Monday, November 30, 2020

Good afternoon. It’s a beautiful day here in Central Florida. This morning, Mark and I went to Rural King in Leesburg for a little Christmas shopping. We were very annoyed that 50% of the shoppers there were not wearing masks, and the place was pretty busy. What the heck is with people? Anyway, we got what we went for and headed home after that. Mark suggested another store, but we’re going to wait for a quieter day like maybe Wednesday.

This afternoon I worked on a few car charms and a few Santa keys. A couple of our neighbors have young grandchildren and I thought they would be fun things for them.

Mark finished the drywall in the guestroom closet and got the first coat of paint on. It looks great. It’s going to make a huge difference with air conditioning in the sunroom for next summer.

We had plans to go driving around Mount Dora, Eustis, Tavares, and Leesburg but we are worn out tonight. So, tomorrow’s another day. We will take the dogs for a ride on the golf cart tonight and check out our local neighborhood displays.

So it is the end of November and officially the end of hurricane season. We were never affected this year, but it’s nice that it’s over as so many areas were.

The redlined chart shows the hurricane paths in 2020. 

There were 33 named storms!

It’s cooling down tonight so off we went with the kids for a neighborhood ride on The Caddy. A few neighbors have lights up ... 

So that’s it for the month of November. Christmas is only 25 days away. We’re still not sure who will be joining us, but regardless, Mark and I will be cooking dinner Christmas Day. (Markymark and Lani will be joining us.) 

Sunday, November 29, 2020

Good morning. I woke up early, tried to go back to bed, then Mz Bee wanted to go out ... so here I am. 🤷‍♀️ Whatever, the coffee’s good and the house silent at this hour. 

Today’s fun was having Markymark and Lani, and Bob and Kim over for a Stavros pick up dinner party. No cooking involved, just eating and having some laughs. Mark set up the fire box and we sat outside after dinner. It’s cooling down tonight and it was lovely outside. Sorry, this is a rather short blog today. I’ll try better tomorrow.

Saturday, November 28, 2020

Good morning. This is such a fun area to live in. I mean our particular neighborhood! 

Markymark and Lani found a treasure while walking their dogs last night ... 

😂 They wanted a white Christmas tree for their mid century modern style home decor. Markymark refused to buy one until the sales come on after Christmas. They just happen to find one in the trash at Rose and Jim’s house. Well, you can imagine the fun we’ve had back-and-forth with texts ... and Rose and Jim recognizing their old tree in the picture.

Tonight, while they were dog walking, they picked up a potted plant outside of Jim and roses house. OMG, we’ve had so much fun going back-and-forth with that. Rose and Jim are away at the beach for two weeks. Ha ha ha ha.

This afternoon, we sat down by the water with the dogs  and fed the fish. It’s safe to do it now, all the alligators are in hibernation and back in the swamp keeping warm. It’s only 80° today. LOL.

They sure like to watch us feeding the fish. 

Tomorrow, we are having Kim, Bob, Markymark and Lani over for a Stavros order in dinner. That will be the highlight of the weekend. This Covid stuff is cramping our style. 😅

Friday, November 27, 2020

Good evening. We seem to have had a half lazy, half busy but productive day. I got a little Christmas wrapping done, made some handmade watercolor tags and puttered a boat.

Here are a few pictures from our dinner at Nancy’s last night.

We had great fun! 

Our cottage is looking quite cute with Santa in the front porch. It’s on loan from Markymark and Lani. They don’t have a covered porch to stand him in. Markymark did do a little decorating at his place today ...

Rudolph has been hijacked by Spiderman! What’s next at Boost 2? 😂

We haven’t shed many leaves this season compared to other years! 

Just a dab of political stuff tonight ...

Hahaha ... who thinks up this fun!!

We were front porch sitting when Lani and Markymark came over for a drink and a visit. They shared their Thanksgiving dinner with our neighbor Hal last night.

THANKSGIVING 2020 STYLE

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 🦃, 2020 style. We’re in for a different time this year than is usual for our family because of Covid. So ...

We took BeeZee and Robbie for a big boat ride and checked out the decorations in downtown Eustis. (They’re lovely! Everything’s new!) Perhaps tomorrow we’ll drive around the lake to see them all lit up. 

