Beach Days

Dear friends and family,

I realize I just wrote a few days ago, but didn't want to wait so long and decided to get back on schedule with the Monday update.

Well we did the dirty deed to signing up with Comcast Internet; not a preferred company of ours, but it was a necessary evil. Since we will be stable for a while, we decided it would be more beneficial to me and my work and us on a personal level to have a solid unlimited service. It was a good move, as we can see a change in our service already and also when we plugged our new digital TV into the cable outlet, we got more than 200 channels. We're told that the newer TVs will use the Comcast service as an antenna. Many of the channels are duplicated, so we don't really get 200, but still it's nice. Jimi says "the good news is we have The Discovery channel now. The bad news is we have The Discovery channel now." Lol

We had another real treat when we learned that my nephew, Jason, his wife, Angie, and their daughter, Amaya, were in the area. They are a tag team over the road truck drivers. The dropped a load early Friday morning in Lakeland, Florida, then picked up a load Friday afternoon in Bradenton, Florida. They were out of driving hours and had to sit until 11pm. Bradenton is about an hour North of us, so with out hesitation, we met them and had a really nice seafood dinner. It was quite the treat for them too, because they normally can't leave their truck to eat at nice places. They usually eat truck stop food and fast food. Anyhow, we were so happy to see them and hope they get more loads this way.

The weekend was really nice. We were very concerned about how to get rid of the unrepairable dingy sitting in our back yard. We first set it in our front yard with a large 'FREE' sign on it. Several people stopped to look it over, but no one left with it. When we got home that evening Jimi posted it on Craigslist and a few hours later someone showed up to take it. Such a relief.

We spent both Saturday and Sunday at the beaches. Saturday we went to Boca Grande, also very close to our house. Jimi read that there is a reef about 100 yards straight out from the old light house often explored by snorkelers and divers. I stayed on shore to read, while he made an attempt to do some exploring. But the speed and fishing boats kept coming through his path. It was a little worry some for both of us. He did some diving anyhow, but then came back in. We spent the next few hours searching for shells on the bottom of the ocean. We found some good ones, which we kept and a lot of live ones, which we left. Jimi found an underwater field of live sand dollars, but we never found any dead ones. We befriended a young kid probably 10 years old or so; well, he actually befriended us. His family is here on vacation from Texas and we really enjoyed the company, as we all three dove underwater with our snorkel goggles on. We had fun. The water wasn't real clear due to a storm that had come through the night before. It stirred things up and left little to no visibility. By the end of the day, I was wiped.

Sunday we went to the Venice Beach to check our another spot known for snorkeling and finding sharks teeth among the reef. We both swam and swam about 200 yards out, but just could not find the reef. So we reverted to diving in 5 to 6 foot waters looking for shells. We found an array of beautifully intact, yet vacant, conch shells (smaller ones). Of course there was no shortage of live shells either, so disappointing to have to throw them back. Again, Jimi spotted massive fields of live sand dollars. It freaked me out when he came up with a large crab - the body alone must have been six or seven inches in diameter. He finally convinced me to come look it at, it was fully intact, but dead. All I kept thinking was if I had stepped on that underwater, I would have flipped out. I'm already leery of walking on the sea floor when I can't see the bottom. So, even if I can touch, I usually swim. Stepping on a crab would not have been good. Anyhow, we had two great days at the beach and in the sun.

It looks like at a minimum we need about three inches of water in lake Okeechobee. Jimi checks the stats everyday.

That's all the news as I have it. We had requests to add two more people to the email lists - it's really growing. Hope everyone out there is doing well.

Love Everybody,

Lorie & Jimi

Settled

Dear Friends and Family,

Jimi and I are settled in our new place and really couldn't be happier with our find. This house is more than we ever expected or had planned on. We thought we would be renting a one room place with practically no living space, but instead we are living lavishly.

I'll try to give you some description. The living room isn't real big, but it's perfect for our two couches, coffee table and TV; very homey inviting and comfortable. The master bedroom is large and came with a king size bed, a dresser, which we share, two night stands and two lamps. We have a master bathroom and a large walk in closet, which is offering a lot of storage for our extras. Jimi set up his desk in the second bedroom along with all the things we hauled off the boat - aka - boat stuff. This bedroom also has a bathroom attached to it. There's a small eating area between the living room and sliding door to the back yard and next to the eating area is the kitchen, It's a walk through rectangle shape, but quite spacious.

