Steve's grilled Romaine, a manatee pays a visit and Maggie takes a cruise!

Forgive me!  I have been lazy.  Here's what's been happening. Yesterday Ted and Lucy took off for John Pennekamp National Park (www.pennekamppark.com) where they had a fabulous experience on the glass bottom boat tour. The tour guide said it was the best viewing day this year! All this happened while Bud dug into his novel and I got some writing done for my favorite paper, the Concord Monitor (www.concordmonitor.com)

We re-grouped here for supper where the guys grilled up some fabulous steaks and Steve whipped up his incredible grilled Romaine lettuce.  It goes like this: cut a head of Romaine lettuce in half lengthwise, then toss it on the grill curved side first, for a moment or 30, depending on your grill.  The grill here is new (and wonderfully hot) so he just did 15-20 seconds each side.  You don't want to wilt the lettuce, just get grill marks and a bit of heat on each side. Serve it  flat side up, with various garnishes/dressings.  Like freshly grated parmesan, halved grape tomatoes, chopped bacon, Ceasar dressing...whatever. Steve may not have been the first to concoct this, but we are now total converts...even "iceberg lettuce Bud". Yum!

Today is Ted and Lucy's last day (boo hoo!) and Steve offered a mini-cruise on the Happy Ours. As we assembled on the dock, several people were all a-flutter with cameras at the stern and there was a huge manatee!  He (she?) was nudging the boat, perhaps looking for food--but definitely interacting with Noreen and Lucy.

I jumped on board for a look at the manatee--just what I had been waiting for!

Lucy got this shot of a flipper...or arm?

Noreen got this shot of our manatee taking a breath...cool!

"I can't believe it!" was the mantra as we headed out to sea, Maggie firmly buckled into her life jacket and Bud fretting over the route with poor (and patient) Steve.



So..where are we going???





It was very calm as we navigated through Florida Bay, across a channel and over into what they call "oceanside"--the Atlantic Ocean.  See what I mean?

But when we got out of the channel, the winds and seas came up a bit, making for a slightly uncomfy ride.  We turned around and headed back for the bay, anchored and had some sandwiches and cruised on home.

Maggie seems to be doing better than Bud...anyone surprised out there?





Key West--once upon a time, a dog friendly city!

I know you've heard it. Key West is a laid-back place where dogs are integrated into the outdoor bar and dining scenes--where dogs are so beloved that there's a beach (Dog Beach, of course) just for them and a local park sports palapas and chairs for dog owners who enjoy letting their dogs run free.

Well...not exactly.  Not anymore.

This morning we piled into the car with Maggie and Ted and Lucy for a day-trip to Key West.  It would take about two hours, each way...but no problem--once there we'd let Maggie run at Higgs Dog Park (at the corner of Atlantic and White, www.keywestdogpark.org), then meet Steve and Noreen for lunch at the legendary Louie's Backyard (www.louiesbackyard.com), right next to Dog Beach.

Higgs Dog Park was indeed a hit. It's immense, shaded, has easy parking and lots of fresh water. Maggie tooled right on in and made pals with a female mixed-breed right about her age.


Making friends at Higgs Dog Park






















How fun is this??

Heading for the water bowls--enough is enough!





The walk to Louie's Backyard was steamy and in spite of the tons of cold fresh water Maggie had slurped up, she was hot and we were looking forward to settling down under and umbrella with our friends around the table and Maggie at our feet.  But it wasn't to be.  It seems as though there was some "dog incident" litigation that changed doglife in Key West as of last spring.  Apparently a patron tripped over another patron's dog at a local restaurant. Injuries, suffering and lawyers ensued and a judgement was handed down that (interestingly, I think) held the injured party (a woman from Massachusetts) and the restuarant owner equally responsible. The restaurant owners were assessed $18,000. Read more about it here:

Dog incident changes dog-friendly Key West

Now restaurant owners have retreated from their dog-friendly positions in most establishments in the city. At Louie's Backyard we could only be actually at the bar with Maggie--not on the immediately adjacent shaded patio, inspite of the fact that there was not a soul at any of the shaded tables. Ultimately, we stayed and had lunch (the alternative was a treck in the heat to the apparently more dog-friendly Salsa Loca--but Maggie was already overheated). We gave Maggie lots of ice water and concocted some shade.

