A Very Pleasant Surprise

I know what Bruce would tell me right about now if he were home. "Just don't listen." To which I would counter, "that is impossible for me!" The condo next door was sold and the renovations began this morning. For the nearly two years we've lived here, it has been quiet, hearing our upstairs rarely, and certainly not next door. It began this morning at 9, two bathrooms being demolished. Yikes! I'm am constantly amazed that Bruce can tune noise out. Perhaps some of it will rub off on me?

On the last day of April, in the time of the Corona pandemic, it is raining, something to be very grateful for as we've been in such a drought. The first few days of the week, the weather was beautiful, warm, but not too warm, prompting me to go on a little mission to Leu Gardens. In the early days of learning photography I went there countless times to photograph whatever I could find that caught my fancy so I know that place like the back of my hand. Early this week I learned that they were not only open, but that Mayor Dyer declared it to be free. Or, at least that is what the head of the place told me. Not that I knew he was such, but seeing a super interesting and unknown plant, I asked the closest person I could find, who was wearing a mask when he came closer.

Amazing, right? This is a Mexican milkweed, planted adjacent to the butterfly garden. But of course.

It almost felt illicit to be strolling the grounds with hardly anyone there when I arrived a little after opening. Of those there, everyone was super respectful about keeping their distance. One of the most exciting things to happen was this:  as I was standing beside a plant, camera in hand, I noticed a woman coming toward me that I was sure was my friend, Bev. She read my expression as horror that a woman was coming close! Only in the time of Corona my friends. We had a long chat, catching up and hearing each other's stories in this crazy time. Most of the folks I see regularly I'm good without hugging, but I sure wish I could have hugged Bev.

As you can see, it is easy to keep a safe distance. Taking my time, I explored not nearly enough before it was time to leave. Rarely have I seen the gardens looking so good.

All of it was wonderful,  however, the orchids, tucked into the crook of some of the trees, really stole the show.

Oh my, the color of the one below!! Captivating.

The one place where it was harder to stay apart was the butterfly garden area which was sad because there were so many butterflies to watch. There was a man with a lens about a foot long that hogged the space, much to my chagrin!

 Lucky for me, when I went into the nearby vegetable garden, not only was it empty but a Monarch was quite cooperative, enjoying the nectar of a lovely Gerbera daisy for a long while.

Count me surprised when I walked through the visitor center to leave, lo and behold, there was a new Dorothy Gillespie installation. If you missed my last post, that won't mean a thing. If you are one the wonderful people who I am humbled to have read my blog regularly, you will remember Bruce standing beside one of her sculptures at the Orange County building last week.

Speaking of Orange County, the governor is allowing some businesses to reopen, beginning Monday, however, how much of that order will translate to our county, I'm not so sure. Still no hair salons, which is a shame. Even when they finally do open, having my hair colored and cut probably still won't happen for a while because it takes hours and even though my level of worry is low, it seems prudent for me to wait a while longer. Seriously, everyone is going through the same thing, so in that overused phrase, "it is what it is!"

We are doing our part to keep the economy moving, what with my new phone, allegedly arriving today, and Bruce is having a trailer hitch put on the Subaru for a new bike rack that will better suit our needs. In an excellent move on my part, I went to Publix today, finding most of what I wanted. Plus, that kept me away from the construction noise, so there's that.

Bruce is getting many folks vote for "neighbor of the month" on our street. Not only did he wash the Packard that was completely covered in yellow oak pollen,

He washed a neighbor's car that has been an eyesore for what some folks have told us, nearly three years! First the Packard because we use the parking space of the folks who own it while they are away for most of the year in North Carolina. Hesitant, in order not to offend the man, Bruce knocked on his door, asking if he could wash his car. When the man asked, "how much?", Bruce told him there is no cost.  How dirty was the car? Dirtier than any I've ever seen.

The entire car looked similar with some places even worse!

