Today is Saturday.  Gary and Ken started the day going to a Golf Festival to look at and try out all the newest golf toys.  They had a great time.
After lunch the four of us went to E.A.R.S., Endangered Animals Rescue Sanctuary in Citra, FL.  It is open in a limited way, to the public.  We made a donation and signed a document that absolved the society of blame if we got hurt by the wild animals there.  Everyone brought a gallon bottle of bleach to donate as well.  This was used daily to clean the animal environments.  We saw lions, tigers, bears, a liger ( mix of lion and tiger) and learned lots about the foolishness of the humans who thought they could care for these animals and discovered they could not.  Dyan Cannon was one person who donated her wild animals when she could not care for them.  This facility neuters all males as they don't want offspring to care for.  Some of the animals had been abused, some were old and some had difficult diseases like rickets.  Some were imperfect because of botched human attempts at crossbreeding or because of inbreeding.  We learned that when a lion male is neutered he loses his mane (as well as a couple of other things) because the mane needs testosterone to grow. The work they do at this facility is truly amazing.
Dinner at the Ramshackle Cafe again, this time with Nancy and Ken.

Today had an interesting beginning.  At 5:20 in the morning we heard a commotion outside, banging and someone shouting what sounded like "fire party".  Actually, fire fighters were banging on the door of the coach next to ours and shouting "fire department".  Dudley and Baby were barking their heads off.  Gary put on his pants and went out to see what was going on.  Evidently, someone found a woman wandering around the RV park who only knew that her name was Donna and that she was from Michigan.  The firefighters, with two fire trucks accompanying them, were knocking on the doors of all RVs with Michigan plates trying to find out where she belonged.  I don't know how it turned out, but they left after about half an hour.  I hope they found her family.

Nancy and I went shopping for a dresser for her home.  The first stop was a regular furniture shop but the second one was a used furniture shop housed in a former church.  It was quite bizarre to see chairs, tables and all sorts of furniture for sale in the area where the altar had been, in the pastor's former office, and all over the church and the adjoining gym/meeting room.

Gary shot a 90 today, so I guess the new clubs were worth it.  He is flying high!!

Here is a sign Gary saw on the golf course yesterday warning about poisonous snakes and alligators!  In spite of the danger, he shot a 92 and felt moved to purchase the borrowed clubs that made this score possible.  Now we have 5,843 golf clubs in our possession!  Just kidding but sometimes it feels that way.

I had to give in and color my hair this morning instead of waiting to get back to my faithful, long-time hair stylist.  I learned that when L'Oreal says "light brown" it may not necessarily apply to me.  My gray roots are covered but this is a bit darker than advertised.  It isn't bad, though.

Tonight we had dinner at a charming lakeside restaurant on Weir Lake called Eatons Beach.  We ate with friends John and Bill who we had not seen in the many years since we owned travel agencies in Portland, and had a delightful time.  They promised to visit us in Oregon soon.  During dinner we experienced one of those famous Florida downpours.  I haven't seen rain that heavy in a long time.  It was kind of fun.

When Nancy and I were driving home from Jacksonville on Sunday we saw hundreds of motorcycle riders heading the other way.  It turns out that this week is Bike Week in Daytona where thousands of cycling fans meet, race and contribute to the local economy.

Nancy and I traveled to Jacksonville to visit our sister, Janis who lives in the River Garden care facility there.  On Friday we visited and ate out at a local Italian restaurant.  It was pretty cold so we had to bundle up.  Saturday we got to River Garden in the late morning and visited together until about 3 when we went to the movies and out for dinner.  It is always nice when we can get together.  We are planning a birthday party for Janis in Jacksonville on Nov. 14 for her 65th birthday so that gave us lots to talk about. On our way back to The Villages we stopped at a very unusual roadside store that featured ceramics of every kind and every size of metallic animal or figure in an outdoor setting.  The first three pictures above show a few of the thousands that were there.
Gary shot a 96 yesterday and took a shot of the alligator above, one of about 20 he saw on the course during his round.  Last night we had dinner at the Ramshackle Cafe, a local attraction in Leesburg.

Today was a typical day for us when we go on vacations, we just got into the car and explored.  I don't have any special photos, although there was an ice cream store shaped like a cone that I should have taken, so I just decided to add pictures of our favorite grandchildren, Macy and Evan, both 5. Macy is trying on Mom's shoes and Evan is dressed in his T Ball uniform.  Can't wait to see them both at the end of this trip.  Tomorrow Nancy and I are off to Jacksonville to see sister, Janis, so no more blogging until Sunday.

Today we went to Mt. Dora, FL, one of the higher points in the state at 184 feet.  Ken and Gary, our intrepid golfers, took time off from the links to accompany Nancy and me on a shopping and eating tour of the town.  We found a Husband Daycare facility but decided to keep them with us so they wouldn't get into any trouble.  Lunch was in an authentic British pub where we had sausage rolls, Cornish pasties and a ploughman's lunch.  After lunch we went to Gary's happy place, a bakery with giant eclairs.  Nancy is showing off her prized purchase, a pretty hat with a rosette on the side.  It was in the low 80's today, perfect for walking around town.  We ate dinner, leftovers, in the motorhome and now are dealing with a clogged RV toilet, a different animal altogether than a toilet at home.  Hoping for a plumber tomorrow.

The first picture is the cute sign outside my sister's house in The Villages.  Most homes here have them.  Missy is their adorable pup.
Would you put your outgoing mail in the above unmarked slot found at the U.S. Post Office in Leesburg, FL?  I did and then I had second thoughts so I went back and checked on it today.  Phew!  It was indeed an outgoing mail slot.
Yesterday we went to the Markets of Marion which is the biggest flea market I've ever seen.  You could buy everything from alligator skulls to fine jewelry.  Nancy and I were there for a couple of hours and only saw about 1/4 of it.  We both bought some Honey Bee Cream from an excellent salesman who demonstrated it on one hand and convinced me that it really looked better than the untreated hand.  As I said, he was an excellent salesman.  I also bought some fresh fruit, really superb strawberries and regular bananas.  We will go back for some other things we liked in two weeks.
I've started noticing lots of botox around here.  We went out for dinner a few nights ago and the live singer could barely move her face.  Also, her lips were rather duck-like from injections.  You just have to wonder.
Gary shot a birdie today!!!!!!