Encore, Encore

We took advantage of our possession of a car to hit up the French Bakery again.  I had a cafe au lait and a torsades du chocolat today and it was yummy.  The person behind the counter let me practice today too, though it was a different person.  Dean had the Pre Fix (Formula) breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast.  No Pancake thingy today.We then toured down to St Pete beach so I could lay eyes on the don Cesar. 

 We traveled by the El Sirata, that was fun it has gained in size. A LOT.  It was fun to look at the houses and I honestly didn’t remember the tip of St Pete’s beach as it is.  

After  gassing up and turning in the car we came back had a bite of lunch and I painted a whole.  Later the kids came over and Stephanie and Wes had a Pre Thanksgiving Christmas present for Dean!  Pretty exciting stuff!  

KAthy wold be thrilled!

Van AKA little Oscar decided to take a nap. 

Stephanie, Wes, Dean and I went over to have a progress view of the Sand Castles.  

It was fun to see more done, more added and have some context for them.

Dean and I went to the beach at sunset and scattered some of Kathy’s ashes. 

 I hope that someday, who ever scatters my ashes has the same feeling that I did of love, joy in a well lived life and release.  It felt pretty healing to me.  

Later we met up with Stephanie and Wes at Gia’s again ( I think Dean has spied a steak on the menu before) and I had angel hair pasta and sausage with marinara and a bit of Alfredo.

Dean and I walked back after a bit of shopping.  Shower :( and bed!

Practicing French in Treasure Island

Yesterday we rented a car and drove up the coast, we frittered the day away carseeing!  Dean even managed to work it so we were at the top of a bridge for sunset!  

Dinner was at sort of a dive that I found on Trip Advisor looking for seafood, Ricks Reef.  It was good.  I had shrimp, potatoes and coleslaw with pineapple, which sounds , not so good, but it was delish.   

Today we got up and went to a French Bakery I spied yesterday!  It was very fun as I went in messing with the guy, speaking in French and guess what!  I got to practice my French!  I had an Almond Croissant and coffee

and Dean had a “Breakfast Formula with eggs, bacon, some thing they call potatoes but it was sort of a savory pancake and toast.  

We came back and went to the Publix so I could fix some dinner this evening.  After putting up the food we went back to the beach to see the progress of the Masion du Sable ( Sand Castle in French  since it is a French day).

  Some were being added some were in continued progress and a few seemed to be complete.

There certainly is a push to get the booths set up for commerce!   

The knitter in me certainly likes this one!

I spent the afternoon painting  and preparing dinner.  Nancy, Kevin and Little Oscar came and they all went down to the pool while I piddled in the kitchen.  

Dinner was pork in a sage marinade, creamed spinach, smashed potatoes (or as I learned last night “Bistro Potatoes”), a baguette, and salad. 

 After dinner we did the obligatory Sunset trip and Van had his first bites of sand.

  He seemed to like it!  

It is a peaceful evening on the inlet!

Early Days

The morning dawned bright and lovely over the balcony  in the bedroom!  We found my ‘Community” coffee yesterday in the Publix and I had a great cup of coffee, Dean had a

Diet Coke.  Kevin, Nancy and Little Oscar showed up and we all walked on the beach.  

It was nice, mid 70s sunny.  Little Oscar was not so sure about the ocean, and i have to admit it was pretty nippy!  

We had lunch at Sloppy Joe’s on the beach.  Dean had the Sloppy Joe and said it was not so hot for a restaurant of that name.  (I told him Kathy MIller’s sloppy Joe is AMAZING!) After we came back and I painted the afternoon away and had a little Josh and Fritos.  Dean and I just got back from a second perusal of the progress of the sculptures and a sunset. 

 We can not figure out the imagery of the two pieces with a cross, and wooden people.  One fellow suggested that they were puppets but still the meaning eludes me.  Hopefully we will get to talk to the artist and become enlightened.  My mind can go all kinds of ways with it, but I want to know that the artist intended.

There is a Dali museum here a ( in St Pete) and this one piece is like a sandcastle abstract to me, FULL of imagery as you walk around it. I think dinner is going to be Italian,  I’ll report on that tomorrow.

Revisiting

 Four o-clock came pretty early this morning. I got all my last minute things done though and Chris came, picked me up, we retrieved Dean and headed to the airport.  Things went well until we got to TSA and the guys said there is a little problem,  he thought my birth year might not be 1995.  It was an easy fix and everyone was kind.  I was rather crushed that I cold not pass for that BD though.  We got through TSA without a further hitch, ate some airport breakfast. Though eggs are eggs, right?  I want to the powder room and when I cam out Dean was saying we need to board ( it was 7AM our flight was 7:30) and so we sailed right on the plane.  Southwest and it was a nice shiny new plane.  The ride was uneventful and we had an empty seat between us.  I dosed a tiny bit but mostly read, chatted and played on my phone as Dean could get me SW internet.  

