Surprises

Well, I'm sure it is no surprise to you that what we anticipated hasn't happened. That's life - surprises that we don't want as well as ones we are delighted with. Though we expected radiation to begin July 28, we haven't received the call yet. So we are on hold.

Last week Vernon came down with a cold and stayed home from work starting Wednesday but was able to return today, though still coughing some. It seems to settle in his lungs and when he coughs it takes a lot out of him.

When I last wrote, I mentioned our Saturday plan and there was another surprise that morning. We found the Scandinavian bakery closed when we arrived for our anticipated breakfast. There was no explanatory sign on the door but as we peered in through the glass, we could tell it wasn't empty. When I dialed the phone number, it was still a working number. So our theory is they were on vacation. Not knowing Clermont very well, we asked a woman in a nearby business and received a recommendation of somewhere else to eat. We passed up the Cracker Barrel that was nearby because we can eat there anytime.

We safely arrived at our planned destination, the nearly finished retirement home of a couple that Vernon went to high school with in Atlanta. It is built on Pine Island, near Weeki Watchee on the gulf directly west of Orlando. Here Vernon is looking out at the water.
Tom has built this house mostly himself with help from friends. It seemed very comfortable inside. Notice the pillars that support it, part of the hurricane code that should keep the living portion above water should a hurricane strike here. Our car is visible in the lower left corner of the picture and Vernon is in the center with his back to the camera.
This is the view from the upstairs bedroom that looks out on the gulf, mostly above the treetops.
And this view is toward the east and the bay/salt marsh. There is a narrow two-lane road that connects this island to the mainland. I guess you can tell it is a narrow bit of land that this house is on.
We were the first guests to arrive at 11 AM and it was 8 PM when we left. As we drove away I realized there were no pictures of us so we stopped and held the camera ourselves to take this one. The island is behind us.
Here's the same view without us. I think the colors are nice with the fading light and the palm tree in silhouette.
And toward the west, this large cloud formation was illuminated by the sunlight.
We had a good trip that day, being with friends and their family and enjoying the scenery.