Ok, I Need To Finish Mine...

So here I am, tooling down the highway this morning on the way to work, and what passes me to the left? A Volvo P1800, much like the one I have been working on (and off) for years. After seeing this little 4-wheeled sculpture going down the highway, I realize that I really need to finish mine...

I have seen this '68' driving around about a mile from our house before, but that was about 3 years ago. It's nice to see it's back on the road again.

These things are so retro, I can't help but to like them...

Caching With Karen

Actually, we went geocaching yesterday (Saturday 1-24-09) after I got back from the CITO, but I didn't post this until today (Sunday). So actually, after I was done with the CITO over by work, Karen, Luann and I went out to pick up a few new geocaches in a park that Katrina had recently visited. Remember, click on any of the pictures that interest you, and it will open up into a larger picture.

It's nice to find a big-ole ammo box like this loaded with neat trade items.

We came across this gecko that was barely moving, and I guess he was on his way out, because he was barely responsive at all. We placed him on a tree branch and when we came back a couple of hours later, he had not moved and didn't do anything when touched. Looks like he's checked into 'lizard heaven'...

The views at this park were simply stunning.

And apparently, so were the trees...

Yeah, some great shots could be found around practically every bend of the nature trails we were following.

Looks like Karen found it!

And I did my part as a writing surface...

Yet another armadillo can be seen (and heard) plowing through the underbrush.

Looks like a good spot for birds to stop by for a break.

And a nice place to find a cache too.

Well, the sun is going down, so we will need to be leaving the park soon.

But first, how about grabbing another cache or two beforehand?

It was a bunch of fun and we got some serious exercise too. We need to do more of these with Karen because geocaching is a bunch of fun whenever we go out together.

How 'bout Another CITO?

This morning, we had an appointment with the Stevenson Creek to give it a cleanup, geocacher-style, since one of the reasons many of us love geocaching is because we get to experience the beauty of Nature. In order to help preserve this beauty, one of the functions geocachers perform is something called CITO (Cache In, Trash Out). This is where we tend to pick up trash and things marring the landscape on the way into and out of a geocaching area. Sometimes, if the job is big we call a geo-meeting in order to clean up an area that has seen better days.

The cleanup team, with the day's haul.

In the beginning.... We had quite a few kayaks and canoes show up.

One of the reasons we do this. So we can have pictures of critters like this.

Cleaning the mud flats before the tide comes in. We yanked 2 plastic lawn chairs, a wooden captain's chair, a wire mesh crab trap and about a dozen golfballs from out of the muck. Much of this stuff was sticking up and wrecking the view of the waterline and we could see it from the canoe/kayak launching area.

We were using our canoe as something of a garbage barge and resupply ship (new bags, bottles of water and cleanup tools), as it could carry a bunch of stuff back to the collection site for each trip. This was the smallest load we hauled back. At one point, we were paddling back on our knees because there was no leg room. I think that was when we were dubbed, "Team Tippy".

While we were cleaning up around this bridge, two bicylists asked us what were doing, then decided to help out with the cleanup. That was great!

My trusty geocacher-sidekick, "First Mate" Cusmith. Well, I guess I forgot to mention that I was at the CITO without the rest of the family...

You know, it figures that Captain Biggins would find a beer keg during the cleanup.

So, we had to call for 'Keg Transport' assistance.

The rep from the "Keep Our County And Parks Clean" department named "Team Tippy" the MVPs of the event for all of the laps we made in the canoe, bringing in the stuff everybody else had stuffed into bags and placed on the shore for us to pick up. Cusmith here was even awarded a brand new geocoin for his efforts. Way to go!

Yeah, we pulled a bunch of junk out of the area. The stuff in the purple cooler is actually a 10-speed bike somebody chopped up and threw off of the bridge. I guess you can say we found a 'Box-O-Bike'

And here we are, getting all of this stuff thrown into the back of the truck.

And the sad part about this is that even though we were here for about 4 hours and really hauled some stuff out of the water and the shoreline, we only put a dent in the amount of junk that could have been cleaned out of here. At least the shoreline looks better and the local agencies that sponsored this event were very pleased with how much we got done in such a short amount of time.

Beachside Dinner After Work

We decided to take advantage of a nice Floridian day and meet for dinner at the beach after work. Watching the sun dropping into the sea was a great way to unwind at the end of a tough week...

Remember, click on a picture to see a larger version of it.

A pirate ship sunset cruise was a perfect foreground for this picture. Here they go, heading towards the right...

And here they go, heading back to port...

The silhouette of a couple walking down the beach, made for a nice photo-op.

Now, I wouldn't say that a Florida Sunset is better than the ones we have seen in Arizona, but they are worth watching...

The restaurant is right on the beach, so we could simply take pictures as we sat there, having a seafood dinner as we enjoyed our "Date-Night" on Friday.

We figure that since Katrina and Bradley go out on a date every Friday night, we may as well do the same. It's been fun so far...

Ah, the lights are starting to come on at the fishing pier.

And that's about it for today. You can see a star is shining in the top-left corner of this picture. See you later Mr. Sun, we'll meet up in the morning when you come back around on the other side...

Talk About Getting Frosted...

It was cold this morning (for us Floridians). So cold, we actually had frost all over the place. The shingles on that roof are supposed to be brown, not white.

The strawberry and orange growers were keeping a vigil last night in the fields, trying to keep the fruit from freezing. Hope things turned out alright for them, and we also hope we don't have many more of these cold days, because we didn't move to Florida for the ice skating...

A New Space-Place

We finally scraped enough money together to buy a shed big enough to house some of our equipment and a carport system for me to use as a place to finish the work on the Volvo P1800.

First off, we had to move the boat and its cover. After that, we needed to put down a foundation, so the shed had something solid to sit on and was high enough to prevent rain from flooding in. So, we graded the soil and started placing cinder blocks. At this point, about half of the blocks are in place.

Yeah, it might be January, but it still gets hot here in Florida (79 degrees F), so we really needed that fan. The tan pipes are from the carport system.

Katrina's pickup sure came in handy for hauling 5 loads of blocks, and later on, a half cubic yard of fill dirt.

As you can see, ole Frankenswede, the Volvo P1800 on the right back there, is all ready to move into his new home...

The box with the shed is now here, so I guess it's time to start building the thing...

We started by laying out the corner sections and mounting all of the braces. The thing in the center is a wheelbarrow with several bags of mortar in it. We plan on using the mortar to level out the foundation inside the shed when it's done.

At this point, the walls are now done and it is getting late.

Yep, the sides are up too...

And now, the front and rear fascias are in place, to include the gable beams.

Time to finish the cross-bracing for the beams.

An inside-out view.

Time to finish up tying the fascia into the roofline.

Wow, the inside is a bit cavernous...

Almost done now, just need to finish the roof and trim.

All done, now we need to finish the carport unit and then start working on casting the concrete for the driveway. After that, lots of things will start moving in.