Spotted Three Things For The First Time!!

So, I spent this morning working on the completion of United States Federal Government forms OF 612 and OF 306, long and complicated employment applications for the Department of Veteran Affairs, here in Daytona Beach. Wish me luck.

Anyway, I was pretty stir crazy after that and I knew I could ebay search for appliances for The Good Attorney or finish up that blog about VDub Sunday, or list a couple more things on ebay, or get a couple pictures of those old "F" scripted bolts from that Ford GPW thejeepjunkie and I cannibalized a couple weeks ago.

But nooooo, instead I decided, at about 1:30 pm, to fix a couple Tommy Lee sandwiches, drop the top on that oleragtop, fill up with petro, head out to parts unknown, with the stipulation I had to be home by 5:00 pm. Since I knew I didn't have long to get wherever I was going, I figured I would get on an Interstate and drive for up to an hour and get off that expressway and return home. This is the most efficient use of petro, that while is still relatively inexpensive down here, $1.87 per gallon, it is still needs to be used wisely by this cash strapped longrooffan.

While I was stopped at SR 40 and US 1, smack dab in the center of the Birthplace of Speed,

(I must insert this here...if you click on that google link, that is a shot, northbound, of A1A, Beachside, and that Bonefish Grill is located less than 1/2 mile from the Taj Mahal)

I spotted this ubiquitous Harley and on the back, above the Harley Davidson logo, was printed BABYLEE and it made me think of Lil Mom and NotSoLilJim. Good luck to ya'll on the 12 of March. You see those two are going to add another girl BabyLee to their brood, rounding that Lee family out at 2 boys and 2 girls, well that is if you determine NotSoLilJim is not a boy.

So by this time I had yet to decide the direction I was heading, north on I95 or south on I4. The thought of that family and the time we had together last summer made south the choice today.

When I got down on I4 headed toward MickeyMouseLand, I still was unsure if I would stop off in cool Sanford or try to find something cool in Winter Park or go to that die cast distributor out on SR 50.

Yeah, conumdrums. conumdrums.

So when I get down to the Orange City exit, I also see a sign for this place. And decided that was my destination this short road tripped afternoon.

Now I love quirky road signs. Remember these on my trip through St. Augustine On The Road By The Numbers and this one someplace up in farm country?

Well, today I saw a couple more duesey's.

Yeah, sometimes, geography happens.

And because we don't have the smartest tourists in the world,

this sign is necessary!!

And speaking of smart tourists, I was reminded, once again, the only kids I still like have the same last name as me. Hey you hick couple from somewhere with an accent that sounds like it's from Deliverance, if that 8 year boy is crying and still screaming at the top of his lungs that he doesn't want to be here, take his bratty *ss out of this pristine park. Either that or "Give him something to cry about." Alas, I digress, but I mean every minute of it.

Now, I have lived in Florida, in total, for nearly 25 years and in all this time I have seen a manatee in the flesh, so to speak. And since manatees love the warm water at Blue Spring during the cold winter months, the state of Florida acquired the old Louis P. Thursby homestead and made it into a manatee viewing park and, yeah, it is cool.

You can see some google image search images of the facility here and here. It is a pretty awesome place. It was pretty crowded for a mid Thursday afternoon. Lots of kids, most well behaved but a couple that needed a good swift kick.....alright I'll let it go...and lots of just regular folks who had no trouble communicating with total strangers.

Down on that boardwalk along the clearest Florida water I have seen in quite a while, Blue Spring Run, there were tons of fish of all varieties. I am not sure what these are but there are about 24" long.

And as a representation of those communicating folks, an elderly lady, well in reality she was probably just 20 years my senior...ouch!!!...pointed out the alligator in the left center, and gladly, on the opposite bank, in this image.

Following is the view of a manatee at the Blue Spring State Park by an everyday tourist to this facility.

This one has a bouy attached to it. When I asked the couple next to me what I thought it was for, although from the Carolinas, they knew. It had been injured and when treated and released back into the wild, it is bouyed for a period time to monitor its adjustment. And they had been to this park for four years straight!!

Saw this gar.



And just a whole mess o' dinner.

This is the home of Louis Thursby.

With this cool manatee sculpture on the front porch.

Got to see another manatee and then

as I was headed back to the oleragtop to get back to the Taj Mahal and I saw quite a crowd looking at this

in the center of this image, just to the left of the branch is a wide mouth bass in the middle of her nest

and a couple others were trying to get at her eggs. I know all this as the woman standing next to me seemed to know all about the habit of a spawning wide mouth bass. I didn't bother to mention to her that wide mouth bass are really good on a plate, Ya know PETA, people eating tasty animals. Anyway, momma was fighting to keep these two away and succeeded.

Then another wide mouth bass swam up and momma was all cool with his presence. Our fish fact finder mentioned that the only way he would allowed in that shallow depression was if he was her lover. Those two fish then appeared to become amorous, oblivious to our presence. A gentile Southern woman, with a beautiful accent, to my left, commented " You know, it is not polite to look at this". Everyone, I mean everyone, burst into a hearty laughter. I decided to end on that great note that it was the excellent time to mosey on down the road.

But not before catching an image of this cool state owned truck. Even with the short roof, this truck is pretty cool.

So am heading home, trying to stay on roads previously untraveled by me and I end up on Dunlawton out at I95 about 15 miles or so south of the Taj Mahal. Now I have been at this intersection before and realize, as I passed Williamson Blvd. that I had not been on that roadway south of the Daytona International Speedway. So I decided to whip a Ueee and head back and get on Williamson Blvd.

As I was stopped at a place to turn into a shopping center to hang that Ueee, I noticed a 68 Camaro was stopped in front of me turning in that same strip center. While thinking it was cool, I really didn't think more much of it until a 72 Chevelle ragtop pulled up behind me and then I spotted this Dodge Polara coming at us in the other two lanes of traffic and turn right into the same plaza.

Could it be?

Yeap, I had stumbled upon a cruise in and, of course, had to stop for a couple shots to share with ya'll.

The first two are that Dodge Polara, and yeah, I knew what it was, just not the year, and have forgotten it by now.


While there were other cool cars, we all know what pedestrian Cameros, Chevelles 47 Fords, 66 Thunderbirds look like, well at least I do. Therefore, I wanted to share this with you

this Kaiser Frazer Henry J. I had never seen one of these previously, that is in person.

Pretty sweet oldie.

And check out the lines of that rear window. For a car designated to be inexpensive, that touch is unexpected.

This is a stock certificate for Kaiser Frazer Corporation.

It is pretty spartan inside, much like the olestationbus.

Pretty cool hood ornament also.

Interesting nose on this old coupe. And check out that chopped and lowered Chevy Panel Van in the background. Interior needed some work though.

And after that, I passed this three wheel fordor just up the street!! It is a Zapcar Xebra.

So the title of this post?---Spotted Three Things For The First Time!!---Manatee, Henry J, and Zapcar!!!

And all are cool!!

I have to tell you, it has sucked this past year, living literally day to day, at least I have a roof over my head, thoughtful and loving relatives and friends, and a cool blog audience. But I am hoping Change is coming and I continue to have Hope. I just pray, literally, it is soon.

Having all that and seeing the three new things I saw today allow me to

Celebrate Life.