a trip

to Key West sort of snowballed.  first we were going to go down there- I think I mentioned that I had been a lot of times before.  I actually could remember six prior trips for sure and maybe I lost count - but for lucky seven we had decided to take the ferry boat from Marco Island and because we had to be there for a 7:30 AM departure we decided to go the day before and stay nearby.  LOL and since we were going the day before anyway and driving right past Ft. Myers we decided to go there and visit the winter homes of Ford and Edison.

now all of this planning started around a brick.  I bought a brick for one of those fund raiser things at the historical museum in Key West while Phil and Larry and I were there.  I had been back to visit the brick when Tom and I were there but for some reason cannot find any of the photos from that trip.  so I wanted to go visit my brick.  why was this important?  maybe this won't make sense but I had them put Trina Jane Sterling's name on the brick and I wanted a photo of it.  at the time it wasn't a memorial but now it is all I have of Trina physically - and with all the loss this year I had a yearning to have something to hold on to - a talisman of sorts.  so here is Trina's brick

the brick that launched a two day trip. 

but here is the cool thing - we had a super fun time and got to see a lot of interesting things at the Edison/Ford place and re-visit old haunts in Key West.

one of the first pools in Florida built by Edison and his wife Mina (you can see they now have lots of neighbors overlooking their once private pool)

the inventor's office (above) and the moonlight garden (below)

the broad porch of the guest house on the Edison estate (below)

on to Key West-

some darn good dulce de leche gelato! (above) and cheesy coconut pirates (below)

the infamous Sloppy Joe's bar a renown Hemingway hangout (above) and the window at Fast Buck Freddie - a Key West institution (below) and don't ask - LOL

and the last - a shot of the oldest restaurant in Key West - Pepe's established in - you guessed it- 1909!

hope you enjoyed the brief photo tour and a shout out to the ghost of Trina for putting us on the path.

a garbage bag?

or an alligator?  LOL - you would think it would be fairly easy to tell the difference- but I am not so sure.  here is a photo of what we saw alongside the neighbor's dock last night at sunset. 

you make the call- I originally thought garbage bag but then got the binoculars and took a closer look- then it looked more gator-like but it never moved- didn't even "blink" and Phil said "gator" - this morning I am voting garbage bag again as it hasn't moved an inch.

but at least it is an interesting shaped garbage bag.

and remember - we are city-folk...LOL

my mother returns

sort of- at least her ashes have arrived.  my plan is to scatter some of them on the island she called home for so many years.  I have asked several of her friends to join me for a memorial luncheon the first full week of February. 

so when I opened the box to look at her I was struck by how little the essence of our physical presence can be reduced to.  but even more I was hit by how BIG the loss is by comparison. here she was with me again and yet I was so aware of how much she isn't here- isn't here to call each night and recount our days for each other - isn't here to tell stories of our adventures on the island and off.  my mother knew we were coming down here and maybe her timing was thoughtful of the idea of her returning.

when we first decided to rent the River Cottage for two months I sent her the photos of the place and I know how much it reminded her of her place here as she also had a fabulous view of waterbirds in a mangrove area just outside her porch.  she spoke wistfully about maybe coming down for a bit, but knew that being tethered to oxygen and confined to a wheelchair made it a pipe dream. 

so just for comparison I have posted some photos of the River Cottage and of my mom's last home here that show the similarities and why she had such yearning to return.  of course she had about three times the space we do but the colors used in decorating were very similar and the "feel" of the places was very much the same

and now our River Cottage

so you can see why she was drawn to the idea of coming down here when we were here.

snake pit & killer cats

oops I mean Shake Pit!  where we had lunch today - an old timey place for burgers and shakes (opened in 1959) - food was good and atmosphere was first rate

and yesterday I failed to report on an event at our household of significant importance- our cats have become little killers.  when I awoke I found them standing over the body of a tiny lizard which they had killed and were in process of de-tailing LOL.