Beth and Jake invited us to go to the Florida Keys with them earlier this year. They used to live in a trailer park down there. That's probably not how the locals referred to it, but I don't have a better term. It was a classy gated trailer park community on the water with a jacuzzi, a pool, bath houses, and a guard at the entrance keeping out anyone who didn't belong. We took them up on the invitation and went down there last weekend. It was a short trip, but it was great. I, for one, needed a little break - and I love going to new places and learning new things.
I learned a lot of interesting things from stories that Beth and Jake were telling us. Most of which prompted Wikipedia searches because I'm a Wikipedia freak. And those searches yielded even more interesting information. Apparently the Keys used to be inhabited by "wreckers" - sort of like pirates or privateers. I'm still a little confused as to whether they stole valuables from wrecked ships, or helped the owners of the ships to recover their valuables for a hefty fee... Sometimes the cargo they found was pretty weird (check out the article). They also told us about this spy blimp that the military used to spy on Cuba. It was called "Fat Albert" - if you read the story you'll learn that it's actually an aerostat (a tethered balloon.) I tried a few times to get a picture of it, but none of them came out. The most interesting and amusing thing I learned was the whole history of the Conch Republic (apparently pronounced "konk".) You can read more about it on their official website here. The short, short version is that Key West actually seceded from the United States in the 80's, declared war by hitting an officer with a loaf of stale Cuban bread. They then surrendered and applied for foreign aid from the U.S. - all because of an annoying roadblock. There's more to it than that, and more incidences as well like the Invasion of '95. Pretty amusing stuff.
In addition to the history and stories, I got a pretty decent feel for the place. I really knew nothing about the Keys before we went. What I learned was that it's just south of Miami - a very nice drive since we rented a convertible. We drove down through the Everglades which weren't as tall as I was expecting. For some reason I expected jungle canopy, but it was really just a marsh. The whole area is actually pretty flat - like a meadow, but instead of grass there are mangrove trees and alligators. Consequently, the Keys are not really that nice for swimming - not a lot of good beaches apparently. It's more of a boating/fishing place. We rented jet skis while we were there. That was a first for me. I'd like to try it again on a day that's not so windy and I'd like to be wearing goggles... I inhaled part of the Atlantic and got a sinus infection. We ate at a number of delicious places. There were three that really stood out: Camille's Restaurant (the best damn omelet I've ever had - crab, brie, asperagus, and dried tomatoes I believe), Blue Heaven (beautiful restaurant with tasty food), and El Meson de Pepe (excellent Cuban cuisine). I also had liquor for breakfast almost every morning... I discovered (or rediscovered? may have had it before) an excellent cream liquor that goes by the name "Amarula". The website is nearly as amazing as the booze actually...
Anyway, those are the highlights... Also Jake bashed his head open and bled everywhere - that was pretty rad. Here's the photo gallery for the trip to the Keys:
http://picasaweb.google.com/evans.tucker/FloridaKeys#slideshow
New Belt
Little stuff makes me happy...
I've been looking around for a new belt cuz the one I've got is too loose. I could punch more holes in it, but I don't like it that much - I've been looking for an excuse to get rid of it. My old favorite belt died on me a while ago. It was just a simple black belt with two rows of shiny silver grommets, but it started falling apart, so I trashed it. Ever since then I've been looking at belts whenever I find myself in a place that sells them. None of them have impressed me. I know there are cool belts out there - the world is a big place - so I started googling and I found all kinds of belts! Some were more than just belts and that aspect appealed to me. There were belts that were bottle openers, lighters, knives, etc. - all kinds of crazy stuff. So it came down to a decision: I could go with the awesome, highly illegal Gypsy Belt or the equally awesome, more practical 686 Snow Toolbelt. Hmm...
So, I decided on the 686 belt. As an added bonus, when I went to order it, I found out that there was a 14K gold-plated one with the same double-row of grommets that my old belt had! Yay! I love gold. Dunno why. Maybe it's in my blood... I'm half-Ecuadorian, so I've got Spanish/ancient Incan blood running through my veins. And my other half is generic British, so maybe I've got some Irish-leprechaun-pot-o-gold blood in me too... Who knows. I also like grommets. They're holes, which are normally structural defects, but then they're made of metal, which is structurally strong... Too much analysis? Yup...
I got a new belt!