He washed parts of it, not once, not twice not....five times!!! trying to get the grime off. Car washing is actually not allowed in the parking lot, but folks turned a blind eye to that because they were so delighted. I can't tell you the number of people who have stopped him, thanking him for doing so. The owner is 90+ years old and in no shape to do it himself. That man of mine is something else!

We are having some birdies!! Life imitating art, or should I say, the other way around?

There's more I'll wait to share in an upcoming post. Tomorrow is our dear Jonathan's birthday and he is inching closer to 40 all of the time. He, like Bill and David, will remember this particular birthday for a long time to come. The number of cases of Covid-19 in some parts of the country are very puzzling to me. You would have thought, what with our huge number of international tourists, and domestic, for that matter, that we would have been overwhelmed, but it seemingly is not the case. As I type, there are 1,268 deaths in Florida with 33,690 reported cases. Texas, where Jonathan and Alissa live, has only 759 deaths, and about 600 less reported cases. I wonder why that is when Texas is way more populous? And why does Massachusetts have so many? There seems to be no rhyme or reason, but I suspect in the future there will be studies galore on every aspect of this pandemic. For now there are more questions than answers or that's how it appears to me.

A couple of things worth noting....

* The newspaper reported that in some parts of the country, stores are out of sympathy cards. :(

* Some staffing companies were offering nurses up to $10,000 a week if they would come to New     York and work. I wonder how that made the regular staff feel?

* There is a lot of generosity happening for those less fortunate. Hurray for that!

* I must admit, I felt a bit guilty when buying the last bag of flour on the shelf.

Finally, I managed to get some decent photographs of the new Wood Duck family while they were on coming on shore. Not all of them mind you,

this little one was the renegade, preferring the water.

It won't be long now that there will be no more new duckling births. Sure hope it won't be too long now before we are not talking about death on a daily basis.

your friend,

Gail

Day Whatever

In our newspaper there is a running tally as to how many days since spectator sports shut down, and today the number is 45. Seems like longer doesn't it? Just think 45 sunrises, and sunsets, since things began taking a turn for the worse. The good news is that in Orange County things are actually taking a turn for the better, or at least that is how things seemingly stand as I type.

Yet still, we are all really in the dark as to what is next, aren't we? It's kind of scary on so many fronts. It was also reported that the law enforcement offices are expecting more calls for suicide attempts which probably comes as no surprise, what with so many people already living from paycheck to paycheck. Not to mention, domestic abuse worries. Or, for that matter, child abuse worries. For a generally optimistic person, it is hard to maintain that attitude but I'm trying!!

I began a new puzzle the other day, one that was actually purchased for Matt and Tom and had just not found its way to the post office. Double sided, it looked pretty hard to me which is perfect for them. I've not gotten very far.

The truth is, I was hoping to do another puzzle, a good way to spend the afternoon hours, so I went to Target, imagining I might find something there that was good for a beginner. Fat chance.

In other out and about news, we drove over to Bill and Fallon's house to deliver some cookies and holy cow, the price of gas!

This is one that won't be believed in a few years, or so I suspect. Of course no one is driving anywhere, so it really matters little, right?

One day last week, rather than go to Lake Davis for a walk, I suggested we go to Lake Eola and see what was what. Remember how I said about going to a public park and social distancing? Most of the time it was just fine, but there are some folks who just don't seem to get it. Not to be ageist or anything, however it seemed to be mostly young folks on their phone. Nevertheless, it was a lovely day for a walk.

There were quite a few swans on nests, while others were taking a break, allowing a view to their eggs. Pretty darn big aren't they? Plus, all the nest building materials!

Before leaving downtown we dropped by the County Administration building to check out the latest sculpture installation.

Bruce is standing beside a Dorothy Gillespie sculpture, an artist some will remember from the parking garage across the street where there is a colorful one hanging down through all five floors. This sculpture was crazy creative, and I mean that in both ways--very crazy, but clever.

There are all manner of everyday objects stuffed in, including dog bones, knives, and Matchbox cars. Did I ever tell you that they were created in Hackney and Matt took us to the museum there? Very interesting.

