#Night 1; July 2020 Vacation

All nestled in. We arrived a little after 5:00 this evening and made camp. We both had some work to do and we quit just in time for a sunset walk on the beach.

Tomorrow I'll show you around some.

#July 2020 Vacation

Finally! Today we leave for our annual July vacation. On this one, we celebrate Hub's July 4th birthday (yes, he is a real firecracker) as well as our July 5th wedding anniversary.

For years, the west coast of Florida, specifically Ft. Myers Beach, is our vacation magnet. Out of the thousands of vacation opportunity locations, we keep going back to FMB. I guess we like it that way.

We stay at a quaint old hotel called the Edison Beach House. Take a look HERE. I notice all of the web pages open to their COVID statement, so be sure to by-pass that by closing it in the upper right-hand corner of the page:

They have an excellent webcam on their site. Click HERE to feel just like you are with us on that beach! How cool if you happened to click on it just as I was walking right past that camera!

If you subscribe to this blog, you will receive an easy to read version in your email every time I post an update. Now is a great time to do that because my favorite photography location is Ft. Myers Beach. The sunrises and sunsets are breathtaking. You'll soon see them!

We have the most wonderful Petsitter who moves into our home while we are away. Without her, we'd not be able to take off a couple times a year. Val is gentle and kind, yet commands the respect of even the most strong-hearted. Sitting for a Doberman requires a distinctive personality, and she certainly has it. Val will move in today sometime after I text her that we're on the road.

Our home here is secure. We have an alarmed security system and cameras around the property. The windows and doors are all alarmed and have hurricane impact glass with reliable locking systems. There is a fence with locked gates that surrounds our home. And, of course, here lives the most excellent guard dog(s) ever! I feel safe here, and I think Val does, too.

My business always travels with me. I don't think I ever miss a beat. I handle emails from my iPhone during the drive. The minute we check in to the Edison Beach House, I set up my portable office and take care of any pressing tasks. I keep an eye on incoming traffic and settle down to business in between beach or pool time!

That round glass table becomes my desk. I face away from the kitchen area.

This is what I see from my desk: A cozy living space and

The Ocean!

My work view. 

During a spreadsheet's awkward moments, I just look up from my laptop, 

take in all my eyes can see, and breathe in that salty air. 

Ahhh, the spreadsheet dilemma is suddenly solved!

So, there are about six hours left before we hit the dusty trail. It is only a 2 1/2 hour drive to our destination, but it feels like we've entered a different world as we drive over the bridge onto Ft. Myers Beach. Enough daydreaming, Cathy. Finish up some business and laundry, love on those critters, pack the bags, and get out the door!

See you soon, from the beach!

#Moorhen Babies

A chance sighting, just as I was getting out of the pool this morning!

There are three baby Moorhens with a mama and a papa. This family was right below our seawall. I just stood aways off, used the long lens so as not to disturb, and fired off about 100 shots! Enjoy!

#GardenMuse

Day after day, it seems the time spent in my vegetable garden harvests such an abundance of similes that I find myself, hands dug deep in the dirt, grinning ear to ear.

 

Happy young corn and potato plants in their eastern fully sunlit location. 

I don't hear a new life's purpose calling me right now, though there have been several over all my 63 years. But I do have the feeling of being in the right place, growing where I am planted. And, while I grow vegetables to feed my family (and the birds, squirrels, and Iguanas), the feels are that there is much for me to learn while these old hands are buried in the warm soil, planting seeds and tending their young seedlings.

 

Some are wholly independent and do very well on their own. First to my mind is Celery. All by itself, it grows strong, straight, and tall. All I do is add water when there isn't rain. The Pole Beans are requiring more attention. The beans should be picked daily so that it knows to keep producing. Various little bugs nibble at the leaves so I spray them with a gentle soapy water, onion & garlic mixture. Beetles attack the Cucumber plants, so my hands travel their leaves nearly every day, picking off the beetles and moving them to a location far away from the gardens.

 

Tomato plants struggle against cutworms and the scary hornworm. It is easy to see the cutworm damage as they leave trails on the leaves. Since those leaves will wither and die, I prune them back regularly, allowing the plants to take nutrition to their most prolific parts. The hornworm scares the daylights out of me! I mean, have you ever looked one in the face? Those horns are real! It takes every bit of courage I can muster to pick one off the plant using the lip of my jar. Yes, I know they turn into beautiful moths and butterflies, but I don't think I'll ever get over being freaked out when I have to deal with one. Yet, if I don't, my crops can be destroyed overnight.

Some days I study healthy tomatoes. At times I decide to leave them another day or so to fully ripen on the vine. Yet, I am hesitant to do that because of the real possibility the fruit might not be there in the morning. Even my dogs are known to join the other critter thieves picking tomatoes they can reach!

Then there are days when a particular vegetable plant has exhausted itself with growing and producing, when it has lost most of its leaves and color, and when it seems to have no further purposes. So I gently pull it from the dirt and relocate it to the generous compost pile. I feel satisfied thinking of all the food it provided and that now it can rest, decomposing into food for new plants. 

HERE is an informative composting article.

Nearing the end of their season.

THE CIRCLE OF LIFE