I've been looking around for a new belt cuz the one I've got is too loose. I could punch more holes in it, but I don't like it that much - I've been looking for an excuse to get rid of it. My old favorite belt died on me a while ago. It was just a simple black belt with two rows of shiny silver grommets, but it started falling apart, so I trashed it. Ever since then I've been looking at belts whenever I find myself in a place that sells them. None of them have impressed me. I know there are cool belts out there - the world is a big place - so I started googling and I found all kinds of belts! Some were more than just belts and that aspect appealed to me. There were belts that were bottle openers, lighters, knives, etc. - all kinds of crazy stuff. So it came down to a decision: I could go with the awesome, highly illegal Gypsy Belt or the equally awesome, more practical 686 Snow Toolbelt. Hmm...
| Gypsy Belt | 686 Snow Toolbelt | |
| Pros |
|
|
| Cons |
|
|
So, I decided on the 686 belt. As an added bonus, when I went to order it, I found out that there was a 14K gold-plated one with the same double-row of grommets that my old belt had! Yay! I love gold. Dunno why. Maybe it's in my blood... I'm half-Ecuadorian, so I've got Spanish/ancient Incan blood running through my veins. And my other half is generic British, so maybe I've got some Irish-leprechaun-pot-o-gold blood in me too... Who knows. I also like grommets. They're holes, which are normally structural defects, but then they're made of metal, which is structurally strong... Too much analysis? Yup...
I got a new belt!
A Boring Day in My Life
Woke up groggy. Didn't get much sleep cuz I stayed up too late last night. Made some oatmeal with almond milk, honey, and flax seeds. Pretty tasty, but it was better the first time I made it a few days ago. Too weak to work out. Did 15 pushups. Normally I do 50, and by "normally" I mean once or twice a week... Andrea got ready and left for work before me.
I went to work. Don't remember the drive. Not a very memorable experience, driving to work. I guess that's forty minutes per day (twenty each way) where I don't really even exist because it's just a re-run. I miss stupid NPR - still don't have a car stereo. Eh, don't really miss them, cuz they're doing annoying pledge drive right now anyway (I know because I listen to it at work or in Andrea's car sometimes.) Work was slow, or rather I was slow. VPN issues have been the bane of my existence the last few days. Yammered about it on our work Yammer site - that wasn't appreciated by the president (or CEO, I can never figure out people's titles.) I feel like I've been stepping on lots of toes lately - I keep saying dumb shit or doing things that disturb other people's interpersonal relationships. Am I an asshole? I think I'm closer to being one than I've ever been in the past. Normally I'm docile and agreeable, right?
Wasn't very focused at work. Got excited thinking about gardening this weekend. I think this is gonna be the big weekend. I'm going to rent a truck and perhaps a tiller and get some dirt and some trees from the Natural Gardener and plant a garden and do some landscaping. "Perhaps." Andrea says I use that word too much. Perhaps I do.
Got home before Andrea. She's been doing this ... ah, ask her what she's been doing. I gotta break this habit of talking about other people's business. She wasn't coming home till later, but... Hmm... Skip this paragraph. The important bit is that I cleaned the bathroom. Got all motivated to clean.
That was interrupted by the movie du jour, "Wanted." Pretty decent movie. Not much back story and over the top action nonsense, but all in all it was entertaining. I could see where it borrowed elements from Fight Club and Office Space... Perhaps it was lacking in originality. Perhaps.
Andrea went to bed early. She always wakes up before me, leaves for work before me, comes home after me, and goes to bed before me.
I'm in a bad mood. I have a habit of doing chores when I'm in a bad mood. Don't know how that habit got started, but hey, at least the house gets cleaned. I've been doing laundry, dishes, and general cleanup and organization for the last three hours.
Got on the Internet to ease the brains away from stressors and onto irrelevant entertainment. That kinda worked. Typing a dull, fragmented blog helped. I'm about ready for bed now.
Dunno how long it took you to read this, but those are seconds you will never get back, my friends. I'm a time murderer... with a tiny little knife, ripping away seconds or minutes from your most valuable resource, your life.
I have no regrets... but I do have a ton of clean laundry and dishes! Tomorrow will be better.
I went to work. Don't remember the drive. Not a very memorable experience, driving to work. I guess that's forty minutes per day (twenty each way) where I don't really even exist because it's just a re-run. I miss stupid NPR - still don't have a car stereo. Eh, don't really miss them, cuz they're doing annoying pledge drive right now anyway (I know because I listen to it at work or in Andrea's car sometimes.) Work was slow, or rather I was slow. VPN issues have been the bane of my existence the last few days. Yammered about it on our work Yammer site - that wasn't appreciated by the president (or CEO, I can never figure out people's titles.) I feel like I've been stepping on lots of toes lately - I keep saying dumb shit or doing things that disturb other people's interpersonal relationships. Am I an asshole? I think I'm closer to being one than I've ever been in the past. Normally I'm docile and agreeable, right?
Wasn't very focused at work. Got excited thinking about gardening this weekend. I think this is gonna be the big weekend. I'm going to rent a truck and perhaps a tiller and get some dirt and some trees from the Natural Gardener and plant a garden and do some landscaping. "Perhaps." Andrea says I use that word too much. Perhaps I do.
