May 3 - 7

Friday, May 3:  Today is “Doctor Day” for Mike.  Sometime during our Texas crossing he got dust and grime in his eyes from all the wind.  His eyes got progressively worse and by the time we got to Clearwater he was miserable!  Both eyes were red, watery and itchy and he said they kind of hurt behind the eyeball.  Yikes!  Fortunately, my sister-in-law JoAnn has worked for an eye doctor for many years so we called her on Wednesday and asked her if she could get Mike in to see the doctor on Thursday afternoon or Friday.  Mike’s appointment was today at 2 PM so we hung around the RV until it was time to go.  When the doctor looked at Mike’s eyes she remarked he had “Angry Eyes!”  No kidding!  It was just an allergic reaction to all the dust so she prescribed him an eye drop to take that was both an anti-biotic (to prevent an infection) and a steroid to help soothe his eyes.  Soon after he started using the drops his eyes felt better. 

We were back at the coach by 5ish, walked the dog and got ready to go Rita and Seths’ for dinner.  I have known Rita for many years; she was one of my mentors when I was training to be a sign language interpreter.  We have worked together many times and have remained close over the years.  She and her husband, Seth, have been out to visit us in Colorado on a couple of occasions.  We always enjoy their company.  In my excitement of seeing them the only picture we have is of Seth, Mike and I.  Sorry, Rita! 

Seth, Mike and I

Saturday, May 4:  Graduation Day!  Today is the day our niece Brittany graduates from St. Petersburg College with a Physical Therapy Assistant degree.  The graduation was held at 10:00 AM at Tropicana Field (the Trop!) where the Devil Rays play baseball.  This is also the largest graduation class SPC has ever had, over 2,600 graduates this year!  Fortunately, only about 800 walked.  Whew, the reading of the names would have been for two days if all had walked! 

 The Trop

 Brittany and me

Brittany, her Mom JoAnn, JoAnn's husband Rick, Rick's Mom Juanita and me

After graduation we went back to the coach to have lunch and walk Jenny.  Poor dog has been cooped up in the motor home a lot lately.  I’m sure she is chomping at the bit to get back to her 30 acres of freedom in Colorado!  JoAnn, Brittany’s Mom was hosting an open house from 3-5 PM today and we went over to visit with the rest of the family and to enjoy the delicious treats everyone had prepared.  It was great to see JoAnn’s family again.  By the time we got back to the coach we were exhausted and our tummies were full.  What a great day!! 

Sunday, May 5:  We enjoyed a leisurely morning, had lunch, took a nap and then went over to the beach to visit Mike & Chuck.  They have been out to see us several times in Colorado and we try to see them when we get to Florida.  The traffic to be beach was horrendous so we took an alternate route over a bridge that is not used as much as the main bridge to Clearwater Beach.  Traffic hasn’t gotten any better in Pinellas County!  They have just returned from an 80 day trip mostly on a cruise ship.  No grass grows under the feet of these two men in their 70’s!  We sat around Mike’s condo and caught up on each other’s trips.  I had forgotten what a beautiful view he has of the intra-coastal waterway and the mainland.  We couldn’t have asked for more gorgeous day, bright blue sky and perfect temps in the mid 70’s. 

One of our favorite restaurants on the beach is “TJ’s” which we frequented a lot when we lived there.  Mike and Chuck took us to TJ’s for dinner that evening.  We enjoyed our Ahi Tuna appetizer and the rest of the meal, too.  Ahh, another great evening! 

Mike, Mike & Chuck here

Monday, May 6:  I did two loads of laundry in the coach and two loads in the park Laundromat.  It was a productive morning!  It was also an interesting morning.  While Mike was walking Jenny in the dog walk area of the park he found a yellow cockatiel on the ground next to a big tree.  It was very tame and full flight feathers but seemed to be exhausted.  We guessed it might have “escaped” from its’ cage and after flying for awhile just needed to rest.  Mike walked around the park with it hoping someone would claim it but no one did.  He took it to the office and the woman there said she would find a home for it. 

