Idyllic Florida with family

Icarus and Charley

My sister loves dogs. When I was here last year, their dog Zen was hanging on, even after he was expected to go a year or so earlier. He finally died at 17, with the final trip to the vet once he stopped eating and was having trouble walking. Icarus was so lonely after he was gone that Norma Jean got another rescue dog, this one a Papillon mix (Charley). He's an adorable dog and was owned by a woman who had moved and found that she couldn't have a fence for him to run, and she, unable to even take him for walks, put an ad on Craigslist to find the right place for him. It turned out to be at home with my sister, her son Peter, and Icarus.

Buried in furry love

Charley was originally named Harley, which nobody really cared for, so they changed it to Charley; he doesn't seem to notice the difference. He's 3 to Icarus' 8 years, so he has plenty of energy and took to me right away. In fact, I had to ask Norma Jean to call him to her so I could write on my laptop. He sleeps with me and we think I might remind him of his previous owner, whose white hair is similar to mine. I'm happy to accommodate this adorable bundle of love.

Deedee, who lives a couple of doors away

Every morning when we walk, Norma Jean takes Deedee with us. She's only a year old and needs the exercise and training. When we come to get her, two homes away, she's waiting impatiently for her. We walk between three and five miles with her. Norma Jean gives her a treat before and after, and in the three months they've been doing this, Norma Jean has only missed one day.

Of course, she also has me along with her, so the three of us enjoy the idyllic Florida weather. You might notice Norma Jean is dressed warmly, because the first two days I was here it was downright cold in the morning. I didn't really mind, except we missed our swim. We went yesterday, though, and I am now happy to say the weather is warm and really delightful.
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Busch Gardens 2019

Peter and Norma Jean on the way to Busch Gardens

This morning we three all left for Tampa's Busch Gardens, with me as the honored guest of Peter, who is an annual pass holder. We drove there to spend the day at the place I visited for the first time last February. The two of them visit several times a year. And I didn't even get on one ride.

The Falcon's Fury ride

Last year, I did ride this one with Peter (Norma Jean does not do such rides), and I enjoyed it. Insteady, today we watched a couple of shows and saw ABBA, along with a lovely ice skating show, incredibly well choreographed. Lots of costume changes and flawless performances.

The Serengeti Plains

Then we enjoyed a fun train excursion to the Busch Gardens' version of the Serengeti Plains, with lots of animals like giraffes, zebras, and rhinos. You could choose, if you wanted, to take a closer look with a pricey safari, but instead we took this one, which was included with the regular price.

Enormous rhinos from the train

It was a fun day, very different from my usual trip with the Senior Trailblazers, but we did a fair amount of walking, and Norma Jean and I had also walked almost four miles earlier. We weren't able to swim today or yesterday because of the cold weather, but tomorrow looks to be on track for a good swim, my first of the trip so far. From here on, it should be smooth sailing as far as the weather goes.

A ride I didn't take today

It seemed a little strange not to get on any of the rides, but in some ways I was relieved. No need to get overly frightened today, and the company with the three of us was wonderful. More on Saturday.

:-)

Florida here I come

Taken at sunrise from the plane

I didn't get much sleep last night since I had to catch the "pajama shuttle" at 2:10am this morning. I've been traveling ever since. Three hours on the shuttle, two hours going through security (which was an awful experience, not just for me but for everybody) and finally making it to the gate before it was time to board. But just barely. And then once on board, I settled in for a nice long five-hour flight.

Palm trees and sunny skies greeted me when I disembarked, and Norma Jean picked me up soon after. Then another hour's drive from the Tampa airport to her home, and finally I am here, ready to write my Tuesday post.

My fabulous dinner salad, compliments of Pete

Peter, Norma Jean's son, had already prepared us one of his wonderful salads, which awaited us when we stepped out of the car and into the dining room. Between that, and Norma Jean's two dogs (one of whom has just been adopted), it's been quite a full, full day.

And now, given that I'm not only fed and watered (well, wined, really), I'm beginning to feel the effects of the day. I'll probably last another few hours before hitting the sack. Tomorrow, swimming!
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Another glorious Saturday

Zuanich Point

I'm beginning to wonder exactly what miserable January weather I'm going to be escaping when I head to Florida next week. It's been incredibly beautiful, and today is no exception. We ladies (and one man) met in front of a coffee shop and all 22 of us walked briskly to Squalicum Harbor and Zuanich Point. Those in the picture are waiting for some of us who are slower to catch up. Although it's hard to see in this picture, we could see the Olympic mountains in the distance.

Boats in the early morning sunshine

We continued our walk around the harbor and admired the glass-like water reflecting mostly clear skies. I was the only one of the walkers who ended up taking off my jacket; even though it was cold, I warm up quickly. Guess I tend to either wear too many clothes to begin with, or my internal thermostat turns up fast. We didn't walk far, maybe four miles, but it was quite simply a lovely walk with delightful company.