Got home before Andrea. She's been doing this ... ah, ask her what she's been doing. I gotta break this habit of talking about other people's business. She wasn't coming home till later, but... Hmm... Skip this paragraph. The important bit is that I cleaned the bathroom. Got all motivated to clean.
That was interrupted by the movie du jour, "Wanted." Pretty decent movie. Not much back story and over the top action nonsense, but all in all it was entertaining. I could see where it borrowed elements from Fight Club and Office Space... Perhaps it was lacking in originality. Perhaps.
Andrea went to bed early. She always wakes up before me, leaves for work before me, comes home after me, and goes to bed before me.
I'm in a bad mood. I have a habit of doing chores when I'm in a bad mood. Don't know how that habit got started, but hey, at least the house gets cleaned. I've been doing laundry, dishes, and general cleanup and organization for the last three hours.
Got on the Internet to ease the brains away from stressors and onto irrelevant entertainment. That kinda worked. Typing a dull, fragmented blog helped. I'm about ready for bed now.
Dunno how long it took you to read this, but those are seconds you will never get back, my friends. I'm a time murderer... with a tiny little knife, ripping away seconds or minutes from your most valuable resource, your life.
I have no regrets... but I do have a ton of clean laundry and dishes! Tomorrow will be better.
Goat
In other news, I've been sort of seriously entertaining the idea of getting a goat friend for my little dog-son, Suge. I dunno why. I kinda like goats. They're funny. And they mow and fertilize the lawn. And they have really weird looking eyes.
Either that or perhaps a small pig...
And some chickens. Chickens in general are really funny to me.
One of my coworkers was trying to tell me that it's illegal to have such creatures unless you're classified as a farm, but this article seems to state otherwise. Quite frankly, I don't give a damn about laws anyway...
Anybody here willing to goat/pig/chicken/dog sit?
Either that or perhaps a small pig...
And some chickens. Chickens in general are really funny to me.
One of my coworkers was trying to tell me that it's illegal to have such creatures unless you're classified as a farm, but this article seems to state otherwise. Quite frankly, I don't give a damn about laws anyway...
Anybody here willing to goat/pig/chicken/dog sit?
Pictures: Las Vegas 2009
As a "secret Santa" Christmas gift, Andrea's dad gave us a gift card for a two-night stay at the Polo Towers in Las Vegas! We went a day early and stayed at the Rio, which was nothin' special. I sat around memorizing the rules for blackjack and then we went to the Gold Coast. Everything I memorized when out of my head. Couldn't even do basic math. After a mere three hands and we ended up buying a pack of cards and playing in our room instead.
The next day we walked all up and down the strip in search of $5 blackjack tables. The weather was nice, but there was a lot of construction, and an insane amount of guys handing out prostitute cards. The streets are littered with them. They have a hilarious lack of respect too - they were reaching across my wife to try to get me to take the cards. At one point we just laughed and started taking them. I got a thick stack of cards featuring various women wearing nothing but tiny (occasionally misplaced) stars... Oh Vegas, you have such a unique charm... That evening we met up with my cousin Claire, who I hadn't seen for probably 15 years. As it turns out, she's awesome! We hung out with her all evening. We dined at Sea Blue, saw Cirque du Soleil's "KA", and then got a table at Tabu ultralounge. It was like a normal lounge, but "ultra"- I'd say it was just shy of being an xtremelounge or an uberlounge.
On the third day we finally found a good table and a good dealer and we won lots of money, which we then spent to stimuhlate da ecomuhnee?
The End. Look at the fun pictures now.
http://picasaweb.google.com/evans.tucker/LasVegas2009#slideshow
The next day we walked all up and down the strip in search of $5 blackjack tables. The weather was nice, but there was a lot of construction, and an insane amount of guys handing out prostitute cards. The streets are littered with them. They have a hilarious lack of respect too - they were reaching across my wife to try to get me to take the cards. At one point we just laughed and started taking them. I got a thick stack of cards featuring various women wearing nothing but tiny (occasionally misplaced) stars... Oh Vegas, you have such a unique charm... That evening we met up with my cousin Claire, who I hadn't seen for probably 15 years. As it turns out, she's awesome! We hung out with her all evening. We dined at Sea Blue, saw Cirque du Soleil's "KA", and then got a table at Tabu ultralounge. It was like a normal lounge, but "ultra"- I'd say it was just shy of being an xtremelounge or an uberlounge.
On the third day we finally found a good table and a good dealer and we won lots of money, which we then spent to stimuhlate da ecomuhnee?
The End. Look at the fun pictures now.
http://picasaweb.google.com/evans.tucker/LasVegas2009#slideshow
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)