Sunday Jan 4-15
So it is Sunday morning, the day is turning out to be another gorgeous day that will tip the mercury towards almost 30 C. (My kind of weather J)
The sun is shining and it is already getting steamy at 9 am. (However I am told that our scorching days are at least 10 degrees above seasonal and we will be getting a cold front that will drop us down to 20C, Brrrr)
My butt recovered for our New Years day bicycle ride and now I was itching to get back to a nice padded seat with an engine to propel me. Now the dilemma begins, where the hell to go!
We have pretty much toured as much as we could within the vicinity of where we live, be it a short jaunt around the area or planning a full day trip. We have been to many of the surrounding Islands, like Sanibel, Captiva, Pine Island and even further north out to Casey Key. We have driven through Naples, Bonita Springs and over to Cape Coral and have enjoyed going to the Seafood Festival in the Everglades. (All of which I wrote about in previous posts) We always make a cruise through Fort Myers Beach, but never on a weekend, especially a hot one to boot.
[There are still some places that we have yet to go, but these will require some over night stays, such as Daytona, Miami and for sure Key West. One day, but for now that will have to wait – I just can’t find a babysitter, for my cats J]
Say it isn’t so! Have we run out of new places to see around here? It is one thing to cruise around on your motorbike, (anytime on a bike is a good time) but sometimes you also need a destination to go to, just to keep it interesting.
Apparently my ‘other half’ has run out of ideas, and it has become my job to figure out where we should ride. (Déjà vu, I had this job last year…) So I started looking on Google Map to see if there was somewhere we could go that we have not been to, but I have to admit, there really isn’t that many places if you just want to take off for a couple of hours. So I settled on heading up 29 to 832 that will bring us through the Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest and then make our way back. (We apparently have been through there, but I can’t remember, besides it is somewhere to go at least…)
So we head out, then before we get to 82 it pops in my head that Harley Davidson Six Bends should have something going on today, its Sunday. I have no idea what is going on, but their website said every Sunday. At the next stop sign I catch up to my ‘other half’ (yes, even on our motorbikes he is faster than me) and tell him what I remembered and suggested we go there instead.
To our surprise we get to Harley Six Bends and the place is packed full of people. As we pull in we realize that there is a Car Show with all kinds of unique and vintage cars. (Sometimes my brain eventually works, slowly, but it works...for now…)
Fast Cars....
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| Hungry? BBQ Express |
"Sharky" – looks mean…
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| Stop staring at me lol |
My favourite had to be the Froggy – (reminded me of my mom, and her frog collection)
It had to be the hottest day since we have gotten here. Believe it or not, I was actually sweating! No wonder, walking around in motorcycle boots with jeans isn’t really the right kind of clothing for 30C weather. We went into the store just to cool down a bit, which was the first time I was glad to walk into air conditioning, didn’t even need my sweater!
As soon as we got home I stripped off my clothes (of course I put on a swim suit <wink>) and jumped into the pool.
And then the legendary “Garage Beer” followed - or in my case a cocktail - followed
[It has been a custom of ours after a bike ride, we pour a drink and then sit in the garage and admire our bikes - must be a biker thing <grin> ] J
New Years Eve
New Years eve consisted of a delivered pizza from our favourite place, Pappa Johns – (It is so cool ordering it online, almost like a video game watching the ingredients you pick fall on your pizza – I know, small things amuse small minds lol – But in my defense, there is nothing like this back home, at least not in the area we live in, let alone having the luxury of delivery!) We didn’t even watch any New Years TV specials this year, instead we watched some show called “Untold stories of the ER”… yeah, I thought that was an odd choice too… <shrug>
At 10 pm we popped our pink champagne, wished each other a Happy New Year with a kiss and dropped into bed asleep well before midnight…(emphases on sleep) I faintly heard the traditional fireworks at midnight. Instead of a Bang, my New Year slipped quietly in through the night and I awoke in 2015. At least I didn’t have a hang over….
Every new year it is custom to make a ‘New Years Resolution’ and every year I had always started out with good intentions but when it came to actually committing to them I found most of the one’s I had made usually either never came to see the light of day or they fizzled out a few months into the year. So as not to disappoint myself ever again about 20 years ago I had made a New Year’s resolution: ‘Not to make another resolution ever again’ And to my surprise this was the first and I guess the last resolution that I actually followed through on!
New Years Day
My 'other half' decided that he wanted to try to start the New Year healthier and get exercising, (Sounds like a New Years resolution to me) So New Years Day we traded in our motor for pedal power. I know it is hard for me to believe too.
Yes, we actually have bicycles! We figured we would ride our bicycles more in Florida than back home, so six years later we finally dusted off the cobwebs and pumped up the tires. I had bought mine going on at least eight years ago, hell it could be longer… to show you how often I road the damn thing there are still those spiky little rubber things on the tires! My 'other half' bought his maybe about six years ago and rode it around the block and then it sat in our garage snuggled up next to mine until we brought them to Florida to hang together in the garage here.
There was a time when I used to ride a bicycle as my basic mode of transportation; actually it was well into my twenties before I could afford a car. Later in life I purchased a bicycle for exercise, (funny how that is – a car replaces a bicycle which then becomes a form of exercise instead of transportation) anyway when it came to the biggest reason why mine spent most of its time neglected hanging in the garage I would have to say because of my BUTT! It just plain HURTS when I ride a bicycle.
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| Now that is a SEAT! |
Maybe I just don’t have the right kind of bicycle; maybe I should have bought a bicycle that could accommodate my Bony Butt with a cushioned seat.
At the time when I bought it, it never occurred to me that I should have been thinking of comfort over style… perhaps it wasn’t an issue back then…however now, it definitely is!
I have to say that this is the one time I am thankful that Florida is flat. I don’t think I would of never made it if I had to pump up any hills my first time out. Who am I kidding; I probably won’t ever be able to make it up any hills.
I also only have one speed when I do anything that requires physical exertion, S-L-O-W. So it was no surprise when my ‘other half’ was blocks ahead of me on our ride. (For the record, he has longer legs than me) Every so often he stopped and waited for me to catch up. He later admitted to me that he was not upset because it gave his butt a rest! So it’s not just me, HA!
I was starting to feel pretty good riding my bicycle again - except for the numbness and pain that was radiating through my butt cheeks that is – I thought I was keeping a steady leisurely pace (leisurely for me) when I passed a house with a man coming out of his garage and he yelled to me “Faster, faster!” as I ambled on by I yelled back “This is as good as it gets” and I heard him give a hefty laugh.
Not a bad start to the New Year, however I have not been back on my bicycle since. I blame it on the seat. - After all, it wasn’t "my" New Years resolution anyway; I was just along for the ride!
(Don’t worry; I won’t be selling my motorized version anytime soon J)