All smiles

I feel incredibly fortunate to have made such good friends, all of whom like to exercise. I don't think any of us look old (we're all "of an age") because we like to sweat! When I get to my sister's home in Florida, believe it or not, my exercise routine will be pushed up a notch. Not only will I be walking briskly every day with Norma Jean, I'll also be swimming alongside her before breakfast!
:-)

Alger Alp 2019

Squires Lake

This rather short hike is one of our annual wintertime treks. It's usually much colder than it was today; it was rather mild with no ice to be seen anywhere. Thirteen Senior Trailblazers started the hike at the Squires Lake trailhead, where we round the lake and start up some old logging roads to a viewpoint.

You can see I-5 in the middle of the picture

We started out with a fine mist keeping us a bit on the damp side, but nothing really to worry about. We know how to deal with rain, after all. Then we reached the viewpoint, and at about this time of the day the clouds began to lessen and gave us almost a full view across the valley.

Our group today

As usual, I asked for a picture, and as I tried to gather the group together, we saw our first rays of the sun. Nine Trailblazers are posing in the foreground, two having a discussion in the back, and me behind the camera. We lingered here for awhile; most of us climbing the hill behind us to find a private spot for tree watering.

The group at the viewpoint

I caught this shot while coming back down from my own visit. When we have enough sunlight to actually cast shadows, it's a good day to be outdoors. The company on all of these hikes is worth it, not to mention that we did get some exercise, even if it wasn't up to our usual mileage or elevation.

Looking good, everybody

Frank took this picture of the eight women on today's hike. It turned out very well, I thought. After we started back down, we decided we'd stop for lunch at the lake, about a half-mile from the cars.

Cattails in the sun

And that's just what we did. Once we got back to the lake, there was more sun than clouds, and we basked in the warmth as we ate our lunch and visited with one another. Richard snuck off by himself and took a quick dip. Some of our hikers who haven't been with us very long were amazed that he did it.

We covered around six miles total, with a mere 1,000 feet elevation gain and loss. It was even rather early when I got home, so here I am writing my Thursday post at an early hour for a change. As we headed back to the Senior Center, the clouds cleared even more. Who minds a partly sunny, warm day in January? Nobody! Another great day in the woods with my dear friends.
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How times have changed

Such a pretty petticoat

I've been watching the most recent season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, billed as a period comedy. It's set in 1959-60, the time just before I was graduating from high school. The clothes have triggered so many buried memories. The dresses brought back recollections of the days when I starched and ironed crinoline petticoats, much like the one in the picture. I was wearing mine with flats and bobby socks, not heels, however.

There was a time when I would come home from school at lunchtime and iron my skirts to get rid of the wrinkles from sitting at a desk all morning. It's almost inconceivable to me today, to think of how important it was to me. I had a pink crinoline much like this one, and I have a memory of starching it in the bathtub and hanging it out to dry on the clothesline.

There are not many people who remember the days when it was not okay for a young lady to walk around without a girdle, either. Oh, I remember so well pulling that awful torture device up my legs, wiggling my teeny-tiny little derriere into it, all for the sake of fashion. I am so glad that they are gone, long gone.

A young woman gave me a pedicure yesterday and I asked her where she was from. She was born in Vietnam, she said, as most of the young ladies who work there were. I told her I had visited Vietnam twice. She asked me when, and I told her it was in the early 1990s. "Oh, so long ago," she exclaimed. I realized that to her, it was ancient history. She wasn't even born until 1994! To me, it seems like just a few years ago. We looked at each other and marveled. Me, that she could be so grown up at 22, and her, well, who knows what she thought of the old lady in her chair?
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Wonderful walk, this time without wind

Our Saturday walking group

Look at all the people who showed up for our Saturday walk this morning. I cannot say "the ladies" because of Gordon, who has now joined us four times. He did warn us, however, that he will soon be returning to his home in Arizona and won't be with us for awhile. He hopes to return sometimes in March, however.

It was wonderful to wake up to no wind for a change. The skies were cloudy but no rain yet, so we happily walked almost seven miles around Whatcom Falls Park. I just saw that we have another major windstorm on the way for tonight, with lots of rain, so we lucked out today.

Most of these ladies have been friends for many years, and I look forward to the socializing we carry on along the trail and, often, afterwards over coffee. We discussed movies, books, and even a little bit of politics. Then I headed home to have a nice lunch and get ready for the movies with my friend Judy. Pretty much a perfect Saturday.

Whatcom Falls

And the water was roaring over the falls this morning. I took a picture last fall, at the end of our dry summer, and there was barely a trickle. Very different today!
:-)