A Buttonwood bucket list--or not!

January 12-15, Cortez, Florida--Buttonwood Inlet RV Resort



Note: I am behind on my posts.  This one is from last week—having too much fun to keep up!

It never ceases to amaze me how busy our lives seem to be even in this retirement lifestyle. I may be partially to blame as I always make a “bucket list” when we arrive to a new area and it seems like the longer we stay, the longer the list becomes as we learn about new things to do and see. Here is the list I made when we arrived to this area on January 1:

• Ringling Brothers Museum in Sarasota
• Sarasota farmers market on Saturdays
• Siesta Key drum circle on Sundays
• Myakka State Park canopy walk and airboat tour
• Powell Crosley Estate and Museum in Sarasota
• Breakfast at Ginny & Jane E’s cafe on Anna Maria Island
• Kayaking--–Two Sisters Keys, Little Manatee River, Robinson Preserve
• Fish at the Rod & Reel Pier on Anna Maria Island
• Historic Spanish point in Osprey
• Lunch at Euphemia Haye restaurant on Longboat Key
• Bike rides down Longboat Key and to Robinson Preserve
• Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota
• Ocean Blues night club in Sarasota (see Betty Fox and the Dirty Bastards)

It’s fun to have a list of possibilities, but the main reason we are here is to enjoy the beautiful nearby beaches, get some kayaking in, and eat our share of fresh seafood from the nearby fishing village. I also have signed up for Zumba classes a few miles from our resort which I try to attend four or five times a week.  Then there is also time needed to just hang out on our patio and socialize with the neighbors we are getting to know.  I had the pleasure of meeting a woman who used to teach English at a community college and learned that her late husband was a poet who was close friends with Billy Collins (one of my favorite poets). We also have gotten to know a couple of retired teachers who inspired us with their daily morning bike rides of 18 miles.  Another one of my favorite things to do in this lifestyle is to have a campfire.  This park does not provide fire rings, but they allow you to use a raised campfire bowl.  Fortunately, several folks have one and they seem to share in hosting “bonfire” gatherings which is something that makes me really happy. Everyone brings their own drinks and contributes snacks to share. Aside from getting to meet several new people, one night I even saw a small meteor shower while gathered around the fire. Love it.



We did accomplish a couple of things on my list this week. We made it to the Sarasota Farmer’s Market just in time to catch the last hour of it. (It runs from 7 am to 1 p.m. every Saturday.) We came to this market for the first time last year and agreed it was one of the best we had been to in our travels outside Oregon. We appreciated the variety of local goods like organic meats, bakery items, and some of the produce items offered (not all the produce is local--one of my common complaints of markets outside Oregon). The market has over 70 vendors with all kinds of things such as candles, jewelry, plants, coffee and teas, and live entertainment. The market is also dog friendly although we chose to leave our pooches at “home.”

The fresh flower arrangements here remind me of the ones we used to purchase every Saturday at our local market in Corvallis, Oregon—although I doubt if these flowers are grown in local gardens. I learned that the import of flowers from Central and South America has had a devastating effect on local growers throughout the U.S. Kind of explains why Costco and Sam’s Club can offer such inexpensive bouquets, so I try to think twice about purchasing imported flowers.



The vendor pictured below has an unique product that would probably sell very well in Oregon: hand-painted rain barrels. I looked into purchasing a rain barrel or two when we had our home in Oregon. The summers there are very dry and, as a result, our monthly water bills to irrigate our flower beds and garden were often over a hundred dollars. It sure makes sense to collect some of the rain  that is in abundance during the winter months for summer irrigation.



This double-decker coffee bus is another unique business idea. I love that it also has a rooftop seating area.  Seems like this mobile business would be fun to own if you could find the right spots to park it.



Like my favorite markets in Oregon, the Sarasota market has a variety of local musicians entertaining the crowds. This violinist was amazing. I wish I had thought to record a little video clip to capture his talented performance.



We came across this unusual performer who alternated between singing and miming on a busy street corner. He was also impressive at imitating a frozen statue—something I could never do!



Another fun thing to do in this area is to spend an afternoon at the historic Anna Maria City Pier. There is a lovely little beach here and a restaurant with decent seafood and cheap beer at the end of the pier.   You can even see the Sunshine Skyway Bridge off in the distance.





The pier itself is a popular place for what looks like tourists or people with young children to fish. There must be a lot of fish as the pelicans sure like to hang out here.







I also found a Snowy Egret showing off his characteristic golden slippers on one of the pier posts.



