50 years of love

My first photos of Randy were on our wedding day. We'd only met about 5 months earlier and at that time nobody documented every day with photos. 

The photographer said "look at each other". So in love!

My last photos of Randy were of us enjoying a day with friends at Three Sisters manatee refuge, at Pudgy's tenderloin restaurant, and enjoying the Christmas lights at Venetian Springs. In between these two sets photos is over 50 years of a wonderful life together! Thank God for his amazing gifts and mercy!

Saturday means goodbye to Panama City Beach

Randy woke me up to  watch the dolphins play - what a wonderful way to say goodbye to the beach. 

We finished packing and headed to Parlor Donuts one last time where we bought 12 because we are sharing with Kathy, Terry, Lynn, and our neighbors. But when we got back into the car we decided we just couldn't leave without more! So we pulled around to the drive-thru to get delicious little donut bites.

Then we went to Whataburger one more time. I got a breakfast sandwich but Randy got a the super-sized double cheeseburger. Great start to a long drive home.

This was a wonderful vacation - we definitely want the come back.

Friday

It was a rough start today but some pain meds, a long jacuzzi bath, and a trip to Genes Oyster Bar helped. This time there was another guy behind the bar, Johnathan. He was very friendly and quickly shucked a dozen oysters for us, followed by another six. Excellent breakfast! 

Next stop was Parlor Donuts because we had run out, and a day without Parlor Donuts is inconceivable. 

After the obligatory afternoon nap we drove over to World Market. Haven't seen one of those for a while and it seemed like it seemed like a good afternoon idea. And wow, it sure was! We stocked up a bit.

Back at the hotel we packed up some of our stuff, and then it was time for dinner again. This time we went to American Charlie Grill and Tavern. We weren't very hungry so it was just gumbo for Randy and shrimp and fries for me. 

Back at the hotel we sat outside and watched the sun setting. So beautiful and peaceful, watching the sky and listening to the surf roll in.

And then it was time for donuts.

Thursday already?

Another beautiful, peaceful morning with an amazing view.

Today for a surprise we were ready for breakfast before 10:00 so we went to the All-American Diner for actual breakfast food. They have a breakfast buffet but we ordered a regular breakfast, which was pretty good. Their decor was cute, too.

Afterwards we drove a short distance to St. Andrews State Park which is home of the Jetties. Way back in 1995 we visited here with friends Toni and Jeff (that seems like 400 years ago). I was a little afraid that it had been developed since then but it was just as natural and unspoiled as it was back then. Once again, the ocean called to Randy. Medically he shouldn't go swimming so he did the next best thing.

And there was another reason for not swimming; jellyfish were out today. Most were so clear that we could only find them by seeing their shadows, but some of the larger ones were colorful.

It was so wonderful, and afterwards the combination of sun and sea made going back to the hotel for a nap the most logical thing in the world. 

When it was time for dinner we met up with church friends Lois and Bill, who moved to this area couple of years ago. They suggested we eat at Bayou On The Beach and that was a great idea. I had cheese grits and shrimp, Randy had fried shrimp, and we all shared a plate of 4-Cheese oysters, and a tray of beignets.  We definitely overate but everything was so good. Even better than the food was catching up with dear friends!

A quiet, lovely Wednesday

It was another delightfully late start to the day today. I woke up a little earlier than Randy so I got to enjoy watching dolphins playing near the shore, and two big trucks, looking like overgrown Tonka toys in the big beach, widening the culvert to the drainage system. Amazing how they kept those big machines working right on the edge of sand without falling over. 

When we were ready to go out we drove straight to What-A-Burger. It's been a long time since I've been to one and I'd forgotten how huge the double burger is, especially with fries. It was tough to finish it, but it was worth it! Afterwards we discussed what to do next, and the winning idea was to head right back to the hotel and take a long nap. At one point I worked in a short walk on the beach but it was too hot to do much of that. When Randy woke up we did a little shopping at Bath and Body Works, and then it was time to head for dinner at Captain Anderson. I've been wanting She Crab Chowder and they had a good version here, very creamy with crab meat on top. Randy's entree was grouper with crab meat, and I had shrimp with crabmeat dressing. This time Randy's meal was better than mine, but we both had a great meal. 

Today was lovely day of waking up when we wanted, getting a cup of coffee, and sitting out on the little balcony.  Our balcony faces east so we don't see sunrises, but this morning the clouds gave us a different kind of sunrise.

Eventually we decided to take a walk on the beach, which Randy transformed into a walk in the ocean.  This is the way to start every day! 

