Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Good morning. It’s a bright beautiful sunshiny day here in Central Florida. Yes, it’s going to be another hot one as we still have that darn Saharan red dust heating up our area. Well, it’s not just us, it’s the entire Caribbean and the United States up to North Carolina and over to Oklahoma. The sad part is, there’s more coming. Good news ... we’re halfway through 2020, the lost year. 🤷‍♀️ 

Mark worked pressure washing the RVPORT today while I painted a picture for a school friend of his. At 4 o’clock Marky-Mark and Lani came over for happy hour and pick up their new tiki guy for their bar area. I made popcorn ... Mark made drinks and we sat around the bar and had a few laughs. 

I think Marky-Mark liked the new mask! 

That’s it for today. 

Monday, June 29, 2020

Good morning. Mark was up and out early and off to the woods to check his trail cameras with Bob. I don’t expect he’ll  be long because of the Saharan dust cloud that (still) lingers over our area. Also, it’s bound to be hot again today, again, with the red dust cloud. I hope we’re rid of that thing in a few days. We have enough plague going on without 100 year dust storm!

Mark delivered the Redfish to Bob ... 👍🏻

At 4 o’clock, we met Bob and Kim at Lynn’s pool fir happy hour. Robs and Bee swam too ... the first time in awhile. 

HedzUp for the kids! They work great! 

This afternoon I did an interview of friends Jack and Linda for our “spotlight on“ article in the newsletter. With the cases of COVID-19 so very high in Florida, I did the meeting on zoom. They thought that was great fun.

That’s it for today. Stay safe. 🥰

Sunday, June 28, 2020

Good afternoon y’all. We’re staying home today and pulling the RV out of its port for cleaning. Mark plans to pressure wash the ceiling of the RVPORT today! 

I finished the big tiki guy today ...

Thinking his nose might be x-rated. 😂 

Mark came in pretty tired after working in the 97° heat. There was a bit of a breeze, but it was hot. He’s coughing a lot after being out there with that Saharan dust which is moving up to North Carolina now. It should be out of our area in a day or two. I can’t even go out and walk the dogs without getting wheezy. 

Randy & Dawn had a family get together with everyone at their place today ... we are so sad to miss it. We can’t take a chance with our history of bronchitis and asthma. (The cases in Florida are skyrocketing, we are about the worst State in the nation.) Bars are closed down again and people are begged to wear masks in public. Of course there are still those who will not ... their civil liberties being more important to them than their loved ones. We’re 9585 new cases in Florida just yesterday. 

Tonight we watched 3 episodes of Dexter after supper ... then got into watching Alone, season 6. 

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Good evening, I have seven minutes to get this blog done and published before it is tomorrow. Ha ha ha. As you can see, it has been a very busy day around our house. It remains very hot outside so we have mostly been puttering inside. Mark did venture out to wash two vehicles, but lots of cooling off time inside.

This evening, we picked up dinner at Stavros and went to Wayne and LaDonna’s for dinner. It was Wayne’s birthday so we took a few things over and had a nice visit. We were invited to bring Robbie and BeeZee, which we did. It cooled off enough that we sat on the front porch for a little while while the fellows smoked cigars. 

On the ride to Wayne and LaDonna‘s, Robbie and Belize were in the same bed. Ha ha. Robbie doesn’t look like he minds sharing. 🐾💕

LaDonna had a new sunroom installed in their lanai, and she will be using it for painting. It looks very nice, and the lighting is excellent. We had a nice time seeing them.

The numbers in Florida for the COVID-19 or still rising. It’s terrible to see and unbelievable that some people still refuse to wear a mask. I don’t know what’s wrong with humanity! 🤷‍♀️

That’s it for tonight. More tomorrow.

Friday, June 26, 2020

Good morning. It’s going to be another steamy day here in Central Florida, thanks to the arrival of the Saharan dust. But, in more fun news, it is Dawn‘s birthday today ... and Jim G’s birthday! 

🎂 🎼 Happy birthday to Dawn & Jim 

Today’s fun, we plan to go swimming at Lyn‘s pool while she is away, and possibly take the kids for a dip. Lew wouldn’t have allowed it, but Lynn is fine with it. 🥰 i’ve been working on a few paintings the last couple of days and got them finished and sitting in the sunroom to cure. 

Here’s “Old Florida” ... refreshed from a 2012 attempt done in Oklahoma. 

And here’s another refreshed one from 1999 where the oil paints had faded to almost nothing. It took a day to redo it, but it’s much happier now. 

And, lastly, a totally different style of autumn rain ... done from scratch this week ...