Another day we went on a long bike ride through the nearby streets, stopping in a tiny park on Lake Hourglass near our friend Lynn's place. Seriously tiny, there were but ourselves, and a young father with two small children. There is a small dock and pathway set amongst two small lakes. What a wonderful surprise to come across this:

When the little girl saw it she squealed with delight, especially when asked by her father if she thought it was done by fairies! I'll say one thing about this pandemic, folks are getting very creative. I've seen where stores in downtown Vancouver have been boarded up, the plywood brightened up by colorful murals painted by local artists. I talked to a friend today who told me she's learning to paint by watching Youtube videos. I've probably mentioned that Facebook group for birdwatchers in isolation who are posting the most beautiful photographs of birds in their garden, primarily in England. Not just photographs, but whoa Nelly, are there some talented drawers in that group! Another facebook group I've been introduced to is called, "A View from my Window" wherein people post photos from around the world, looking out their window. That group, my friends, is fantastic. Speaking of a view, on March 4th, I wrote a post entitled, A Room with a View which is pretty crazy. It was also the last post before the, pardon the expression, shit hit the fan. As I was going back in time, I realized that something has gone amiss on my blog, so if you go do the same, reading anything after that date, many of the embedded photos are missing, replaced with a symbol like, no entrance which is highly disappointing and something I only discovered by accident. Anyway, apparently it is a Google problem that they are trying to fix, or so that is what my search told me.

On that same bike ride, I also saw on a power line, a Great Crested Flycatcher, quite the mouthful for such a small bird. Their photo (link) is infinitely better than mine. Then, I saw a lovely Wood Thrush. It was a good day for bird enthusiasts!

As well, it was a good day to see a new flowering tree that looks a lot like a Schefflera, maybe in the same family? A new bloom to me.

On my way to check on the little Carolina Wren in her nest hole,

I saw some lovely colorful annuals which brightened my day even further.

Perhaps you are wondering how Bruce is handling this shut down? Well, he's learning what it is like to be retired, that's for sure. Some folks were worried how he would adjust to retirement, having worked 80 hours a week for so many years, and so was I, but he filled loads of time working for free, which suited him beautifully. Now, if we still lived in our home, with his big workshop, things would have been different....he'd have finally gotten to use those tools! But life took a turn, and here we are. So, how is he filling his days? Making me play pickleball with him, that's how! And it is already blistering hot, even early in the morning! We are getting marginally better, so when the day comes that we can, once again, play with friends, hopefully we will have improved. There are advantages to living in a condo, don't get me wrong, just not enough work to do. Which is partly the point, right?

I, like most of you, have been spending a lot of time in the kitchen and not just on baking. One night I made Thai Noodle salad, a recipe I'd used once before. Was it worth using 18 ingredients? I think so.

Another night I made pizza, and still another night I made a new recipe called Green Rice. Essentially, it is rice made with a ton of green stuff I'd put in the food processor, including parsley, cilantro, poblano peppers, jalapeno, green onions, and anything else I could find in the produce drawer. Just kidding on that last part! Crispy chicken and delicious sliced tomatoes from Clemons rounded out our meal.

One rainy morning, I went to check on the ducklings, and of all things, they began following me up to the back door! Aren't they huge?

And yes, it has finally rained!!

Have you seen any of the new television commercials that include Covid-19? I'm having a hard time figuring out how they were made, what with social distancing and all. Speaking of social distancing, there is another new word usage going around...zooming. And we all just thought it meant moving quickly!

The time has finally come for me to get a new smartphone. And the good news for me is that they are just putting out an iPhone that is very similar to my current model, an iPhone 5s, with a home button and about the same size! On April 25 I received an email from Apple saying the phone had shipped and would arrive on May 5. I've waited this long, what's another 10 days, right?

After a mostly hot and humid weekend, another week of quarantine came to an end, and today we start a new week, knowing almost nothing about what the future holds. There are so many people suffering, either mentally, financially, or with their health, it almost doesn't seem fair that we get to enjoy our surroundings, yet we do, with enormous gratitude.

