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Winter? No, thank you. I'm not a fan of winter weather. I kind of like a white Christmas, but only one day of it. I have nothing to do with skiing (neither cross-country nor downhill), ice hockey, speed skating, biathlons, bobsleds, curling, figure skating, luge, snowboarding, ski jumping, ice fishing or dashing through the snow in a one-horse open sleigh. I hope I've made it clear that I don't like cold.
It has been a mild winter in Ohio. That's fine with me. I've driven through a blizzard before. On that trip I slid off the road into a guard rail in Indiana. No damage and I was able to back out and continue on my foolish way. In Illinois, the guy driving the semi that rear-ended me on the freeway didn't see me in the flurry haze. Still no damage and I continued my drive. Finally, after fuel line freeze-up in Missouri, I bundled myself into a hotel for the night, safe and warm. The truck driver who rescued me said I either would go to the hotel or freeze to death. No, I don't like driving with snow anywhere to be seen.
And, then February came to Ohio and the rest of the Midwest and all that mild winter talk ended suddenly. I don't have much of a driveway. Some vehicles are too long to even fit in it. It's not much of a parking area, but my brother came to visit and had to use a bag of salt to make it through my driveway and into my garage. I suggested that once he made it safely into my home, he should park himself there for a few days and let the winter blast pass. My brother doesn't listen to me. For some unknown reason, he had to go to the Dollar Store. It's where he got his car stuck. Five Good Samaritan men couldn't push his car free. Fortunately, someone with a truck had what it took to pull his car free from the frozen drifts. Twice.
I can't give any further information about frozen Ohio, blizzards or winter because I'm walking on sunshine. Just before winter threw its worst at Ohio, I escaped to the sunshine of the Caribbean. Yep, once again, I'm in Belize with my sister where we walk most mornings for an hour on the sandy outskirts of San Pedro on Ambergris Caye. It's the number one tourist destination in the country. And, I couldn't be happier to be here at the moment. Here in wonderful tropical weather, we are putting the final touches on my sister's cookbook, Fishing and Feasting in Alaska.
Lulu My sister appears to be a dog whisperer, or at the least, a dog magnet. When we take our morning walks, every dog in the area runs up to her for attention. The canine list of fans includes Brownie, Cinnamon, Shirley, Rocky and Sandy. However, our favorite dog from last year, Lulu, has been nowhere to be seen. There is no leash law on the island. At one point in time, the town tried to crack down on free-range dogs and enforce leashes. However, that really isn't the humane thing to do on an island that dogs share with crocodiles. I mean, if you leash man's best friend in San Pedro, there is a good chance that your little buddy will be devoured by a slithering reptile who comes to take advantage of the situation. The leash law was revoked and dogs once again run freely.
It has been a mild winter in Ohio. That's fine with me. I've driven through a blizzard before. On that trip I slid off the road into a guard rail in Indiana. No damage and I was able to back out and continue on my foolish way. In Illinois, the guy driving the semi that rear-ended me on the freeway didn't see me in the flurry haze. Still no damage and I continued my drive. Finally, after fuel line freeze-up in Missouri, I bundled myself into a hotel for the night, safe and warm. The truck driver who rescued me said I either would go to the hotel or freeze to death. No, I don't like driving with snow anywhere to be seen.
And, then February came to Ohio and the rest of the Midwest and all that mild winter talk ended suddenly. I don't have much of a driveway. Some vehicles are too long to even fit in it. It's not much of a parking area, but my brother came to visit and had to use a bag of salt to make it through my driveway and into my garage. I suggested that once he made it safely into my home, he should park himself there for a few days and let the winter blast pass. My brother doesn't listen to me. For some unknown reason, he had to go to the Dollar Store. It's where he got his car stuck. Five Good Samaritan men couldn't push his car free. Fortunately, someone with a truck had what it took to pull his car free from the frozen drifts. Twice.
