Monster Truck "X-TOUR" Fun! Fun! Fun!

On "Friday the 13th", Sonja, Don (a friend), and I traveled to the Germain Arena in Ft. Myers, to attend the "Monster Truck X-Tour". What a blast we had, watching the Monster Trucks, Quad-Racers, TRANSFORMERS, and having just down right good ole redneck fun!

The space in the arena is limited and the trucks certainly took up what space there was but the drivers are professionals and really knew how to entertain us.

Throughout the event, we watched big trucks jump, roll, clash and crash! We were pretty much deaf by the end of the two hour event, so, for future reference, we suggest EAR PROTECTION if you go! We certainly will take it the next time. You can buy it for $10 a shot! However, a beer is ONLY $7 for a bottle (oh my goodness!).

Well, anyway, what a night we had. One of the "hokie" acts was watching the Transformers battle it out! The perverbial "good vs evil", and of course, good won! The technology was fun to watch and of course the kiddo's (Don included) went wild!

Prior to the event start, the drivers and their trucks hosted a "Pit Party" of which we had tickets for and so we were able to get up close to the trucks and get to know the drivers a little. A great bunch of folks, and all of them very personable!

Sonja is jealous of the "tires and wheels" on the trucks. She loves her jeep but the "33 inch" wheels are not good enough for her! She wants some of those 84" ones! I keep trying to tell her the jeep will NOT fit into the garage if she puts those on! PLUS, imagine her getting into the jeep with some of her short skirts that she works in! Boy!

Anyway, I digress! I hope you enjoy the pictures and short videos. Sonja took some with her camera and I took some with my trusty iPhone. So keep the wind in your sails and never let a mad ardvark ride in the back seat of your car!

Till next time, Gator D is off to a wedding for one of the "drummer" friends that we have here on the island! We are blessed with so many talented musicians to listen to, and for us, this is a treat to see one of the best tie the knot to such a nice pretty lady! Congratulations Nick and Tina of "Deb and the Dynamics".

August 11, 2010 " Hot Days in the Glades!"

As I ponder upon this day I am reminded how wonderfully I am blessed. Today, many people were awaken by alarm clocks to face a day of traffic, stress, bosses who never let up, employees that are ALWAYS late for work, evaluations that suck, problems with contracts or contractors, health issues, insurance claims, car payments, hurt backs, headaches, cataracts, knee issues, dog or cat crisis, children (at home causing all of the above), disease, money issues (well there is never enough), etc!

And yes, I am blessed with my life, not that I am void of some of those issues I mentioned, but in general, I am clear, calm, adapted to this life, well in tune with my time, my existence, and extremely enjoying the LACK of most of the above. Precisely, the one that I loathe the most, STRESS!

For years my days were filled with stress. Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly. I did not know it or realize it then. Well, not totally anyway. But yes, it took its toll and I am paying for it in some small way today. However, I am truly, richly, void of stress! Thanks! Thanks to all of you who contribute to that. My wife who tolerates my inconsistency and my "beach bum" attitude. My mother-in-law who is patient with me for forgetting to replace the light bulb on the back porch after like a week of reminders. My kids for not getting angry at me for NOT calling them, although, the rule is YOU CALL ME! I'M OLD!

And for my employers who continue to put assignments in front of me to keep me game fully employed and happy.

SO, here I am, facing another GREAT day with GREAT people from, you guessed it, two foreign countries! England and New Jersey! Yeah, that's right, England (Manchester and London) and New Jersey!

Ok, well, maybe New Jersey is not INTERNATIONAL. However, I never leave the Island unless I am forced to by my very stressful (smiling) job taking people to the Everglades!

Today was great. I started the day reviewing the weather reports on 4 iPhone apps and three local tv channels, simply to come to the conclusion that none of these were worth the time I took to look. They were all different, all inconsistant and all STUPID!

And yet, NO rain hit us today on our journey! NONE! YAY! What a day! We had great airboat weather. Great Nature Walk weather! Great EVERSTUFF weather and we made it back safe and sound! Everyone!

Thank you all for making my day great! I am happy to have met and spent time with these two great groups of folks! I love this time of my life, sharing the Everglades with others and seeing them enjoy big snakes, alligators and mosquitoes together!

God Bless You all! Good travels to you all! I hope you enjoy the pics and vids and come back to Southwest Florida and visit us again in the future (maybe for a nice Kayak Adventure in Estero Bay or a Sunset Cruise).

Well that's it for my night! Heading out again in the morning for yet another Everglades Adventure! I wonder who it will be? I can't wait to find out! Gator D out!