The sight of a bird can literally stop me in my tracks to observe, and usually photograph (if I'm lucky) the creature. All birds, all sizes, all locations are like a magnet to me. Today, I photographed this immature Red-shouldered Hawk as I was heading out to Walmart. He was using a light pole as his landing point, high above my car at the entrance to our condominium complex. To my advantage, no one was leaving our parking lot behind me, so I stopped for a quick photograph.
We have a Culver's Restaurant near the Walmart located close to our condo. Today, we stopped by after Jim's eye doctor appointment and had ice cream. Flavor of the day: cookie dough and caramel (on the left), and a chocolate Oreo mixer were a delicious pre-lunch treat.
The birds pictured above come to visit the yard below our lanai every morning. They are called Cattle Egrets. When I first moved to Florida in the 70's, I thought they were called "Egg-erts" until someone corrected my pronunciation. The correct term sounds like "E-grits."
"Improvise and overcome" is my motto while we wait for our moving pods to arrive with all of my kitchenware. I have learned that you can make perfect scrambled eggs in a Teflon-coated saucepan! They come out fluffy and delicious with a few turns of a spatula. Jimmy Dean sausage patties cook well in a saucepan, too! Yummy breakfast and easy cleanup. I may keep doing the scrambled eggs this way!
Tropical plants are so different from the plants of the Northwest we've been accustomed to. This tree is growing in front of one of our condo buildings. Called a "Frangipani" tree, it will bloom from spring until fall with fragrant, colorful flowers that are white with yellow centers. Its sweet-smelling flowers grow in clusters and are often used in leis (think Hawaiian flower necklaces). The tree's sap can be an irritant, but it is not considered poisonous. It loses its leaves in the winter.
On Sunday, we drove north for twenty minutes to find the closest Costco near Venice. It was similar in most ways to what we were used to, and the gas there is the cheapest in the area at $3.79 per gallon. We will be using them for gas the next time we need a fill-up. A hot dog for the usual $1.50 with a soft drink completed our tour of the venue.
Tomorrow our moving pods will be delivered. There are positive and negative aspects to that. I dread the confusion of boxes all over the house, but we're looking forward to unpacking and getting fully settled in here. I suspect we've brought too much, but hopefully the most important things will fit into the available space. More on that later...
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