I can't give any further information about frozen Ohio, blizzards or winter because I'm walking on sunshine. Just before winter threw its worst at Ohio, I escaped to the sunshine of the Caribbean. Yep, once again, I'm in Belize with my sister where we walk most mornings for an hour on the sandy outskirts of San Pedro on Ambergris Caye. It's the number one tourist destination in the country. And, I couldn't be happier to be here at the moment. Here in wonderful tropical weather, we are putting the final touches on my sister's cookbook, Fishing and Feasting in Alaska.
Lulu My sister appears to be a dog whisperer, or at the least, a dog magnet. When we take our morning walks, every dog in the area runs up to her for attention. The canine list of fans includes Brownie, Cinnamon, Shirley, Rocky and Sandy. However, our favorite dog from last year, Lulu, has been nowhere to be seen. There is no leash law on the island. At one point in time, the town tried to crack down on free-range dogs and enforce leashes. However, that really isn't the humane thing to do on an island that dogs share with crocodiles. I mean, if you leash man's best friend in San Pedro, there is a good chance that your little buddy will be devoured by a slithering reptile who comes to take advantage of the situation. The leash law was revoked and dogs once again run freely.
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Then, once again, the same lady picked up Lulu on another day to make another trip to the pound. Lulu is a very lovely dog and on this second visit, the woman decided to take him home as her own. I'm not sure what happened or how it was allowed, but the grounds keeper didn't fight for his dog. He decided that Lulu would have a very good life with this woman and so he rescued another dog in need. The new dog's name sounds something like "Frito Lay". I asked the guy to repeat the name and that was the closest I could understand. Frito happily free-ranges in the footsteps of Lulu, but if you look closely, there is something wrong with his gait. This puppy was rescued from some kind of abuse that did something to his legs. So, both dogs have a happily ever after ending. Both are rescued and doing well. It's just not the ending I really wanted because I miss Lulu.
Luis and Oly My sister and I turn around and head for home when our walk reaches the house of Luis and Oly. I met Luis and Oly on our walks last year, and I blogged about them as well. They are two of my favorite people on the island. And, naturally, they invited me over for another lunch.
On Ambergris Caye, the most common forms of transportation are bicycles, golf carts and feet. I drove to the lunch appointment. I'm all for my daily walks but I have my limits, especially in the heat of the day. It was my first time to drive a golf cart this season. Once I figured out how to start it, the rest was easy.
Lunch was both delicious and interesting. Luis and Oly had a group of around eight gringos who feasted outside under a thatched-roof dining area. Very Gilligan's Isle! While they were friends of the family, I ate inside with the family. It was a much nicer place for me as far as I was concerned. I watched as the women fussed over preparing the rice and beans, home-made tortillas, cole slaw, barbecued chicken and pineapple upside-down cake.
Luis wanted me to photograph his daughter's wedding this past November. It didn't work out with Covid restrictions. However, over lunch I met the next daughter who is planning a wedding in about a year. And, you can guess who she wants as her photographer. We'll have to see how things work out. Nobody seems to have the ability to predict what this nasty little virus has up its sleeves.
Miss Brenda On my drive back to my sister's place, I drove slowly as you must when driving outside of town. There are so many pot holes and speed bumps! I drive slowly to be careful, but you can't drive fast even if you wanted to. It's not uncommon to see other golf carts, bicyclists and pedestrians, even four and a half miles south of the town. What was uncommon for me was when two young guys on the sandy road called out to me by name. As I kept my eyes on the road and its pot holes, I kept my eyes off the faces of the pedestrians. And, as it turned out, they were two of the local fishermen who come to sell their freshly caught lobster and stone crabs to my sister. All the fishermen know that if you come to Miss Brenda's house, you are most likely to make a sale. My sister doesn't know why they call her "Miss Brenda". She's never corrected them which is just as well because "Phyllis" appears to be a difficult name for the local population to pronounce. Anyway, "Miss Brenda" always wants to support these local fishermen. So, we eat very fresh lobster, stone crab and fish down here in Belize. That is, we'll enjoy the lobster for another week. That's when the season ends.
