Wendy May's Journeys

Today, Linda and I drove onto the Disney property to have lunch at her favorite restaurant, The Grand Floridian. It certainly was a beautiful facility and our salads and quiche were delicious. One dessert sounded more delectable than the next, but we settled on sharing a slice of cookies and cream layer cake with chocolate ganache and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, which tasted fresh-churned. It was worth every calorie!  Steve and Linda came to my apartment this evening and we polished off the leftovers from last nights dinner, also at "my place." Tonight, we played a few hearty rounds of Rummy 500, and then decided to call it a night.

Yesterday we had a private boat ride around the Butler Chain of Lakes in Windermere. Our guides, Rick and Jerry, were the best. Young, humorous, knowledgeable and hip. They pointed out the former homes of Tiger Woods, Wesley Snipes and Shaquille O'Neal. Shaquille's home was 30,000 square feet, including a full-sized basketball court. Of course. The current homes of professional sports players, like Johnny Damon, dotted the lakes. The home of Lou Pearlman, manager of the Backstreet Boys, was quite elaborate, as were the homes of  Larry the Cable Guy, The Queen of Versailles (home is still a work in progress), and West Gate hotel tycoon David Seagal. In his divorce settlement, Mr. Seagal's former mansion on the lake was given to his ex-wife, along with a $200 million dollar award. The inventors of "Tupperware" and  "The Ab Roller" also sported compounds that were over the top. Shaquille O'Neal's former digs We not only saw mega mansions, but some a...

Valentine's Day started with receiving a lovely valentine from Linda & Steve, then we went to the brunch sponsored by their management at the apartment complex, where each person received a beautiful rose.  The three of us then drove to Windermere, where their son, Craig, and family live. We got to see Alison and Craig for a bit (their kids were in school), then we took a long walk around their gated community. A stroll to the "ritzier" section had one mega mansion after another. It's hard to wrap my head around such opulence. After all, too much of a good thing, is still too much. We had a great afternoon, topped off with a late lunch at Yellow Dog Eats, a fun and eclectic local hangout that served up the best pulled pork sandwich, called "The Elvis," that I've ever had. Their cole slaw wasn't too shabby either. All in all, I had a stellar "step count" for the day, with nearly 19,000 steps and 7.9 miles logged. Yes, I slept well that n...

When you get the news, you're flooded with shock, disbelief and overwhelming sadness. The next emotion is that of indescribable helplessness. You know there's nothing you can say or do to relieve the excruciating pain that's tearing their hearts apart. You wonder how the mother, father, and their daughter can breathe in and out. This afternoon I learned that friends of ours lost their son in an accident on Monday. He was only 29 years old. Love deeply and sincerely. Tell people that you love them and show them how much they mean to you. Do what you can, when you can, and as often as you can. If you are reading this, you are someone I love.

This morning I left Dunedin and headed for Beverly Hills, home of Pam and Don. Pam and I worked together at social services. They've been in Florida for over 10 years and each summer, they take their RV to Sussex County for a few months to spend time with friends and family. We enjoyed a light lunch together along with a few hours of great conversation. It was so good seeing them again. Pam & Don Next, I headed toward Orlando, the home of Mickey Mouse. Brian's sister, Linda and brother-in-law Steve, have an apartment in a beautiful complex in Winter Garden, close enough to Disney World, that we can see the nightly fireworks from their location. What a bonus!  Linda & Steve A rental apartment is available to guests of tenants, so I've got my own place while I'm here. My apartment is gorgeous. It's quite a spoiler, for sure. Linda and Steve have a variety of sites and activities that we'll enjoy while I'm here for five days. They have two grown sons, B...

Today I headed up the west coast of Florida. Between West Palm Beach and Naples, I've never seen such a plethora of Ferrari's, Mercedes, BMW's and Bentleys. I guess I need to get out more. My first stop was in Nokomis, where I had a lovely visit with Denis & Paula, former neighbors who lived across the street from us, until they moved to Florida three years ago. It was great to sit and talk, enjoy a cup of tea and some fresh fruit, and catch up with one another.  And of course, there was a selfie involved. The Tampa/St. Pete Sunshine Skyway Bridge was a sight to see. The suspension cable clusters resembled two gigantic yellow umbrellas that I feared would pop open at the most inopportune time. Once across it, I stopped at the rest area and captured a wind surfer having a go of it.  By early afternoon, I had arrived at Kathy & Dean's house in  Dunedin, FL  , home of Caladesi Island and Honeymoon Island State Parks. Dunedin features a former rail line which has...

 I enjoyed two nights in West Palm Beach with Pootsie. We had tender ribs at Park Avenue Barbeque Grill where we had to bring most of it home in a doggie bag. The portions were huge! We walked her dog Coco around the neighborhood a few times and enjoyed the wonderful weather. This morning I headed west on Rt.75, through Alligator Alley, to Naples, where Scott and Mary live. They owned Nordick's Motel for the first 15 of the 27 years in a row, where we stayed when we went to the Americade motorcycle rally in Lake George, NY. It seems when I make friends, I make them for life, and that's been a blessing. It's been great seeing them and catching up. We had lunch at their Pelican Bay private outdoor clubhouse, then walked 2 miles on the beach, stopping to chat with people they know.  When we settled into our beach chairs, we were among good friends of theirs, who happen to have another home in Lake Mohawk, in Sparta, NJ and are the owners of a car dealership in Newton, NJ, the ...