 And so we look forward to light at the end of the tunnel....

your friend,

Gail

A Nature Story

While I was typing my last post, Sunday afternoon, Bruce went down to the big lake where he meets with friends most afternoons, six feet apart, of course. Before leaving the house, I'd shown him the Anhinga photograph from the previous evening, and as such I wrote that he was pretty convinced it was some sort of natural material that was on the beak from the bird stabbing the bottom of the lake.

The photo above is one that I showed him, taken as the Anhinga was on the dock beside the red pontoon boat. Well, not long after he left, Susan texted that Bruce was on the lakeshore next to a big bird. Hmmm....

Upon returning Bruce told me that, indeed, that piece of "whatever" was still around the beak. I began getting a little nervous, wondering what it could be, and why it would not come off. So, early the next morning, just after sunrise,

I went in search, riding my bike down to the dock where first I spotted it. Sure enough, the Anhinga was sitting on top of the boat, at first curled up, but then it turned and looked straight at me.

The maintenance supervisor was already down at the pool and I enlisted his help. Alan put on some work gloves, climbed on the boat, and was quite close, but had second thoughts because of the sharp beak. Our worry continued growing. I rode home and Bruce and I discussed what to do, but by the time we returned it had flown off.

So, we practiced pickleball. At the same time, Connie, Gayle, and Susan were all doing their walk and when they got to the boat ramp, there was our bird which they examined. They began worrying. Then along came Patti and Lauren who joined the worrying crowd. After watching the bird fly to a nearby dock, Lauren got on her paddleboard, hoping to get close, yet again, the bird took off.

Once I was home, I got on my bicycle to check out a front porch nest. Say what? Yes, the day before I heard from Nancy that, although they are spending most of their time at their New Smyrna Beach condo for safe keeping, she had to come into Orlando for an errand on Friday, discovering a tiny nest in the wreath on her front door. She called to ask if I could check it out and tell her what kind of bird it is. Sure, I can do that.

Can you find her? It's a little Carolina Wren who has made a nest in the back part of the wreath! These are tiny birds with a powerful voice, whose song can be heard from a long ways away. Here's all I could get of the inside of the nest once she'd flown off.

Having told her I'd keep my eye on it daily, that was my mission. They live adjacent to the boat ramp so, after my wellness check, I rode around the corner and there was our bird.

Most of the time I don't carry my phone around, however, on this occasion I did, so I called Bruce. One thing I'd forgotten to mention is that he'd made calls to all of the bird rescue operations that we are aware of before we went to play. The first caller could not help, but gave him numbers of others who might be able to do so. During one of his conversations they recommended that he throw a blanket over the bird in order to hold it so as to remove the debris. He'd also been told to call Sea World, which he did, and was awaiting a return call. That is where things stood when I saw the bird again. As I was waiting for him, Lauren rode up on her bicycle and we talked about how sad we were because by now we realized it could not eat, and probably hadn't for several days. The landscape guys were there having their lunch so one of them joined the rescue party.

Inching closer and closer, Bruce was just ready to drop the quilt when the bird took off, going underwater as is their natural instinct. You have seen plenty of photographs of their behavior before in this space, so there is no need to rehash. As if I could have helped, I'd put my camera on my shoulder, better to hold the other towel Bruce brought, so there are no rescue shots to be shared. What happened is the landscape guy spotted it underwater, Lauren swooped in, grabbing it from behind, allowing Bruce the opportunity to remove the debris!! And to answer your question ahead of time, no one is sure what it was and it dropped from Bruce's hand before we could examine it further. Nevertheless, all of us were thrilled when it took off!

I just love this photo of the two of them, so thrilled with the happy ending. Look very closely and you will see a tiny speck of the Anhinga behind Lauren.

