One Step at a Time - June 2016

[NoraC]

Gross about the mouse.

[Lizann]

As per usual when I'm not on everyone else is! Nice to read about everyone's going on.
Rusty, sorry about the flight delay. Hope you get home soon. Is there bad weather?
Mama, I never thought about the lake house and alligators!
I know at my hubbies aunts complex there is a small lake/pond and I have seen alligators in it. The residents watch to make sure they don't get too big and if they do they call someone to take them away. I have seen them in storm drains too. Aihfl, my in laws lived in Venice for over 20 years. We spent a lot of time down there with them and I miss it very much! Sorry you can't go tomorrow. Hubby still has some family in Venice, it's just not the same since we sold their house.

[Lizann]

Hey Pauly, cross post. Yup the mouse thing is kinda gross. I'm sure anything you buy there is sealed! Eeek!

[NoraC]

Shoot - sorry, I missed you, Liz!! Scary about the alligators.

[Glass Half Empty]

I generally avoid talking about politics or guns or any of that stuff, but I totally agree with your comments about it all. I don't even know why we're surprised anymore, you know? The tragedy isn't just what has happened, it's that we can't seem to figure out how to get reasonable laws in place to prevent future tragedies. Australia had one mass shooting, outlawed guns, and haven't had an issue since then. I know we'll never do that, but hayzeus, you'd think we could come up with some sort of solution.

That's a good point Ne, and I have to admit I'm just bewildered sometimes. We haven't had a mass shooting since 1996, and according to a data nerd friend of mine there have been 182 in the US so far this year! I'm 55 (as of yesterday - Happy Birthday to me! LOL) and I've been desperately trying to think of anyone I might know, or have known, who has a gun. I can only think of 2 people I know, both of whom compete in rifle shooting at the championship level, (and wouldn't dream of taking the rifle out of the case at any other time) and a friend's grandfather who lived on a farm about 30 years ago. That is honestly the only contact I've ever had with anyone who's even come close to having a gun.

I guess it's just a different culture! Stay safe my lovelies. :heartbeat:

[frances]

Morning all - it's busy on this thread as usual! Good to see everyone sounding overall pretty good!

Things are good here. No surprises, I will be watching ball games all weekend. My daughter knows several players that will be on the opposing team for her first game this morning - that always makes it a little more fun. My husband took my daughter and they had to leave this morning at 6:20am - thankfully this weekend we are playing only 30 minutes away so I stayed home and got some extra sleep and now having coffee and getting ready to head out there.

There have been commercials all over lately about talcum powder and ovarian cancer. I didn't know anything about that previously either!

Hope everyone has a great day!

[aihfl]

Had to chime in on all the alligator talk. As a semi-professional guide who leads kayak trips on the side, in general, alligators want to be as far from you as you from them. They have a natural fear of humans and 99% of the time, when there is a problem alligator, it's because it's lost its fear of humans, most likely because someone has been feeding it (yes, there are idiots who do that). They are opportunistic predators, and if they do attack a human, it's because the alligator has "mistaken" it for prey. We are not a "natural" food source for them. Notice that the boy killed at Disney was not eaten. It's tragic that the boy was drowned by the alligator, but once the alligator realized its "mistake," it did not eat the boy. Humans are completely off the alligator's radar as a food source, although a small child, being closer in size to the alligator's regular prey, stands a greater chance of being attacked. Nile crocodiles, which have been recently found in The Everglades, is much more troubling, because they are aggressive man-eaters. Disney is cordoning off the water and making the area less "beachy." I know for me, "No Swimming" equates more to "swim at your own risk." In the public parks in the area, there are large signs warning people of alligators and telling them not to feed them (common sense is not all that common) and in my opinion, that is negligent on Disney's part. People who live in Florida should know, but the same can't be expected for tourists from outside the Gulf Coast south. There probably isn't a single body of fresh water in the entire state that doesn't have at least one alligator in it.

[paulywogg]

Hey all,I wouldn't have been around that water anyways it looks kinda murky from what I've seen on the news,did Disney have any signs up before the poor baby was attacked? I keep thinking that its not their fault cuz hey,,its Florida but they had been told by prior guests of alligator sightings so ifthere were no signs they're liable I think,tired but wired this morning and not diggin goin to work but I'll get through, much love to all and enjoy the day

[NoraC]

Off to the recycling to turn in our cans. At least there are no beer cans.

I saw Jaws in the theater when I was 16. Won't get me in the ocean again. Scared the shitt out of me

[aihfl]

Off to the recycling to turn in our cans. At least there are no beer cans.