Just before we arrived in this area, I saw on the local news that Razorbills (birds from the north that look a little like penguins) had shown up on Anna Maria Island as a result of Hurricane Sandy chasing them out of their normal wintering spot. As we were walking down the pier, we heard people talking about watching at least one bird swimming underwater, but we missed it. Here is a photo from the internet that someone else took of these birds swimming at by the AMI pier. I wish we had been here when there were sightings of several Razorbills in this area.



But if you really want to see how we are spending our days, here is what you would be more likely to see!

Making the most of record warm temperatures

January 9-13, Cortez, Florida



This past week has brought perfect weather to Southwestern Florida with daytime highs in the 80s and nighttime lows in the 60s and relatively low humidity of 65%-70%. Temps in the 80s are not typical for this time of year; the past three days have all broken records by 1 or 2 degrees.  Anyway, we are loving it and have taken advantage of these warm days by kayaking here on the northern edge of Sarasota Bay and spending time at our favorite beach on Longboat Key.



Our first kayaking trip here was one we took right from our campground.  There is a narrow channel that leads out to either Sarasota Bay or Palma Sola Bay. With a tip from a fellow kayaker in the park, we headed under the lift bridge to Sarasota Bay in search of a small island that is a bird sanctuary.





Sorry about the less than stellar photos. I was too nervous to bring my new camera along as I dunked my previous one in the water on our last kayak trip. My plan is to get an extended warranty plan on my new camera from Best Buy which will cover water damage. (I have two more weeks to get it.)

I was a little disappointed to only see pelicans on the islands, but as we rounded the island I spied a flash of pink hiding in the mangrove leaves. Yes, it was my first sighting of a Roseate Spoonbill.  This is the best shot I could get with my old point and shoot. At least for now it is evidence that I wasn’t dreaming.



The only other wildlife sighting on this trip was a large group of white pelicans which are special because, like us, they are called snowbirds, migrating to this area from the north during the months of October to March to enjoy the warmer winter. I learned from a little research that these birds search for food in groups. Instead of diving for food, they swim on the surface in a semicircle and herd the fish to shallower water near the shore. I also learned from observing that they do not get along at all with the brown pelicans. This situation may be strikingly analogous to the local residents' attitudes toward snowbirds!



Probably our favorite thing to do in this locale is spend our mornings on a quiet stretch of beach on the northernmost point of Longboat Key. I like to walk the beach looking for shells and sand dollars while Vic usually spends his time reading.

And then every evening around 5:30 I am looking out to the western sky to see if the clouds might provide the perfect backdrop for a stunning sunset. On this particular evening, Vic and I decided to walk the beach directly across from us where Cortez Road meets Gulf Shore Drive. With the sunset possibilities only a mile away, it is almost impossible to stay in the park at this time of night.  Like looking for the best seashell, I don’t think I can ever satisfy this quest for the sunset of my dreams, yet each one is perfect in its own way. Namaste.

Settling into Buttonwood Inlet RV Resort

Jan. 4-8, Cortez, Florida



Hard to believe we have been here a week already today. We pulled in on New Year’s Day about 3 in the afternoon and there was a large party going with chairs all gathered around in the middle of the circular drive that is home to about 40 sites in the newer part of the park. There are no planned activities here, so the guests seem to take it upon themselves to organize parties and other events for the community.  Sadly, we busied ourselves so much with setting up that we missed the seafood fest and roast pork potluck. We did catch a little of the live music that surfaced after the meal when I heard an accordion and a bit of a German songfest. Fun.

Here are few photos to give an idea of what the park and its roomy sites look like:









The weather forecast the past week was much worse than reality. When we looked at the weather apps on our phones, they showed clouds with lightening bolts for at least three days in a row, so we expected the worst. With such foreboding predictions, we were surprised when most days turned out to be fairly sunny and pleasant. The temps did dip into the the high 40s at night, which seemed really cold to us, but daytime temps have mostly been in the high 60s to mid 70s and we have had very little rain. No complaints here!

One of my first tasks here was to find a good Zumba class. On Jan 2, I went to the local YMCA, about four miles from here, and attended a class that was rather abysmal. The instructor just seemed to be putting in her time--no enthusiasm at all. I loved that there was a diverse clientele, but three elderly (75-90 year-old) men in the back row mostly visited with each other the whole time unless there was a move that they recognized like the cha-cha. On my way home from this class, I stopped at a fitness center called Shapes and asked about their classes. The good news was they have about eight Zumba classes a week plus all kinds of other options, including Aqua Zumba, for the reasonable membership cost of $50 a month.  I joined and have been quite happy with the classes. Another bonus is its location, only 2.5 miles away.   I have gone three times and when I told my neighbor about it, she joined too. Okay, I admit to having Zumba fever and that is a good thing.

One of the most gorgeous beaches we have discovered on the Gulf is exactly one mile from our park, an easy walk or bide ride away. What do you think?

