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Our vacation officially ended at 8:45 p.m. this evening when we arrived chez nous. We made good time along clear roads. Our GPS, which I call Lucy, as in 'Lucy in the Sky with Directions,' gave unclear signals at one juncture which sent me the wrong way. It didn't change the duration of the voyage, but I did feel slightly ill at ease when I had to exit the pokey highway I was on to buy gas. I pulled up to a pump that wasn't working. I looked around and saw that I was in the 'hood. And it was not a pretty 'hood. The fellow manning the station was sheltered in a cubicle bunker of two inch thick bullet-proof glass. I could tell it was bullet proof because ... well, there were clues. The only opening was a credit card sized slot. A teenager in dreadlocks came up to me and asked me to take his money and buy him some liquor. He had forgotten his ID. I suggested he spend his money instead on a memory course. No I didn't. I found a working pump, pumped gas not in a leisurely fashion, and got my warm tires back on the sweet road.

Our travels brought us alongside New York City again. Even from across the Hudson River it is an impressive sight. For much of our trip today we enjoyed a sound track featuring the music of Bach. The man was a genius and in the resurrection I suspect he'll have a good career as a composer ahead of him.

Once we entered New York State we spotted snow again. And of course entering the Adirondack mountains re-introduced us to the material in a decisive way.

I took this photo while Carol was fishing out our winter coats again. Still, it was a good day and we are encouraged by the fact that tomorrow ends Quebec's mandatory period for winter tires on cars. From this we draw whatever seasonal encouragement we can.

For those of you who love verse, and I know that means none of you, here are a few lines that occurred to me while contemplating my Navel Orange in Florida ...

Vacation

A sky that is bright,
And sands that are white,
Some palms within view,
Some pelicans too,
Good book within reach,
Some shells on the beach,
A glittering sea,
Soft breeze upon me
Reclined in a chair
A sun hat to wear,
Sunglasses on face,
Sun lotion in place,
The waves’ plunging splash
The sandpipers’ dash,
A handy cool drink,
Some time just to think,
The joy to have freed
Some time just to read,
And also delight
With time just to write.
Home tasks must await.
Vacation? Vacate!

Thank you for following this little Blog and to all a good night.

Runnemede, New Jersey

The title indicates how far we made it today. Runnemede is only a few miles from a bridge that connects to Philadelphia. If ever you visit Runnemede, be sure to have a meal at Phily 50's Diner. This is no small diner! It's an institution here. We thought we were ordering modest meals but of course we were given plates burdened with food beyond what a sane person would attempt to eat at one sitting. But it was delicious, not at all the bland fare that often appears on a US restaurant table. And the price was also remarkably unambitious.

The following message is intended for Diana ...

Today we also took a short side trip to Australia because Carol acquired a hankering for TimTam cookies ever since she read about them in your newsletter. I was against this at first but finally gave in on the understanding we would stop only at a cookie shop, and not at the Australian equivalent of Winners. So when we got back and resumed our trip northward Carol was the happy owner of a supply of TimTam cookies.

Okay, the above photo is not among my best achievements in photography but, hey, it's late.
- End of Diana's message -

I'll close this entry on a sad note. I learned this morning that my friend for decades, Cy Devouge, has died. Since he was 95 years old it had to be expected, but he was a one-of-a-kind man, strongly devoted to serving Jehovah and speaking to others about him, a courageous person, and a man with a crazy sense of humor. We'll miss him and the spirit he displayed. It will be a happy day the next time we meet and I'll be able to say, "Cy, it is so good to see you again!"

Fayetteville, North Carolina

The first lap of our return trip brought us this far. No photos because I didn't take any. Besides, the rocket lift-off video in yesterday's Blog entry counts for two days.

Progress was slowed twice on the road, first by an accident involving a motorcycle which we passed after a half hour of crawling traffic. By the time we got to the accident scene the bike was being scraped onto a flat bed truck.

The second half hour delay was caused by an accident in traffic going the opposite way. Our slow down was due to all the rubbernecking on our side of the road.

Apart from those sobering incidents the day was good. The weather was outstanding. We found our supply of marmalade and achieved a reasonable distance. Supper at The Cracker Barrel next door was good. Our waiter - a young man named Trevor, with a strong southern accent - gave us excellent and friendly service. And that's all we have to report for Saturday, March 12, 2011.

The Sun Sets on New Smyrna Beach

The entire earth, all its continents, oceans and all that inhabit them, have completely carouseled in space a total of six times since we arrived here. You'd think such vast movement would take a much longer time than it has. So here we are seeing the sun set on New Smyrna Beach for our last time.

A last shot of the beach.

We were up to see the sunrise this morning again and it rose into a cloudless sky which remained thus all day. A two mile morning excursion to Edgewater, to visit a seller of citrus products, did not yield the desired selection of marmalades. They sold only the actual fruit which we find does not tough out the journey home all that well. Will we succeed in getting a marmalade supply before we leave Florida tomorrow? Or will we have to face a year of Provigo-purchased products on our toast? Stay tuned. Tomorrow will tell.

This afternoon was our final opportunity for beach-sitting and reading, and you can believe we took it. The Comedy of Errors has been completed and I recommend it.

Announcing a Blog Contest. Any one who can identify the thing in the photo below will win a free Florida seashell.

A long road awaits us.

