Cedar Key - Day # 15 - Chiefland and Drop Tops

I had this dream the other night in which I could not remember what day of the week it was.  I was convinced, in my dream, that it was Tuesday, when it was really Friday.....it seemed so real to me.   I joke about this all the time with people who share this nomadic lifestyle.  Sometimes......sometimes you do forget what day it is and you need a visual aid to jog your memory.  This ever subtle device works for us!

Our plan was to drive into Chiefland later in the day, so I went outside around 11 am to wipe the dew off the car and get it ready to take the top down.  While I was finishing up with that task Jimmy came by walking his dog and struck up a conversation about the Thunderbird.  He just recently purchased a 1956 White Thunderbird, but it was back home in Nashville.  We talked for about 30 minutes.  He travels part of the year, lived a few years in Wilmington, CA (next to Long Beach, CA) when he was younger, and is a writer by profession. He has published over 600 articles, and is now working on his first novel.  A very interesting guy, and one of the reasons I love this lifestyle.....you meet a lot of interesting people.

Friday it was time to make a trip into Chiefland where the BIG stores are to pick up some staples not available here in Cedar Key, and others that are much less expensive.  We haven't had the top down on the Thunderbird since we drove over to Lorretto from Amazon to tour the Maker's Mark Distillery one Sunday back in our Amazon days.  We left around Noon to drive in, and I got to drive!  We cruised north up State Road 24 with the wind in our hair, the sun at our back, singing along to a Neil Diamond CD.......years ago when we did a lot of snow skiing at Mammoth Mountain in the Southern Sierras we would sometimes ride with my Dad.  He also loved Neil Diamond and we would sing along to every song for hours......good times.....listening to that CD yesterday was like being in a time machine for 30 minutes.  There is not much to compare to driving a drop top down the open highway....I know you know what I mean.

Our first stop was the liquor store, Chiefland Liquor and Tobacco.  Since we left California we have been paying in the low $50 to high $40 range for Dewars Scotch....in Kentucky we paid over $48!  This store was selling it for $36 (in California we paid around $28)!  They also carry one of our favorite Pinot Noirs made by Francis Coppola Winery, which we haven't seen since Spokane.  While we were checking out TLE asked if there was a thrift store nearby where we could make a donation of some clothes she was no longer using.  He directed us back one block to Haven Hospice Attic resale store where they gladly took our donation......of course, we did a little shopping....TLE found a cool summer dress for $1.99, and I found a NIKE soccer rain jacket for $1.99....brand new!  Then it was off to Walmart to do more staples shopping.  While we were walking up and down the isles I noticed a trend occurring...every time there was an item on the bottom shelf, TLE (aka: the human scanner) was asking me to get it......I felt like I was back at Amazon for just a second......it also made me realize how stiff I was from my circuit training the day before.....:D  Need to do some more stretching.

We arrived back home a little after 3 pm....wow, where did the day go?  I took care of some insurance business, while TLE re-organized the pantry to accommodate the influx of staples. Around 5 pm I got out the Sea-B-Que so we could grill some chicken thighs, and roast some vegetables.

Once the chicken and vegetables were on the grill we scooted over to Chris and Cherie's dock to spend a few minutes capturing another gorgeous sunset.  People here just seem to know the exact minute they should be in position to watch the sun set.....when I first arrived at the dock it was just Chris and I, but just after I took this picture I looked around at the surrounding docks and people had "magically" appeared.  We all gaze at each other with this knowing look and smile.  Ahhh...the end of another great day in Cedar Key.

Thanks for stopping by!!