Tucked in along the way in the town of Cortez are bait shops, bayside bars, fish fry cafes, and quaint artisan shops.



The history of Cortez as a fishing village goes back to the Native Americans and Spanish who first explored the area. Later, the area was settled by commercial fisherman from Beaufort, North Carolina in the 1890s and descendants of these original families still make a living here as fishermen. Local organizations have been active in establishing Cortez as an historical landmark by restricting land use and creating a fish preserve on almost 100 acres of undeveloped shoreline. A local landmark is the lift bridge that takes you across Sarasota Bay from the town of Cortez to Bradenton Beach which is located on Anna Maria Island. The view from the bridge is also lovely as many sailboats make their home here at anchor in the bay.









Saturday was a full day for us as our friends Mike and BJ stopped by for a visit on their way back to Ft. Meyers after spending the holidays at their home in Illinois.  We just stayed here on our patio and enjoyed their company for a few hours before they headed off to Seminole RV Resort in North Ft. Myers, about two hours south of us.



Mike and BJ are responsible for telling us about this great little corner of the world here at Buttonwood. They had just spent a month here themselves so we had to find out what new discoveries they made while they were here so we could add them to the list. We also made plans to travel with them in a couple weeks to the huge Florida RV Supershow in Tampa—hoping to find some good deals on RV parks and other perks—not a new motorhome!

Fellow bloggers Jeannie and Eldo of Where’s Eldo fame are staying the month of January at the Sun ‘n Fun Vacation Resort in nearby Sarasota, and we are hoping to get together with them while we are here. I actually met them in a park in Missoula, Montana when we had about five days of full-timing experience. During a brief conversation with them while I was walking the dogs, Jeannie told me about her blog, and we have followed their travels ever since. Jeannie recently published a post about seeing an entertainer named Steve Arvey that I thought we would enjoy hearing if he was still playing in the area. As luck would have it, he was playing just a few miles from here Saturday night, so we headed out to Aces Lounge, a local bar  best known for its homemade Italian food and live music. Steve shared the stage with another lead man, Professor Harp, for a serious night of the Blues. The only bummer was that Florida bars still allow smoking-- hard to believe in this day and age. This circumstance cut our evening a little short, but we still enjoyed their talent.

On Sunday the weather was a little iffy otherwise we would have joined Jeanie and Eldo at a weekly event I am really looking forward to—the Siesta Key Drum Circle. Drum circles apparently happen at several places along the Gulf Coast, but the one in Sarasota is supposedly the largest in the United States. Drummers and dancers of all kinds gather and give homage to the setting sun well into the evening hours. There was also an NFL playoff game between the Seahawks and the Redskins that night, so with the questionable weather we stayed home with the confidence we have three more Sundays to make this happen.

Another Sunday diversion we learned about from Mike and BJ are two markets held here on Anna Maria Island: one on Coquina Beach and one on Bridge Street in the small town of Bradenton Beach (also a bike ride away). I am a market groupie. I love to discover local arts and crafts and food offerings that typically show up in local markets. 



Truthfully, I have been disappointed with the produce choices in almost all of the markets I have been to in the south as they are seldom local products, other than oranges and strawberries, but I still always want to go and check it out. The market at the beach here was very small with only a few fruit and vegie stands with most of the other tents selling jewelry or local art products. The popularity of flea markets in Florida almost always ensures that there will be a few table with antiques or thriftstore items and, worse yet, cheap goods from China. My favorite part about the Coquina Beach market was definitely its location. Gotta love live music on the beach with fun things for sale to check out.








I did come across a booth that sold something I have a weakness for—full circle toe rings!  I have had the same toe ring on my foot for thirteen years and it was time for a change. What can I say?

With the beach so close by, I am always keeping an eye out for potentially great sunsets. Of course sunset is also the perfect time to go check out the tiki bars along the beach—or the ones on the bay just a couple blocks from us.  It is especially distracting when I can hear steel drums or Jimmy Buffet style music luring me away from the campground.

I realize I run the risk of overdoing the beach and sunset photos. I will try to pace myself and hopefully include some good wildlife shots with my new camera!  Rumor has it that there are Roseate Spoonbills that hang out in this area. Our friend Mike said he thought he was drunk when he started to see pink birds flying in the pond in front of his motorhome.  Ciao for now. . . .

New year, new shelves, new friends, and a new location

 December 31-January 3, Zephyrhills and Cortez, Florida



In my last posting, I wrote about our Christmas present to each other: three sliding chrome Rev-A Shelves from Lowe’s to put in the cabinets above the loveseat that I use as a pantry. We got busy on December 30 and did the install. The biggest job for me was taking all the food out and cleaning inside the cabinets. As someone who loves to cook, I am guilty of carrying around too many condiments and all kinds of pastas, grains, etc.