P.S.
After writing the above, Carol turned on the 6:30 PM TV news which announced a rocket was about to be launched from Cape Canaveral at 6:38. That being about 45 miles south of us we hurried down to the beach to see it. A sudden bright flash on the horizon identified the spot and we watched the rocket climb until it was out of sight - an interesting conclusion to our week here.

Daytona - Part II

We went back to Daytona today. The skies were overcast, thunderstorms predicted, mistakenly, so we abandoned the beach to go looking for marmalade. We usually bring home a supply. You just can't beat Florida marmalade and they make such a good variety too.

We made for a Farmers' Market/Flea Market which advertised itself as a good source of the desired product, but came away disappointed. I also turned down some freebies offered in the Flea Market section.

Next we went to the manufacturer's store, Davidson's, down in Daytona Beach. It was a very fine store, well-stocked with what we wanted. A sign on the door bore the message, "Bike Week Hours: 9:00 AM - Noon" which we read at 12:30 PM.  I'm not clear on that concept but we are still without our supply.

Our tour of Atlantic Avenue in Daytona Beach was ... um ... interesting. More bikers than a quiet-loving person would care to see in his lifetime. We paused for a short excursion on Daytona Beach which is almost identical to New Smyrna Beach where we're staying, but New Smyrna Beach has fewer and smaller buildings along it.

 A couple of seagulls on guard duty.

 What they were guarding against.

Traffic was slow on the Avenue on the return trip and, for some reason which escapes me, bikers rev their motors frequently while waiting for traffic to move again. It's as though they're afraid the bikes will stall. In slow traffic this contributes the fragrance of exhaust fumes to the ceaseless, throaty, throbbing roar of motorcycle engines. Very many of these bike enthusiasts are older, gray-haired men. In fact I've never seen so many gray ponytails fluttering in exhaust fumes in all my life. If these fellows spent a lifetime in the uproar produced by their machines it explains why I saw some examples of sign-language communication too.

The above is not Atlantic Avenue. I wouldn't dare photograph bikers when they are swarming around me like bees. The above photo was taken on International Speedway Blvd. closer to the I-95.
And that's Thursday's story.

A New Day Dawns

At six fifteen this morning Carol suddenly called out, "Let's go to the beach! Let's watch the sunrise!" Having been sound asleep, I had to let myself down from the chandelier before we could go. We arrived on the beach ten minutes before the sun rose at exactly 6:41 AM.

The photo and video below attest to the event.

As you can tell, it was another magnificent day and we spent the first part of it around the pool, resting and reading. Our tans are becoming professional quality.

In the afternoon, when clouds moved in, we took a walk together through the neighborhood. We stopped at a small shopping area where Carol checked out a store while I sat on a bench with nothing to do but listen to an old hippie tell the story of his life to a woman he began conversing with in an outside café. I didn't mean to eavesdrop but the fellow spoke so loud it was hard to ignore, and I'm a man whose hearing isn't particularly good.

So now I, and a few other bench sitters, know all about his life and hard times, his two divorces, the fact he has no fixed address, how he stayed for two months with his brother in South Carolina who then kicked him out. But since things are not working out for him here in Florida he's planning to re-visit his brother again.

I could tell you more but this is not the time or the place to discuss these things.

Carol and I came back from our walk with me carrying a beautiful peach pie. By the way, there is an Eddie Street here and a Carol Street too. Unfortunately, these two streets have never met so there's no hanging out at the corner of Eddie and Carol.

I like the pelicans here. They fly in formation and never land on the beach, only far out in the water. I snapped these guys this morning returning from our sunrise adventure.

We're hearing of storms and reports of storms on the home front which make us wonder what we'll be facing when we come back. Two more days till departure but one thing for sure, we will not be tackling any storms head on.

Back to Normal

The weather found the pedals again and today we enjoyed a beautiful, warm, sunny day which officially began at 6:42 AM as the sun peeped over the Atlantic horizon. As the photo below shows, I was up and snapping. You can tell from the height that I was on our balcony. I have no idea who the lone soul is down there, but doesn't he add a nice touch to the general atmosphere?

It surprised me how swiftly the sun seemed to rise compared to it's setting, of which I've seen far more examples.

By the way, another interesting feature of our balcony is that once in a while a flock of pelicans will fly by very close to us. It's really quite an impressive spectacle. These are birds of substantial presence.

Later we took a stroll along the beach, opposite direction from last time. Carol tested the temperature of the water and pronounced it good. During the days Nathan was with us, he somehow acquired an interest in jellyfish but we saw none on the Gulf side. We did find several beached ones this morning. So, for Nathan, I post a photo. As I mentioned to him earlier this evening, none of them were smiling. Just click on the photo if you want to see it bigger, Nathan.

It was still early when I took the above photo but before long we installed ourselves on beach chairs and goosed up our tan. I'm still reading The Comedy of Errors and, yes, Shakespeare's humor is making me laugh. I use the name 'Shakespeare' loosely because I don't believe for a moment it was him who wrote those plays. But of course this is not the time or place to discuss that.

After finding a good spot on the beach we watched as it gradually accumulated a major population. I took the photo below to illustrate how it filled up but I snapped too early. An hour later there was even more. Interesting. At Englewood we had the beach almost to ourselves.

And that's Tuesday's story.