Oh, the Places I’ve Been!

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Oh, the Places I’ve Been!

Oh COVID how you’ve clipped my wings! But that doesn’t mean I can’t revisit the places I’ve been. Today I thought I’d take a trip back in  time to re-visit some of the places I’ve been. Care to come along?

Key Largo Fla – 2019

John Pennekamp State ParkNature at it’s finest. This northern most Island in the Florida Keys offers diving, snorkeling and a lot of Ocean Fun. My favorite spot- John  Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. But be prepared with water shoes . The shoreline is sharp coral that can bruise and cut bare feet.              

Great White Heron in Mangroves – Key Largo 2019

Iguana at Pennekamp Park 2019

 

Busch Gardens – 2018

Colonial Williamsburg, VA (and Busch Gardens) – 2018

Just weeks before my hip replacement surgery I made a trip to Colonial Williamsburg. It was much colder than I expected Virginia to be even if it was November. I was joined by family and friends. 

Colonial Williamsburgh 2018

 

Carriage Colonial Williamsburgh 2018

On the South Rim, Grand Canyon 2008

Grand Canyon Arizona- 2011

If you have not been to the Grand Canyon you are missing an amazing sight. I’ve been twice and can’t wait to go again. When I first saw the canyon my mind could not embrace it all. It was too large, too majestic. I was with a guide and he warned us but I still felt dizzy and overwhelmed. Something this magnificent just couldn’t be real! But it is. 

Grand Canyon- 2011

Grand Canyon 2011

Maui Hawaii – 2020

Hawaii is one of my favorite places. I’ve been to the  Big Island, Oahu and Maui.  My latest trip was right before the pandemic. I was back on Maui and had a chance to go SNUBA diving. It’s like Scuba but your tank is floating on a raft on the surface and you breathe though a hose. The other big difference is that you do not need to be certified to SNUBA making it something everyone can try.

snuba at Turtletown 2020

Wind Surfing 2020

Oh, the Places I’ve Been!

This was fun. It’s nice to reminisce now and again. And I have so many other trips to share. Maine for Puffin watching, Sedona and my first helicopter ride . The amazing state of Alaska and Denali National Park. I can’t forget Yellowstone and Old Faithful, Florida and swimming with Manatees or the Big Island and snorkeling with Manta Rays. Not to mention Bears and Moose and Elk in Wyoming. The Teton Mountains are magnificent rising from the valley floor. We have a lot to talk about!

The Grand Teton

The Grand Teton 2017

What Are you Thankful For?

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What Are You Thankful For?

Happy Thanksgiving! 2020 hasn’t been kind. We are all struggling with the “New Normal”. Many families have lost loved ones. It’s a sad, challenging year. But even in the darkest times, we need a Thanksgiving Day. We need to take stock and find that hidden blessing, that moment when we can see through the dark to the brighter day ahead.

I’m Thankful for…

So let me help you get started. Try to list 10 things you’re thankful for in 2020. Here’s my list:

  1. My Family- I may not see them often as we are scattered and I may not hear from them often, we all have busy lives. But in my heart I know there are there for me if I need them. I know they love me and I love them even if we don’t say it.  This is a big virtual huge to all of them!
  2. My furry four legged family- Banner and Balboa, my two kittens are a daily source of joy. They make me laugh with their antics and Balboa especially is a cuddle bug, in my lap whenever I sit down but it’s Banner that snuggles in with me at night. 
  3. My home- My condo is small and needs upgrading but its home.  Owning my own home allows me to have pets and not worry about what a landlord might say or do.  
  4. My job- In this time of COVID many people are losing their jobs and even business owners themselves are not immune. Restaurants are struggling and many will not survive. Even at my job folks were laid off and furloughed in the beginning of the pandemic although most have come back and we are in a hiring phase. For now it appears my job is safe.
  5. My Health – Oh I have my aches and pains for sure. You don’t reach senior citizen status without earning a few age related hiccups like arthritis or diabetes. But it could be worse. My doctors think I’ll be around a while.
  6. My Doctors- When you get older you don’t have “A” doctor you have a team. I’m lucky to live in Massachusetts where health care is top notch. I have a great Primary who heads up a team of specialist to keep me tuned up and kicking along.
  7. Health Insurance- So speaking of health in this day and age that means you have to have health insurance. The company I work for provides a generous health care plan that includes vision and dental all for a reasonable employee contribution. I never have to ask myself if I can afford to go to the doctor or fill that prescription.
  8. My friends – My friends are special. COVID has meant that I don’t see them as much. We don’t sit outside to chat anymore. We don’t go out to restaurants for lunch but they are in my thoughts.
  9. Caring, warm co-workers. They are more friends than colleagues and show it in many ways. –
  10. And Number 10… I’m thankful for the beautiful area of the country where I grew up and can still go visit. Lake George- Truly a gem

So what’s on your Thankfulness List?

Right now the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is on top of my today list! How about you?

 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone

 

Here We Grow Again

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Here We Grow Again

I’ve added another family member to my little home. His name is Balboa and I didn’t adopt him for me as much as for Banner.

