Entertaining

I'm playing hostess this evening for our neighbors. Dr. T and his wife are coming over for wine and appetizers before we head over to the Cuban restaurant for dinner. Appetizers consists of Chex Mix (from a bag) and cheap wine. Joe actually did spend a little on a bottle of wine that he knows Dr. T likes. I told him we could have bought (two) liter and a half bottles for what he paid for that 750ml bottle. When Brian was down visiting he gave us grief for our cheap wine. Our son is embarrassed by us. Oh well, he'll have to get over it because we like what we like and the fact that it is cheap is a bonus! The wine in question is: Riunite D'oro. It is a semi sweet white wine. Try it, you might like it. Oops they're here. Gotta go.

Happy Birthday Karena

Happy Birthday Karena. What's Up in Georgia?? Have a great day! Love and Kisses!

What Doesn't Belong?

Top 10 Reasons Why It's Time To Leave Florida

10. I'm starting to get carpal tunnel from fishing.

9. Richard Simmons "Silver Foxes" aerobic DVD is really getting on my nerves.

8. I need to get to my hair salon. My gray roots are showing!

7. The elevator still works and I want to leave before it breaks again.

6. The condo doesn't need another crocheted doily.

5. I know my chickens and rabbits miss me.

4. If I don't get home soon, Bryan might kill my chickens, rabbits and plants.

3. I miss my cordless drill and compound miter saw.

2. My family needs me! At least I hope so. I know I need them and miss them.

And the #1 reason It's time to go home...........
I'm almost out of coffee creamer and I don't want to have to make an 80 miles round trip to Naples to get it.

Vegetarian....Sometimes

I have decided that I am going to be a vegetarian. Not a true vegan, but a part time lacto-ovo vegetarian. Being a true vegan is a lot of work. Nothing animal related in food or clothing etc... My version is a little more relaxed. I will eat milk and cheese along with grains, veggies, fruit and nuts. However, if someone cooks me a really nice filet mignon then I would have to eat it so as not to hurt their feelings. Or, if there happens to be a tray of pulled pork set out on a buffet I will have to eat it because I wouldn't want it to go to waste. So, basically I will be a vegetarian when it suits me. i'm going to have to stock up on beano!

Drama At High Tide

The bad news is that two boats collided on the Turner River this evening. The good news is one of them wasn't Joe. Joe was out fishing at the time and on Turner River. I went to the docks to wait for him and that is when I came upon all the commotion. Some lady told me there was an accident on the river and she said someone went to the hospital. My first thought was; Where is the boat? She pointed to where the damaged boat was and all I could see was the motor, but I knew right away it wasn't Joe's. Thank GOD! I stuck around for a little while to see if I could get the scoop. I needed one of those "Miracle Ear" devices. You know, the thing that looks like a bluetooth but it's actually a sound amplifier. You can use it to eavesdrop. Anyway, I found out that the two boats were going in opposite directions down Turner. Turner River has many blind turns, so it behoves you to go slow; which apparently they weren't. When they came upon each other instead of going past each other like you would pass on the road, they both turned the same way. The larger boat flew right over the back end of the smaller boat. The guys in the small boat were all thrown out. The back end including the motor on the small boat was all chopped up. Three guys went to the hospital. I don't think any of them were seriously hurt. It could have been much worse! Body parts could have been flying if they would have been close to the prop when it flew over them. I heard one of the Rangers say something about a bottle of whiskey and that they were going to blood test the guys at the hospital. Both of the boats were confiscated which didn't make the guy from the big boat too happy. Nothing like a little drama to spice up an otherwise routine relaxing day in Paradise.

Kinky Crab Love

I had just finished fishing in the bay, and I was standing on the shore waiting for Joe. I looked down and there were two horseshoe crabs swimming toward me. It was typical, the male was riding around on the back of the female. They swam around the shoreline for awhile and the female started burrowing down into the sand right at the edge of the water. It was pretty cool, they have kind of a hinged body and water and air shoots out from the middle of their back. At least it did from the female. So they're just hanging out when here comes another male. He circles around them once and then goes up and tries to push the other guy out of the way. The first guy ain't budging. The second guy weasels his way in sideways. These horseshoe crabs are having a threesome right in front of my eyes. What's this? Another male? Three on one, holy crap! After a few minutes the third guy realizes he's not getting much action so he swims off. The two guys that are still there keep pushing each other around to get the best position, but neither are giving up. I decided that I wanted to see what was going on under those shells. They were partially out of the water, so I got down on my hands and knees and tried to look under their shells. All I could really see were little legs moving around everywhere. I'm not sure what I thought I would see but I had to look nonetheless. Then I decided that I was going to see if I could take them apart. I didn't try too hard, because I didn't want to hurt them. It was clear they were hooked together good! The third little guy was still hanging around the area; waiting for sloppy thirds I guess, so I picked him up and looked under his shell. EEEEwwwwwe! They are kind of creppy looking. I decided to do a little research to find out how they...you know....Do It! Here are some interesting facts I learned about horseshoe crabs.
- They don't actually "Do It". The male; who incidently is 25 - 30% smaller than the female, attaches himself to the female by way of a special extra large claw. The male rides around attached to the female for months at a time. (talk about a freeloader). He stays attached until the female lays eggs in a nest and then he fertilizes them. So...if those two males stay attached to that one female and they both fertilize her eggs, she won't know who her baby daddy is. There is white trash, now there is crab trash.
- Their blood is blue because copper is a large component.
- When you see horseshoe crab shells washed up on a beach, it's not that they died, they shed their shells. Apparently that happens many times in the course of their lifetime which may be as much as 20 years.
- They are more closely related to spiders and scorpions than to crabs. That explains why they are so creppy looking.
Who knew???

Check out the photo gallery for a closer look! By the way, I am wearing a shirt.

What Doesn't Belong?

PattiOriginals2009

I'm becoming an online entrepreneur. Lauren told me about a website over a year ago where people can sell handmade items. Like an ebay for crafters. Everyone keeps telling me I should try and sell my crochet stuff. Last night Joe heard something about this website and said I should try it. So, with all of this support I have decided to DO IT! I signed up for the site, but I have to wait till I get home to post items because I don't have very good pictures. I may be needing some models. I'm mad though because someone took my business name so I had to modify mine. I wouldn't mind so much, but when I went to her site she hasn't even listed anything yet and she's had the site since January. She stole my name and she's not even using it. How dare she! All I have listed is my bio, but check it out anyway.

(See "Links of Interest")