Confessions of a Grandma

As with so many old railroad beds across the country, Florida has converted a line to the Legacy Trail.  Currently, the trail reaches from Venice to Sarasota and covers ten miles.  To the south, it connects with the Venetian Waterway Trail, another ten miles that is divided on both sides of the Intracoastal Waterway. So far I have covered all of the Venetian Waterway Trail.   I have ridden about six miles of the Legacy Trail, making it to the Oscar Scherer Park, but that is trip in itself just to get to that trail without having to cross major highways.  I doubt that I will make it all the way to Sarasota on my bike unless I arrange some kind of pick up for theway back. I had a bike in Vermont, but I was not particularly heartbroken when it was stolen years ago.  Vermont is a whole lot hillier than Florida.  Also, it is so much easier to breathe at sea level, I swear! I am getting a lot of use out of my bicycle purchase.   Dona Bay ...

One of our friends here in Florida has been inundated with guests this year.  It's one thing when your children arrive with the grand kids for a week, quite another to have a constant line of in-laws and neighbors from the the north keep arriving to be entertained and fed for one week after another.  We, too,  have been bothered by unwanted visitors in our Florida home this winter.  We wouldn't mind a few human guests, but what we have is white footed ants. White footed ants are an invasive species that hitched rides here from Japan thirty years or so ago.  The have now reached full on pest status here in Florida and definitely in our yard.  They live in colonies that can reach into the millions-- yes, millionsss.   They appear to have no shortage of troops to send on scouting trips into the kitchen.  They love sweets.  Miss a cookie crumb, a tiny drop of orange juice, when wiping the counter and in they march.  Fail to rinse off a pla...