Last Days

Last sunset

 
 
TripPix.



The jetpack guy

Friday was a beautiful day. We had lunch at The Moon Under Water with friends from the Ottawa area, who winter in St. Petersburg. Linda O. and I were high school classmates and we've enjoying getting to know each other as adults. It was a steamy day, so it was nice to be sheltered from the sun on the restaurant's porch. The food was very good: a half-order of fish & chips for each of the man, a salad for Linda, and the "lunch express" special of soup, salad and half sandwich for me. After lunch we did a little grocery shopping and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon on the deck.




Torrential rain

The biggest thrill of the afternoon was watching a guy with a jetpack high above the water in front of our condo. After a spectacular sunset on Pass-a-Grille, we treated ourselves to ice cream at Paradise Sweets. I've (mostly) avoided rich foods this year but I did have a toasted coconut cone yesterday and it was both delicious and easy on the digestive system. Bob enjoyed his usual butter pecan -- last one until next year.

I got my swim in this morning well before 9:00 a.m. but soon after, the winds came up and the rain began to fall. Bob was sitting on the front deck watching the weather but he came in suddenly when a sheet of torrential rain threatened to drench him. Gulf Boulevard filled with rain again, and we imagined the little Corvette here, with water over the hood. Glad we left it at home, safely stored until mid-April.

We used our time to pack for our departure tomorrow and had a late lunch at Leverock's bore Mass at 4:00 p.m. Bob put most of our things in a cart and filled the car, with only a few items left for tomorrow. We expect to be heading north early Sunday morning.

Eye Opener

TripPix.

On Wednesday afternoon when we were at Bubba Gump's for lunch, Bob's sunglasses fell apart. Bob dropped the lens and loose screw into one of the baggies I carry in my purse. The first hit on my "optician St. Pete Beach" Google query was Modern Optics on Corey Avenue, only a mile or so from our condo.

The next morning, a few hours into a warm, bright Florida day, we parked on Corey and Bob went into the store to have the screw tightened. Meanwhile, I took a few pictures on this interesting street and did a little window shopping. After ten minutes or so, I finally decided to check on him. I found him at the counter looking at frames. There was no charge for the screw repair.

Modern Optics serves a clientele from all over the country. I was immediately drawn into the discussion and started trying on frames, surprised that I looked great in a large pair of rectangular sunglasses, very different from the round red ones I wear now. The optician -- very knowledgeagle and a great marketer too --  gave me about a dozen pairs to experiment with, all of them wide enough for my broad face. Some glasses had flexible plastic bows, and almost all frames were available in a wide selection of colors and patterns. I was almost prepared to buy a pair on the spot.

We're very happy with our eyewear provider but we learned that our frames are discontinued models, one explanation for the low price we paid. I also discovered that larger "everyday" glasses look better on me than the narrow ones I wear now, and I know that the no-line bifocal would be better in one of the frames I tried on. And why wouldn't I wear a more "daring" frame now that I'm retired? I certainly don't have to project a "conservative" or "serious" image.

One more useful snippet of information: prescription swim goggles don't have to be out of reach either. I always thought they would be prohibitively expensive but that's not the case. I quickly found several websites with online ordering.

We wondered if a similar provider exists in the Twin Cities, and found several possible candidates, including the Spectacle Shoppe in Minneapolis. Because of our visit, we're thinking differently about future eyewear purchases now.