Today we are visiting with Mike & Barb Hennessy, another couple who have been out to visit us in Colorado on several occasions.  Barb and I have worked at almost all the same places at the same time.  Our paths are intertwined.  They live in Largo about a stone’s throw (hey, that would be a great name for an RV Park!) away from our old house in Clearwater.  Between our two houses was a large tract of land, 150+ acres that was donated to Pinellas County and has been turned into a big park.  It’s named Eagle Lake Park because of the nesting pair of eagles that raised several clutches of eaglets on that land.  After visiting with Mike & Barb the four of us went over to the park and walked a couple of miles.  It was great for Jenny, she really needed the exercise and so did we! 

After our walk and more visiting at Mike & Barb’s house we went to dinner at Rumba’s Bar & Grill, a seafood restaurant not far from their house.  We have been trying to eat as much seafood as possible on this trip and so far this has been the best meal we’ve had out at a restaurant!  Sorry, TJ…  The food was delicious, the atmosphere relaxed and the company was wonderful.  Alas, we had to say our goodbyes and head back to the RV.  I’m glad we got to see Mike & Barb again!

Me, Mike, Mike & Barb

Tuesday, May 7:  At Brittany’s graduation I had an opportunity to speak with the two interpreters, Crystal and Irma who were “working” the graduation.  Crystal was a former student of mine and it made me so proud to see how skilled she has become as an interpreter.  I made plans to stop by SPC to visit them on Tuesday morning and maybe to see any other staff that might still be around.  This was their spring break week so most of the staff and faculty and gone away for the week.  I got to see Cynthia, Irma and Marika and to see the new building at SPC, my old Alma Mater. 

We planned to have lunch with our nieces Brittany and her sister Crystal and also their mom, Joann today.  They wanted to ‘show off’ how downtown St. Petersburg has been revitalized.  We met them at Joann’s office downtown around noon and drove to a restaurant called “The Avenue” on 1^st Avenue South.  They had yummy burgers and “sliders” on the menu.  They also had tater tots which I am quite fond of and these were Cajun style with just enough spice to make them tasty! 

Crystal, Brittany, Mike, me and JoAnn

When we finished lunch we walked around downtown St. Pete which is on Tampa Bay.  The weather was perfect once again, bright blue sky and perfect temps in the 70’s plus the humidity was very low.  We walked along the marina and had gelato at one of the shops, yummy!  By mid afternoon we had to say our goodbyes and head back to the coach to take care of Jenny.  It was a great day with family!

Pics of downtown St. Pete

This evening we were to go back to downtown St. Pete and have dinner with Carol Downing, another interpreter friend of mine.  We have worked together many times and have been teachers at St. Pete College in the Sign Language Interpretation Program.  She has also been out to visit us in Colorado.  When we arrived at her door there was a sign on it welcoming us to her home. 

Cool sign!!

On our trip last summer as we were driving through downtown Denver I saw a sign that said Downing Street and took a picture of it for our blog.  She copied it from the blog and made the sign.  How cool is that!  Even cooler are the views from her condo.  There is a park between her and the beach that is all green and even has a palm arboretum.  We could sit for hours watching the world go by and sipping wine.  Carol prepared a wonderful meal Asian style with a pork loin, noodles and a delicious salad.  Carol’s brother David, who lives in the same condo complex, dropped by and joined us for dinner.  Dessert was two flavors of gelato which I am really becoming addicted to!  Again, in my excitement of seeing Carol we didn’t get any pictures!  Dang it!!  The iPhone is right there in my pocket and I didn’t even use it!! 

 The setting sun on the palms is beautiful!

Palm Arboretum

Of course it was another great evening with Carol and David, they both know how to tell a story and do they have a lot of stories of growing up in a large family!  Their camping stories are the best.  Thanks for great evening, Carol!