R and R

Back in the 60s and 70s when I was in the Army, soldiers who served in Vietnam on an unaccompanied tour of duty lasting 12 months would get to leave "country" for a week or 2 of R and R, rest and relaxation, often in Hawaii where they would meet up with friends "half-way" or just go wild and have fun. Not that Nantucket is in any way like Vietnam nor is it an unaccompanied tour, but when we are "On island (in country)" we are away from our usual amenities and many of our great friends. This week we took " R and R" in Florida. My son and his wife, the "Notable Nibbler" visited us in Nantucket for a week just before we flew home with them on JetBlue to Ft. Lauderdale. They had their car parked there and we drove to Miami where they live and we have a 2nd home. The following day the Kitty did a victory lap around Merrick Park mall (they don't like being called a mall but it is one) for some "retail therapy." That same night we were invited to Mike's in-laws/Grace's parents' home in Coral Gables for a dinner party. The food was delicious, the wine was intoxicating, and it was great to see everyone.

Since we had not seen Kitty's sisters and their families since we left for Nantucket in early June, we all went out to dinner at Maroosh, a middle eastern restaurant in Coral Gables, complete with belly-dancer. On Sunday we drove back to Sarasota in our rented Hyundai Sonata, a car I would recommend for rental or purchase, and arrived in early afternoon to our home. We had not seen it for a long time and everything was intact except for a couple of coconut palms that were still recovering from the freeze this past winter. I wish Al Gore would make up his mind... frozen trees in the winter, boiled Floridians in the summer....

I got a chance to visit a sick friend several times during our brief stay in Sarasota. We created a few special memories and relived some old ones. The Kitty and I also went out to dinner with friends we have missed. One night we went to the Bird Key Yacht Club, another to Carragiulo's Italian restaurant, The Bangkok thai restaurant, and finally Toojay's for some american food with a Yiddish accent. I had lunch at Demetrio's the best cheap italian-greek restaurant anywhere on earth and spent some time with another SWAT buddy of mine. And let's not forget my own "retail therapy" at BestBuy and Barnes and Noble, neither of which is available except on-line in Nantucket. We thoroughly enjoyed visiting with our friends and visiting our favorite "watering holes." At the end of the week we were ready to back "On island" after a great R and R. Thank you everyone who could spend time with us. If you get tired of the 95 degrees, feels like 105 weather, come up for a visit.