Traveling With Friends

I know I haven't posted in 10 days but it has been a full and busy 10 days.  I thought I would take the time this morning before going in to work to catch you up on my activities lately.  It has been really busy at the campground but is gradually slowing down for the season..  We have had time to go through each of the cabins and do a thorough cleaning before new check-ins arrive.  This means getting into corners with a toothbrush, moving beds out and wiping down wood paneling with Murphy oil soap, cleaning lamps and ceiling fixtures, and well, you get the idea.  I have decided that the innkeeper life is not for me.  It's a lot of work with very little time to play.  Although that is what we did yesterday.

Thursday was a rare day in that we had no campers here and didn't expect anyone to check in until late in the afternoon.  So early in the morning we loaded up the kayaks, locked the gates behind us, and headed down to the refuge.  We put in our boats around 8am and headed for the orange trail.  What a rare opportunity for us to get a guided paddle tour with Steve and Jo who are so knowledgeable about the swamp and all its wildlife.  We heard the prothonatary warbler several times but only saw it once (and I was in the wrong spot so missed seeing it) but, I did get to watch a red shouldered hawk feeding a nest of its young.  It was a little cool early on so we didn't see many alligators at first.  There were a few and Jo and Linda heard one bellow.  Herman was close enough to see the bellowing fellow (he probably was the cause of the bellow).  We went through an area where the vultures were circling low over our heads and you could see lots of white feathers around, so I figure they had ibis for breakfast and were maybe considering one of us for their next feast.  Keep paddling fast here!!

The pace was faster than usual because Steve wanted to take a loop trail down the orange trail and see some areas he can't get into with the motor boat.  Of course, with the heat you have to be sure and keep hydrated along the way.  And for those of you who are wondering, there are restrooms along the way.  I didn't stop to try this one out, but I'm sure you need to check for snakes before sitting down.  Lucky for me I still have the bladder they issued me in the navy.  It's good for about 4 hours which meant I made it back to the campground just fine.  The entire paddle was a little over 7 miles and by lunch we had returned, cleaned and re-stowed the kayaks and equipment, and everyone was resting.  A great trip!!!

Speaking of trips, this weekend was full of travel.  My buddy Ann, who has just retired from the school system in Nashville, came down this way for a beach holiday.  I drove over to St. Marys, GA where she was staying in a nice B&B for a few days.  We had a delish dinner at Seagle's Saloon and got caught up with things Saturday night.  Then Sunday morning we got together and drove up to St. Simons Island to see some of the sights.

 We did a few geocaches also and I introduced Ann to the new Geocaching Challenges which she really loved.  I think she completed 7 challenges while she was here.  We did a lot of running, squeezed in some shopping, and finally on Tuesday when I had to get back to work Ann moved to Amelia Island where she could just sit at a table by the beach and relax.  I think she's getting the hang of this retirement thing now.  I have a few pictures to add to this post but will have to wait for some that are on others' cameras.  Check back later for those.

My Boob Job

Sorry I haven't written in nearly 2 weeks.  I've been a little busy.  Seems I have been remiss in my yearly visits to the women's clinic and this year I decided to catch up.  But what caught me by surprise was a couple of dark, shady characters that appeared mysteriously in the mammogram of my right boob.  Probably nothing the medical folks kept saying, but still we should look a little closer.  So I scheduled an ultrasound of my boob.  Imagine my surprise when I learned they now use a warm gel on the ultrasound wand.  Well, that picture didn't tell them anything more so the next best thing is just to go in a take a piece of it.  And then?, I asked.  Well, then we will know what it is and how to proceed. 

I just love an answer that really isn't an answer.  But now I had to know so I scheduled the biopsy for this week.  I mean, heck, I've got a retirement schedule all planned out, well at least the next 6 months, and no where on that schedule did I have any down time for medical procedures.  It was killing me to have to wait a week.  But I was confident.  There's no history of breast cancer in my family.  And back in 1992 I had a large lump removed from the same breast which turned out to be a benign non-cancerous tumor.  Besides all that, I just kept telling the medical staff I am old with fat, scarred boobs.  They are overreacting.  No, they said, we are erring on the side of caution.  Whatever.

So Monday my camper buddy Linda and I got lost and found again in Jacksonville traffic but somehow got to the clinic on time.  I will say that the staff I dealt with at Jacksonville Memorial were all very kind and understanding and did try to make the whole ordeal as pleasant as a thing like this could be.  But you try laying on your side with foam wedges shoved up into your back and your arm raised up and behind your head for 45 minutes while 2 grown women are sticking needles into your boob and pressing down really hard ("Sorry Dear but we need to get a really good image of what we are aiming at.")  When it was over and the doctor said I could put my arm down I had to confess that I couldn't feel my arm anymore.  The tech was kind enough to move it down to my side for me. 

