Daytona Beach hasn't changed much except that all of the really cool, small beachfront hotel/motels are being exterminated and replaced with high-rises. Kind of reminds of what happened in Gulf Shores ALA so many years ago. Of course, the high-rise condos might cut down on the trashy elements that are still hanging on in DB. Tattoo parlors, bikers and junkies still remain, but for how much longer, no one really can say.
On a more at home note, we are getting the pool ready for the summer. We have been chlorinating and vacuuming it out. Everytime we are in the backyard however our somewhat loud neighbor pops her head over the fence to say "Is it ready yet?" We have been saying no, but soon she will be pumping us for an invite, especially for her three kids and her lice-headed kids she babysits. Ewww...
Let's see, went on a 16 mile thereabouts bike ride on Friday. It was okay. That's about all I can say about it.
Martin's aunt and uncle are coming for a visit this weekend. I am very excited about that. We're going to take them to downtown Chicago and show them a good time I hope. They will be officially the first people to stay in our new guest room. Red walls and all.

Back from Port St. Lucie and a visit for Mother's Day with Martin's parents. Lovely time and spent most of it in the pool.
We flew in through Orlando and forgot how much i enjoyed that airport. Are planning a trip this coming weekend to finally go to EPCOT with a day in Daytona Beach. So, if anyone there wants to get together with us for dinner or whatever, drop me an email.
Parents are somewhere in Italy I hope. Haven't heard from them since their initial email. I am sure they are having a blast.
Went on an 8 mile bike ride (maybe less not sure) with Karin last Wednesday. I think my butt is still sore. It reminded me how little I liked bicycle seats. Ouch! We did se deer and chipmunks and some unidentified water animal. I was hoping for a platypus, but it was probably an otter or beaver or some other non-threatening Midwest animal. These people would have no idea how to react to an alligator. Although it sounds like that has been troublesome in Florida where people should know how to deal with them...

I think I let the ball drop on too many friendships. I seem to always be a floater, bobbing around everyone else's lives, popping in for a while and then floating away, sometimes on a fast current, sometimes caught in a whirlpool. Eventually I float away and I'm powerless to swim backwards towards them.
There is often a reason why these friends aren't still around. Darned if I know why. I imagine that if we did meet again we would have precious little to talk about other than "remember whens" and "what ever happened to."

I need to get the grass mowed.

We returned last Wednesday from 5 lovely days in and around Sydney Australia. We flew first class from LAX to Sydney and actually got a good amount of sleep. We stayed close to Circular Quay (pronounced Key) and explored the city by foot and ferry. Our room at the Sydnet Harbor Marriott overlooked the Sydney Opera House and we could walk to the Historic area known as the Rocks and the Royal Botanic Gardens.

We took a ferry to Manly Beach and walk the Manly Scenic Walk, which is about 10 km or 6 miles long. It winds around the bay, up and down cliffs, through bush and beaches. We had our lunch of Subway sandwiches about half way through and enjoyed views of the bay from neat little lookout points. It was tiring but we did it. Ithink it's easier hiking when you're not in the mountains, but I'm a wimp and out of shape.

We took a day trip into the Blue Mountains where there is a blue haze over everything because of all the eucalyptus trees and the oils from their leaves. We went to one of Martin's fond memories from his trip 13 years ago - The Koala Park Sanctuary. We got to pet koalas and feed kangaroos and meet a wombat named Matilda. The kangaroos eat cheerios if you were curious. The bus then took us to a lookout place called, appropriately enough, Scenicworld. There is a cable car ride across a big valley and a scenic railway that takes you part way to the bottom of the valley on a 52 degree angle. It's more like an elevator or lift really.

We were also in Sydney for ANZAC Day, where all the veterans and just about every bagpipe player int he world it seems, gather to march down Geroge Street. It was a day, as MArtin put it, "You get to see the best and worst of Australia." The worst being everyone drunk on their knees by 8PM that evening. Girls crying into cell phones, fourteen people piling into a cab, you name it.

We flew home on Wednesday at about noon and arrived in LAX at about 930AM the same Wednesday. It's amazing flying across the date line.


Scenicworld
Manly Scenic Walkway
Koala Park Sanctuary