Robs & Beez favorite fun! 

Gorgeous 82F day on Lake Eustis


Mark’s saying “Chicken?” to get the kids looking at the camera ... and I’m apparently impressed too! 🤣

Tonight we’re having Thanksgiving dinner at Nancy’s (on the lakefront) with Pat and Ken. We’re all isolationists and will still keep our distance. It was a nice invitation that we accepted. I’ll be gifting them with the Christmas paintings I did earlier this week! 

Here’s a few things we’re THANKFUL for this year ... 

. Election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris 

. Our dearest family and friends and animals

. A sturdy shelter and plentiful food

. Abundant sunshine and rain

. Steady income and carefree days

. Ability to stay home during pandemic 😷 

. 

 

Wednesday November 25, 2020

Good afternoon y’all ... Diane and Kris are celebrating their 20th anniversary today! Happy Anniversary you two ❤️ 

Cheers to many more! 💕

On the homefront, Mark spent his morning in the Ocala forest with Bob and Wayno. All they saw today was a few turkeys. (Hide ya silly birds ... tomorrow’s Thanksgiving!) 

It was my day to clean house after the A/C install. All but the guest room had a going over. Mark is doing the drywall mudding ... then sanding ... then priming and painting! It’ll be next week before I clean it up. Nobody’s coming for TG this year. Darn 🦠

Lani and Markymark borrowed a rolling pin and muffin tins ... they can’t find anything between the two houses! Hopefully they’ll get moved in soon. The kitchen cabinets are on order ... and apparently “everyone” is renovating this year! That’s what happens when we’re all hanging about at home. 😂

Watching The Crown this evening I was reminded of the rotating doors and the extreme heat before you’d meet with the icy cold of the outside night in Winterpeg. “Tribune / Free Press ... last call.” 

Tuesday, November 24, 2020

Good afternoon y’all ... it’s a gorgeous day here in Central Florida. Mark mentioned a boat ride ... we shall see. He’s busy with the drywall project in the guest room closet. We have a few pictures to hang in the Sunroom now that the vent is done in there! Awesome! 

FINALLY today Trump acknowledged that he lost the election. He’s not conceded of course as that would take a real man. The Republican party is lost by not speaking up about the lying sack of 💩. 

Hallelujah, the fat lady sings ✅

Today, I worked on two paintings. One for our friends Pat & Ken whose English Springer Spaniel Sadie had a major surgery a couple of weeks ago. She is fine now, but it was a big decision for them. 

I called this one “happy days“... 🐾💕

My YaYa friend Nancy is cooking turkey dinner on Thanksgiving and asked us to join her, Pat and Ken. We did plan to do steaks and stay home ... but they’re all cautious with this 🦠

This one is for Nancy. I think it will look nice with her homes decor!

I enjoyed doing both paintings and will deliver them on Thanksgiving day.

Mark worked on the drywall project again today in the guestroom closet. It’ll be a few days now between taping, muddying and sanding. Once that’s done, we will paint it just white and rehang the doors. There will be less room, but we haven’t had any guests that have really unpacked yet. Usually they leave their suitcase on the floor and just dig through it. Ha ha ha ha. That’ll teach them. 🤣

Since we are now going to Nancy’s for Thanksgiving dinner, Mark went to the grocery store to pick up a few bottles of wine. He didn’t want to go tomorrow as it will be crazy at the stores.

I think that’s probably it for tonight. We are going to relax, drink wine and watch TV. Stay safe! 😍

Monday, November 23, 2020

Good morning. I was up extra early because we went to bed at 9:30 last night. We were both worn out. 😊 it’s a lovely 64° this morning with a high of 74 forecast. I began my day painting a little red truck with a Christmas tree in it. It looks simple, but I can see it’s going to be a bit of a challenge. Mark is going to finish the sunroom air conditioning duct and then begin to drywall in the closet. 

So, it was in around the house type of day. I painted a picture for Pat and Ken who’s dog Sadie recently got a clean bill of health after a scare. I hope they like this little picture for Christmas.

