Hi Darlin’,
Glad I had my earplugs in, it seems to have rained nearly all night, there were puddles everywhere and the level of the pool was up considerably. Had breakfast, fed the critters, then headed off to what may be my last, or at worst, second to last PT session. Worked me hard, but my knee is definitely getting better every day, even though it’s not quite perfect yet. Stopped at Walmart on the way home and picked up a few things, including a frozen pizza. For some reason, (probably because I just read two pages in a book all about the pleasure of pizza), I was in the mood for some, even though it’s been years since I’ve had one. Since it couldn’t fit in the freezer, I had to cook it right away, then I munched on it all afternoon while watching more episodes of New Tricks. Pretty lazy day other than the PT session. I’m hoping I’ll have more energy to do more tomorrow, though I did manage to make a reservation at a horse camp near Melbourne which I’ve been wanting to try. Now I’m ready for shower and bed, so off I go! Love you, babe! Good night!

Hi Babe,
Not a great night sleep, then spent the day doing some things that need doing before I leave here. I’m looking at the possibility of leaving earlier than I had planned, just because I’ve the weather is turning a lot warmer and I’m more than ready to move on. While everyone else went down to Turtle Tavern, I washed the Buick and moved it over by the fence, covering it up with a new car cover, topped off my storage batteries with distilled water, tried to do a little repair on the paint on the hood of the truck, though it probably won’t look very good. I really need to repaint the whole hood, but who know when I’ll get a chance to do that. I was going to try to do something on the small horse trailer, but I need a taller ladder and I wasn’t ready to do that, so instead I went hunting chaney root along the canal fence until the rain started to move in, and then there were storms all afternoon. It finally cleared out after 7:00, and James and I were feeding when the rest of the gang got back. Settled down for the evening, having already taken my shower this afternoon after getting nice and dirty digging roots, now I’m heading to bed early. Expecting more rain tonight! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hi Sweetie,
A good night sleep, then after chores and breakfast, Sandy and I headed off to Brother Glenn’s new condo on Hutchinson Island, where we took a nice walk on the beach and hung around the pool for a while until Jeff and Bill arrived 90 minutes late for our 1:00 lunch at nearby Shuckers. Unfortunately, it was a rather disappointing lunch for a whole bunch of reasons, poor service, inadequate menu, so-so food and so on. Eventually we finished and went back to Glenn’s for a short while, then the two of us headed home, with a quick stop at TJ Maxx for a couple of things. Settled down for the evening back at the trailer, and now I’m ready for shower and bed! Good night, darlin’! Love you!

Hi Darlin’,
Had a rather sporadic night sleep, on and off, but finally slept through way late, to 9:30 before I got up. Fed the critters, had breakfast, then went to work on putting the new shocks that arrived yesterday on the front of the truck. Bill gave me hand, which helped, though I did most of the work myself. Brother Jeff had nothing but criticism about how we were going about it, even though none of the three videos I watched recommended doing it the way he suggested, so I did it my way anyway. It was a bit tough getting the top nut off, but we finally did it. For a couple of minutes we thought the spindle on the new shocks was too short, but we finally worked it out and got the job done! Bill was a good helper and I was happy he volunteered. Spent most of the rest of the day just relaxing by the pool. I even managed to get in my floating river ring without getting my knee wet, which was a nice change. I only have a couple of tiny scabs left on my knee, but I’m determined to let them run their full course to lessen the scar, though admittedly, I’ve had moments when I just wanted to scrub the darn things off! Jeff had work down in Delray, and since I knew he’d be down there at his favorite tavern until all hours, the three of us went ahead and grilled steaks and had a nice dinner on the patio. We made arrangements to meet brother Glenn and Dena tomorrow at his condo, his tenants moved out so he’s back here to get it ready for the next ones, I guess. Sandy wants some beach time, and we’re going to have lunch nearby, so that’s our plan for tomorrow. Got back to the trailer just after 8:00, settled down for the evening, I’ve had my shower, and will soon be off the bed. Good night, babe! Love you!

