Another January Scorcher

You just can't beat an early January dip in the pool, followed by a cold drink as the scorching sun dries you off.

While most of the northern hemisphere seems to be enjoying above average temperatures - ok apart from Colorado which seems to be getting the sum total of everyone elses snow right now - we here in sunny central Florida are enjoying it too.

It's a bit different here though as we're not 10 degrees or so above the average 30's and 40's of the rest of America, but 10 degrees above the 75's that are normal here at this time of year. According to the National Weather Service site, it's currently 82F in Sebring and it's 5:10pm. I think we made the right decision on Thursday to buy a place in the park and I'm not looking forward to leaving in just over 2 weeks time.

This morning we went out on our golf cart to take a few pics to send to someone who is thinking of coming here with a view to buying a place in the park. I thought I'd share a few here.

This one shows one of my fav places in the park as it's where I go to watch sunsets and generally find solitude and a wonderful sence of peace.

The trail path (in white here) runs along the edge of Lake Josephine and I've been along it's length many times on foot, in our golf cart and on my bike.

The pier can be seen through the trees and provides both an aesthetic addition to the view as well as a practical addition to the lake side.

Just to the left of this location are the bocce courts where I've spent many fun hours over the last few months. You can imagine the beautiful views of the lake we get as we play this strange and addictive game. There are periods of time when one is not actually involved in game play and standing looking over this lake is a great way to pass the time.

This shot shows the 3 bocce lanes and the lake is over to the left. I tend to only play on a Sunday as games during the week start at 9am !

I didn't retire to get up and play games at 9am !!!

The exceptions to this 'rule' are the monthly Men v Women games when I feel it is my duty to turn up and help my fellow males to whip ass - in the nicest friendliest way of course.

Sadly last time, WE were the ones to get our butts smacked although we did have a storming comeback which left the ladies winning by the lowest margin possible. I get one more chance to take part in a 'battle of the sexes' game before I leave for the UK so fingers crossed that normal service will be restored on Wed 17th.

By now it was almost noon and a good time to get a shot of the main pool before hordes of residents came out to take advantge of it in the afternoon.....and they did.

By 2pm it was 85F and the pool was the best place to be in the park. Even with air conditioning, it was too hot to do much of anything indoors and so when we returned then, the pool and surrounding areas were as busy as I've seen them here.

But at noon is was a different scene and apart from a couple of people chatting over on the far side, we had the place to ourselves.

This is not the only pool in the park. Oh heavens no. At the bottom of the gentle hill that we live on - well until we move into our new place of course - is a smaller pool which doesn't get as much attention and long may this continue as it means we have it almost to ourselves.

As this photo shows, it may be smaller than it's big brother, but it's still sizeable by any standards.

When Deb/Den were in the park last April, this pool was their favourite as it was kept warmer than the main pool. For some reason that's not been the case recently and so we've not actually spent much time in it.

Another reason for us going to the big pool more often has to be the acquisition of our golf cart as it makes the trip there much more enjoyable - even if it isn't as good from an exercise point of view.

And on that note, I'll end with a photo which sort of sums up life here in Buttonwood Bay in many respects. In previous posts I've mentioned the use of golf carts and how they dominate vehicular traffic on the park roads.

Well just to the side of the main pool is a large concrete parking area - not for cars, not for bikes, but for, yep, golf carts. Enlarge the photo (just click on it) if you can't read the sign.

On days like today, which lets face it, are most days, the parking bays are all quickly taken up shortly after noon and you have to find alternative parking areas.

When you're approaching 80 or 90 or even older, and fancy a dip in the pool, this lack of parking space isn't a good thing. I'm always pleased to see that no one plays the 'disabled badge' card to get a spot closer to the pool and the policy seems to be that everyone is equal in here - equally old and infirm that is !!

Me ? Oh I just prop my skateboard up against the wall and I'm sorted.