This evening, we had our “wine down Friday” with the Yaya group from our neighborhood. We are on zoom, and play a game and drink wine. It’s much like being together, very uplifting for us 

It’s 9 o’clock and we’re back from swimming at Lynn’s. It was so nice to cool down.

Thursday, June 25, 2020

Good morning sunshine! It’s extra hot here today ... yuck. Is the Saharan dust heating us up? It is causing a haziness that’s stopping our rain chances! So ... it’s an inside the A/C type of day. 👍🏻

Being so freaking hot today, I painted, repaired two old paintings that had faded, while Mark worked on the fish for Bob‘s boat house. The dogs slept most of the day, I guess they had been party animals last night. Ha ha. Tonight we are going to Karen and Pete’s for dinner. We haven’t seen them for about five weeks. The doggies will be looking after the house.

It was a nice evening at Karen & Pete’s. They had done a lot of improvements to their home since we were last there. And, we saw their new camper and truck. Karen cooked lemon chicken and rice and egg rolls for dinner. It was great. 

Tonight, Sue and Wayne are at Donna and Denis’s  for one of their summer time dinner parties. They have a dog sitter ... it’s going to be a late one. 😜

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Good afternoon. Well actually, it’s early evening. We’ve had a busy enough day which included a nap. Ha ha. It’s a hot day here and it wears you out. 

Mark worked at least three hours, maybe for helping Markymark clear out brush ready for pick up on Friday. (I don’t know how he stood it today, it’s pretty darn hot.)

I finished a riverwalk scene today ... thought it would be a quick one, but not so much. 🤪 

This evening, we have Rose, Jim, Lani, Markymark, Kim, Bob, Pat and Ken coming over for a margarita party that is going to include watermelon shots. Oh Em Gee, we decided all this last week at Kim & Bob‘s. Ha! 

Well it’s now 1130, everyone has gone home after a fun time. Markymark and Lani brought a margarita machine over and we had professionally made drinks. LaDonna and Wayne stopped by and of course had to come in for drinks. They know everyone from having been at our party in December. 

Rose’s watermelon shots were fab ... I had 3 of them! 

Somehow, Bob wound up rocking a purple wig ... 

We all had a fantastic time, lots of laughs and plans to do it all over again next week at Pat & Ken‘s.  

Sue and Wayne had a nice evening going on a pontoon boat ride with Jim G. We will hear more about it tomorrow.

Ta ta til then. 

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Good afternoon. We both puttered around the house a little today, tidying up in case we host tomorrow’s Calla get together. The idea is, as long as it’s not raining and storming, we will be at Lynn’s pool for our weekly get together. Otherwise, it’s at our sunroom. So, both places have to be somewhat ready. Rose is making watermelon shots, we’re doing margaritas and that’s all we can remember. Ha ha Ha. 

Sue and Wayne took the dogs and went into town today. They are getting into phase 2 in Canada which means that more things will be open. They are very few cases in Canada, compared to our big mess here in the USA. Every day, our governor is on TV stating that the numbers are up because they are doing more testing. Well, the numbers are the numbers. There are a lot of cases. Meanwhile, the news keeps playing trumps line from his Tulsa rally, “so don’t send them any more test kits!” 🤷‍♀️ Egad ... we’re screwed.

Today Mark is at the dentist getting his crown put on. I am finishing up a painting I started two days ago, and it’s kicking my butt.  

It’s now 930, and we’ve had dinner, sat on the front porch and ate popcorn, drank wine, bathed the doggos and are watching Telly.. Schweet. 

Sue sent a cute picture of Wayne sitting in the recliner at the cottage with their three dogs. 

You know he’s there, because I see a leg. 😂

Monday, June 22, 2020

Good morning. I was up at 6:45 and Mark had already gone to help Markymark with some tree trimming. I guess they are beating the heat.

I made lunch ... (yes Rick M 😜) and was watching the pot waiting for reboil after putting the ronies in. Of course it was on high ... and yeah, Mark was napping in the recliner when HE heard it boil over and sizzle the stovetop. 🙄  One job leads to another. Anyway, lunch was good ... Kraft dinner with tuna salad. 

Well Mark Went back to work for a few hours and put in an 8 hour day! Another day there are huge logs to saw and haul to the dump. 

My best fan in life liked my paintings and printed himself a copy. He framed it, surrounded it with Tequila, fancy glasses and displayed it on his bedstand. 🤷‍♀️ So, I sent it to Mikey W along with the other two he liked. It was recently his birthday. 👍🏻

🙄😂

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Good morning and a very Happy Father’s Day to the wonderful dads. Enjoy your glory day. 