I've set up my office and scrap booking area on the other side of the kitchen in the breakfast nook area, which has large windows overlooking the back yard oasis. Beyond, is the laundry room and then a door leading to the garage. Outside the sliding doors is a large lanai, but the backyard - oh my - the back yard is amazing. It is huge, filled with beautiful tropical plants. a clump of palm trees, at least two different species of pine trees, several shade trees, a small field of aloe vera plants, big and beautiful cactus plants (one being

taller than the house), blooming bushes, an enormous bricked patio area, vines growing across the lines, Spanish moss hanging from the trees, and so so much more.

There's even a fire pit. Jimi and I wasted no time working in the back yard doing little things here and there. We absolutely love it and kind of feel guilty for living so well. However, the price is barely more than we were paying in Cape Coral and the lawn service is included in the rental price, which means we don't have to buy a lawn mower and Jimi doesn't have to worry about mowing, ever. We also have a washer and dryer, which means we don't have to spend $12 every week at the laundry mat. Ya - we got a pretty good deal here. Between the house in Cape Coral and this one, we have spent less than $50 to furnish the entire house.

I've come accustomed to sitting at my desk watching the wildlife in our back yard. We see a beautiful cardinal come by with his mate quite often. They explore the yard looking for goodies. The squirrels run and play across the high wires, through the trees, and around the yard. They are small here, unlike the ones back in Colorado. Of course we have lots of geckos running around. We love to watch those guys.One morning Jimi was at the grill when I noticed a bunny rabbit hopping through the yard. I quietly went outside to tell Jimi hoping not to scare it away. It saw us, but didn't really seem to mind. It stayed for a bit and then slowly went about it's business. We also have two or three more species of birds in our backyard paradise. We had a stick bug for several days. I wanted to keep it as a pet, but Jimi moved it. It came back for a short visit, but then left again. And we have a family of wolf spiders living in the ceiling of our lanai. They are harmless and typically only come out at night. We like them because they eat the bugs we do not like.

Jimi says I'll never get any work done with my office where it is. I'd like to set up a bird bath outside my window.

The second day in our new house the refrigerator went out, but the property management company sent someone over asap to fix it; however, it was beyond fixing and we got a new refurbished one.

We spent one evening driving up Manasota Key checking out a couple of beaches there. The Gulf of Mexico is so beautiful. We absolutely love it. We spent a few hours at the beach on Saturday.That evening we checked out a little place by our house to play pool. We played five games and then returned home.

We had planned to go snorkeling on Sunday, but I felt as though I was getting a head cold, so we stayed home.I felt a bit of pressure in my head for a few days, but I'm back to normal now.

Jimi went to visit the Sanibel (our sail boat) on Friday. He took some items we will need for our river trip and brought the dinghy back to work on. I've included a picture of our dinghy. This will be our mode of transportation to land when we are anchored off shore.

The Okeechobee Lake is slowly going up. But still we just wait and find things to keep us busy.

That's all for now.

Love Everybody,

Lorie & Jimi

BTW - We have realized that the dingy is beyond repair. It will not be our mode of transportation or save any lives and we will have to purchase a new one. Lol - had you worried for a minute there, didn't I? We will also be purchasing a dedicated life raft.

Still not enough water

Dear Friends and Family,

We signed the lease on our new house this past week and we will begin moving this morning. We stayed home over the weekend to pack and kind of get things somewhat ready to go.

.

I covered my little wooden jewelry box in sea shells collected from Sanibel Island. There may be room for improvement, but I an super happy with the outcome considering my amateur status on the subject. I've attached a picture for you.

.

The water in the Okeechobee lake is not rising very quickly at all. In fact, the last few days it has gone down, and we need nearly a foot to make it through safely. We are really hoping for a tropical depression, so we can move the boat by the end of August. Keep your fingers and toes crossed.

.

We are super excited about friends and family making plans to come out in November. Thanks to all - it really means a lot!

.

That will do it for this week. There wasn't much going on.

