So here is a picture of one of my favorite signs in the world. I may not have taken the kind of pictures that give you insight into the psychic depths of my time at home, but by hokey, I had the wherewithal to warn you against feeding or molesting the crocodiles at the Quiet Gardens:
I sat here on the bank of the canal for some time, listening to the ducks and geese and other birds, do their thing, but I have to admit I did get a little nervous about sitting right there where the endangered reptile could burst out of the water and drag me to a watery grave and there would be nothing anyone could do about it.
Idyllic, yes? Until the crocodile comes to get you.
I didn’t see any crocodiles but I did see many many iguanas. This one stood still long enough to pose for a picture before it went back to ravaging the rare native flora.
I will whip you with my pointy orange tail if you get too much closer, missy, your silly journal entry be damned.
Here are the old cages where they used to keep, like, wild cats. Poor lions and tigers. I hope they got more spacious digs after they had to evacuate in the seventies. The murals weren’t there when the cats were, those came later. It takes a dedicated muralist to decorate a lion’s tiny oppressive cage.
And here is a lovely banyan tree. I did actually spend time with people on this trip, I assure you. It wasn’t all nature shots.
This is what heaven looks like.
Well, maybe it was all nature shots. I did do other stuff beside take pictures of birds, I promise. This is a heron on one of the lighthouse bike paths on Christmas Day.
You’re in Florida now, baby.
Hey, look, a person!
Mom says hi.
And finally we have me sitting on the seawall by the restaurant that will sell you conch fritters and fried plaintains on Christmas Day. Marah gave us all matching shirts like the one I am sporting (along with a hat that has a mango on it). And that was me on Christmas!
Smiling the smile that you smile when the sun is shining and you are full of fried mollusk.
Not Pictured: Pretty much everything else, including:
Mom meeting Ashley and Tom and I at the airport with three ham sandwiches in tow.
Key Girl Christmas, involving excellent presents like that green shirt, delicious Middle Eastern food, very cute babies, and this inexplicable DVD that Marah had of a fire in a fireplace that played Christmas carols sung by…cats. Very weird.
The excellent Christmas stocking Mom made for me, emblazoned with my name and dangly ornamentation.
Ordering from Sir Pizza while on the road and still remembering the phone number out of some pizza-devoted recess in my brain.
Getting hugs from the babies.
Setting up the new hammock.
Me renewing my devotion to the stress-free holiday, vowing to only do exactly as I like from here on out.