This is not the right time of year for spring cleaning, but somehow the dawning of a new year has inspired me to do some serious purging in the motorhome. We try to do this task every few months, but I this time I wanted to add a modification that would help me keep our food items more organized. These cabinets are great for storage because they are quite deep (16" wide x 21.5" deep) but this depth requires me to stand on the loveseat to reach things in the back of the cabinet.

The shelves we bought displayed measurements of 15" wide by 22" deep. (Here is a link to the exact shelf at Lowe’s online, but they were 30% cheaper at the store itself.) They had one shelf on display at Lowe’s and I discovered the actual measurement to be 21.5” inches deep so we knew ahead of time that it was going to be a tight (any maybe impossible) fit. I only emptied one cabinet before trying one of the shelves to make sure it would fit.  At first we couldn't get the shelf to fit, but somehow putting in the backside first allowed the front to barely clear the front lip and voila—I was thrilled they were going to work.

The directions for installing the shelves said “even a caveman can do it.”  Well, Vic did not appreciate my sharing this with him, but he did admit it was super easy.  Basically, all it took was a cordless drill to secure four short screws to the plate on the bottom of each shelf.

To prevent anything from falling through and for added cleanliness, I added thick vinyl shelf liner to the bottom of the shelves. Before adding the rolling shelves, I had small plastic crates in the cabinets to separate different types of goods from one another. I wasn't sure if I would use these again but discovered that two fit perfectly on each shelf, so for the time being I am continuing to use these inside the shelves. (Although they detract from the clean look of the chrome shelves.) This project may seem like a small modification, but from my perspective, as the “head chef” of The Big EZ, this change makes a big difference in the daily task of hunting for ingredients.

On New Year's Eve day, we had a special treat—we finally met fellow bloggers Karen and Al of RV Travels with Karen and Al. Her blog is one of the first I started to follow when we were looking for RV parks in Florida last year during our first winter as full-timers. We had planned to meet in November when we were both in the Keys, but we left a little earlier than planned. Since their full-time motorhome park in Wesley Chapel is only about 20 minutes from Zephyrhills, I invited them over for an early afternoon New Year’s happy hour. It was delightful to get to know them in person and share all kinds of stories about our travel adventures. The time flew by so quickly I did not even get photos even though I brought my camera out on the patio to remember to use it. This oversight is testimony to how engaged I was in our conversation which covered everything from getting seasick while snorkeling to challenges in setting up a toad for flat towing. I love learning from others who have far more experience than us in pursuing this lifestyle. Thanks for a great visit Karen and Al.  I am hoping we can still get out on our kayaks together in the Keys later this year.

After our early happy hour, I had to fire up the espresso machine to get the energy to go to a New Year's dance at our park and stay up ‘til midnight. The park hired a “one man band” for entertainment  (I forgot to learn his name) and the evening was a sell-out for tickets (about 125 people).  The music was a little disappointing at first as he was playing a banjo when we walked in—just didn't sound too danceable—but then he switched to a guitar and played a good variety of familiar songs that were good for single time swing, foxtrot, and even a few waltzes.  



We were seated at a table with folks we didn't know, but everyone was super friendly and, of course, the cocktails and vino made things more festive as the evening went on. The park offers line dancing classes once a week, so anytime there was song you could line dance to there was a pretty big group up on the dance floor practicing their moves.  Vic surprised me and joined in on a classic: The Electric Slide.

The only downside of the evening was the fireworks that were set off in the park and at a huge outdoor party nearby at Skydive City. Our dog Jetta gets extremely nervous about fireworks, so we decided it would be best to be home before the local revelers set off an even louder display at the stroke of midnight. She was panting really hard when we arrived and needed some distractions to help her calm down. One fun result of coming home early was getting to watch (from our little patio) several skydivers do a midnight jump with all kinds of lights attached to their bodies and parachutes. It looked like a bunch of shooting stars all going off at once. Too bad there was no way for me to capture it on my camera— too fast and too far away.

New Year’s Day marked the end of our time at Majestic Oaks in Zephyrhills and a short road trip of 75 miles south to Buttonwood Inlet RV Resort in Cortez, Florida.

We discovered Buttonwood last winter, thanks to the sleuthing of our friends Mike and BJ who were staying at the nearby (and almost twice as expensive) Holiday Cove RV Resort. What we like most about this place is its location: one mile to some of the best white sand beaches on the Gulf Coast. We will be in this park for the month of January, so stay tuned for future posts that reveal why we have chosen to return here for an extended time again this winter.