Time To Migrate To Florida

Although the weather the last week has been pleasant it's time to go south! I'll be spending time on St. Pete Beach near Tampa as I have an appointment with a fellow web guy that occasionally helps with my websites. He knows more than I and is definitely worth the expense. After all he does it for a living and is not your flash in the pan kind of guy that says you can get top Google rankings in 24 hours or other such pie in the sky ripoffs. I've known Steve since we met at an Orlando webmaster convention back in 2004.

Anyhow, I've grown tired of all those modern hotels that don't even allow you to open windows. They say it's for liability reasons. Oh no, maybe I'll fall out of the window that sits four feet off the floor! Yea right! This is a mom and pops type of hotel right smack on St. Pete Beach only two miles from Steve's office. King sized bed, efficiency type one room for $120 bucks a night. Sound great to me.

See The YouTube Video. Leaving Tuesday November 16. Return? Mid February...maybe

Warm Florida Weather - Finally

Time to get the shorts out...finally. I've only worn them twice since being here going back to December 16. Bring the weather sensitive plants back out as it looks like normal temps may be here to stay. After monitoring on Wunderground the lowest around here was something like 32 over the past ten days, but lot's of wind while staying in the fifties and sixties. Home? Frigid, until a few days ago. Something like 5 of the last ten days where temps didn't go over 32. I even missed 3-4 inches of snow from what I hear...drat!!

Other pics around Mom's home...

 Lobelia. I like this stuff. Expect to see more at home this summer. 

 

And we're trying to find the pool leak. 

 

Florida Visit December

Took 3-4 days to get adjusted. I thought I'd be bored outta my mind. It looks like I'll be here until January 23 or so. Made a trip to "the farm" finally. The farm is is on Pine Island.

Where's Bubba? I Gotta Find Bubba! Oh there's Bubba. AKA Heather, my neice.

A few more pics. Neice Jennifer with her grandmother Mabel.

 And their father and grandfather. Ed (left) Herman (right)

Group shot of the cousins...Left to right; Ryan, James, Jennifer, and Heather.

See the video. It starts with a trip to the driving range with my son Ryan. Basically his first time with some kind of instruction. Followed with my first time on a horse.

Bikers Dream Ride. Great Smoky Mountains

It started after driving down the Foothills Parkway from Townsend TN. I was trying to get back to 441 that runs down into Georgia from Knoxville for the route home. Must have read that map wrong. I saw the signs..."switchback roads, trucks not allowed" Made the wrong trun and came into this lake area. Not in any hurry here. Why not explore.

Started noticing a few bikers here and there until it became obvious this was a bikers paradise through the Great Smoky Mountains.

There's even a bikers resort or gathering place near the TN-NC line at Deals Gap. I can imagine what this place looks like on weekends! Bikers of all ages, types, small sports cars here and there buzzing through the winding roads.

Maps showing the general area...

Sunset In The Smoky Mountains

I'm not usually good with darker photo settings, but I did discover a new setting on my camera. Huh? Almost two years and I found something new? Lost or misplaced the manual. First off I'm here to see a custom hardwood flooring stain job with one of the hardest types of hardwoods to stain...Maple. Some guy from New york with too much $$ has a house under construction on a mountaintop in a place called Kinzel Springs, TN.

The driveway! OMG. 350 yards of concrete (according to the builder) nearly straight up with switchback turns. Don't try it in the winter. Not a very attractive house, no pics.

Doing floor samples.

Lot's of wood carvers in the area.

Near the Morton Overlook on highway 441. Elevation 4826. Located about 14 miles east of Gatlinburg or near the TN, NC border. Nice drive, steep, but nothing like the PCH, plenty running water to see.

Looking east into North Carolina.

West into TN

Updates

I've been busy with video for my work, if you want to call it work. There is so much to learn, particularly trying to get a good video resolution uploaded to YouTube. Having spent a few days in Jerome getting some actual job site footage I have the editing stuff figured out but it's that lousy resolution.

For example this is what this scene looks like on my PC. You can enlarge the images by clicking to get a better view.

Now see the difference when it gets uploaded to youtube.

There are great tutorials on YouTube on how to do things, but so far no luck on improving the resolution to the way I want it. At least I got the wide screen thing straightened out. Sceen doesn't fit well with this blog template. Click the link or image below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhbLCebIIhI

Edited 1/29- After clicking the link above and reaching the Youtube page, click watch in HD. Just below and right of screen. I got it right!

Off to the Phoenix Open today.

Peanut Country - Plains Ga

Trying to imagine what this little cracker town was like back in the 70's when Jimmy Carter's name became known worldwide must have been a sight to see. Upon driving west on Ga state road 280 into town, a half minute later the town is gone. Small indeed. About 630 residents.

I'm sure all the photos have been seen before, but I was kind of surprised to see Billy Carters service station has become a museum! Not many photos to share as I had camera problems and made the mistake of showing up on the wrong day as even the local restaurant was closed! So much for breakfast.

Peanuts. How do they grow and how are they harvested? Much like a tomatoe plant in so far as height and harvested like wheat with large combines. A few pictures shot outside of town. A peanut field adjacent to a previously picked cotton field is worked on.

A few more peanut farming pics...

And some town pics on an early Monday morning. I will revisit another day.

Train station with trains still running.

Cordele Ga Hotel Hunt - Ashburn Inn

Headed back home and a stopover before my trip to Plains Monday.

