With a nice long stop in Miami to SHOP. (Long as in maybe an hour, until I go into sensory overload.) But, baby, oh baby: this is livin’! I’m probably only going to buy guitar strings for Mo and a salad spinner, but, hey, walking in those Ginormous Stores featuring an Overload of Stuff is fun for a minute! How could I drive through Miami without stopping? I don’t think it’s possible.

Just got my rental car from Avis, breakfast with Pen, then drive to Miami, shop, visit Sandford in the hospital, then head to FLL to fly home at midnight. Sandford’s annoyed that I referred to her as a little old lady. “I’m medium,” she states, emphatically. Ok, whatever you say. You took on open heart surgery at 85, who am I to comment on your age?

This Key West visit has been excellent. I didn’t get to visit with everyone I wanted to, but did get to really enjoy the friends I did see. The weather has been hot and beautiful. Only a couple of days where I couldn’t wait to get inside to some ac. Air conditioning is the pits: an energy drain and bad for your health. But, some days in the sub-tropics, it’s just the thing.

Examined the work front here: there is definitely work to be had, but, frankly, I have to be here to have it. Trying to figure that one out. I have to work, that’s all there is to it. I want to work. And work outside with actual human beings, like I used to. Working online has its advantages but, since almost dying, I want to do what I want to do. Life is short enough. Definitely too short to spend working at a computer. Much, much more to examine on that front. I promise to keep you posted.

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This 16-day trip cost a hair shy of $1,000: $190 for the ticket (including bags and taxes; that’s cheap, because who’s coming to FL now???), $60 for a car to drive to/fro FLL ($30 each way) and $600 for expenses, including exit taxes, gas for B&P’s car they let me use ($100), food ($230), dinner for Brian and Peg one night ($100) and misc purchases. And that’s with only a couple of meals out!* Way more than I thought it would cost, naturally. I did eat my weight in blueberries while I was here. And blackberries: omg, they are huge and delicious. Plus relatively cheap – who could resist?

Speaking of eating out, at least half the people I know here eat out all the time. All the time. People here rarely cook except instant meals or mostly prepared food: salad in a bag, soup in a can, rottiseried chicken in a plastic dome. That’s because everyone works all the time. All the time. Thank goodness we work at home and get to eat at home. I realize how spoiled I am with good, fresh food right in my kitchen. In fact, I’m looking forward to some of Hal’s gallo pinto tomorrow morning!!! Yum!

Time to get on the road. Fun day ahead! Can’t wait to see the boys and Winston and the girls (Eva, Lucy and Ethel.) There are roosters and chickens everywhere in Key West… but I want to see MY girls. Hope your day is just as good! Pura vida, S.

*Two meals out that I paid for. I actually ate out quite a bit – and Key West has some fantastic restaurants – but people kept buying me food. I guess I’m still looking kinda frail…