.

Love Everybody,

Lorie & Jimi

Great News

Dear Friends and Family,

Good news - we found a house! It is in Englewood, FL. A two bedroom, two bath, with a garage, all kitchen appliances, an enormous fenced back yard with a lanai. It also has a washer and dryer, which means no more going to the laundry mat. The house is in a small rural subdivision and the neighborhood seems real quite. The house also has a lot of household furniture/patio furniture the owner doesn't want and we are welcome to use or get rid of. For just slightly more than what we are paying here, we will be just 7 miles NW of the boat dry dock and 7 miles NE of the beach. We are real excited. Hopefully this proves to truly be a blessing in disguise. We begin moving next week.

We had a real nice surprise on Thursday. Jimi's nephew, Robert and his wife, Michelle, were in town from Chicago, IL. They came by and spent the day with us. We went to Sanibel Island to play in the water and lay on the beach. What an amazing day when Jimi and Robert were swimming with a Manatee (Sea Cow). They got out of the water and called us girls over, then it swam right along shores edge as we walked the beach with it. Really really neat. I didn't have my camera with me, so I wasn't able to get any pictures. We also hit a sea shell gold mine. We found dozens upon dozens of Cockie shells in tact but abandoned. Jimi and Robert dove down to retrieve them, while I collected them from above. I will clean them up and make some craft project out of them. We also found many that were still occupied, but of course we threw them back. It was so nice to have family visit us.

Sunday when we went to Key Largo to snorkel. Wow, it was so great. Unbelievable to think we were swimming just inches away from dozens of species of fish. As long as we minded our own business, they were totally fine with our presence. Jimi and I (mostly Jimi) took bunches of underwater pictures with my camera. The water was so clear, the fish, coral, and plant life were so bright - we were in awe. We could see at least 15 feet to the bottom. For those who come out for our wedding, we are thinking of planning a snorkel trip on Sunday, but those details will come later.

Before I close, I have to tell you a cute story. While snorkeling, one of the Conch shells on the bottom of the ocean was upside down. Jimi went down to take pictures of it, but there was a little fish about 3 inches in size who was not having any of it. We suspect he made a home out of the Conch shell. He was trying everything he could to chase Jimi off. He would  lunge at the camera; at one point even bumping into to or biting at it. Jimi captured another picture of the little guy chasing away another smaller fish. It was quite cute; however, note to self - do not try to laugh under water, as it breaks the seal of one's snorkel gear. Lol. After getting a few pictures, we left the little fella to explore more sea life.

Love Everybody,

Lorie & Jimi

Moving again......

Dear Friends and Family,

If nothing else, you can almost always count on something happening to or with us. Lol. Our news this week is we are on the fast track to move - unexpectedly, of course. We rented this place with a six month lease; however, we received a letter in the mail last week from the Lee County Court house informing us this house has been foreclosed on and will be sold in a public auction to the highest bidder on August 3rd; we have to vacate the premises. We are currently looking for something to lease beginning August 1st. We're not stressing over it. We'll just move and be done with it. I'll keep you posted.

Nothing else happened through the week. Jimi was able to get the boat completely ready for the river trip, so now we just wait for the water to rise. Currently it's just under 4 feet and we need 4 1/2, but would prefer 5. He continues to go through the mass amount of things we removed from the boat. I just work and find myself getting a bit of cabin fever. It's temporary and I'll get through it.

Sunday we ventured over to Englewood to look at the dry dock area, and while there we met with a wedding officiant and spent a few hours on the beach. Again it was amazing. The dolphins were never ending. We watch them swim by and some into the swimming area consistently. Even the pelicans hung out with ease.The shells are plentiful and I gathered another bag full.

I'm sorry, but I do not have any pictures for you this week.

Love everybody,

Lorie & Jimi

309 Square Feet and endless yard space

Dear Friends and Family,

We've had a full non-stop week.

I already told you about seeing Heidi Newfield in concert on July 4th. Wednesday, we were given tickets (by our friend Joan) to the Broadway Musical "Annie". We weren't expecting much, but it turned out to be an exceptional performance. A nice evening out and well worth it.