We’re hanging at home today having had a fun time yesterday at Pat ‘n Ken’s. Mark painted a cool fish today for his friend Bob’s boathouse. It’s great to have a fun hobby. 

Me? I have a few “orders” for paintings and Tiki guys. No problemo ... it’s fun. 

RanDawn popped over around 5 o’clock for a visit. It was fun to see them and the dogs were so happy they were just ‘yelling.’ They’d had dinner at Olive Garden with Brittany and Allan who also were at the Hideaway earlier. 😍

After dinner, Mark and I enjoyed sitting on the front porch drinking wine while he enjoyed a “chocolate“ cigar. It was fabulously balmy and breezy. Tata till tomorrow. 

Saturday, June 20, 2020

Good morning. For some ungodly reason I was up at 4 AM. There were too many things left undone for me to get a good nights sleep. Now, it’s 10 o’clock, and I’m all caught up and tired. Ha ha ha.

Mark is outside pressure washing more on the driveway. He’s taking it step-by-step instead of wearing himself out by doing it all at once.

I finished another painting ... 

The Courtyard ... Ta Dah! 🤷‍♀️ This was one that LaDonna challenged me to. 

This afternoon, we went to Pat & Ken’s to watch the horse races. We had lots of laughs, wine, dinner and amaretto. We were home by 8:30.

Ta ta til tomorrow. 

Friday, June 19, 2020

Good evening. Well, we’ve both done some painting today, a little work, and had a few laughs. 

Very Island-y Tiki guy ... Mark prepped the palm branch and I painted the face. I like the gold tooth. 😜

So what is JUNETEENTH???  Well ... it’s the end of slavery in the 1880’s ... but, after 35 years in the USA I’d never heard of it! Trump thinks  invented it. 😂

Tonight, it was our online zoom Yaya‘s. Cheri and Sharon did the night’s quiz! It was an hilarious version of family feud. We had lots of laughs, got cut off the air twice, and then suffered with Lynn talking with VERIZON back-and-forth throughout. Ha ha ha. Much wine was needed. This is THE best group of neighbors ever. 🥰

The weather radio has been going off for over two hours, but it’s not really for our area. The storms, as usual, are going all around Lake Eustis. We never seem to get them, but fortunately the water goes into other areas of our lake and we benefit.

Mark cooked steaks in the boat house on his cast iron pan. They come out fantastic, juicy and fully edible. We had a salad and then the steaks. Gone are the days of eating potatoes and an entire steak each. There’s a whole steak for tomorrow!

Sue and Wayne had a ride downtown with the dogs today and now to Jim‘s for the evening. I hope they have a wonderful time out of their quarantine. 

We’ve had plenty of invitations, and are going tomorrow to Pat and Ken‘s for a horse racing dinner party. Then, LaDonna invited us for lasagna which we had to take a rain check on. It’s nice to be popular, and yet social distance. We are very lucky in this neighborhood as everyone here treats this as a true pandemic. 

Three of my paintings are on their way to Canada. Schweeet. 

Thursday, June 18, 2020

Good afternoon. We had a wonderful day. About noon, we took the dogs for a boat ride and puttered around the lake. There was a beautiful breeze and a high of 88°. Our humidity has been very low lately so it was very comfortable. After we got home, we both worked on our separate projects. About 4 o’clock, right after happy hour on the front porch, the rain started in Torrance. It is so delightful to see it as everything comes up so lovely and green.

Mz Bee gave me a kiss ... 

Robs sat with his daddy ... 

Going down our canal towards the lake, so pretty after Mark and Bob cleaned it out.

We talk to Susan & Wayne today, and everything is fine at their cottage. They are off quarantine today and ready to begin social distancing there.

Then we called Randy who was on his way to pick up Dawn at work. They had a wonderful time with the granddaughters and last night, had been with Mary and Dan to “the melting pot“ in Clermont for dinner. 

That’s it for today. More tomorrow. Tata. 

Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Good evening. Well, that’s what Alfred Hitchcock always said. Somehow, the day has gotten away from me. I was busy painting Mark was busy puttering in the yard, and then we had 7 o’clock get together at Kim and Bob‘s along with Pat, Ken, Rose, Jim, Lani, Marky-Mark, and Bob and Kim. We had a great fun night, a few drinks and lots of laughs. Now, back home, it’s time for bed. Mark just discovered a tick on his back which we painted with nail polish and it backed out, just like magic. Sweeet. 

So that’s it for today. More tomorrow. It’s Sue and Wayne‘s last day of quarantine! 

