March 21 - 30, 2020: Punta Gorda, Florida
We arrived from Puerto Rico into the Fort Lauderdale airport at about 5:45am. As you can see from the pictures below, the airplane was about 1/2 full and the Fort Lauderdale airport was empty. Not because of the time of day, but because of COVID-19.
Muthu drove from Punta Gorda to pick us up so it was really nice to have curb side service and a friendly smile to come back to.
THANK YOU Muthu for the early morning pickup!
As soon as we got back to Muthu's in Punta Gorda, we got the trailer set back up and then climbed under the covers for a short nap. We had left for the airport in Rincon at 1:00am. Craig never went to sleep that night and I laid down for about an hour, so we were both pretty tired.
After a few hours of sleep, we took a tour of Muthu's Back 40 to see the progression of the mango trees. Holy Cow...some of the trees have fruit that are getting ripe and...more flowers. This means they will produce a second crop of mangos = NICE!
We unpacked our bags from Puerto Rico and then made a list of stuff needed for the next couple of days and for our drive home.
Over the next few days, Craig made a few trips to various grocery stores and we all made a trip to Costco in Fort Myers. Yes, we also had difficulty finding some of the most common items = toilet paper : )
We then spent the next week at Muthu's practicing social distancing ; )
Craig and I worked on our computers, planned our route home, and prepped the truck and trailer to begin our journey back to Boise, Idaho. Cindy and Muthu worked on various house and yard projects. And...we all enjoyed the swimming pool, watching movies, dinners on the patio beside the fire, and just relaxing!
As you can see below, Craig enjoyed practicing his synchronized swimming, using a butterfly net to clean the pool, and reading the paper beside the pool.
I spent many evenings bonding with Karma. And then Karma and Padma wanting outside to see what we are all doing. Craig and I are going to miss Karma coming out to the trailer every morning to wake us up and talk to us.
They are both the sweetest doggies!
We could not find hand sanitizer anywhere, so Cindy and I bought some supplies and Craig made a spray and gel. Since it was made with Everclear, I guess it was also medicinal ; )
We splurged and ordered take out a couple of times from a local place around the corner called Ryan's. All you can eat - Tuesday Tacos and Friday Fish. In the past we enjoyed going to Ryan's and getting our fill. Because of the stay at home orders, Ryan's honored the 'all you can eat' by giving 6 tacos and 3 pieces of fish which was more than we usually ordered in house. Yum!
On our trip to Costco, we filled up the gas tank and thought "Holy Cow...$1.65 a gallon! YEAH!"
One of the days, Cindy and I entertained ourselves by making jewelry. Months ago when we were collecting shark teeth at Manasota Key Beach, I had said I wanted to make some jewelry with the teeth I found. Since the beaches were closed, we used the teeth that Cindy and I had found in the past.
Cindy makes jewelry and has a ton of supplies, so she was pulling them out so I could select what to make. I decided on a bracelet.
I picked out the supplies needed and laid out the format. Then Cindy showed me how to wire wrap the shark teeth.
Ummmm ya....someone always has to spoil the party...I accidentally dropped an entire tray of beads...If you look closely, you can see little black 'dots' or beads EVERYWHERE...
Unfortunately, for Muthu, he was coming in for lunch and got roped into helping Cindy and I pick up the beads. Craig was smart and was no where to be seen...THANKS Muthu and Cindy for your help!
I think Cindy and Muthu will be finding black beads on the back patio for months or even years to come ; )
Final product - the shark tooth bracelet is completed!
What a fun project and I cannot wait to wear my bracelet. And...I cannot wait to go back and collect more shark teeth!
Thank you Cindy for teaching me a new skill and sharing your supplies !!!
Unfortunately, all good things must end. Craig and I were ready to begin our adventure home : (
THANK YOU MUTHU, CINDY, Padma, and Karma for you wonderful hospitality, friendship, advice, guidance, and support during our Winter in Florida. You opened your life and home to us and we SINCERELY appreciate that.
We loved our 'home away from home' and look forward to repaying the hospitality!