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Published: April 6th 2020
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I Swore to God and said we would NEVER stay in Florida again in the month of May.....N-E-V-E-R!
N-E-V-E-R! N-E-V-E-R! Why you inquire? I hear your shouts of “Tell us!” I’ll tell you why in one word: Lovebugs! Yep....Lovebugs! Horrible, horrible, horrible Lovebugs. As you might recall, last year we stayed here at Tropical Palms until mid May before traveling on to Red Bay, Alabama. When May Day arrived, so did these annoying arthropods. These wretched Lovebugs swarmed us as we lived out our final stay at TP. Every aspect of our lives was infiltrated with these black boogers. It was a torture beyond belief. Even worse, they followed us almost to Red Bay. They clung to our RV like gobs of black loogies. The front of our RV looked like we had been run out of town “tarred” with Lovebugs rather than feathers. They ruined the special Diamond Shield that is supposed to protect the front of our RV even though Cory daily scrubbed it down to remove these putrid and revolting insects. The procedure and expense for an future replacement of this shield is another blog story.
Okay, Okay....so what does all this mean anyway? What does
NEVER truly mean? It means that because of the coronavirus situation, we are extending our stay here at Tropical Palms now through May. THE LOVEBUG MONTH! I can Never say NEVER again nor Swear to God! Originally, we would be leaving here on May 1st to head North. The corporate company (Encore) for Tropical Palms announced that as of today (April 5th), no reservations are being taken for any incoming campers AND those of us still here, had to notify them today if we wanted an extension to our stay. Because of the uncertainty of what is open or not as we would travel, we decided it was safer and wiser just to stay put......which is the directive from the government anyway. So, here we are.....sheltering in place, trying to stay healthy; avoiding the virus bug. However, soon we will be battling another bug: those dreadful lovebugs. God help us all. I never thought it would come to this! Did you? Never!!!
Last month, many of our friends left for their permanent homes. Change happens. As we ride around our park on our golf cart, we see only vacant lots where once their motor homes stood. We see shuttered
and closed up cottages where our friends once waved from their porches as we passed by. We witnessed as Joe drove his huge RV up to his Sandcastle cottage to load up before their departure. And then they were gone. It’s quiet here now. But, fortunately, we aren’t completely alone. There are still friends here. Sam & Sandy are in their RV next door. We all can’t gather for coffee in the lobby....it’s closed up. Instead, a few friends stop by our RV to keep our morning chatter going. Of course, we have to practice social distancing. Seating is every other chair or more.
Food is a common topic of conversation.....especially now that we can’t dine at our favorite restaurants routinely. I mentioned that Cory had bought me an Instant Pot that still remained in its box. I’ve saved many Instant Pot recipes from Facebook for that future date when I might actually take it out of the box. I have lots of time now. Wait just a minute, lady! Whoa! Something special is about the happen. At coffee, Art informed us he had an Instant Pot and used it often! An electrician, a mentor, a teacher, a chef.....yes....”Chef
Sa-vaage”. The next morning, we all gathered as Chef Art Sa-vaage instructed me as I prepared our evening meal. Easy peasy with his guidance. Dinner was delicious. Thank you very much...Chef Sa-vaage. We think he should open an area in the Toucan Café but he doesn’t agree. He would be great....he already is!
As you know, Cory had a birthday. His 76th! We both think we have had enough but the option for not having anymore isn’t one we want. Rats! When we were young and growing up together......we always spoke of growing old together. Well, here we are! Living the dream! In his creative ways, Sam fabricated a couple unique items appropriate for Cory’s birthday. He made one of his famous cannons into a golf club cannon.....clever! Tiger Woods eat your heart out! He took a wooden cane and attached a golf club head onto one end...perfect for that aging golfer to use. Cory tried it right out! Score! Four! Thanks, Sam, for bringing happy smiles and good laughs to Cory on his birthday. And thank you to all of you for all your wonderful birthday wishes. He was thrilled and most happy.
Because everyone is being
careful as they go about their lives and limiting their travels, our frequent jaunts and adventures have come to a full halt. Screeeech! STOP! Do Not Pass! Sorry, folks.....your travel tickets will be exchanged for IOU’s. Cory dances and prances his way to the garbage receptacle nowadays. Only when necessary, he takes Sandy to Publix to get our necessities....(we have enough toilet paper...whew!). Sam and I hold the fort down in their absence. Lulu is prepared should it become necessary for her to go out to a store. Such a shame that her pretty face has to be hidden. She just pretends she is going to a masquerade ball......she is so adaptable.
The other day, Cory, Lulu and I boarded our golf cart and drove around our park. We want you to be able to see what we see as we ride around.....around and around. Because we live here for more than six months (7 this year), we want you to relate to our surroundings. We always feel you are here with us when you are reading our blogs. We want you to be able to picture where you are and what you might be doing or seeing. Right
now, as I previously mentioned, many of our friends have left. You can see many empty sites. During the prime winter months, this place is full....rarely an empty site to be found. People are everywhere. It is like a jubilant beehive of activity.
Even though we are all enduring this extremely difficult period in our lives, we are blessed and fortunate to have one another. We may not be in the presence of each other but as good friends and dear family, we are all just like stars in the sky: we don’t always see them but you know they are always there. We are so glad we have this blog. Even though we are doing social distancing, here and afar, through our blog, we can feel you are there as we reach out to each one of you. We wish you good health and strength as we pray for a fast conclusion to this troublesome circumstance. Be well and stay strong.
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Nancy Reidy
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Stay safe and healthy
Hated those bugs too! Good luck on your new adventures!