Happy Birthday, Buddy (Better Late Than Never!)

I don't think I've ever mentioned it, but Gary gives me a weekly allowance. It fluctuates in value, but it's always a decent amount. Heck, since I just sit here and don't do much, I really don't deserve anything. But Gary is a generous guy, and he knows I like to shop on eBay or amazon, or occasionally book a campsite for us. It's great to have the money to do those things. I had a couple of hundred bucks saved up, so I thought I would get Gary a late 60th birthday present. We were camping back in February when his birthday (and actually my birthday too) happened. There wasn't time to do anything special. Since summer is here and I've got plenty of spare time, I've been thinking about what I could get for Gary that he would really like. Recently, he's been looking at bicycles online. His old bike is a JC Penney model that he bought in 1980. He likes to ride on the beach, and those skinny little tires on his old bike were NOT sand friendly. He was looking at bikes that had nice fat tires, something that could basically float over soft or hard packed sand without digging in. A few days ago, he was drooling over a Mongoose bike called "The Beast". Wal-Mart sells them. They have 4" wide tires that are PERFECT for the beach. He bookmarked the page, so it was easy for me to find it when he was not around. I thought I would have to order the bike, but the local Wal-Mart just happened to have a couple of them in stock. So, I called the store, paid for the bike with Gary's credit card, and told them that he would pick it up. This morning, I told Gary that I had ordered something pre-paid under his name, and asked him to get it for me. He didn't ask what it was, but assumed that it was a DVD set that I had conveniently mentioned a couple of times. I can just imagine how surprised he must have been, when he got to the store with the order number, and the sales associate rolled that cool bike out of the back room. Gary is pretty hard to fool, but I got him GOOD this time! I couldn't wait for him to get home with the bike so I could see it in person. It's more awesome than it looks online. The bike comes in several colors, all of them in "flat" hues. I thought the black one was kind of neat. It looks like the "rat rod" custom cars that Gary likes so much. He REALLY likes it, and was TOTALLY surprised that I did this for him. I told him I used his credit card, but have already paid him back for the bike with my allowance money. We both agree that the name stickers on the bike look kind of cheesy. Gary plans to remove them. It would be really cool to get it pinstriped. He also said that the seat isn't comfortable, so I'm sure he will change that to one that's more "cushy". Other than that, the bike will be just perfect for his purposes. You can see in the pictures how different the old and new bikes are. The old one has served it's purpose, but after 35 years, it was time for something different. The new bike is about as different as it gets. My dog Serra likes the smell of the new tires. She's had her nose up against them ever since the bike got here. Gary does SO much for me. I'm very glad that I could do something for him. It really is better to give than to receive. This was FUN!!!

Summer's Here, And We're Not Happy

Hey, remember me? It's been six whole weeks since I last created a blog post. It isn't that I've been busy or lazy, it's just that there hasn't been anything going on around here that involves me. I've just been sitting here watching TV, or sitting here watching Gary work. I'm a GREAT watcher, but not too handy in the help department. My main job, (as it always is), is to provide a comfortable place for Gary to hang out when he wants to, and I think I do a pretty good job of that. I'm cool inside in the summer, and warm inside in the winter. Who could ask for more, right? Luckily, Gary seems to be pretty darn happy with me. It seems like years since our camping season ended. It will feel like years until our new camping season begins in the fall. Summers are extremely long in Florida. The other seasons flash by in a heartbeat. As the days have gone by, it has continued to get hotter and hotter. As you can see by the photo of the thermometer that is hanging on my stone shield, it was 101 degrees this afternoon inside the garage. It's been 98 and 99 degrees every day for a week or so, but today is the first day that's it's reached triple digits. Sadly, this is just the beginning of triple digit days. July and August are especially brutal, and those dreaded months are just around the corner. We HATE the summer months. On the opposite end of the spectrum, it's a cool 64 degrees inside of me. My air conditioner has been on 24/7 since the second week of March. Yes, it was hot even then, but nothing like we are experiencing now. Gary's been taking more and more breaks to cool off. My air conditioner is much more efficient and cheaper to run than the one in the house, so he's been doing the planning for his projects in me. Some of those projects are upcoming ones that involve some work on me, so I seriously doubt if it will be six weeks before you hear from me again. When something exciting happens, I'll be telling you all about it right here on my blog. Until next time, stay cool!