Sex on the Beach

(HOLD ON, SPARKY! STOP RIGHT THERE! This is a FAMILY RATED blog, remember?!) Yeah, I know...but I still want to talk about sex on the beach, it will make our ratings go sky high, even if it's for just one day! OK, in that case, Eldo says you can get sex on the beach for about 6.50--WHERE? you ask?

At the Sandpiper Hotel beachfront BAR/cabana in St. Pete Beach where we took a day trip today to reminisce about our first vacation together. But we didn't have the drink, Sex on the Beach, because the bar hadn't opened yet. Just what is in that drink, anyway? I would be remiss if I didn't give you the link to the drink....So here it is: Sex on the Beach

For the last four years around December, we have been in the St. Pete Beach area and this year was the first time we didn't stay here. However, the first year we did stay at the Sandpiper Hotel. The industry was hurting so badly back then, we got a HECKUVA rate, and we came down for Christmas. We would eat breakfast at the little cafe each morning. The second and third years we stayed at Fort DeSoto County Park in St. Pete Beach in our first motorhome. This year we are again in Florida, and we stayed in the Naples area over Christmas, but decided to take a trip down memory lane to see Fort DeSoto and the St. Pete's beach area where we loved the ocean right outside the hotels....Because in the middle of Webster, FL, there ain't no water, NADA! ZIP! ZERO! Not even a pond in the park...oops, forgot, the pool, but other than that, forget it. So off we went to see the ocean. It was about an hour and a half drive from Webster to St. Pete Beach and worth every penny of gas to see the sights, smell the ocean, and for the bonus surprise after breakfast. And no, it wasn't sex on the beach! (The bar wasn't open yet, explains a red-faced E.)

After we got there, we ate breakfast at the little hotel cafe and this was our view looking out towards the ocean....You don't have to stay at the hotel to eat breakfast there, so that was nice. This is a great time of year to be here, however, the hotel was only at 40% occupancy! Bet there are some great deals there!

The food was delicious and reasonably priced for a fancy hotel like that. Next, we went for a walk on the beach.....No dolphins today...just lots of shore birds...The beach was quite empty! But it was windy and in the high sixties, so it felt cool.....

Then, we headed to the Fort DeSoto Campground to review what sites would fit our big rig. The park is so overgrown with huge palm trees and shorter palms, that many sites would not accomodate a rig our size (40 ft. with four slides) without scratching the sides. We took photos and wrote down numbers, there are a few sites that will work..We MIGHT just come back here coming back out of the keys, we'll see! The view of the water is a channel near and around Tierra Verde and Boca Ciega Bay. Not all the sites have a water view and some have mangrove shrubs or some other kind of shrubbery blocking the views of the water.

Eldo's final surprise, the bonus of the day, was heading over to the Maximo County Park to play Frisbee golf..There's a fantastic 18 hole disc golf course there. We'll tell you all about it tomorrow.....(But I'd still like to have Sex on the Beach, says E.) I've never had one either! laughs Sparky.

Warmer Weather--Finally!

The "Boys' Club" Fort DeSoto campground

Usually, I try to find something for us to do each day 'cuz I have a short attention span, so I'm always looking for visual stimulation of the FAMILY kind...parks, preserves, museums, art, etc. I'm still not used to being retired and sitting still, so I'm still needing activities until I get more acclimated to being retired. I can only sit and knit for so long! I like to read, but I just am not into books right now. I am making progress, however, as I'm now starting to watch birds. Can you tell by the number of bird photos that are starting to show up on the blog? Not sure if that's considered progress or an admission of age, but it's a great hobby when you have lots of time on your hands.  There's hope for me yet to slow down and relax. BUT, while we are physically able, I prefer to bike, hike, and visit stuff. There will be plenty of time down the road for reading, bird watching and lots more knitting!

It's starting to warm up...Here's Eldo yesterday:

Here's Eldo today:

Got fish? I can wait...

If you look closely or click on the photo of Eldy relaxing, you'll see a heron close by. Here he is, close up. The bird is actually only a few feet from Eldy. This heron sat all afternoon waiting for us to give him some fish, at least that's what we thought. What's funny is, when Eldy put his feet up and settled in for an afternoon nap, the bird sat back on his "haunches" and feet. When Eldy closed his eyes to take a little nap, the bird proceeded to do the same! Every time I tried to get a photo of the heron's eyes closed, he opened them, just to check to see what I was doing. If I got up to go back to the RV, he didn't budge. I went back and forth several times but he just stayed put. Finally, when we both left, he gave up and moved on....but he seems to hang out here every day, just a few feet from us, waiting and watching for an opportunity.


Here he is later today, and somehow he got his fish...we don't think he caught it, because a kid said he threw this dead fish towards a big bird, we think this heron, and the heron thought he'd hang onto it. We didn't see him try to eat it, he just strutted around with it for awhile....

dinner time?

One more bird story...Eldy and I were sitting outside, enjoying the nice weather, and Eldy says, "Come here..you've got to see this bird with the really long legs." I grabbed my camera because I had never seen an egret quite like this one, with legs quite so long. Just as I was starting to take the photo, out comes a lady with a red Christmas bow and places it on the bird. The bird is sort of bobbing around giving her a hard time and not standing very still but at this point, I'm thinking, "WOW! This is a really tame egret!" Then I realize, duh, the bird is FAKE! I laughed and commented to her how fooled we were. She said, yeah, they've been putting this bird out and the real egrets come and try to mate with it! Guess the bobbing and weaving of the bird on metal legs looks like a mating dance. I took a photo of it anyway....silly people! (meaning us!)


I would like to wish all our readers a VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR! We are heading out this evening for a fun night of dancing at Silas Dent's in St. Pete's Beach...should be fun! Be safe and be careful! Best wishes for a healthy, happy new year....Eldo and Sparky