Tuesday June 16, 2020

Hi y’all from Central Florida where it’s 87F and overcast.  What’s up at your place?  

Well, it was a nothing sort of day. I painted, started a new one of a atrium. Mark did more puttering around in the yard and prepped a couple of palm pods for painting. There’s someone with a birthday coming up that wanted a special one.

Sue and Wayne have one more day of quarantine before they can escape. I’m sure they are looking forward to it and getting some of the boats launched.

Their pool needed a big repair which is all done! Nice! Wish it was in my backyard. 😜

This is such a nice neighborhood, we just talked to Markymark and Lani, plus our neighbor Shelby a little earlier. Tomorrow  we are going to Kim and Bob’s for drinks. Saturday, Pat and Ken have invited us over to watch the horse race and have dinner. We are social distancing, and all these people are very very careful.

On Thursday we are taking LaDonna and Wayne on the boat, just a bobbing along the lake and having sandwiches and beer for lunch. Life is pretty darn good regardless of COVID-19.

Our neighbor and friend Lynn leaves tomorrow for her camp in the mountains of New York. It will be the first time being there alone. She hopes to spend a month there which is certainly much shorter than when her and Lew went there for five months. I hope she finds it OK ... it’ll be at a bit lonely. With any luck the grandsons will come up and stay a few nights here and there.

That’s it for our news. BeeZee’s foot is still healing; hope this is the last week of bandaging. 

Monday, June 15, 2020

Hey, everything’s good here just busy keeping busy. 😜 

I listed a few items on eBay today which takes a lot of time, and then sketched my next painting. Mark was working on his pressure washing and painting today.

 Done and posted on eBay today along with a few more. 

Sunday, June 14, 2020

Good sunny Sunday morning from Central Florida! The bees are buzzing around outside our clean porch screens by the Jasmine. 🐝 Mark has gone to the Woods for a hike with his friend Bob while I am tidying the house.

Plans are to start a new painting this afternoon and make pizzas for dinner tonight.

The COVID-19 cases are way up in our area today. People, what are we doing? You know you have to wear a mask anytime you leave your house, and don’t leave your house unless it’s absolutely necessary for you to go out. Let’s get this thing out of our area once and for all. Of course we knew this would happen with all the protesting because people were complying with the rules. Duh. 🙄

 Randy and Dawn are having the granddaughters  overnight ... so we know they will be busy and having fun tonight.

Sue and Wayne are still in quarantine at their cottage, and looking forward to Thursday when they can escape. Ha ha. They get a phone call, at a random time, every day to check that they are at their cottage.

Diane and Kris are at a villages vigil for the COVID-19 victims. Somehow, the mask suits Kris. LOL

 Is that the loan ranger? 

Saturday, June 13, 2020

Good morning. We started with a gorgeous sunny day but it has now clouded over which is a little more like our regular summer time weather. it’s not too hot at the moment so Mark is doing some pressure washing which includes the front porch. I took everything down from the porch and much of it is going in the trash. It’s funny how things just accumulate, isn’t it? The plants that weren’t thriving out there are going to the backyard for their last chance. Ha ha. Thrive or get chucked out. 

Mark and I are putting ourselves on home quarantine once again. The numbers in Florida and elsewhere in the United States are rising with the COVID-19 cases. We have no need to be out until we go on a short RV trip to Lazydays in Tampa in July. Otherwise, it’s at home puttering around and enjoying our retired life.

We took the kids for a ride on the Caddy tonight and there was some idiot in our neighborhood buzzing around going really fast in a gray Nissan. Mark yelled at him, but I didn’t think that was the right thing to do when we’re in a golf cart. 🙄 

Randy & Dawn called this evening, they had been working around their yard today after Dawn finished work. Tomorrow, they are getting the girls for an overnight which is lots of fun for them.

That’s it for tonight. It’s TV time.

Friday, June 12, 2020

Good morning. It’s a bright beautiful sunshiny day here in Central Florida. If you can imagine it, I slept in until 8:45. Mark was up at 7:30 with the dogs and had them fed and walked before I came in the kitchen. After breakfast, hashbrowns, onions and eggs, he went to the side yard to lay patio stones. Everything around the yard is getting tidied up. I think Mark is enjoying having time away from RVing. We both love it, of course, but you can’t get a lot done when you’re always coming and going. So, 2020 seems to be the year to get household things caught up.

