Monday, February 12, 2018

We got up again to the sky filled with rain.  Big surprise since this is all we’ve been seeing almost since we’ve been here.  It’s merely a replay of four years ago when the entire sky filled with rain that fell.

Sharon has been kept inside for the last few days so there has been no walking for her.

Keeping inside has been not much of a problem since the Olympics have been on since last week and we’ve been glued to the TV anyway.  At least one of us has.

We finally had to do something besides sit around and watch the Olympics so we went to the Longhorn Steakhouse tonight for Dinner.  Sharon said she got the perfect Ribeye Steak and I got the best Shrimp I’ve ever eaten.  It was grilled with a tomato and garlic marinade and they provided a cup of butter along with it.  The shrimp were fabulous and dipping them in butter sent them to another level.  Needless to say we had a very nice Dinner tonight.

On the way home we glanced across the Little Lagoon and the High Rises on the other side were lit up since night had fallen while we were eating tonight.  It’s amazing that the hotels on the beach make it look like two different cities within the same area.  It’s actually very pretty to look at. 

Back at home we adjusted our chairs for the evening’s Olympic coverage.  It’s all on tape now since it’s getting difficult to be at home for all the coverage.  So we sit down and find the remote control and then press play.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018       FAT TUESDAY

We had our entire day planned before we got up this morning.  And what lovely day it was to activate the plan.

We ate a light Breakfast at home and picked up Les and Diane at 9 to attend our first Mardi Gras parade of the year.  We had been to them before in New Orleans, where they have scads of parades, but this was going to be something new in Alabama.

The crowds of people were enormous because of the previous week of cancellations of parades because of the rain.  Today was going to be bright and sunny with the temperature around 75 or so.  The traffic was horrendous because of construction on Hwy 59 (main road to get to parade) It took us about 45 minutes to get to a parking spot on the parade route.  We managed to find one behind a condo and in their parking lot.

The parade was mostly floats with people throwing strings of beads to the spectators.  It was a little different than Louisiana where they throw th beads in gobs of a dozen or more.  Although if you get hit with a single strand of beads at least it doesn’t hurt.  And there were a lot of kids throwing beads at this parade.

After the first parade we went to a place called Live Bait for lunch.  I wasn’t too enamored with the name but their food was very good and the place had a waiting line outside. Besides we were waiting for the 2nd parade which was going right past the restaurant.  I had a Grilled Shrimp Po Boy and Sharon had a Crawfish Po Boy.  They were both very good.

By the time we finished eating and paying the bill the parade had already started going by outside.  It was the Orange Beach Parade but it was going to be pretty much the same as the first one.  In fact there were more than a few floats from the first parade that showed up in the second one.  The new parade started just a few miles down the road from where the first one ended.  By the time it ended we were more than “Paraded Out” for the day.

We came back home and a couple of us took a little nap for themselves.  I wasn’t one of them.  I got into my tape from the Olympics from this afternoon.  I really wanted to see a crash from a young girl named Sweeney that I saw on the TV at the Live Bait Restaurant this afternoon.  It wasn’t on the coverage that I had taped.

No Supper tonight for either of us tonight because of a late lunch.  Beside we were both still full from lunch.  We’ll be snacking tonight I’m sure, but nothing formal to  eat.

We both watched the evening coverage of the games.  The one exciting thing of the night was Shaun White winning the Gold on his last run of the night even though he led through the entire competition.  They finished out the night with Figure Skating which I had already had enough of for this Olympics.

When my bedtime came I was more than willing to head for the rack.

Wednesday, February 14, 2018ASH WEDNESDAY

We both had a plan this morning after we got up.  Sharon was off on her walk this morning and I was off to Waffle House with Les.  He picked me up this morning and we were off to the Waffle House on the Beach Blvd.  That Waffle House is a little larger than the two that are on Hwy 59.  As usual, the food was very good.

On the way home we took a ride down to almost the end of the Beach Blvd going West.  On the way back we looked for Sharon taking her walk since she would be on the Fort Morgan Parkway where our campground is located.  There is a walking path on the Parkway but we didn’t see her on it.

The reason why I didn’t see her on the walking path was because she was already back home by the time I got there.  I found her sitting in her chair and breathing heavy.  I told her we looked for her but didn’t see her.

Today was the day of the Parkland, Florida School shooting.  There was no Olympics on today since the news was dominated by the school shooting.  By the time it was over there were 17 people dead.

We had to leftover pasties for Supper tonight.  Sharon made us each a salad and we sat down to that.  For Dessert we finished up the cake she bought the other day.

By the time 7 o’clock rolled around the Olympics were back on the TV.  It’s a shame that we’re so callous about these shooting events, but at this point they happen pretty often.  And nobody, even though they suspect them, will report these people to the authorities.  Nobody wants to get sued for reporting the wrong guy.  There’s so many strange people and weirdos that walk the streets, which ones are you supposed to report.

We assumed our usual positions for the telecast tonight of the Olympics.  There really was nothing on tonight that I was interested in except the Men’s Downhill skiing and that didn’t take long to watch.

Ten o’clock seemed to arrive quite quickly tonight, and when it did, I was ready to cave for the night.

Thursday, February 15, 2018

We were greeted with another sunshiny warm day this morning as we got ourselves ready to attend the Yooper Luncheon at Luna’s Restaurant in Orange Beach.

We picked up Les and Diane and headed out for the restaurant.  The GPS told us that it was going to be 10 miles away.

