I cannot believe it has been almost a month since my last post. Where has the time gone? I have been busy, I know, but it just doesn't seem like a month. I could tell you that since the busy season has hit I've been too busy to write, but, well, that is kind of lame. So let me just catch up now.
The first official weekend of the busy season was of course over the President's Day weekend. Everyone had a 3 day weekend and the weather was good. We were booked in every cabin and on that Sunday, normally a day we rest, we were all watching for folks to leave so we could run over to that cabin and start stripping sheets and cleaning showers. Check out time is 11 and check ins were due from 3pm on. Whew! By the end of the day we were beat. I know I did 6 loads of laundry that day alone! We did take Monday off but I was back at the laundry room all day on Tuesday. And while it hasn't been that steady, we've been pretty busy since.
Then we had an unpleasant surprise that required the digging up of a section of sewer line. Yes, it was all hands to it in order to get the line dug up so the guys could come in and take out/replace about 60 ft. of piping. We were trying to get it done in a 2 day lull in the middle of the week, which we did manage to do. Since that time I've also helped with filling the ditch back in, taking out the old posts that surround the cleanout area and replacing them with new posts which I will paint this week, and putting up new signage around the buildings.
Saturday afternoon we all hunkered down in our homes and rode out the storms. Lots of heavy rain, which we need for the swamp, and lots of wind which we really don't need. Didn't sleep much Saturday night but everything sure did look greener on Sunday morning. I went off geocaching in Jacksonville for a few hours Sunday and picked up a movie at Red Box on the way home. It's call The Big Year and it's really funny. It's kind of a parody about intense birdwatchers. Since we get some really intense ones here I thought it would be funny and with Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson it was.
This morning was warm and sunny so I thought I'd spend it at the refuge. It was the first time I had gone and really taken my time there. I enjoyed seeing the old homeplace and talking with volunteers that work there. The gators were out everywhere - even in the roadway. And the butterflies were just everywhere you looked. So pretty and so SPRING. Yes, I'm ready for spring.
I came home for lunch and to walk Gus. He's not allowed in the refuge and frankly I don't think he'd care for the gators. But they would love him - in about 2 bites! While I was fixing lunch I heard a loud noise and looked out to see the tent at the next campsite was doing a Mary Poppins. Carl lives in a trailer but he has (or I should say had) one of those nice tents that you use over your picnic table to keep the bugs out. Seems our winds were peaking in the upper 20 mph range today and after all the rain on Saturday the stakes must have loosened in the ground. So as I watched his tent floating up into the air, I wondered what I could do. Frankly I was a little concerned that if I grabbed onto it I'd float off too. Finally I was able to get it back to his campsite and tied it to a big tree and threw some large blocks on it. Yes, Gus was having a hard time napping with the wind rocking the rv. Finally around 5pm the winds subsided and I bet tomorrow one of our chores will be limb patrol. I'll let you know and I promise to blog sooner next time.
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