As you can see from Marks picture, we have more cases of Cove at 19. After the May long weekend and George Floyd protest, our numbers have risen. By the way, Marky-Mark and Lani, on Wednesday night, mentioned Googling Mr. Floyd. Aside from a stint in prison (Texas) and a few other charges, it seemed he’d Turned his life around when he made the move to Florida. We also noted, according to a witness who knew both of them in 2016-2018 that the bad cop worked at the same bar (as a bouncer) along with Floyd, and that the two of them had had problems. CBS news interview. This may lead to a higher charge against the cop! 

Anyway, this afternoon, I’m going swimming with Lynn and then at 4 o’clock I have a zoom “meeting“ for Yaya‘s. today I have prepared a quiz, being my turn, and we’ll see how it goes.

Yesterday, I worked on a painting using a new technique with tinfoil instead of a brush. Of course there is a learning curve with this ... 

It’s not good ... BUT like the texture of it. 

See the texture on the close-up! Cool. 😎

Thursday, June 11, 2020

Good afternoon. Since there’s not much going on here I thought I would delight you with an old story of the Lake Winnipeg fish freighters. 

Growing up in Winnipeg, we lived on Kildonan Drive and dad’s boat was tied up at the dock behind our house. The big Suzanne E, an 87 foot fish hauling freighter cruised by our dock often, taking its’ catch  to the Alexander docks (downtown Winnipeg) for processing. It caused a great uproar as it threw a big wake and often snapped the lines on our 40’ boat, the Ar-Joy.

Well, Lake Winnipeg has a history of battering boats and the Suzanne E was no match in 1965. 

Here’s another Lake Winnipeg storm ... before my time but representative of the type of weather the lake is known for. 

Wednesday, June 10, 2020

Good morning. We started our day with dogs on the bed for an hour. They sure enjoy it. Now with laundry done Miss B is sitting on my lap letting her foot air out. I cooked their sweet potatoes and got the house tidied up well Mark went to Harbor freight and the Home Depot. He had a few more things to get for his concrete project outback.

Afternoon, we are meeting Randy & Dawn at hurricanes for a late lunch. It’ll be fun to see them although social distancing still applies. Sue and Wayne have eight days left in their COVID-19 quarantine at the cottage. They’ve kept their friends busy picking up items for them. They’re going to owe everybody a dinner after this. Ha ha.

Last night Markymark borrowed a baking dish and returned it this morning along with a banana loaf. That’s a good deal. They’re sure doing a great job on that house across the street. Lani has been digging up and moving plants and making a cactus and aloe area by the front entrance to the lodge. Today, they have the HVAC company they’re installing a whole new air conditioning system, ductwork and all. On Saturday, They have a concrete company coming to tear up the old driveway at the lodge and do something different with it. They are both very hard workers. 

It was great seeing Randy & Dawn at Hurricane’s. The place has been renovated, extensively on the back patio. There is now a large thatched tiki lodge with a big bar and lots of tables. There’s a large area for entertainment. We sat inside in a big booth and the service was good. The waitresses wore masks and the menus were all disposable placemats. We will certainly go back there. This evening we are going to Rose & Jim‘s for our Wednesday wine get together. 

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Good afternoon. The highlight of our day was Mark taking Ms. B to see Dr. Wilson for stitch removal. However, the doctor found that Miss B had removed her own stitches, probably on Friday night. So, we have another week of wearing a boot and more antibiotics. Ca-ching! More pills. 🙄 

I finished two paintings I’ve been working on. The first one called The Gorge ...

(That was a challenge!)

And the other, yet untitled ...

Otherwise a quiet day here. 

Monday, June 8, 2020

Good morning. I have a lot of pictures from yesterday to post. Randy & Dawn celebrated Makenna’s  birthday and shared a few pictures from their fun day.

Now that’s a beautiful cake for a beautiful girl! 🥰

Makenna with Randy snd Charlotte. Nice jewelry box!

Alan, Brittany, Charlotte, Dawn and Makenna ❤️ 

Yesterday, the graduation gifts arrived for our granddaughters Hailey and Isabella. Haley got Ariana grandes new perfume and a sterling initial ring. Izzy, the outdoor girl, got a metal detector. Apparently all the gifts are big hits! 

Izzy and a friend digging up treasure on the beach. 

It looks like it works pretty well by these items! 

They found a few things in the sand and then they found one great big treasure that a lady had lost a week ago.

She was so happy that Izzy found it! Nice. 

So tonight, we took the dogs for a ride on the Caddy around the entire neighborhood. More rain is forecast tomorrow, but just a few isolated showers here and there. We should be getting into our afternoon shower routine for this time of year. It’s great though as the boat is up level with the dock now. It had been about 10 inches lower. 

That’s it for today. Not much else going on, I painted while Mark relaxed today!