Orange Beach is East of our campground and it took us about 20 minutes to get there.  When we got there we had trouble finding where to go since the place seems huge and we were off in a separate meeting room.  When the luncheon started, in it’s 35th year, There were about a hundred people in attendance. They had a very nice lunch planned for us in a buffet.  It consisted of Grilled Chicken Breast and Meatloaf, Green Beans, Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Dessert.  The cost was $15 apiece but they gave away a ton of prizes, none of which we won.  They gave away a couple of prizes of $50 in cash and then mostly coupons to eat at local restaurants.  We were at the luncheon for at least a couple of hours before it all ended and everybody left.  But before we left they set the date for next year and said it’ll be in the same place.

We had a good time at the luncheon even though we didn’t know a single soul in the place.  We looked around before we sat down, thinking that if we knew anybody, we would just sit with them.  We managed to sit with a couple from Marquette, Michigan, Jim and Judy Prevost, which is about 70 miles from our home.  But they actually knew some of the people that we knew.

We got back home in time to catch our recording of the early afternoon Olympic coverage from today.  Sharon, of course, settled into bed for a little nap.  By the time she got up around 6 we were both hungry for something to eat.  I suggested we go to McD’s and pick up a burger for tonight.  We left immediately and went to McD’s.

By the time we got back it was time for Jeopardy, which was recorded, and after that the Olympics.

We stayed up until our usual time tonight and I went to bed as soon as the Olympic coverage was over.

Friday, February 16, 2018

We were sitting around drinking coffee this morning when we got a call from Les and Diane wanting to know if we wanted to go for Breakfast.  I’m always game to go out for Breakfast but we told them they had to give us a half hour to get ready.

They picked us up a half hour later and that’s when the comedy started.  We couldn’t decide where to go.  We discussed it until we left the campground, and still hadn’t made up our minds.  The discussion actually turned humorous since if we didn’t decided pretty soon we’d be ten miles from the campground and still hungry.  Sharon assumed that we had decided on Tacky Jacks when Les turned in to the Diner.  It didn’t matter to me since as long as they had food I was okay with it.

I spoke with Chef Steve again today not realizing that he was from Detroit, until after I read his story on the menu.  His father spent 31 years in the Detroit Police Department and he had been to Iron Mountain several times when hunting.

We sat down to a very good Breakfast but disappointedly they didn’t serve Hash Browns with the meal.  I’m used to having Hash Browns with my Breakfast unless I’m having Pancakes or French Toast.  Then, I make exceptions.

After Breakfast Les took us on the Tourist Tour through the affluent area of Gulf Shores.  We saw some very nice houses and neighborhoods mostly behind the Police Department.

After we came home Sharon went outside with her book and I just sat in my chair and watched Olympic coverage.  This seems to be one of the most disappointing

Years for the medal count.  There just doesn’t seem to be the number of top athletes this time.

Sharon whipped up Chicken Tenders for Supper tonight.  Along with Butternut Squash and French Fries and a Veggie Medley of Salad.  It was all very good.

The entertainment for tonight would be the Olympics again.  There was a couple of other favorites that failed to medal again tonight, including Lindsey Vonn.  The coverage was on until 11 tonight and I didn’t make it to the end.  I caved in at my usual time.

Saturday, February 17, 2018

We got up this morning to a wonderful sunny day.  Even though we had nothing planned, it was still nice to get up to a nice day instead of rain.

I watched my Fox and Friends this morning until those three hours were over with, and then I caught last nights taped Olympic games.  They come on every night after I’ve gone to bed so this is my only chance to catch them.  It gets more and more depressing every day to see how bad the US is doing.

By 2 in the afternoon the regular schedule of the games comes on and we can watch that until 5 when we usually eat Supper.

I had made Guacamole this afternoon and Sharon cooked up some Tacos for Supper tonight.  Both of them went together like two peas in a pod, and the Tacos were delicious.  We hadn’t had them for awhile so it was a nice change of pace.

After Supper our night is pretty much mapped out for us.  Sharon picks up her book(whichever one she’s reading) and we both camp out in front of the TV for the night.  She can tolerate the games as long as she had something else to do and I’m glued to the set all night.  But this year we must be in a “down” year because most of the athletes are finishing out of the medals.

For someone who watches the games meticulously every two years I don’t remember it ever being this bad before.

At 10 o’clock every night it’s not so much of an imposition to just head for the padded room.

Sunday, February 18, 2018

Sharon was off to church this morning as I was headed for the TV and my Sunday morning political shows on TV.  I also managed to catch the Olympic coverage from last night that came on after I had already crashed and burned.  The political news was not as depressing as the Olympic news. I still can’t understand what’s happening with this year’s team.  But it seems that me complaining about it, doesn’t make it any better.

Jack, one of Les’s friends stopped over today to have a look at my scooter.  It hasn’t been running right since last year and having changed the throttle and all the batteries I’ve gone as far as I could in trying to figure out the problem.  The problem is electrical but I really can’t find anyone to work on it.  Jack worked on it for a couple of hours and even called a friend who couldn’t figure it out either.  We all walked away with out a solution.

Today was also Daytona 500 day.  I managed to surf back and forth from the Olympics to the 500 for most of the afternoon.  The 500 turned out better even though the guy in second place bumped the guy in first place, and he spun out on the last lap. , I was surprised that he wasn’t disqualified.  I guess you can do anything to win.

We had Spaghetti and Meatballs Salad and Garlic Bread for Supper tonight.  It was all very good.  When Sharon cooks the food is always good.  She does try out experiments on me however, so some meals may not be as good as others.  But I always eat them, at least once.

We camped out again tonight in front of the tube to watch the Olympics again.  I’m a faithful viewer even though I don’t like to see what’s happening.  I can’t do anything about it so I just sit and watch and get depressed.