By the time we were ready to go out it was 10:30, which seemed more like lunchtime. Following a recommendation from the hotel lady who checked us in, we drove across the bridge to Panama City, looking for Genes Oyster Bar. She mentioned it was kind of a hole in the wall but had really good food - sounds like our kind of place!

The nice man behind the counter brought out a bucket full of oysters that he said were delivered 2 hours ago and started shucking them for us. Seems about as fresh as you can get, short of getting them yourself!

And they were really good! The dozen oysters we ordered turned into 18, and we only quit because we were full.

Next we thought it'd be a good idea to stop by Parlor Donuts again, to make sure we had donuts for dessert. Or for breakfast. Or for any reason.

We went for a pedicure before going to Rocket Lanes to say hi to Heather and check out the place. Next we went cruising along Front Beach Drive. Around 3:30 we were ready to eat so we drove to Captain Anderson. They weren't open yet so instead we went to the nearby Blue Marlin. My order of Maryland Crab Cake was really good, and better than Randy's Shrimp and Grits. Afterwards we walked along the dock, admiring boats before heading back to the hotel to enjoy some of those Parlor Donuts. 

Panama City Beach!

We went to pick up our rental truck but Enterprise didn't actually have a truck, so  they upgraded us to a Genesis GV80. Great, Randy wanted to test drive one of those anyway! We dropped our truck off at Hudson's (that cracked radiator is going to cost a lot) then on to Panama City Beach! With a couple of pit stops along the way it took us 6 hours to get there and our first stop, even before we got to the hotel, was Parlor Donuts! Well worth the stop (even if we didn't get a full box like this)! 

Then we went to the hotel and checked in, went to Walmart for essentials like beer and soda, then to The Shrimp basket for dinner - so good! The sun was setting so back at the condo we put on our flip-flops and went for a walk on the beach - how wonderful. The white sand still squeaks here just like it the first time we were here, 30 years ago. Less wonderful was not realizing that we needed a code to go through the gates to get off the beach. Fortunately some folks waiting for the elevator gave us the code; otherwise I think we would have had to spend the night on the beach. Also, less wonderful was when I rinsed my feet off and turned the spigot too far, causing the overhead shower to burst on. Nice cold half of a shower. But small "oops" cannot diminish the joy of being here!

A one star review of our garbage can

After Mamma bear left without getting our garage can open, she can back and pulled it over. I think we've just been dissed by a bear.

Silver-locks and the Three bears

I've been in quarantine since Thursday with a rough case of covid, needing something to cheer me up. Then Randy called to me through guest bedroom door to look at our Ring camera, and there was a big mama bear checking out our garbage can. Fortunately Randy ties it with a clever knot so she can't get it open.

Right behind her was a little bear who stood up to check it out.

Then he was distracted by the littlest bear behind him, who was more interested in playing with our recycling. 

And suddenly things seem a little better.

Thursday in St Augustine

After eating a mediocre hotel breakfast we drove out to get gas and see what's available that is not unbearably hot. The Lightner Museum was nearby and had it's own parking lot - perfect! We had to wait a few minutes for it to open but we gainfully spent the time admiring its amazing courtyard! 

I expected a paining and /or sculpture museum but this was so much more! The original building was created as a hotel for rich folks. Even the functional parts of the building were created with grace and beauty in mind. 

Then in 1947 it was purchased by Chicago publisher Otto Lightner who converted it into a "hobbies museum". And what hobbies he had!  Each room in the 3 storied building held different collections. One of the largest was furniture, like this 1870 Louis XV Style bureau, decorated with gilt-bronze statues and flanked by winged candelabra. Perfectly in line for a group of rich people who saw themselves as America's new aristocracy.

Also perfect for the age of excess is this child's cradle. I admit, I love the lines of this.

 

And the blown French urn was placed to catch the sunlight perfectly.

One of my favorite sections is the miscellaneous items and random collections that Lightner gathered. It includes an Egyptian mummy with burial mask, and a "decorative" wall hanging made from untold number of cigar bands.

A small collection of old typewriters included this 1896 Lambert typewriter. I don't quite understand it but it seemed to work fine for them.

This is a true oddity: the Morton-Wimshurst-Holtz Influence Machine "used for Therapeutical and X-Ray Purposes".

The guide had told us the miscellaneous collection included a door. He didn't say was a door with gorgeous glass panels!

The music room included a record player shaped like a mini-grand piano - very nice!

And the Violano-Virtuoso (1927), an electric violin with each string played by a circular bow that was powered by a small motor. 