Hi Babe,
A pretty good night sleep, chores and breakfast before heading off to PT #10, which is apparently a milestone in my knee recovery. It’s looking pretty good, so I may be able to skip the last session next week after I have a visual visit with my surgical team next Tuesday. I had a disturbing dream that I tripped and landed on my knee and the whole seam burst open, and I was panicking because I knew I wouldn’t be able to stick it back together well enough not to leave a huge scar. In reality, it seems like the last of the scabs are just about to come off, and with a little luck I’ll be able to get in the pool in the next few days, fingers crossed! I’m also hoping that after my Tuesday appointment they might let me get back to riding, which would really make me a happy camper! After PT, I went to Walmart for a few things, and for the first time since the surgery, I walked around the store rather than ride in one of those motorized scooters, figuring if I could walk ¾ of a mile yesterday I should certainly be able to walk around the Walmart, and I did, with no problem! Spent the rest of the day icing my knee, reading and working on my computer. Bill and Sandy went off to have dinner with his sister, and I settled in for the evening. Shower and bed are next! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hi Sweetie,
After chores and a quick breakfast, I headed off to the truck repair place down by the fairgrounds and dropped off the truck. They were nice enough to give me a ride to the nearby IHOP, where I proceeded to have a second light breakfast, and to work on my computer for hours. It kept getting colder and colder in there, and I could feel the chill returning, and even though they didn’t call me that the truck was ready yet, at about 2:30 I decided to walk the ¾ mile back to the shop, which was a good workout for my knee after sitting for so many hours. The truck was ready and waiting (for how long, I have no idea), but I stood in line for a bit, then paid and drove off. The rear end is definitely a bit higher, but the ride doesn’t seem to have been affected too much, so I think this was a good choice. They replaced the old six leaf spring system with an eight leaf spring system, and put in some new shocks I had ordered online. They also adjusted the parking brake and checked the brake pads, so I guess I’m good to go on that! Got back to the ranch, sat around by the pool with Bill and Sandy for a bit, then they grill some chicken and we, remarkably, were eating before 6:45, with even Jeff joining us that early! We fed the critters, then finally sat down to play some euchre, which I’d been hoping to do for awhile now. That kept us busy till well after 10:00, which is why I’m so later tonight, but I’m off for shower and bed now! Good night, my darlin’! Love you!

