Another little tale of the Back Street Bar. We went over at half time of the first big game on Sunday, and happily, they had the game on their tv. There were a dozen sitting at the bar, bur right in front of the screen, two empty stools. No one was watching the game. There was a bearded bandanned guy at the front, singing sad songs, accompanied by canned music and his keyboard. Nobody much listening, but he soldiered on...good voice too. TV muted.
So we had a beer, chatted with our neighbours a little (he's going in for prostate surgery soon), and watched the rest of the game. I was cheering for New Orleans, so sadly watched the game disappear in OT. After the game, we indulged in a pulled pork, beans and mac/cheese dinner, with a big helping of carrot cake to top it off. Several folks left, so a fellow down the bar moved over to sit beside us.
We'll call him DJ. Long hair, grey beard, bandanna, and bare feet. Drinking wine, the only one in the place not clutching a can or a bottle. (We were the only two drinking draft Bud). Long story short, he was a DJ on the local radio station for 25 years. Until he had Jesus come into his life. He couldn't stand the double standard of embracing his new faith while preaching the lies of the ads he had to read. So he quit. Had nothing, but believed he would be looked after with the Lord on his side. Sure enough, someone gave him a car. And he met a woman who has looked after his needs for several years now. Whenever he thinks he's down and out with nothing in his pocket, something happens to rescue him. He had a definite light shining in his eyes, and was pleased to tell his story, not trying to convert us, just noting our interest and telling his story. He has nothing to do with churches, because he thinks they are hypocritical. He lives his new life in his own way. He lives here in the park, and was doing his laundry when Gail was doing ours. She noted he was wearing shoes. Won't let him come into the buildings here barefoot, he smiled.
Yesterday, we drove for two hours to the south to visit Corkscrew Preserve, a wonderful cypress swamp. It was much different from our previous visit three years ago, as there weren't nearly as many of the usual birds and gators around. Not a gator to be seen, maybe because it's been quite cool. But we did achieve a goal we've been hoping for, getting to see the elusive painted bunting for the first time. Picture below. Enlarge on your screen and you'll get the full impression of the beautiful colors this little guy displays. A lovely sight, as was the hummingbird we spied near the feeder. We follow with a shot of the cypress swamp, through which we wandered on a very fine 2.1 mile boardwalk.
The park was hit very badly by Hurricane Irma in 2017, with two of their signature cypresses knocked over. Dozens of sections of the boardwalk were destroyed by falling trees, but a huge effort by staff and volunteers had it restored within several months. Perhaps the hurricane made some changes to the environment that resulted in fewer of the local fauna in the park. Not sure!
Anyway, despite four hours on the road, it was a worthwhile trip. Today we'll bike, maybe canoe on the Peace River tomorrow, and go to the Roadkill game across the road tomorrow night. Then we're outta here. Stay tuned. More later.
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