Yes, it’s been a while since my last post, a lot has happened since then. I dodged a hurricane, drove to California and back, ended up with an urgent care, and now have a lifetime friend visiting for an undetermined amount of time while we rip carpet out of my house. 2023 is off to a hell of a start.
I’ve been avoiding writing this post, and I’m not exactly sure why. Life has not been as mundane as it could be, but at the same time, I’m getting tired of Largo for the very same reasons I got tired of it before. Mainly, the social scene here does not seem to be agreeing with me. It never has. I have a great house, great place to stay, near the beach, and I can’t seem to ever get things to where I would actually like staying here for an extended amount of time.
My plan from the beginning was to come back here, do renovations, and rent this place out for top dollar. So far, things are actually happening in that direction. As it turns out, a long time friend of mine showed up that just happens to know a thing or two about restoring stone floors, which is exactly who I’m needing. I really should be taking that as a stroke of luck. But that can also be an awkward situation down the road. When the work is done, it’s going to be time for him to move on, and I’m not sure how that’s going to play out just yet.
As I mentioned earlier, back in early October of last year, Hurricane Ian was supposedly headed straight for Largo. It was about the only time I’ve ever heard Largo mentioned in the news. I’ve been here for near miss storms before, but Ian was a real mind fuck for me. That hurricane was predicted to come right through this area with at least a 20 foot storm surge. The storm ended up heading further south and taking out Fort Myers and Sanibel Island.
A friend of mine who drove all the way from California was here at the time, and we were both wondering where to go for evacuation. I thought about going to Jupiter, where I could stay with a friend in that area. That was when the hurricane projection changed and headed more south and toward the east coast. So, we figured Jupiter might not be a good idea. I ended up heading to Arkansas, mainly because I have family there and didn’t see any projections pointing that direction.
After staying in Arkansas a while, I headed to California to visit and friend, a family member, and to spend my birthday in Monterrey. I do love that territory, and had a great time out there. After California, I headed out to San Antonio to participate in some volunteer work that my employer had organized. I thought it would be a great way to meet people I work with virtually, and they put me up for a night. Unfortunately, I was on a few hours of sleep after getting to the hotel at about 2:00 in the morning, and sleeping for a few hours before going to the volunteer event. I did meet my work people, but I was operating on fumes. From San Antonio, I headed back to Florida to catch a Reverend Horton Heat concert in St. Pete. It was a good show, and a great way to end that run.
Alas, all of the constant driving and partying and eating lots of seafood in California really did me in. I came back to Florida with my foot seriously swollen, thanks to a bad case of gout. I had to check myself into an urgent care and get that taken care of so I could actually walk again. I learned the hard way that I can’t travel as fast and furious on the road as I used to in my younger days. Getting old is truly a bitch.
2022 ended up being a whirlwind of activity for me, from start to finish. I got my current job back in February, moved back into my house in May after eight years of renting the place, narrowly avoided a major hurricane, drove coast to coast, and not back in the Hacienda tearing up floors. Let’s see what a wild ride 2023 is going to be.