July 4th
Happy Independence Day!! We thought we would be leaving Green Cove Springs this morning, but there was a torrential down pour. It also took us a little longer than we thought to do a few of the chores we had left. We also had to bail out the dinghy, after the rain finally letup. Everything we now own, in the state of Florida, is now on this boat!!!

One of the things holding us back from leaving, was the car. We ended up selling it back to Cheap Cars, the place we bought it from. We didn’t make any money on the deal, but we no longer have a car that we are responsible for. Seems really strange to be carless. We even had to ask for a ride back to the marina. It was a great car. It had 129,467 miles on it when we bought it, and the same amount when we sold it. (the odometer didn’t work!) Neither did the cruise control, the intermittent windshield wipers, the radio, the lock on the right rear passenger door, or the nonexistent visors. The only things we added to the car besides miles and age, were a battery and a new belt. We called her “The Black Pearl”.

The most important thing that happened, since last I wrote, is that the engine is running wonderfully, and loves her newly polished diesel fuel. I think the boat is very thankful for all the attention she has been getting lately, and all of the upgrades! We’ve found that she was sorely neglected for the last 7 years. But she is ready now for some new adventures, and so are we! It’s time to move on and meet some new people. The people here are very kind, but I have never seen so many functional alcoholics in one place. What a sad life they must have!
I will dearly miss my new friend Roxy. I spent a little time with her today, and gave her the last of our milk bones. Last night she and Phil came by the boat, just about dusk. Several fireworks were being set off around the area. Roxy became visibly uncomfortable and started to shake. She finally crawled up into Phil’s lap. Who knows, maybe someday our paths will cross again. I hope so!

With all of the driving we have been doing, we have noticed that Florida must have about 30 different license plates that people can choose from. We have seen very few vanity plates, but a huge variety of plates, from the generic one with oranges and the outline of the state, to ones with different animal species, or sports, or sports teams, etc. We looked very odd, with our Washington plates. We did see one other car from Washington, and one each from Alaska and Hawaii.

The Dairy Queen Diet has been going very well. Dave and I have both lost 25 pounds. Now that we have no car, the chance of us getting to a DQ are pretty slim. We do have a half gallon of Rocky Road ice cream in the freezer, so we’ll have to see if that will keep our weight loss going!! The other changes we have experienced are big bruises and scrapes, cuts, and bug bites. And don’t forget the bumps on the head. They are the most painful!!

Well, today may be Independence Day, but we will gain our independence tomorrow. We plan to leave early, so I better get to the showers, and then to bed. The captain wants to get an early start in the morning!!

Love & Hugs,

The Admiral