Hi Darlin’,
Had a good night sleep with my earplugs in, though I still felt a little bit of a chill during the night. I can’t believe I just couldn’t shake that chill! It was cool in the morning but did manage to warm up during the day. It took a long time to get everyone moving today, but we finally decided on going out to lunch at the Snuggery, which Jeff has talked about for ages but I’d never been to, and left for there after 1:00. It was a very nice meal, a really nice piece of dolphin (not like Flipper!) on a lovely bunch of greens. There was also something I’d never heard of before, corn beef soup! Jeff ordered some and I tasted it, it was delicious! After that, Sandy and I stopped at the grocery store on the way home to pick up a few things while Jeff and Bill went to a quick service call, and we ended up arriving home at exactly the same time. We then got the three horses saddled up, and they all went for a ride around the little loop in Hungryland, leaving at 5:00 and getting back about 6:45, while I stayed home and did my PT and iced my knee, something I didn’t do at all yesterday. My knee very good today, when I got up this morning it almost felt normal, and my lack of limping is getting to be more of a habit. By the time we got the horses fed and put away, it was late enough where we said our good nights and went our separate ways. I did a little work on the computer, watched the last half of an episode of New Tricks that I fell asleep during last night, now I’m headed off for my shower and bed! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hi Babe,
Woke up at just the right time to get my chores and breakfast done, then because Jeff had confirmed a half day of drift fishing this afternoon, I headed out early, first to stop at Publix to get motion sickness pills, saltines and Gatorade, all of which I figures would help keep me from getting nauseous, which I sometimes do on small boats on the ocean (never big boats, or small boats on flat water), then ran down to the feed store for hay, then down to PT, where it’s starting to sound like they’ll be able to release me before my eight weeks is up (yay!), then another Publix to pick up a quick snack, then the drive to the marina, right behind a restaurant known as the Square Grouper (which is an old smuggler’s expression, meaning bales of marijuana that had to be dumped in the water when the authorities were chasing them down!). I found the boat, right on schedule, then called Jeff and they were just a few minutes behind, so we all made in onboard with no problem. It was still a bit breezy, but the sun felt nice, and we drove out to our first fishing spot in the sun, but when the boat turned away from the sun while it was drifting, I started to get really cold, even though I was wearing capri pants and an extra shirt over my tank top. Within about 50 minutes I was chilled to the bone, teeth-chattering chilled, so I had to abandon the fishing to go to the side of the boat that had sun on it. Unfortunately, there was no place comfortable to sit, and I ended up laying down on a cold, plastic seat, which was barely wide enough for me. Every time I was almost warmed up, they’d move the boat again, and I’d get chilled again, and I ended up never fishing again, I was just too cold. I think everybody thought I was seasick, and I was just a little bit nauseous, but I’d taken so many precautions it didn’t overwhelm me, thank goodness. When we finally got back to the dock, I got in my truck and put the heat on full, and it still took the entire trip home to start feeling warm again! I quickly put away my hay (though not quick enough that Apollo didn’t get a few mouthfuls before I was done), and James had already started to feed the critters, so he and I just finished off that chore. The others came in right after me, but all I wanted to do at that point was to make hot ginger tea, finish off my snack (though I heated it up in the microwave first), and stay in my nice warm trailer. It wasn’t long before I was ready for a nice hot shower, and now I’m ready to climb into my nice warm bed. I took a zinc in hopes of avoiding any illness that might come out of this chill, fingers crossed I don’t wake up sick tomorrow! So I’m heading off, hours earlier than usual, but I think that’s for the best. Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hi Sweetie,
Had a decent night sleep, then fed the critters, then, since Jeff doesn’t do breakfast, Bill and Sandy came down to my trailer and we all had breakfast together. Afterward they went up to the Church in the Farms for Easter Services, then later they did a little fishing in the pond, then they all went down the road to the menagerie for a bit. We tried everything we could to have a nice ham dinner at 3:00, but as is always the case around here, we didn’t actually get to it until about 5:00. Not for lack of trying, believe me! It was good, though, and James joined us as well. We were going to play some euchre but Jeff’s boarder showed up and kept him busy for quite a while, and by then it was too late, so I came home and settled in for the evening. Possible fishing trip tomorrow, we’ll see. I’ve had my shower, now it’s just a matter of making the bed and climbing into it! Good night, my darlin’! Love you!

Hi Sweetheart!
Woke up to a much chillier morning today, then went off to breakfast with our friends down to First Watch. Afterward they went shopping while I drove down to a truck place to have an estimate done for work on the truck, and received a much more amenable estimate than the previous place. They’ve even got the springs in stock for a very reasonable price, and with the added benefit that they will install new shocks to replace the old ones at no charge for labor if I provide the shocks, which I ordered off Amazon later in the day. Spent most of the rest of the day sitting out by the pool, where it had warmed up a bit, but a cool wind kept it from being perfectly comfortable, until we finally put dinner together, including pork chops on the grill, though all of our efforts to get brother Jeff to eat earlier seems to be for naught, as it was still 8:00 by the time we finally ate. After that I fill by iceman with ice and went back to the trailer to get some icing done on my knee. I did managed to slip away long enough to get most of my PT exercises, and am glad to say that my knee felt a lot better today. I can’t believe they’re going to make me wait another full month to ride, my walking is practically normal now, and it’s only a little discomfort, which I feel will be gone very soon. Fingers crossed they let me off the hook a little earlier! Anyway, settled down for a much appreviated evening before heading off to bed. Good night, sweetie! Love you!