Maggie's bit of shade at the Afterdeck.

After lots of ice tea and some light lunch (it was HOT!) we gave up on an afternoon of shopping and decided to just do a photo shoot at the famous "southernmost point of land" marker.  Luckily, it was right around the corner.




We made it!



Thunder-boomers and Butterfly Gardens

If you saw my post and photo of the black "warning clouds" yesterday...the warning was accurate.  The weather deteriorated throughout the day--incredible downpours, winds, chilly air. By suppertime we could see lightening out over Florida Bay and could hear thunder in the distance.  A quick check on the computer showed not only a massive line of thunderstorms, but the ultimate weather thrill--tornado warnings!

All 10 of us here for supper (a mini dinner party for new friends and old) gathered on the protected upper deck to watch the show. It was dramatic at points (several of us tried in vain to catch that perfect lightening shot) and loud, but actually the heaviest weather skirted to the north and...no tornado.

This morning we woke to very light breezes and warm sun--nice for a bit of a drive to check out some restaurants and do an errand.  We decided to take the "back" road up through Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge, one of four national refuges here in the Keys. It was established in 1980 to try and preserve crucial habitat for the endangered American crocodile. We were hoping for a viewing area, but because the refuge is small and and the habitat is so sensitive to human interference, it's closed to the public--though you do see "crocodile crossing" signs here and there.

But right next to the refuge headquarters is a wonderful, beautifully maintained butterfly garden.


The Butterfly Garden is just off the driveway to the Crocodile Lake National Wildlife refuge (FL Road 905 in Key Largo).

There's a comfy bench, some nifty sculpture and a water feature. Peaceful!

But by noontime our novels were calling and we headed back to the house and dock on Florida Bay.  Time to read and rest up for tomorrow's trip to Key West.

Drowning our sorrows!

Well...looks like we'll get a dark and stormy day.  Forecast is now saying 80% chance of rain, possible strong thunderstorms.  Entirely fitting, we feel, after the Pats humiliating loss to the Jets last night.


We can't complain, though (at least about the weather)--this is our first bad day.  Bud is hoping for some weather excitement--true thunder boomers! We'll see.


Meantime, for any new followers, I did a regular column for the Sunday Concord Monitor back home yesterday.  The subject is how to look at booking a longer-term rental (like a month or more) though VRBO.com or homeaway.com. You can read it here


Pay attention to details when renting long term


No pix today...we are restoring our moods.

Maggie takes a canoe ride...and go Pats!

While the Ted and Bud relaxed and got ready to watch the mid-day Chicago-Seattle playoff game, Lucy and I took Maggie for a quick canoe ride. She looks calm, but actually preferred romping on our little beach with Bud.

Maggie looks quite at home in the canoe!



We're all heading for naps now in prep for the Pats-Jets game at 4:30.  We've got the best table in the house reserved for the game at Hog Heaven. Great fun for the ten of us--me and Bud, Steve and Noreen, Ted and Lucy, Phillipa and Gerry and our new friends (and fellow Patriots fans) Midge and Dennis. Well, 10 people and three dogs--Maggie and her doodle pals Lucy and Roxie.

What can we say....GO PATS!!! I am hoping to post some victory celebration photos later in the day!



A silver water dish for Maggie!

After our morning "dog park", Steve and Noreen got inspired to take their dinghy from the marina over to yet another waterfront restaurant.  They went by sea (bayside) and we went by land and met at "88" a very nicely done spot with beach, restaurant and pier (http://www.marker88.info/). You guesses it, it's right at Mile Marker 88. We had heard that they were dog friendly and sure enough, Maggie's saw two pals from the dog park already enjoying the afternoon sun--a toy poodle named Tigger and a lively pug.

Outdoor pet-friendly dining at 88---nice !






Maggie sips ice water from a silver dish--not bad!










Steve and Noreen head for thier home marina in their trusty dinghy after the best Key Lime Pie in the keys--so far anyway.

