queso dip, then back out to the garage to work on the ceiling. I added andouille to the beans for Cajun style beans and rice for dinner. As expected, the first board was the most difficult but important. We wanted to use all 10 foot boards to eliminate joints in the ceiling. We needed to cut the boards to the exact length with a miter on both ends to meet with the planks on the angled walls. We installed the boards perpendicular to the direction of the boards of the walls.

Once the first board was up, the other 10-foot boards went up fairly quickly in that section of the ceiling. Because the selection of 10-foot planks was much more limited than the 8 footers, some of the boards had a slight bend. One of us had to screw a short section of 2 X 4 into a joist and pry the planks into place while the other one nailed it to the joint. For all of the planks, we used a short section of waste board to coax the tongue and groove boards together without damaging the edges.

By the time we had installed planks on the 13-foot section of ceiling we were tired and knew that we would need more planks to finish the ceiling. We measured the length of the ceiling requiring 8-foot planks in inches then divided by five which is the width of the planks, to get the needed number of planks for the ceiling. We did likewise for the ceiling section furthest from the house that was 9 1/4 feet wide and would need 10-foot planks.

We took Mark’s pickup to Home Depot and picked out the best planks we could find. Like most of the employees at the Crystal River Home Depot, our cashier was very old. She had difficulty scanning the lumber and had to hand enter the UPC for the boards. We fortunately had only 8’ and 10’ tongue and groove pine planks. The bill showed up as nearly $2000! It turns out that she had entered a quantity of 200 boards at the 8-foot length rather than the 20 boards that we were purchasing. She was unable to find the price for the dozen 10’ boards so she rang them up as the less expensive 8-foot planks. We got things straightened out and brought the boards into the garage where Mary and Cindy stained them while Mark and I moved the boards that were already stained upstairs to be used on the ceiling.

We went in for dinner of red beans with andouille and white rice which we all enjoyed our meals. After doing our evening language lessons we watched Astrid and Vienna Blood on PBS then went up to bed. We watched the last episode of Astrid until new episodes are released next year.