Kevin and Nancy were not getting in for about 2 hours so we had lunch at PF Changs, and then moseyed around the airport and finally roosted until they arrived.

I loved this “Pink Pelican”. 

We went for  lunch for Kevin and Nancy, Little Oscar (Van) sure has grown.

He is about 9 ish months and is already as big as Petunia! Just pulling up though not walking yet! 

 HE is so cute, it is uncanny how much he looks like his daddy at that age.  The house Kevin rented is nice BUT this condo is amazing! 

 It has a largish balcony with a table for 6 and  a lovely view,

we actually saw a dolphin swimming!  

Dean let me have the cool room with a view!

We walked next door to a Publix. Got to witness a lovely sunset.

 All these people were on the beach and we realized that they were there for the sunset.  Anyway we got some supplies including a nice Josh Cab!  

Gooey Buns and Hob Nob

Sometimes I have to wonder at myself!  I purchased tickets before the cruise for a singer called Emmaline at the Jazz Kitchen. I used to hang out some in Broad Ripple and I forgot that there were entities called the Jazz Cooker and a separate one called the Jazz Kitchen.  Silly me as I did events for Legacy House years ago in collaboration with the Jazz Kitchen and the food was fabulous. But I was one minded and thought the tickets were for the Cooker.  In the meantime I started in on when could we go on a weekender AND I got the horrible news that the Hob Nob is closing.  The Hob Nob is the white restaurant catty corner across the street from the Brown County Court House. 

 It has a great supper menu that is in addition to the regular lunch menu and a favorite place of mine to go for date nights.  SO our weekend get away became Brown County and it was for this weekend.  Oblivious to the above mentioned tickets, when I realized it it became incorporated into the plans.  

We came down and stayed at the Cornerstone Inn again in Shilo 3.  Not my favorite location in the repertoire of the Cornerstone, but it was rather o last minute and the only room in the inn.  We got here in time for dinner and Jodi, cheap date that she is, had a salad and toasted cheese.  I had the pork chop with apples and onions and mustard cream sauce on a bed of mashed potatoes and a glass of Klinker Zin.  It was delish!

My hair dresser, while getting my hair cut on Friday, the second person to tell me that there was a place to get “ the best cinnamon buns”.  

I got up, ( had brought a quickie dress) threw on my dress and went for a fabulously short walk to get our breakfast.  Nikki ( the afore mentioned hair dresser) said they were not so good, with the Carmel sauce on them. I ignored this advice and boy was  I glad!  They are amazing and not to be missed. We lingered on the screened in porch for quite a while and finally got it together and went to the park ( who could possibly eat lunch after that bun?).  I started a painting and Jodi just enjoyed.  We eventually went back into town and late lunched at the Hob Nob.  We had a “45 minute” wait and it was amazing to see the all kind of kinds that passed before us.  I saw the biggest gluteals I believe I have ever seen, folks with a messy melange of thrown together stuff, night wear, too tight, too loose, pink hair, blue hair, fanny packs………….

Lunch was o.k., Jodi had another toasted cheese, and potato soup

and I had their pot roast sandwich, is not what it used to be, but it was going to be better than dining at the Jazz Cooker.   We trekked to Indy towards the Jazz Cooker and drove past the JAzz Kitchen and I had a ephineal thought.  “What if……”. We pulled around the corner and I got out the tickets and lo and behold it was the Jazz Kitchen.  We found a parking spot relatively easy and went in to be checked in and seated in a back room that had absolutely no visibility of the stage.  In all fairness there was a streamed TV in the room we were in.  BUT wait, there is more, there was a minimum food order.  I was not even remotely hungry and felt relatively nickeled and dimmed as I had to pay for the tickets to the venue and now they are demanding that I spend money, (we would have purchased a drink which would have been darned close and maintained good will). The singer was good, but i have to admit, the other individual in the room were almost as entertaining.  There was one guy who,  I realized about half way through, had boobs on his shirt, like the number 3 with dots to resemble nipples,  and a woman at the same table of four sat there and sang along and postured through out the entire show.  I spent. A lot of time trying not to look as it was rather like looking at a cobra.     Both women were dressed rather 50’s retro.  Regardless it was interesting.  

Emmaline had a good sound and I was not in the mood to fight my way through the pile of people at her merchandise table, so I am hoping that I can find her on I tunes…..

I was worried about the drive back but we chatted and I stayed alert!

This morning we both went to the Oey Gooey Cinnamon Bun place and admittedly they are better right there in the store.  We managed to hit up the stamp store and the “Life is Good” store and are now releasing in the park. 

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