And now it's time for a nap before Ted and Lucy arrive.

The Hungry Tarpon (or Pelican?) and Founders Park

Yesterday we started out for a day-trip to Key West...alas, we only got as far as The Hungry Tarpon Restaurant (http://www.hungrytarpon.com/) at Robbie's Marina (http://www.robbies.com/) in Islamorada--not far from where Steve and Noreen have their boat. Aside from the Caribbean-inspired food and cooking classes (sadly filled for this month), the big draw is the tarpon-feeding station out on the dock. It was a bit cold for tarpon drama (the 100-pound fish leaping out of the water to grab chum-like fish dangled by brave souls), but a fellow was trying to lure them up from the warmer depths anyway. The pelicans seemed to know they didn't have much competition and crowed around for leftovers.  Maggie thought this was great fun and had Bud not had her on a short leash, she would have landed in the drink! The pelicans were a hoot--shooing them off the dock only made them try to squeeze through the fencing--but the holes were too small. hence the silly video above.

This morning we met Steve and Noreen at Cafe Cubano (MM 91.8, oceanside) to sample their advertized "Cuban Coffee."  It was truly a treat--steamed milk and fresh-pressed espresso, so sweet you don't need sugar.  We haven't had coffee like that since San Juan.  Breakfast was good--highlighted by their Cuban toast, fresh Cuban bread (not quite a French baguette and not quite crusty Italian--it's own unique style) buttered and grilled. Yum!

We're finding that we're becoming addicted to the Dog Park at Founders Park in Islamorada (Founders Park Website). It's part of a lovely waterfront complex that includes a marina, a beach, tennis, courts, swimming pools and a great jogging/workout circuit (ok...we walk it!).  But the very best thing is the Dog Park--it's very well thought out with a double-gated entrance, a separate yard for small dogs, a kiddie-pool and watering station and several poop-bag/trash stations. There seem to be groups of regulars--early morning, mid-morning (our favorite), afternoon and evening. The owners sit around and chat, welcome newcomers, and trade dog stories as well as tips on the the best dog-friendly places to eat. Maggie runs and jumps with her new pals while we chat in the shade with our new friends--then it's home for a nap.  Not bad!







Midge with her "doodles" (Golden Retriever/Standard Poodle cross), Lucy and Roxie--Maggie's special pals!

Noreen has made friends with Lady, a Springer that looks so much like her late Lucy. Noreen would take Lady home in heartbeat, I think.

The Dog Park is also a great place to connect with "pros" like professional pet nanny Carol Trump (305 664-0539).  Lady is one of Carol's regular charges, and after watching her care-taking style for the past two weeks, she'll be the one we'll call when we need a sitter for Maggie.

Lady clearly loves her nanny, Carol!

Time to think about urgent items like happy hour, supper..getting ready for more friends arriving from the snowy New Hampshire tomorrow. At least the weather has turned warm and sunny for them, poor things!



Wind, wind and more wind!

We have been watching the news on the snow storm hitting New England...CNN is reporting 22" in Concord, NH and Jess just texted that they got almost 2' in Waitsfield, VT.  Wow...we are hoping people will send us pix!

Meantime we've had our own weather situation.  The strong wind that came up yesterday lasted throughout the day and into this morning--the video above is from 8:30 AM this morning. Bud barely rescued the chairs and table from the end of the dock--they were ready to go right in the drink! This gave us a chance to really kick back--cold, windy, no sun.  We found a local movie theatre and took in True Grit (great movie, but a bit of tear-jerker for us animal lovers at the end), then just ordered out pizza and sat in for the evening.

The wind is still here, but the sun has come out.  Wahoo! Perhaps we'll try an expedition to the south in search of trinkets, windy beaches and fun places for lunch.

Crane Point, South Florida Agriculture and a Casino

It's blustery and chilly today (ok...68 or so).  A good day for doing puzzles and hanging out inside.  But Monday and Tuesday were superb--high 70's to low 80's and bright sun! 