All afternoon, it was all we could talk about! So much so that we ended up going back to the lake to check on it, as one of the people Bruce talked to said they still might not eat. We already knew this one did not behave in that manner because after the rescue, B walked back to the ramp, and saw it with a fish! Well, this may, or may not be the one.

Following it down the dock, we wondered what it would do. I took a photo for comparison as it was surveying the territory at the edge of the dock.

Try as we might, we came to no clear conclusion. If I had to guess, our Anhinga is back out fishing and drying its wings normally, as that is what they spend their days doing.

Wasn't that an exciting nature story?

I suppose one of the things that most people find the hardest during this quarantine period is that the days run into one another, each day much the same as the last. Retired folks know how to do that well, however, the younger generation is used the hustle and bustle of life that while sometimes is overwhelming, at least it is more exciting than staying close to home. Many people I talk to are managing the best that they can, but are so looking forward to the day that they can once again, attend their yoga class, go clothes shopping, have lunch out, or attend a sporting event or concert. Bruce just mentioned that he had an upcoming meeting set for May 13th and don't we have camping reservations at Silver Springs State Park? We wish! Those were canceled weeks ago and not by me! There is a lot of criticism about our governor allowing municipalities to open their beaches, that it is not the right move. People are certainly entitled to that opinion, mostly formed from some reckless behavior of spring breakers who did not heed social distancing rules and were very likely not Floridians. I, on the other hand, have a hard time thinking how walking on the beach is any different than walking in a park. In fact, it is far easier to keep your distance on the shore than it is in a city park. Just my thoughts on the matter.

Today's paper reports that Orange County's tourist tax revenue is predicted to drop by over $100 million dollars, to no one's surprise. That same paper is laying employees off because advertising revenue has fallen precipitously. Bruce had his very first Facetime doctor's appointment the other day and even he mentioned that they are struggling to keep the practice going. BTW--just a little check up, Bruce is fine. The dominoes continue to fall don't they?

Thankfully the ducks just keep having babies,

and the two orphans seem to be hanging in there. I sat by the lake, under the tree canopy,  finishing the book I've been reading, Henry Himself, and the orphans came onshore with that big new family of ten ducklings to eat the seed Julie leaves for them.

I guess they are, against all odds, what you might call survivors. Praying that we all will be.

your friend,

Gail

Living the Lockdown Life

It's been a really long time since last we had to scurry to get out of the rain, yet I am happy to report that is just what happened on this Saturday morning in mid-April. Bruce convinced me to join him on the big lake in my kayak which has been sitting unused forever. After being out on the water for about an hour, Bruce said he felt rain so we headed back to shore, arriving just in time to hear our first crack of lightning. As I sit in the comfort of our dry home, the sky is both rumbling with thunder, and it is as dark as dusk at 11:00 in the morning. I began this post when we came in yesterday, and lo and behold, we got more than an inch of rain! Hallelujah!

It is easy to accomplish social distancing out on the water, as Bruce and our neighbor Mary, are doing.

Rain was predicted, as you can imagine with that dull sky, however, we thought it would hold off, but that was not to be. Nevertheless, we will embrace any amount of rain that falls.

I've got one eye on the computer and one on the lake, watching the otter popping up and down in the water. He's swimming in the area where yesterday afternoon I noticed another Wood Duck family, this time with ten ducklings!

Who knows how long they will survive? The Mallard ducks are much better at protecting their babies, well the mother is anyway. Dad has been AWOL. That said, after all these weeks, more than three I think, one of our Mallard ducklings is missing. Early this morning, they swam toward me on the shoreline and I counted nine. I wonder what went wrong as Mom never leaves their side? It all sounds so silly, I'm sure, but I do get attached.

Because of the rain we binge-watched the third season of Broadchurch and were not disappointed.  Oh my, they do know how to keep one guessing until the very end! We welcome recommendations for either Netflix, or Amazon Prime. Matt suggested we watch, Blinded by the Light; because HBO is offering some shows for free, we did so and it was fantastic. Very sweet and uplifting.

