Happy New Year (2013)!

Welcome to the new year everyone - I hope you all had a great night. It seems Michael picked up a bug from our travels, so ours was a mix. Early in the evening, not sure if we'd make it to midnight and knowing we couldn't be several places at once, we walked around to all four of the venues we knew would be dropping something to get an idea of what was to come.

Sloppy Joe's was dropping a conch shell.

Sunset Pier was dropping a lime wedge into a margarita glass.





Schooner Wharf was dropping a live pirate wench from a mast. When we were there they were still testing out the lines, but someone posted this photo of a cheerful Evalena so thanks for that (here's a video of the drop itself).



Finally, Bourbon St. Pub was dropping a live drag queen, Sushi, via a red shoe. This was the one we wanted to watch, but when we saw CNN out there we knew that, worst case, we'd be able to watch it from home.

We're Back for the Wiener Parade

We're back and just in time for another parade, but I'm getting ahead of myself. We didn't do too much while in VA, but we we weren't planning to. We did see The Hobbit in 3D, which was pretty good, but would have been better if the air conditioning hadn't been on in the theater. Really? It was in the 30s outside - when exactly do you think management thinks heat is appropriate? Even my mom was cold and that's saying something. We all huddled together for warmth, enjoyed our popcorn, and were happy to then get back in the car and turn the heater on.

Jack learned a new trick while we were away - opening both the cabinet door and drawer. Impressive - now let's hope he doesn't start doing this at home.

I Can't Help Myself!

Ok, so I know I said no more lights, but that was in Key West. These are from Virginia. Who doesn't like lights?! NYC, Vegas, Christmas...My mom pointed out that I really liked my Lite-Brite toy when I was a kid (and they're really cool now!), so I guess I was born with this fascination. The Norfolk Botanical Gardens put on a Christmas light display that you could drive through and we decided to check it out. In Arizona, we went to the lights in Sedona (Red Rock Fantasy) twice and while we loved them, it was freezing. Literally. They sold hot chocolate to try to warm you up, but brrrrr!  We tried the lights in the Phoenix Zoo one year too, but again you had to walk through it and it was pretty cold. Now this was the way to see some Christmas lights (although you end up with brake lights in all your photos). Rain and clouds the fun way, and you can even see the (real) full moon peaking at us from the top left-hand corner (below).

The Day After

So how did Santa do? When it comes to gift giving, we have a tough time in our household because none of us really want to accumulate any more stuff. My mom travels a lot (or we do) and buys things to represent those travels. Plus, when she wants things, she buys them. For our part, we're not sure how long we'll stay in the U.S. and don't really want to have a bunch of stuff to bring with us or sell. So what to get each other? We haven't been in the States in a long time for the holidays, so really the gift was that we were all together, but you still need something to unwrap! The Mom suggested a Key West sweatshirt. That seemed simple enough until we started looking for one. Key West stores need to work on their sweatshirt offerings. There were plenty of cheap ones, but none of the quality we'd want to give someone for Christmas. We weren't having much luck in t-shirts either - too kitschy, cheaply made, or perverted. Hmm....We were recently turned on to Tervis and had just bought ourselves a couple of cups in a store dedicated to the product. I decided to go back and get her a mug. Then I lucked out in a store, Bon Voyage, that was always closed when I'd walked by it in the past. They had really nice quality and tasteful t-shirts, so I took one to the counter with much relief. You'll recall Zura helped me wrap the gifts, and everything was a hit. Beads too.

Road Trip!

Hey - let's get in a tiny rental car with 2 cats and drive 18 hours north!  Wanna come? Yeah, the kitties didn't either. Actually Jack was fine, as usual (he's had many vet trips).

Zura, who's only been in a car a couple of times, was less nonchalante about it. We were serenaded for about an hour before she found a spot on the dashboard or rear hatch for the next umpteen hours.

First Day of Winter

So today is the first day of winter. Right on schedule, refreshing winds picked up (some might say cold and I wonder who that someone would be). Oopsie!

Pic from Casa Marina Facebook Page

I guess that means I should post our yearly Christmas e-card. Not quite my best work, but you get the idea. We need to take more photos where we're both in the picture...

Safe travels everyone!

More Lights!

Are you sick of Christmas lights yet? I guess this will be it. I promised you bike lights, and you're going to get a few.  Most of the pictures came out like this.



But here are a few that didn't.







If you want more, Mile Zero Key West has some.

Here are a few house pics too. I like the tiny homes. One of the houses is so bright I have yet to get a decent picture of it. It's like staring at a space ship.