here and gone

 

It was Ellie's last morning here in the Keys, so we took
a walk on the bridge for the last time.  She needed
to stretch her legs before a long day of travel.

The boys left early to go fishing with Dick.  He has a
commercial license, and sells his fish, so the boys
could catch all. day. long. Until the sharks or
barracuda came in to snack.

Dick caught a beautiful mutton snapper.  That was a biggin'!
Be jealous, Brian Meek, it's allowed ;)

It is quite the logistical feat getting Momma down here for a break from the Indiana winter weather.
On the morning she left with Ellie as her escort, Stephanie flew from Albuquerque, NM to Indiana to house sit for Mom.  Ellie left the car, texted Stephanie the location where it was parked, and then she arrived in INDY, she took the car back to Mom's so she had transportation for her stay in Indiana.  Then this morning, Stephanie flew from Indianapolis to Key West so she could get her turn on Marquesa and in the sunshine. 



Once we got to the airport, Stephanie was already there and waiting
for us.  She gave Ellie the location of where she left Mom's car
at Indy, then we bid our goodbyes to Mom and Ellie as they
boarded their flight to return back home.   In a week, Stephanie will
catch a one way flight back to NM. That's some logistics!
In the meantime, we have some fun in the sun waiting on us!

 

After we finally found a parking spot, we decided to spend the afternoon
downtown.  The first stop was to check out the view from the top
of La Concha hotel.  It was a gorgeous day in paradise.

Some things are a given when visiting Key West.
1.  You will see roosters and chickens all over town.
2.  You will see sunburnt drunk cruise shippers
doing the pub crawl up and down Duval Street.
3. No day is complete without a stop at the Kino's
Sandal Factory on Fitzgerald.  Best. sandals. ever.
Today, Stephanie bought five pairs!

Why did the chicken cross the road?

To get to the rooster on the other side!

Two more things are a given when we go down
Duval Street.  We'll stop at Fogarty's where the snapper
sandwich is as big as your head (I had the oriental chicken
salad). AND, for dessert, we never miss our favorite
gelato place.  I don't know the name, but there is an
orange canopy out front!  I had the dulche de leche,
and Stephanie had raspberry cheesecake. Delish :)

I have to say that Key West, though, is not the Florida Keys. Key West is all about the tourists.  The Keys are all about the water.  Life here is all about the water.  It's snorkeling, scuba diving, and boating; whether fishing, sailing, or gunk-holing around on a kayak or in a dinghy.  It's hot humid days, and warm breezy nights.  It's toes in the water and a cold drink in your hand.  It's days of being busy, and doing nothing at all.  I don't know where the time goes.  Pretty soon, it seems I'm watching another sunset, it's the end of another week, and already another month.  Life is just good.  I'm a lucky girl, indeed.

We got back to Marathon just in time to stop at Mom and Pop's to pick up my extra bed linens I had stored there.  I didn't have time to get the guest bed made up before I left this morning.  It's a good thing Stephanie is like family; she can make up her own bed, lol.

 

We barely had time to drop off her duffel bag at the boat before we met
 the gang at Iguana Grill for Friday Night Pizza Night.

Alexa brought Adolph along, as he loves pizza.  Willis can't stomach
it; the tomato sauce gives him tummy troubles.

Like Simon, Adolph was making the rounds begging off of everybody.
A piece of pepperoni here, a bite of crust there.  Alexa must have turned her
head, because before long, Adolph was in to Peter's Corona.  He said
he was just after the lime.  I don't think he's to be trusted.

After dinner, we all met back at Lucille and Ken's place for dessert and dominoes.  The girls had made chocolate truffles, red velvet cupcakes, and brought out all the fixin's for the chocolate fountain.  I ate my weight in chocolate covered strawberries, bananas, and bacon!  I was so stuffed, I had to pass on the chocolate pudding shots with whipped cream.  I just. could. not.  For now, the bird remains safely in Alexa's arms.  I don't know what adventures she has planned for him for the weekend, but she will be challenged for the last time on Monday evening when we all get together again.  Will Adolph remain in Florida, or will he be flying to Long Island?  Stay tuned!  G'nite, y'all!