Thursday morning was the big day to close on our sail boat. We left home at 7am and arrived back home around 8pm. It was a long day. We met with the broker to close the sale and picked up the sails from the repair shop. The sails have been sitting at the repair shop for five years. The previous owner had them repaired and paid for them, but never picked them up. We then went to the boat to assess what we had. It was so full of junk and disorganized, we could hardly move around inside and certainly couldn't figure out what was what. We spent hours moving things around, peeking inside all the cubby and storage holes, etc. Right around suppertime, we decided to call it a day and head home. We loaded as much as we could fit in the bed of the truck.

We went back to the marina (3 hours away) on Saturday with the plan to completely unload the boat. We took the pickup and the trailer. It went well; however, it was a long hard hard day. We barely got everything to fit, but we did it and now our house is amazingly full of more stuff, stuff, and stuff. In fact we hauled more stuff out of that boat than we brought to Florida - absolutely amazing. Now we'll have to go through it to see what's what. We've agreed to ship some things to the previous owner, who lives in Oregon. Some things are no longer any good and will be thrown out, and some things will go back on the boat after it's moved and cleaned up.

Now, let me describe the vessel to you a little.

It is 39 feet long. It has a center cockpit with two companionways (doors going inside). One going into the aft berth (back bedroom) and the other going in the the saloon and galley (dining room and kitchen). We have a full forward berth (front bedroom) with a six drawer dresser, a nice large wet locker, a little sink, and it's own head (toilet). The galley has a cute little sink, and gimbal stove, a cooler, and lots of storage. The saloon looks like it would seat about six comfortably and also folds down to make a full size berth. Through the hallway is a navigation station, a closet and a workbench. A huge engine room and work area is located under the cockpit. The aft berth has a nice large closet, a six drawer dresser, a little sink, and a head with a shower. Throughout the boat there is storage in every little nook and cranny. The boat has a lot more room than we were ever imagined. I've attached some pictures, but please keep in mind the boat is messy.

Our next step is to now wait for the water to rise. Some places in the lake are only 3 1/2 feet deep, and we have a 4 1/2 foot draft. As soon as we are able, we'll motor it to Port Charlotte. More details on this later. For now we wait, but while we're waiting we have plenty of "stuff" to do. Lol

Love everybody,

Lorie & Jimi

Celebrate Freedom!!

Dear Friends and Family,

Jimi and I are in awe that we haven't even been here a month yet and we are settled in place to live and have found a boat. The seller accepted our purchase offer - UNBELIEVABLE! We signed the paperwork and wired the deposit the beginning of last week, and then wired the balance by the end of last week. Now we wait for the closing, which is scheduled for this coming week. I'll be sure to send pictures on the next update.

We spent Sunday at the beach on Sanibel Island, currently our favorite place. We bought the whole beach setup: a big beach umbrella, two beach chairs, brought our cooler and big beach bag. It was great and we fit right in now. I felt the water was much colder, but Jimi thinks I'm crazy - Haha.

We watched a few movies throughout the week and managed to find a few programs on TV to get in to, considering we only get five channels on the antenna.

We continue to deal with "the house". Jimi woke up at 1am one morning last week to the sounds of gushing water. A pipe/hose burst under the kitchen sink resulting in an inch of water covering the living room and kitchen floors. He turned the water off, put jack stands under the couches, removed anything else from the floor and scooped up the standing water with a dust pan. He spent about an hour and a half cleaning up the mess. I do not understand how, but I slept through the entire thing. Lol.

We had a special treat last Tuesday when our friend and co-worker, Paul Fisher, stopped by to visit us while in the area. We went out to dinner at a great little place on that canal called The Joint. It was really neat to see someone from home. :-)

Jimi and I had a pretty special 4th! We joined thousands of Cape Coral residents for a Heidi Newfield concert, compliments of the city of Cape Coral; we got front row spots. I was great. Heidi opened singing Johnny Cash's 'Ring of Fire' and ended by singing our 'love' song' Johnny and June'. After the concert we watched the fireworks and then drove home with the windows down, radio blasting and singing at the top of our lungs. It was a great evening.

We are excited for the week to come - so stay tuned.

A VERY CELEBRATORY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO ALL!!

Love everyone,

Lorie & Jimi