Tuesday, March 31… Trip Around the Sun (Jimmy Buffett & Martina McBride)

 

  We’re leaving tomorrow so this morning was our last e-bike ride.  Decided to do the Harmon Rd/Sunshine Blvd block and check on Johnny and June one last time. I saw a bird fly from that general vicinity as we approached; when we stopped it flew again to the other side of the field. Johnny! June didn’t make an appearance; she was probably inside doing some cleaning. You can bet I’ll be checking this area first thing next year when we arrive.

   Left just before 8 a.m. and got back about 9:45. It’s hard to determine if we’re making better time, but that’s not really our aim. Just want to get a good ride in before the sun melts us. We also filmed our final attempt at a bike review video with the drone…haven’t looked at it yet, though.  

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  Saw ten Black Vultures sitting on top of an electrical pole this morning. I was impressed by the twothat were perched on an electrical wire. The other day we watched one try to do that, but it could not get balanced even with raising its wings. I don’t know what kind of maneuvering these two had to do to get situated but their balance was rock solid by the time we came along.

Trivia: *A group of vultures is called a committee.

            *Black Vultures lack a voice box, so their vocal abilities are                     limited to making raspy hisses and grunts. 

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   We all knew that today was packing up day, but oh, boy, was it hard to know where to start. Yesterday we pulled the cell cameras, so that’s done. Everything outside has to be broken down, wrapped up, or put in its bag/case: telescope, lawn chairs, rugs, metal detecting equipment, grill, etc. Kim has to do the scope and metal detector but the other things I can do. The front storage spaces and the truck bed have to be rearranged before any of it can be packed…and that’s definitely a Kim thing.

   While Kim was doing his thing, I tackled the inside. Despite my best attempts to have a place for everything and keep everything in its place, it hasn’t exactly worked out that way. Some of the items we accumulated during our stay didn’t have a home but now need one…a couple of small fans, a drone, a guitar, and bird feeders to name a few. Finding a safe place for the new guitar is the most important; the other stuff can fit under the seats in the dinette area.  Just the motorcycles and e-bikes have a claim on the garage area.

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   Found random plastic and long rubber items in our yard last night after the wind and rain…didn’t know who/what they belonged to or what they were. Extended the awning today so it could dry and discovered that they belonged to us and were a part of our awning. Blew off in the big wind. The all-purpose Shoe Goo to the rescue to get them back in place!

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   Last night Kim made an inventory of the snakes we encountered this year. We saw many snakes, but most were flattened onto the pavement beyond recognition. The four that weren’t flattened are:

Long-nosed snake…dead… not a rattlesnake…non-venomous

Gopher snake…dead…not a rattlesnake…non-venomous

Diamondback…dead…venomous rattlesnake…cut off the rattle

Sidewinder…very much alive…venomous rattlesnake…left the rattle attached 🙃

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    This is the listing of the animals seen on our cell cameras out on Nutt Rd: roadrunner, jackrabbit, pack rat, bobcat, coyote, javelina.  All were seen more than once.  In fact, roadrunners were seen so frequently that Kim said it should be called Roadrunner Alley.

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   Because it’s been so hot, I’ve given up walking beyond the campsite during the day. If I leave the campsite, it’s in the truck or on the e-bike. Need to do laundry? Throw it in a garbage bag, figure out how to hold it while riding a bike and pedal up to the clubhouse. Need to check on the laundry? Jump on the bike. Need to mail some pictures to the grandkiddos? Ride the bike to the mailbox. Need to get the garbage to the dumpster? Grab the garbage bag, ride over to the dumpster and give the bag the ol’ heave ho. Want to get a recording of the Happy Birthday rooster? Ride the bike over to the neighborhood. Want to take a dip in the newly refurbished, newly re-opened pool? Grab a towel and ride there. Need to go up to the clubhouse and eat a birthday cupcake? Jump on the bike.

   Not only is riding the bike faster, but as the air moves over me, it cools me down somewhat. Cannot walk fast enough to get that kind of cooling action.

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   I thought for sure the hot weather would make the wildflowers pop, but not this year. Not even the purple flowers that typically grow along Park Link Rd. and the frontage road made an appearance. However, the bushes have flowered, trees have leafed out and blossomed, and the crops in the fields have sprouted and are noticeably growing.

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   Here I am, another year older and feeling no different than I did yesterday. Well, maybe my head feels a bit stuffier because of the pollen in the air but otherwise, no different. Shared some cake with Felicia, Jaden, Joe and Micki at the clubhouse. Sat around and talked until the telephone rang and Felicia had to go back to work. Let year #67 begin!