I wish Florida had can/bottle deposits. It certainly kept litter off the streets and waterways in Vermont and Iowa. I remember the bad days in Vermont when I'd take all my cans and bottles back for redemption and get back 15-20 shekels (the deposit for vodka bottles was fifteen cents).

Ne-as a scuba diver, it's a treat to see a shark! My ex wife and I were the first ones off the dive boat off Panama City Beach one time and we were treated to the sight of a 6-8 foot bull shark. He/she checked out our bubbles for a few seconds before heading off into the blue. The pilotfish swimming with the shark was a sight to see - they moved exactly in sync with the shark, mirroring he/she's movements. It's a different story though when you're actually underwater rather than splashing around on the surface like a surfer, for example.

[actiongirl46]

Good morning! It's nice to see so many healthy active people here.

I am well. I watched my youngest son's LAST Little League game last night. Little League ends after 8th grade here. A little bittersweet, to say the least. He is growing up so fast.

A beautiful very hot day here. We have a family dinner planned this evening with my parents, brother, and his family. There will be a lot of wine around so I need to be extra vigilant.

TMH, good luck with your move!! I wish I could loan out my teenagers to save your back!! Hang in there . . .

Have a great day all!! AG

[Glass Half Empty]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge aihfl – that’s really interesting! And here was I thinking that it’s only in Australia that the wildlife is generally out to kill you. Where I live we only have spiders, snakes and sharks to worry about, but further up the coast is a different story. In the most beautiful part of tropical Qld (think picture postcard clear blue water and white sandy beaches) you can’t go in the water because if the crocs and sharks don’t get you, the poisonous jellyfish will.

Ne that sounds so strange to me. Even our military personnel don’t own guns (including my son who is in the Army Reserve). That’s really sad about your neighbour, but you’re not alone in experiencing bigotry. Much as I adore Australia, the way our politicians treat refugees is beyond disgusting. And despite the fact that about 70% of the population support same sex marriage, it’s still illegal here. And the way our indigenous people have been treated is appalling. Sorry – rant over!

AG – it must have been sad to watch your son’s last Little League game. But it’s lovely that you’ve been there to watch him, I’m sure he’ll cherish the memory of having you there cheering him on.

[aihfl]

I am watching our local news. It was just reported that the hooligans from Westboro Baptist Church (for our friends across the pond, just google them if you're not familiar - they're arguably America's most infamous hate mongers) tried to protest downtown, but a large crowd including people dressed as angels in costumes provided by the Orlando Shakespeare Theater blocked them from view. The news didn't name Westboro, but we all know who it was. This fits perfectly with their MO.

There was also an accident where an impatient driver who couldn't be bothered with waiting out a funeral procession plowed into two motorcycle cops escorting the procession, sending them to the hospital. The driver is being charged. I hope they throw the book at her.

The FBI is now putting together a case against the killer's current wife. Is it too punitive of me to suggest waterboarding? And just to highlight the absurdity of gun laws in this country, I am currently barred from purchasing a gun in Florida because I have been involuntarily committed to a psychiatric facility for acute alcohol intoxication. If I can't buy a gun because I was a drunk (drunks should not be able to buy guns, no argument there), will someone please explain to me how someone who's made terroristic threats and was on a GD FBI watchlist can???

Here's a picture I took from the car yesterday of the memorial that's sprung up on the green in front of our performing arts center:

IMG_2944.jpg

[Glass Half Empty]

aihfl - even across the pond we've heard of the Westboro loonies. How they can do what they do in the name of religion is beyond me! I googled the angel story though and well done to them!

Despite all the bad news lately - I hope everyone is having a lovely weekend. :heartbeat::heartbeat::heartbeat:

[aihfl]

Life in Florida is never dull. There are stupid people everywhere, but nowhere else does there seem to be the combination of stupidity and utter brazenness like there is here. Our news is ALWAYS like this.

GREENACRES — A man broke into a store to steal Florida lottery scratch-off tickets and soon returned to cash them, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said.

The theft occurred June 8 at an unidentified business in the 5000 block of Lake Worth Road, near Haverhill Road. Surveillance video cameras caught the suspect coming in through the store’s ceiling. Once inside, he took multiple tickets and left.

There was at least one winning tickets among the cards, and the suspect cashed in his winnings a few days later at the store, the sheriff’s office said.

Anyone with information on the theft or who can identify the man is asked to call Crime Stoppers of Palm Beach County at 800-458-TIPS (8477), or to report the tip anonymously on PBSO’s Connect Protect phone app, which can be downloaded online.