I often wondered what the cut rate motels look like these days and been meaning to check a few out while going through the southern and central part of Georgia. After all, what's the difference between a $100 room and twenty nine these days? Sure enough you'll get a nice comfy king sized bed at LaQuinta or that other place I can never remember. Same sized bed at the Ashburn Inn in Cordele(south of Macon on I-75 at mile marker 101) .

Not as soft but why pay an extra $70.00 for that? A few less pillows and not as fluffy, but hey, if others aren't spending in these uncertain times I may as well do some budgeting too. The room has a coffee maker. That in itself is probably the most important aspect I was looking for. Yea, I could drag around a coffee maker, but eventually I'd forget it and buy another one here and there. Before you know it I'd have five instead of two at home.

At one time high speed internet was a priority before I signed up with Verizon this past summer. There seemed to be one problem after another connecting wherever I went. With any hotel one should always be aware of what kind of high speed you get if an internet connection is important while travelling. Hard wire is about the only service I could rely on, and many hotels have wifi that always gave me fits.

Hey look at gas prices here! Apparently Cordele has the lowest hotel taxes on I-75 or so a billboard tells me so. Looks like the lowest gas prices too. A mere five weeks ago I was paying $4.00 in this same state! Think it will go lower? I expect a bump up soon...they can't go straight down.

The rest of the room? Shower squirts out some pretty stiff water. Watch those private parts. Couldn't adjust the shower head. Microwave, fridge and a very good cable selection. Better than other semi pricy road hotels. Minor paint peeling here and there. Towels aren't scratchy(Verizon dead zone advertisement). Off to dinner at the Golden Corral, another excellent budget type choice for about $ 11.00. The Corral is a buffet style restaurant.

EDIT- $ 13.00. Prices must have increased.

Conclusion. I don't need to spend an extra 70 bucks for a USA Today. Nor do I need a continental breakfast which I never eat anyway except for a banana and a small OJ. I've always been fond of that other place I cannot name. Maybe I'll bring my own pillows and comforter next time to make up for the minor shortcomings.

Hampton Inn. Now I remember. And yes this small hotel has a continental breakfast too!

Florida Visit - Edison Ford Winter Homes

I do not miss this place whatsoever after moving permanently in August. Back in the early 80's it was the place to be when I moved here. Traffic light count is a good indication of the congestion. In early 1980 there was only one traffic light in Bonita Springs; last count was something like 25.

The Edison complex along the Caloosahatchee River covering 14 acres is a site I've always enjoyed touring, marking my third visit in 28 years. For botanical fans the Banyon tree next to the Edison Lab is well known in many parts. The tree was a gift from Edison friend Harvey Firestone in 1925. Original height was four feet. The picture tells all. Quite an impressive tree.

Aside from many of Edisons inventions the gardens are an impressive sight. Plants and trees from all over exist including another Indian specimen or the Mysore fig tree with a pretty wild root system.

A few more unusual plants...

Lipstick Plant.

Chenille, also from India.

The homes in the complex from foreground. Henry Ford winter home(under renovation), guest quarters, and the Edison home. Other small caretaker homes also exist on the property.

View along the river with the original seawall...

A view from one of the cottage porches...

Headed home Sunday while planning a possible stopover in Plains Ga, home of former president Jimmy Carter.

Planning West Coast Trip

Out of curiosity I checked to see how expensive it would be to have my Ford crew cab shipped from the west coast to Atlanta in February. I have no intention of driving back to the east coast whatsoever. 3,000 miles is enough and I've never been on a coast to coast train before either.

Suprisingly quotes to ship the truck are around $ 1,000. I thought it would be more than double that. Transit time is 7-10 days, but I'm not sure where the start place would be yet. Phoenix, LA, San Diego, or San Jose.

The Train Trip!

I'm tempted to go off the wagon...hehe. Sounds like a blast but leave the smokes behind:( Actually there are many stops where I can smoke as many as needed. Two options.

1- TO Chicago, Washington DC, then Atlanta
2- TO New Orleans then to Atlanta

Let's say the departure date is February 23. Going out of Tucson the start would be 2:20 AM (Yuk)I guess pasenger trains don't run into Phoenix.

1- I've been along this route before. Quite a bit of it follows Interstate 10. Timewise it's shorter along with cost. Arrive New Orleans the following day at 4PM(36 hours) Transfer to another train that leaves out of ...Forget that, see pic.

2- New country to see! Well almost. I would rather go through the Rockies. Never been to Chicago either. Probably colder than ...that time of the year.

Another option. Leave from Northern Cal after the Pebble Beach ProAm and really go through the Rockies! Not sure how much I would enjoy being on a train for five days though. Actually five transfers. Hmmn, Looks like the snow prohibits that particular route during the winter. I'll have to keep digging, otherwise it wants to take me up to Washington state and across the northern US border that includes a long bus ride as well.

View the lodging arrangements....tiny, tiny cabins.

http://www.amtrak.com/trainTour/superlinerSLEEPER_CONTROLLER.html

Road Trips - Pebble Beach CA

It's official! I'm off to Monterey the second week of February 2009.

What for?

What else?

Reservations in Salinas at the Courtyard Salinas Monterey February 11-14, 2009.

I've always wanted to see this tournament. More so after I dominated the old Sega Pebble Beach golf links game. Each hole is memorized. I can almost remember every break on every green. I've had hole in ones on every par three including the 17th with a three wood. Sure these guys today are hitting seven irons! Other notable scores include a double eagle on #2 with a three wood off the fairway. My best scores are 56 a few times and a number of other scores under 60.

I'll have to dig out that old Sega if I didn't toss it after the recent move. Or maybe pick up another game?