I am in dire need of a cut and color. I need my teeth cleaned. Who else is in the same boat? This morning I said to Bruce, if I had read a book with the plot we are living through, I would not have believed it for a minute. How about you?

Our days are all pretty much the same around here, however, some days I spend more time in the kitchen than others. Case in point-- two days ago I made bread. Yup, getting on that bandwagon.

Actually, I love thinking about so many people actually using their kitchens and being creative in the process. Using a recipe from a UK bread cookbook, a gift from Matt and Tom, it is an easy recipe that requires no kneading. Easy, that is, after you convert the grams to cups. I never did get the dough as smooth as I'd hoped, and adding to my difficulties, was the time in oven. With a digital stove, the temperature jumps by 25 degrees so, calling for 410 degrees, after converting from Celsius, I could not decide if I should go up to 425, or down to 400. In the end I went to 400, although it did not brown nearly as much as I'd hoped. Perhaps I should have used my pizza stone.

Nevertheless, it was tasty, had a pretty good crust, even though the crumb could have been better. I'm rusty, what can I say?

My Vancouver friend, Dale, includes loads of newspaper clippings with his letters. Seriously, he sends a packet of things. In the latest batch there was a recipe from a cookbook called Pucker. Can you guess what the main ingredient is? Yes sir, lemons, of which I had plenty after buying a bag of them from Clemons. Soft, chewy, and sugar coated, they are fantastic, although, here too, they weren't quite right. They were meant to fall and crackle more, yet it just was not happening. Science, I guess. Anyway, they taste great which is what matters. I tried giving some away, but I think folks are nervous about accepting food from someone. Then again, maybe they just don't like cookies?

One night I made a terrific Israeli Couscous salad recipe, using up an ingredient that has lurked in the back of my cupboard for far too long. What made it so outstanding is the dressing that, if you too, have more lemons than you know what to do with, I suggest you whip some up ASAP. HERE is the recipe. In addition, she was right when she said not to leave out the mint!

At the same time I was working on a food related jigsaw puzzle that was both easy, and hard. There were only 300 pieces, and the frame went together pretty easily, however, some of those doughnuts gave me a fit.

Passing it on to Susan, she was far more clever than I as she has it already completed. The remaining puzzle Ann gave me is a 750 piece one of an owl, right up my alley. It remains in the box for now as it looks anything but easy.

Following our binge yesterday afternoon, we walked down to the lake so Bruce could put my boat back on the rack. He is very good to me, as you well know.

The day had turned sunny and beautiful while we were holed up. As I was standing on the dock,an Anhinga was shaking dry.

It was a pretty cool experience even though they are not one of my favorite birds. I showed Bruce the photo, asking him what was stuck on the beak and he said it was an aquatic plant, in case you are wondering.

Before the actual sunset, the clouds were lovely.

Bruce moved the bird feeder recently, hoping to attract more birds. There are some, but we would love to have more.

So, you may notice my blooming orchids, one of the first things I check in the morning, waiting for new buds to open. It's the little things, folks! It was early, before full sunrise, and as I was standing next to the yellow one, I felt something JUMP onto my face!!! Oh my gosh, I was freaking out. Lasting only a moment, it is not something I want happening again any time soon! Of course you know what happened next, don't you? Indeed, honey...I need help. Getting up from reading his paper, he shook things around, checking all of my plants and noticing nothing.

Returning from a bike ride this morning, what should I find,

but a horrible Cuban Tree frog!!! And the sad news is that he is still on the loose, escaping as Bruce tried to remove him.

Shuddering here.

It is times like this that it is good to be a homebody. I pity folks who are always out and about as this time must be so terribly hard for them. As was to be expected, the unemployment numbers have skyrocketed while the Florida cases of Covid-19 have mostly inched up. No one is making light of the numbers, and of course they could change, but they are not nearly as bleak as was predicted, thank God. 

In the meantime, we are staying safe and sound as is all of our family for which we are grateful.

Are you cooking or baking up a storm? What's happening in your neck of the woods?

your friend,

Gail