 

Banner is the best kitten! After 2 weeks he figured out my routine and knew that once Mama sat down to work that he needed to leave me alone. He looked so sad. If a cat can have “puppy dog eyes” Banner did it. Then he started freaking out when I’d leave the condo. I’d hear him meowing and bumping and scratching at the door. He had a pretty bad case of  separation anxiety.

What to do? What would happen when I was back in the office? What about vacations? Banner needed a little friend. As it turned out I do mean little!

 

Is That Really Banner?

When I first held Balboa I thought he was a real light weight but next to Banner he’s tiny! This is a picture from when he first came home. Banner looks like I should rename him Garfield! He looks huge! Maybe I have a Garfield and Nermal? Banner was about as happy to have a new friend as Garfield was to have Nermal join his family.

 

There’s been a lot of growling but no hissing. They have been chasing each other all around and no one seems the worse for wear except me.

Balboa Can Hold His Own

For a tiny kitten Balboa doesn’t let Banner intimidate him. In spite of  Banner’s growls Balboa seems to think Banner is playing with him. I’ll have to work on getting some more photos. Black cats are notoriously hard to photograph as the black color just sucks in all the light. In this case Balboa doesn’t slow down for a second. He’s just a black streak! So I can add motion as another challenge.  I’m not sure how he got the name Balboa but I like the way  Banner & Balboa sound together and since Rocky was named after the movie character Rocky Balboa,

it seems fitting that this next generation continue the name.

Rocky my cat

The Original Rocky

 

 

Is Maine an Option?

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A Spring Vacation in Maine?

I saw a chance to reserve a cabin in the Maine woods in May. I’ve been to Rangeley Maine before. There’s not much to do except enjoy the scenery and hike. You might see a moose or deer  or if you’re really lucky a fox kit.

 

Little fox on side of road

I spent a week in Mane in June one year so I jumped at the chance to make the reservation. Now I’m having 2nd thoughts. For one thing I’ve added Banner to my household and he can’t go. If he was a dog he would be welcomed but cats are not allowed. I’m not sure I’m ready to be separated  yet.

 

The second reason is that Maine has reinstated it’s COVID quarantine for people from MA. If I have to be quarantined for 2 weeks I might as well stay home.

My last reason for questioning this decision is snow. Rangeley Maine is in the middle of the state right in the mountains. It’s a beautiful place but will it still be snowbound in May? Perhaps some more research is needed.

Speaking of Banner

Banner is growing like a weed and is a really good kitten most of the time. He leaves me alone to work either sleeping or playing with his toys. That’s amazing! But he did discover the jigsaw puzzle so that project had to be boxed up before the pieces were lost. A few now have kitty teeth marks!

We discovered Cat TV on YouTube.  When he gets particularly feisty I put the video on. If I add sound it really makes him crazy . He goes after the speakers so we usually watch “silent” TV.

As you can see Banner can be distracted too but comes back strong. Can you hear him purr? He is quite proud of himself.

He can also be entertained by just watching the curser or the letters on the screen as I type.

 

Where Have We Been?

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Where have we been?

I don’t mean travel. COVID still has us locked down but where have we been the last couple of weeks? Well kitten duty is time consuming. Even with toys Banner is a demanding little bugger! I try to play with him for at least 30 minutes before work every day. If I don’t he is so wound up I can’t get any work done. It took him only about 2 seconds with my back turned to tear into my work laptop. Yup he pulled the F2 key off. I lucked out because I snagged it back from him before he he swallowed it and I don’t use the F2 key. I didn’t even know what it did so other than a white spot I guess there was no real harm done.

We Got Our First Snowfall

It snowed here yesterday and then the temps dropped so we still have snow on the ground today. I read that the Farmer’s Almanac has predicted a snowy , cold winter. Why not?  2020 has thrown everything else at us!  I tried to get Banner interested in watching the snow come down but he had no interest at all, A kitten after my own heart. He’s more interested in the feather trim on my witch hat for Halloween.

 

You need to arch your back a little more , Banner , to get that scary Halloween witch cat look! At least he’s got the tail thing mastered.

New York Wildlife

On a more photography/travel related note I got my New York Wildlife Viewing guide. Hopefully this will help me choose some trips in 2021. I couldn’t just buy the book. The only way to get it was to subscribe to Conservationist Magazine. I’ve gotten one digital issue so far and it was really good. I hope some of my issues will be print because the color photos are gorgeous and the articles weren’t boring at all!

The first thing I checked was Adirondacks and the first place on the list was “The Wild” in Tupper Lake. If you recall my brother and I visited “The Wild” in August. 

From the description in the book it sounds like there is a lot more to it than what we saw. Of course we were there while the pandemic was still in full force so half the exhibits were closed. Once this COVID is all over I’ll have to go back. We might have missed some other things there too because my knees were  really limiting my mobility.  I’m working on possible solutions to improve that too.

Puzzle Update

The Puzzle is still laid out on the table but I picked up the loose pieces and put them in the box.  So far Banner has not tried to eat them but I don’t want to tempt him either. So there’s been no progress to report but no damage from curious kitty either. It’s just waiting for me to get some time to work on it again.