There are local lobster police in the San Pedro area. They go through the trash of hotels and restaurants to see if anyone is eating lobster after the season ends. This kind of inspection doesn't bother me in the slightest. I don't want the lobster population damaged in any way. Please, do whatever it takes to go ahead and protect them. I don't feel as graciously inclined to the local Nazi police at my condo association in Ohio. There is a committee that wanders the community, peering into everyone's windows to see if the curtains are the appropriate colors. I've never heard of such a thing anywhere else. I'm kinda hoping that that they'll make their next round this month and possibly contract the slightest case of frostbite. Just a little of Jack Frost nipping at their very nosy noses. As for me, I'm going to continue my stay in the Caribbean. I'm thoroughly enjoying walking on sunshine.
Luis and Oly My sister and I turn around and head for home when our walk reaches the house of Luis and Oly. I met Luis and Oly on our walks last year, and I blogged about them as well. They are two of my favorite people on the island. And, naturally, they invited me over for another lunch.
On Ambergris Caye, the most common forms of transportation are bicycles, golf carts and feet. I drove to the lunch appointment. I'm all for my daily walks but I have my limits, especially in the heat of the day. It was my first time to drive a golf cart this season. Once I figured out how to start it, the rest was easy.
Lunch was both delicious and interesting. Luis and Oly had a group of around eight gringos who feasted outside under a thatched-roof dining area. Very Gilligan's Isle! While they were friends of the family, I ate inside with the family. It was a much nicer place for me as far as I was concerned. I watched as the women fussed over preparing the rice and beans, home-made tortillas, cole slaw, barbecued chicken and pineapple upside-down cake.
Luis wanted me to photograph his daughter's wedding this past November. It didn't work out with Covid restrictions. However, over lunch I met the next daughter who is planning a wedding in about a year. And, you can guess who she wants as her photographer. We'll have to see how things work out. Nobody seems to have the ability to predict what this nasty little virus has up its sleeves.
Miss Brenda On my drive back to my sister's place, I drove slowly as you must when driving outside of town. There are so many pot holes and speed bumps! I drive slowly to be careful, but you can't drive fast even if you wanted to. It's not uncommon to see other golf carts, bicyclists and pedestrians, even four and a half miles south of the town. What was uncommon for me was when two young guys on the sandy road called out to me by name. As I kept my eyes on the road and its pot holes, I kept my eyes off the faces of the pedestrians. And, as it turned out, they were two of the local fishermen who come to sell their freshly caught lobster and stone crabs to my sister. All the fishermen know that if you come to Miss Brenda's house, you are most likely to make a sale. My sister doesn't know why they call her "Miss Brenda". She's never corrected them which is just as well because "Phyllis" appears to be a difficult name for the local population to pronounce. Anyway, "Miss Brenda" always wants to support these local fishermen. So, we eat very fresh lobster, stone crab and fish down here in Belize. That is, we'll enjoy the lobster for another week. That's when the season ends.
There are local lobster police in the San Pedro area. They go through the trash of hotels and restaurants to see if anyone is eating lobster after the season ends. This kind of inspection doesn't bother me in the slightest. I don't want the lobster population damaged in any way. Please, do whatever it takes to go ahead and protect them. I don't feel as graciously inclined to the local Nazi police at my condo association in Ohio. There is a committee that wanders the community, peering into everyone's windows to see if the curtains are the appropriate colors. I've never heard of such a thing anywhere else. I'm kinda hoping that that they'll make their next round this month and possibly contract the slightest case of frostbite. Just a little of Jack Frost nipping at their very nosy noses. As for me, I'm going to continue my stay in the Caribbean. I'm thoroughly enjoying walking on sunshine.