We're Back!

So, Florida was great! The resort was fabulous, we had a lot of fun and my clothing choices were just fine. As it turns out, the resort (which is HUGE) is populated by two groups of people; those attending conventions and diamond-encrusted senior citizens. The first group (except for maybe the Toyota dealers of New England) are just normal folks, and I couldn't worry about the second group--there aren't enough velour pantsuits and bedazzlers in Kern County to compete with them.

The weather was beautiful--in the low 80s--and very sunny, though a bit humid. Before I do my little day by day pictorial, let me share a few random thoughts:

1. These bedside lamps were beautiful--very heavy glass. But I couldn't look at them without thinking of Neutrogena liquid hand soap.
2. I always thought that I wanted a rain shower head. But I am having second thoughts after living with one for a few days. You can't really tell in the photo, but this one was about the size of a dinner plate. Add to that EXCELLENT water pressure, and I'm telling you, it was like being naked in a car wash! I would find myself literally gasping for breath, wishing for some little corner where I could get out of the deluge. 3. Pink is a highly-regarded color at the Boca Raton Resort and Beach Club.

Thursday morning, while Bill was in meetings, I wandered around the resort and took photos, then met a couple of friends for lunch at the pool. (La-di-da!) I was very impressed with the fresh flowers everywhere as well as the beautiful light fixtures.

Thursday afternoon we boarded a bus for the Sawtooth Grass Recreation Area, in the everglades. On the bus, we had a girl from the Busch Wildlife Preserve who brought along some native Floridians for us to meet; a baby alligator, a skunk, a possum, and two different kinds of owls. It was very interesting and fun. Bill petted the baby alligator. When we arrived, we boarded an air boat for our tour of the everglades. We saw all kinds of fish and birds, LOTS of alligators (who got very close to the boat) and a turtle. You will have to look very closely to make out the turtle, floating just under the surface of the water. We learned that the everglades are considered the world's largest and slowest-moving river. As we looked around at our fellow travellers, we realized that Bill was the only one in our entire group wearing long, black jeans, a long-sleeved shirt and black leather shoes. He was rather pleased with himself. To complete the look, he fashioned some stylish head gear.

Thursday night we had dinner on a very large yacht, The Lady Windridge. There were about 400 of us, so you can imagine how big it was. The food was nothing special, but the views of the homes as we cruised along the inter-coastal waterway were amazing!

Friday night we had a wonderful dinner at Lucca, a fine Italian restaurant, then we sat in the Palm Court and listened to live jazz and samba music. Very, very nice! This is the Palm Court by day: After a wonderful closing banquet Saturday night, we were ushered out onto the lawn for a fireworks show. A very nice surprise! I read, I relaxed and I watched a little TV. I think you can tell a lot about the culture of a place by watching local TV commercials. I will close with the transcript of a commercial I watched while there:

Very scantily-dressed bikini model: "With the holidays coming, we all want to look out best."

Man dressed as doctor: "You don't have to wait for Santa this year! Right now, we're offering a breast augmentation for just $300 down and low monthly payments of just $149!"

Wide-eyed bimbo: "Wow!"

Doctor: "But wait! That's not all! We'll also throw in a belly lipo and...a thigh lipo! At no extra charge!"

Wide-eyed bimbo: "Wow!" (Her conversation was somewhat limited.)

Doctor: AND...if you call within the next 48 hours, we'll throw in a facial dermabrasion for just $10!

Wide-eyed bimbo (squealing): "Thank you, Santa!"