Then they closed the holes with surgial super glue, bound me up in an ace bandage and stuck ice packs in the bandaging to keep the swelling down.  And then I went home to wait.  I pretty much just layed around for 2 days feeling like the loser in a bad bar brawl.  But this morning I went on over to the office and back to work.  We had to wash windows and screens in all the bathrooms and the empty cabins before the weekend rush hits.  About half way through the morning the nurse called with the biopsy results:  BENIGN Fibroid Adenomas.  Non-cancerous.   Guess that means my original retirement schedule is still on target.  Still, I do have some left overs from this:

2 small scars from where the biopsy needle was inserted.  I doubt I'll be showing those to anyone.
Lots of bruising but not as bad as I thought it would be
2 titanium tags

If you're doing a WTF reaction on that last one you're not alone.  I didn't read anything about that in the literature I was given.  But I have since learned that it is standard procedure for any breast biopsy now days.  Basically the doctor inserts this tiny titanium marker into the site where the mystery meat is removed from so that should they need to go in and remove that area they don't have to look too hard for it.  In my case there were 2 mysteries so I have 2 new pieces of hardware.  One is shaped like the breast cancer ribbon and the other looks like half the ribbon.  And they are mine to keep forever.

So of course I wondered if I would have to explain setting off the metal detectors at the airport.  My mind came up with some really strange scenarios there.  But it seems that so far they don't set off the systems in use today.  In a way I'm kind of disappointed. 

And that's the end of my boob job story.  I hope it made you laugh or at least smile.

Alligator Alley

Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny day here in south Georgia, although it wasn't a sunny start for me.  Seems the little orange car of my dreams, my HHR, had a mind of it's own and would not turn off.  Yep, you heard me.  I pulled up in front of the store and put her in park but she wouldn't let me turn the key to kill the engine.  Drat.  So I spent my morning and  a good bit of this month's budget at the Chevy dealer having a new ignition switch installed.  Not that I'm happy to spend that money but I am happy to keep the girl running as she is my favorite car of all the cars I've ever owned (plus she's paid for and gets 26 mpg) and she sure is handy to pull behind Seeker. 

By noon I was back to the park and ready to take off to the swamp with fellow workcampers.  It has been at least a month since I last paddled the swamp so I was really excited.  The weather was sunny and low 80s so just great for paddling and for seeing gators.  And boy did we see them!  53 was the last of my count although I think Herman counted more.  We saw a lot of little ones (4-6 feet) and a couple of really bigs ones. 

Now before you think this is crazy (ok, maybe it is) let me tell you that these guys are pretty much tolerant of all the boats on the swamp.  We were out there as well as other kayakers and a couple of canoes and several tourist boats.  The poor gators don't get any rest from the gawkers.  If they think you're staring at them too long they just submerge or sometimes they only have their head or their tail above water.  And they are really good at hiding in plain sight.  After a while you start to think every log is a gator. 

We also saw a large group of Great Egrets on the Chesser Prairie and I got a good shot of one of the resident Sandhill Cranes.  The recent rains have helped the water levels a lot so were able to get way back into the prairies and all the water lilies were blooming.  Also saw several stands of iris on the edge of the prairie.  The season is almost over for the everwets or candle lilies.  Their foliage looks like cannas. 

We put in around 1 and got back at 5.  We didn't have to pay since we brought kayaks from the camp but we still had to log in and out at the office.  I guess if you don't log your return they go out looking for you.  I should ask next time.  I hope there's a next time.  I have only 4 weeks left here.  I'm looking foward to heading north to see family and friends but I will really miss this place and the friends I've made here. 

On Watch With the Wilsons

A few weeks ago I visited Jekyll Island on a whim.  When I stopped at the visitor center I overheard a very knowledgeable lady at the desk detailing all the places on the island to see different birds.  She was quickly marking spots on the island map as she detailed the different varieties.  I kind of leaned in and watched and after the gentleman she was talking with left, I moved up and asked for one of the same.  Then I allowed that it was too late in the day to hit all those spots but since I was nearby I could come back another day.  Where?  Oh, in Folkston at Okefenokee Pastimes.  Really, she said, I know those folks. Well, one thing led to another and the next thing I know I was agreeing to volunteer for Miss Lydia Thompson on her Wilson's Plover watch to gather information for her grant project.  Yesterday was my first watch and I loved it.

As you can see in the picture, Mr. Wilson is very good at blending in with his surroundings.  I think the military guys studied him when they came up with the idea for camoflague.

Meanwhile down on the beach the rest of the gang was feeding on the jellyfish that roll up during high tide.  The orange-legged birds are Forster's Terns and the guys with the black hoods and black legs are Laughing Gulls in their breeding plumage (the hoods go away after mating season).  Somewhere in the crowd, but not in this shot are some Royal Terns which are easy to spot because of their bright orange beaks and their punk hairdo (sorta like woody woodpecker). 

Except for this runner

And these fishermen

It was just me and the birds on the beach for 2 hours.  The flies are beginning to be out and vicious.  I sprayed with Off! which didn't deter them, but the Skin So Soft did the job.  Glad I brought both. 

The sanderlins were enjoying the ample supply of jellyfish.  Glad to know there's a use for them.

Around 7:30 I gathered up my things, made one last check on Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, then walked back to the car for the long drive home (58 miles).  I was tired, sweaty, sandy, and happy.  This is my kind of retirement.