Home again

Ahhh... it's good to be back aboard Istaboa and amongst our friends here in Stuart.

The drive was not bad at all. Our new (used-2008) car performed very well. Bluetec diesel avg mpg was 34.8. Not bad for a luxury car. We Americans need to hop on the diesel bandwagon, these German diesels are far ahead of hybrids and fast too.

The John Grisham audio book was excellent; The confession. We're not finished yet, we almost kept driving, but we have another 2 hours left. Great story.

Oh!... the highpoint of the trip was finding a little butcher shop in Albany, Georgia (pronounced Awlbeany) named Carroll's Sausage and meats. Truly wonderful sausage. Must order more. All their meat looked very good.

Gonna get the Albury out tomorrow while the weather is so nice. We have some of our old Compass Cay friends coming by in their new boat and they are staying here at Sunset Bay for New Year's Eve.
Should be fun.

Soooo  good to be back. Hope we can stay (or leave and head to the islands) for a while.

Adios,

Istaboa

It's time to take...

control of our own destiny.

 Looks like airline travel will be snarled up for a while, so we've cranked up the car and hit the road. Tired of taking 2 steps forward and 3 back. We're on the way with John Grisham's new book on CD to keep Radar interested. He loves audio books. (he has no thumbs to hold books ya know)

Been a while since we have done a 1000 mile road trip in a car, but it should be easier than the AICW.

Thanks to friends who've decided to stay at our house for a while to make sure we have no freezing at Rocky Point; we leave with no worries.

Next stop Albany, GA, then on to Stuart and Istaboa.

Adios,

Istaboa

Christmas in Cuba

Looks like a blast... Come on President Obama and Congress, lighten up and let us go. We promise to spread more freedom than you guys have done in your recent ventures.

In Cuba, Christmas is often celebrated with festival-like celebrations known as Parrandas, especially in the town of Remedios. These celebrations include fireworks, elaborate floats, costumes, and parades.
This year's celebrations were marked by Egyptian floats, fireworks, and partying into the night.
Looks like our kind of celebration!

Cut from the Huffinginton Post... More pics here... Parrandas

Istaboa

So while we're stuck in Memphis...

Found an interesting YouTube video about dolphins and how they think.
Worth watching.

And we Homo sapiens think we're so smart. Maybe we've finally evolved enough to realize we have a lot to learn about our relatives from the sea.
Hopefully the crew can catch a flight out soon and be back to hanging out with these guys again.

And for those who think dogs can't reason, click here.

Smartest Dogs: Moscow Stray Dogs

Uh.... plans?

Of Mice and Men... And Airlines, go oft awry.
And seems they will stay that way for a couple of days.

If all goes as planned...

We have made it back to the newly polished Istaboa and sunny Florida... or at least in the airport and on the way.

Stay safe everybody.

Adios,

Istaboa

20 Things I’ve Learned From Traveling Around the World for Three Years

Woke up this morning to a light dusting of snow. Rocky Point is always so pretty with a white back drop... Plus tonight is our traditional, nontraditional Christmas celebration with the fam.... this year with a little snow.

Gonna go out to break up the water we put out for the deer... maybe a little corn also. I'm afraid we, as well as the rest out our neighbors, have domesticated the deer. Now we feel responsible for them.

The title of this post is from an interesting article I read this morning that you may enjoy.

cut from Gary Arndt's blog
http://everything-everywhere.com/


On March 13, 2007, I handed over the keys to my house, put my possessions in storage and headed out to travel around the world with nothing but a backpack, my laptop and a camera.
Three and a half years and 70 countries later, I’ve gotten the equivalent of a Ph.D in general knowledge about the people and places of Planet Earth.
Here are some of the things I’ve learned…

1) People are generally good.

Many people are afraid of the world beyond their door, yet the vast majority of humans are not thieves, murderers or rapists. They are people just like you and me who are trying to get by, to help their families and go about living their lives. There is no race, religion or nationality that is exempt from this rule. How they go about living their lives might be different, but their general goals are the same.

Interesting read that's continued on page 2.

Kinda funny...

Tru food —O— da Gods... Payne's Barbecue!

Since we're back in Memphis, we had to make a run to Soulsville's Supreme Palace of Pork.

Payne's BBQ.

I called Ms. Payne and asked her to —please— make us a large batch of her most excellent Barbecue Sauce, in both hot and medium temps. This is by far Memphis' finest Barbecue shop in a town full of fine BBQ shops.
Housed in an old gas station where Horton, Ms Payne's now deceased husband, started smokin pork shoulders and ribs back in 1972. His name is still proudly displayed on the shop's awning.
I've been a loyal patron and disciple since about 1975, it's nice to see some things haven't changed.
It was very nice to see Flora Payne still smilin behind the counter.

“Thirty-eight years you know; you can perfect something in 38 years—oh pray—I pray over this food. Bless it.” – Flora Payne

More on page 2.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Though we won't be warm here at Rocky Point, our warmest wishes are for you all to have a safe and joyous holiday season. Crew Istaboa will return to Istaboa and warmth soon.
Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Holidays... Be you Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, or any other religion or belief, our wishes are the same.  Whatever you prefer to be happy about is cool as long as you do to others as you would have them do to you. (unless you're into S&M, keep that to yourself.)


And of course, Happy Birthday, Jesus.

But, is it? Cut from all about Jesus Christ.
Was Jesus born on December 25? There is no evidence for this date. So then, who decided that Jesus' birth would be celebrated on that date? The early Christian church did not celebrate Jesus' birth. It wasn't until A.D. 440 that the church officially proclaimed December 25 as the birth of Christ. This was not based on any religious evidence but on a pagan feast. Saturnalia was a tradition inherited by the Roman pagans from an earlier Babylonian priesthood. December 25 was used as a celebration of the birthday of the sun god. It was observed near the winter solstice.

A Christmas video on page 2

Well it was 30 years ago today.

He said...
All you need is—                               He'll always live in our hearts.

John Lennon 

10/9/40 -12/8/80

Imagine.

But enough about his death... Let's celebrate his 70th birthday. (Man, we're getting old)

Happy Birthday, John.

Funny

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Gretch Who Saved the War on Christmas
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor The Daily Show on Facebook

Home for the holidays or....

Yep, another come apart...
Back in Memphis for a while and it's cold!!

When you have a minute...

Try this, it's kinda funny.

 

Not so funny....