Monday we took our excursion to Crane Point...a preseve set up on property owned by the Crane family of Massachusetts after they bought the 64-acre tract in the 1950's. We are wondering if this is the same family of Crane's beach near Ipswich, Mass. It was a lovely walk--a little over a mile to make the loop past the Adderly House and out to the point.

The Adderly House was built in 1903 by a Bahamian who farmed Florida Bay sponges and also preached.  This was before roads. Everything was done by small skiffs and sailboats--even the 50 mile trip to Key west to sell the sponges.

Bud and Maggie explore Crane Point. The preserve also has an injured wild bird infirmary--an interesting outdoor arrangement of large contained areas for pelicans, hawks and other birds recuperating from injuries (mostly a result of contact with with humans).





Next order of the day was...happy hour!  A local woman recommended Sparky's Landing (http://www.sparkyslanding.com/) at Key Colony. It turned out to be great--25c shrimp and wings for happy hour, the best price we have found. And very dog friendly--they brought Maggie her own bowl of ice water!

Yesterday was so calm and foggy--they ended up closing some of the highways just north of us due to limited visibility. This is at the same time highways up way up were closed due to snow and ice--go figure!

We decided to pop Maggie in the car and go north for a ride through Homestead and the farmlands to the east of the Everglades. Turned out to be interesting--mile after mile of farms.  Everything from avacados, mangos and other fruits and veggies to nurseries raising all kinds of landscaping plants.  One nursery had huge 30' palms trees in pots--row after row.  We figure they are headed for Vegas-style resorts somewhere.

Just north of Alligator Alley we happened upon a casino (ok...we were sort of headed there!), the Miccosukee Resort and Gaming Center (http://www.miccosukee.com/). They have a large poker room and several rooms of slots, including a few that do keno--but the keno has extremely bad payouts.  Nothing like Foxwoods or Vegas. Nevertheless, I put $2 in to try it--and hit a $20 payout on the last 50c! Enough to fund our next happy hour.

When we got home the bay was still flat calm.  Perfect for relaxing with a book on the dock or exploring the water's edge.



Maggie browses for something interesting on our beach.




Does it get much more relaxing?



Eating and drinking and drinking and eating!

It's been a whole week since we arrived in Tavernier, and we are very gradually devovling into living life at a slower pace. Morning wake-up has changed from 5:45 AM to, well...whenever!  Mostly 8-9 AM. We have made excursions to the very excellent Key Largo Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center (www.keylargo.org/visitor.) for brochures, maps and general advice.  And after discussion over cocktails and coffee we've developed a list of things we would like to do. Some are very healthy, like today's choice of walking through the Crane Point Hammock Nature Trails (http://www.cranepoint.net/).  Some are less so--like figuring which sports bar offers best food/beer prices and atmosphere for watching the Patriots & Jets playoff game on Sunday.

Happy hour on the Happy Ours!

We had heard that retirements (even faux ones, like ours) often center around food. Where to go for happy hour...where's the best sunset dining...what to cook on the grill...should we forego lunch and have a snazzy dinner? This, I am a bit chagrined to say, is totally 100%  true--at least so far. It is very clear that we will have to structure exercise into our lives and look at our winter months not as "anything goes" vacations, but more of a measured lifestyle.

And so we exercise Maggie, take her to the incredible dog park at Founder's Park in Islamorada and work in brisk walks. Still, conversation at the dog park often revolves around the best dog-friendly restaurants. Over the weeked we ate at the Pilot House up in Key Largo (http://www.pilothousemarina.com/). We were surprised when then hostess led us through the whole retaurant with Maggie in tow and settled us on an enclosed adjoining deck. No one batted an eye and Maggie was the hit of our section! (nary a bark or anything but polite behavior, by the way). The dog park people have recommended the Outback in Marathon for it's oceanfront beach dining (not exactly like the one in Concord, NH!) and a place called the Islamorada Fish Company as well.  Both are on our list and we'll let you know how it turns out.

Maggie checks out the appetizers!

Meantime, we tried happy our on our own dock last night.  Timed properly, we catch a stunning sunset and watch pelicans skimming the water while we (you guessed it) eat and drink!