Another small room held a beautiful collection of stained glass panes. Some things are beautiful for the sake of beauty.

One room contained a series of bicycles through the years. The Pony Star (1886) put the large wheel in back, which was supposed to be more stable and therefore safer.

Lightner kept a couple of the original hotel features, including the sulfer baths and steam room. 

And he kept the indoor swimming pool. Yep, at the time this was the world's largest indoor swimming pool. And apparently the rich folks didn't actually swim in it. Instead they sat in luxurious alcoves around it and watched water acrobats entertain them. 

Even back them the pool was often drained and used for other purposes, such as parties. Nowadays it's only used for scheduled events so we could only admire it from the balconies. While we were there one couple were having a wedding rehearsal, complete with mitered bishop. 

This was a perfect way to spend the morning. Afterwards we went back to our own hotel for a quick nap, then met with Janice, Lance and granddaughter Hannah at their time-share condo. Janice treated us to some really excellent key lime she bought. Besides getting the "key lime" part right (not just coloring it green like so many do), it also had a crust with nuts and graham crackers, and the whipped cream around the edge was actually boiled frosting!

With dessert out of the way, we went to Crabby's for lunch. Randy and I weren't hungry after that pie so we split a nice grouper sandwich and fries. We all visited awhile before parting ways, they to their condo and us to our hotel.  

Later after we had freshened up we went out for dinner. We cut the search for a parking space short by parking in front of the fort. You pay for all parking here but finding it is the tricky part. 

We knew where to go for dinner - Columbia restaurant. Randy remembered how good their Mohitos were so he started with that. They mixed at table with in a surprisingly large pitcher, with sugar, mint leaves, half a dozen limes, rum, and sparkling water. And served it with sugar cane stirrer. We shared a 1905 salad and some of their famous bread, then Randy ordered Paella and I had the shrimp and crab meat appetizer. Definitely worth the trip!

 

7/25:  It was an excellent get-away, only slightly diminished by the fact that our rental car did not start the next day and it took almost 4 hours for Enterprise to get us another one.  

07/23 Time to visit St. Augustine

Since our truck needs a little work, we rented a car for our trip to St Augustine and dropped the truck off. It took awhile for me to get used to driving a car again but the GPS took us on a route that wasn’t very busy, so it worked out OK.

We celebrated the 2-hour drive to get there with a 2-hour nap, followed by a late lunch at Osteen’s. We shared a 1 1/2 breaded shrimp meal with fruit salad and fries - excellent as usual!

We had driven over over a bridge to get to Osteen’s and on both sides were some familiar-looking lion statues. I really wanted a good look at those so after lunch when we went back across the bridge we found a place to park (finally) and walked over to them. And they look just like my favorite Italian lion statues!  They are literally copies of the "Medici lions" in Florence (one of which dates back to 2nd century!) Made me so happy to find these here, I first saw them in 1999 and have loved them ever since!

Since we already had a parking spot, we went walking around. Nearby is the cathedral of St Augustine, which serves the oldest parish in the US. Very beautiful and respectfully quiet inside.
 
It was still afternoon so we walked towards George Street, home of a wide variety of shops. They all try to be historic in nature, and one of the be newer one is downright prehistoric - in fact, that's the name of the store! Inside were unusual beauties, like a very good replica of a T Rex skull and what I believe is a real mammoth tusk - so jealous, I would love to have either of these!

A lot of the buildings here are old enough that they are build on coquina. It's a sedimentary rock made almost entirely of shell pieces and sand, cemented together by the calcium in the shells. It looks very porous but it seems to last a very long time. 

It really was too hot and humid to be walking around. We tried to counter that by getting some delicious ice cream at Tedi's. 

At the end of George Street are the old cities gates. They are also built out of coquina and were almost torn down in 1900 as an eyesore, until the DAR raised interest in saving them. So glad they did, they are wonderful. 

And just beyond the gates is the Huguenot cemetery. Catholics were buried in the city but eventually they had enough non-Catholics living and dying here that they needed a place to put them. Not in the city (of course) but just outside. I really love old tombstones with old fashioned engravings.  

In spite of the name, there aren’t any Huguenots there, just regular Protestants. Tourists are not allowed inside, which I regretted but totally understood. 

By then it was definitely time to quit. The trip back to the car  was more of a trudge than a walk; we had already seen the area and we didn’t even have ice cream. It was just so hot! I dropped Randy at the hotel then went to Walmart for soda because we are gonna need something cold to drink tomorrow.