Mark worked diligently on the air conditioning duct and attempted to get some leftover bits from Markymark to help with the drywall. We had to laugh, as over the years he has borrowed a lot of things. Now Mark has him digging through his source to see what he has. LOL.

The joke was on us though, when he came over it was cocktail hour and so we poured him southern comfort. Then Lani arrived but was going to exercise at the lodge. He was bored watching her so came back for round two of happy hour. We had lots of laughs. They are certainly wonderful friends and neighbors.

WELL ... this is hilarious ... thanks Mark ❤️

Hahahaha 

Sunday, November 22, 2020

Good afternoon. Mark and Wayne went to the woods this morning, hunting, while I did household chores and tidied up from yesterday‘s air conditioning installation. Mark’s job now is cutting through to the Sunroom for the new vent! It’s really going to make a big difference during the heat of summer. 

It’s a process! There was a lot to cut through! (Robbie slept during it!) That’s a BIG VENT! We’re running it through the top of the guest room closet! Drywall work will be necessary. 

Tonight we’re having dinner with LaDonna and Wayne at their place. Nice. We picked up food at Stavros on the way over. Robbie and BeeZee were invited so it made it a nice easy evening for us. After salad and dinner, we sat on their big front porch while the guys smoked cigars. A former neighbor of ours Jim, walked by with his two Boston terriers. We had a chat with him, he and his wife Sandra are nice people. LaDonna had ordered desserts, so after the cigars we went in and had cake and cheesecake. Burp! 

Since Wayno has dental surgery tomorrow, so we headed home at 9 o’clock. It was a great evening, many funny stories were shared. The Scotties had some cheese and a bit of garlic bread as treats. 

Saturday, November 21, 2020

Good morning! It’s an overcast, misty morning! The first worker arrived for the air conditioning job. Robbie wasn’t sure about letting him in. He’s now laying where he can keep an eye on the new guy. 😅

Markymark says the Whitehouse is being called SQUATTERGATE ... pretty funny! 

Mark’s in the forest with his buddies while I hold the fort. (He got home about noon ... the inside air handler was already installed.) 

It’s now 330, our new air-conditioning is in and working beautifully! Yay Budget!!! Well done! 

Old 2 ton A/C 

New 3 1/2 (4T) A/C. Schweeet ❤️  Rory will be back Monday to make sure we’re pleased with everything ... then we’ll ante up. Ca-ching. 

Tonight, we sat on the front porch, drank wine and popped in and out to stir the sauce pot. We phoned ShayRod for their anniversary. Like us, they’re hunkering down and staying home. A few pickle ball players have Covid ... that tamped down the neighborhood activities. 

Friday, November 20, 2020

Good evening. Today seems to have slipped by on us. We had a call from Rory that our air conditioner has been delivered and they will begin the install tomorrow, Saturday. Mark pressure cleaned the air conditioning concrete pad and the small fence that surrounds it. Then, he went into the attic to mark where the ductwork is going and lay down a platform for the men to work on.

Mark, Wayne and Bob are all going hunting tomorrow. This will leave me home with the dogs and three workmen. Not fun! Hopefully everything goes smoothly. It’s going to be a two day process, they think. 

Vintage Winnipeg had a picture of The Old Spaghetti Factory where we met for family birthdays! It was fun and inexpensive ... 

There was an old stable on King Street for parking!  I think it was also used for car auctions which I attended with my dad as a wee tot. It was so exciting! Fun memories!

The news today was that Donald Junior had tested positive for COVID-19 and that Florida’s governor I had also tested positive. We’re in quite a mess with Thanksgiving just around the corner. The deaths forecast is grim ... 

We’re into watching The Crown on Netflix, and enjoyed two episodes tonight. If you haven’t checked it out, it’s quite good. 

Thursday, November 19, 2020

Good morning. Where is Mr. Sunshine? We have overcast skies with nary a chance of rain. What the D dickens is going on here? Actually, something interesting is going on here! 

As I am working on a painting today I am also watching some young fellows cleaning up the canal front across from us. For years, it has been nothing more than, as Mark calls it, the wilderness area. Could it be that the owner’s going to list the property for sale? That could be a wonderful thing. He hasn’t taken care of it in the 10 years that he has owned it. And he’s not exactly friendly. The young fellows that are cleaning up, and there are three of them at the moment, are using a canoe. 🤞 Mark is cleaning up some brush and burning it. (Our bonfire last night was fun,) This evening, Rose and Jim are entertaining, social distancing, and outside, with drinks and pumpkin pie.

