2009 Florida Trip
Wow! Nearly an entire month has passed since my last entry. In fact, if I had waited a few more hours, I would have missed the month of February altogether.
I’m writing this from a hotel room in Batesville, Mississippi. This morning, James and I, along with our Aunt Jane and Grandma and Grandpa, left a condo in Navarre Beach, Florida, in order to start our drive back home.
The past two weeks I have been in Florida. The weather has been pretty nice all in all, with temperatures in the mid-to-upper 60s for the most part. It wasn’t warm enough to swim, unfortunately, but it was very pleasant to be outside, walking along the beach.
We had some spectacular days while in Florida. The ocean is just gorgeous! On certain days, the Gulf of Mexico would be an emerald green; other days, it would be bluer. The soft, white sand on the beaches also make things even more enjoyable down there.
James and I spent part of the last afternoon in Florida by throwing a Frisbee-like ring around on the beach. The Frisbee we bought flew very far, but… unfortunately, it also could get caught up in the wind. After we threw it around for 10 or 15 minutes, I ended up tossing it straight into the ocean. It sank immediately, and we never saw it again!
While down here, James and I ate raw oysters for the first time — and possibly the last! Man — those things are kind of disgusting. I had mine with a saltine cracker and some horseradish or cocktail sauce, but I’d have to say that’s one of the most “icky” foods I’ve eaten in a long time.
The taste of the oysters wasn’t so unbearable, but just nothing about them is appetizing. They are cold, served up in seashells, and are very slimy. Plus, knowing that they’re raw just seems kind of… creepy. At any rate, I said I would try them, and I did. I ate two of them, and was more than ready to wash them down with something else.
Bowling was also a popular activity, strangely enough. I bowled some pretty good games, and actually had a record-setting game of 211! My previous high was in the 170s, so that was a pretty nice surprise for me. I ended up with nine strikes in that particular game. I’m getting pretty good at rolling with a curve. It seems to be very, very effective.
I also took Philip and Mom to the village of Seaside, a very unique little down right on the ocean. Seaside is where the movie “The Truman Show” was filmed, and it’s just a beautiful little town, with some fascinating houses. Mom loved walking up and down the streets, admiring the architecture. Philip enjoyed seeing The Truman House — the very house that Truman Burbank (played by Jim Carrey) lived in in the movie.
After James and Aunt Jane came down here a week ago to tag-team with Mom and Philip, I drove with James out to Seaside, to show him around. I had visited the town once nine years ago while down here, then again last year with Jude. These were the first times that Mom, Philip, and James had seen the town, so I wanted to show them around.
All in all, it was a fun trip. I’m ready to be home, though!
This trip, I’ve been checking out FamTeam Today often in order to stay informed about what’s going on back home. When I see Dad or one of the guys post a picture of the little guys, I realize that I really miss them! I look forward to chasing Peter and David around again!
God-willing, we’ll be back home tomorrow afternoon or evening. We are only about 360 miles from home, and after driving over 500 today, tomorrow’s drive should be pretty easy. The only thing I’m not looking forward to is the fact that we’re heading due north!
This morning, I was in khaki shorts as we left the condo building on the beach. At noon, we were at 80 degrees at the Mississippi/Louisiana border. Then at 7:00, it was 32 degrees outside and snowing here in Batesville. I guess it’s time to get back to reality!
The good news, however, is that March begins tomorrow, so we aren’t that far away from spring. If we can make it through a few more weeks of winter, we should be getting some of that lovely weather back home!