The mermaid and jellyfish watercolor painting is done ... 

Mermaid was fun to do ... I didn’t think I’d like watercolors, but they’re kinda nice. 

I talked to Diane & Kris after lunch. It had been awhile so we chatted for an hour. They’re both doing well ... staying home and staying safe. 

We had our social distancing get together at Rose & Jim‘s tonight they serve pecan or pumpkin pie. It was fun, millions of laughs. We missed Bob and Kim, but they had been at the hospital with their granddaughter so they declined the invitation. Tata till tomorrow. 

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Good morning. It’s a bright beautiful sunshiny day here in Central Florida. It’s going to be cool enough tonight for a bonfire outback with friends. Bob and Kim’s young granddaughter has been in ICU for two weeks. She had a surgery shortly after birth, and needed another. Anyway, she is now out of ICU and they are back home from babysitting their 3 year old (active) grandson. We thought they would enjoy a relaxing time with drinks and friends around the bonfire. Markymark and Lani are coming too. 

I have decided for the rest of the week not to mention T nor the C ... and to focus on the good things in life. I’m going to start another painting today but right now I’m sitting with Robbie and BeeZee on my lap. The sunshine is streaming in the living room window and everyone’s content.

Mark and Wayno  went to the woods this morning. It was a bit chilly with the wind ... but they sure enjoyed it. Nothing was moving ... too windy. 

I worked on a painting this afternoon after the laundry was done ... then discovered Mark napping; so I joined him. 

Here are my art pals ...

A couple of art critics. 🐾💕 

OMG too much fun fireside! Ta ta til tomorrow. 

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Good afternoon. It’s a bright beautiful sunshiny day here in Central Florida with a high today of 72°. We took the Kia in to replace our backup camera, get an oil change, rotate tires and handle a fire-hazard recall. Mark drove the Mounty and we went to Lowes while we waited. 

I was so annoyed by my fellow man ... I put this on Facebook ... 

then wrote this! 



It’s now 12:30 and we came home to meet Rory for our A/C replacement quote. 

Crazy day. The KIA is home, all’s well ... leftovers for dinner and happy hour on the front porch. Lani and Markymark walked past with their dogs Brady and Henry. We invited them for a bonfire tomorrow at 7 o’clock. The weather is too perfect to ignore.

Tonight, we watched a couple of episodes of the Crown. We are really enjoying it, although Mark may have fallen asleep during the last half-hour. LOL.

Monday, November 16, 2020

It’s Monday morning and the COVID19 news is grim with 11,000 new cases in Florida! 😱 

This makes me sad and angry! Everyday I read that between 2 and 6 “Villages” residents died overnight. You know where much of the blame traces back ... to the feckin’ Trump rallies and post-election Trump protests. Sad, and absurd. 

Now, that said, there’s plenty we can all do to get this under control. Stay safely at home if you’re fortunate enough to be retired or able to work from home. 

Wear a mask when you venture outside. Your friendly neighbor may be a spreader ... Mark read on Google news about a person, male or female not specified, who has been tested POSITIVE daily for 70 days! That person has no symptoms, (asymptomatic), is quarantined, and thus not a super-spreader. Let’s let that soak in for a minute. If there is one person like that, there are hundreds of people like that. They have no symptoms, they do not know they are sick, so they have never been tested, and they go about willy-nilly spreading it. 😱

Sanitize your door handles after home delivery service. Open the packaging, recycle it, sanitize the area and wash your hands.

Let your mail sit undisturbed 24 hours before handling. Wash your hands and sanitize after opening it. 

So ... what was fun today? I worked on the star girl watercolor painting in process. Perhaps tomorrow it will be far enough along that I could post a picture of it.

Tonight, we are watching The Crown on Netflix. And actually, Mark is staying awake for it. Ha ha ha ha. (We watched 4 episodes of Season 1 ... 👍🏻👍🏻

Tomorrow, we take the Kia in for service and a new rear camera.