Apricity South 2

​February 27, 2026 - Friday

Walked early, no time for swimming today as we went to a strum and sing a little farther away than usual. On the way, we stopped at Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue to drop off a bunch of older towels we are replacing. What an operation! 

Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue Center operates as a no-kill rescue at our eight-acre shelter and adoption facility on Lorraine Road. A no-kill shelter is defined as a shelter that has a save rate of 90% or more, meaning at least 90% of the animals that enter a shelter leave alive. Year after year, Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue Center achieves a 99% save rate.

Today was an unplugged, open mic day with Alohaukulele. Such fun! There are some very talented people in this group. I will share pictures of most of them - there were 17 “acts.”

Video of a great little trio - Debby, Pam and Alice…

https://photos.app.goo.gl/vrV5JiaiAZRBtmRe8

Charlene has a smooth voice and plays her Uke with passion…

Nancy wrote a poem as a tribute to Alice, our gifted leader.

Judy did a great rendition of Minnie Pearl. She was the peppermint cutie in the Christmas performances.

A quartet with their Captain hats on…

Bibiana really knows how to play and entertain…

Laurie sang a love song to hubby, Norm…

Debby did a beautiful job on “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”…

Drew and Pam did a nice banjo duet…

And lastly was Lisa in her chicken costume…

February 28, 2026 - Saturday

Charlotte, Shotsy and I walked today. Came upon the neighbor of the lady (J) with dementia from last week. Nothing has changed. J has reached out a couple of times with the same questions, but no changes in the living status. 

We spotted these two turkey vultures roosting on a roof - never saw white winged one before. The black ones are all over the place. No dead humans or critters in the area that I know of. 

Did end-of-the-month stuff and got my mom back on Find My Phone locator. She tracks us and we track her (when we can’t reach her).

The Lady Wildcats won by 40 points in the State Championship quarter finals - YAY!

Guess who got their driver’s license? Leanna Robin ❤️

March 1, 2026 - Sunday  HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BABY SISTER, TERRI 

Listened to church while on my walk. Didn’t do anything today but laundry and practice music. 

March 2, 2026 - Monday

Seventy degrees for swimming today. Sat in the sun after to dry off a bit. After lunch, off to line dancing. 

March 3, 2026 - Tuesday

Went to Publix early. As we walked out, this VW bus was pulling in.

Couldn’t help but ask about it. The gentleman owner was happy to talk about it - even opened the sliding door to show us the captain chairs in the back seat. The next row back was full of his wife’s items which she sells “on the road.” When you put the captain chairs down, it becomes a massive storage space. Is it electric - yes, all electric. They have had it for a year and love it. He closed with, “Don’t buy this if you are an introvert - it always draws attention and sparks conversation.”

Tonight’s basketball game was postponed until tomorrow - snow in the forecast today.

We practiced for the jam today…

March 4, 2026 - Wednesday

Starting to feel more like Florida now - 70 degrees at 9am for water aerobics. Went to Jim’s for the Stoneybrook Jam - 7 players today. It was fun - we’re finding our rhythm…

The Lady Wildcats played in the State Semi-Finals and lost - they had a good run. Proud of them.

March 5, 2026 - Thursday

Walked at 8 to beat the heat. Then we went to a sing and strum rehearsal for a gig at Palma Sola Botanical Park Plant Sale here in Bradenton. Stay tuned to hear about this event on Sunday. 

There was a meeting prior to the strum about an upcoming BIG event we are involved in on March 13th. It brought back memories of a prior life, sitting in team meetings planning for upcoming events…

Apricity South 2

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February 20, 2026 - Friday

Great day for swimming. Betty and I lingered in the pool after aerobics - chatting. Today was an open day for Rich and I, so I got into the closets sorting and purging linens, towels, swim toys, etc. The worst part is deciding what to do with it all, keeping in mind that it is occupied mostly for renters. What do they want/need? 

February 21, 2025 - Saturday

Charlotte, Shotsy and I went for our walk which had quite an eventful ending. As we came around the loop and approached the condos, a small, elderly woman came running toward us. This is the area…

She was quite distressed and we asked if we could help her. She said, Yes! She had been trapped in her condo for days on end, but they (daughter and son-in-law) just left so she needed to get out. She indicated that she had marks all over her body from them; they rummaged through her jewelry and belongings and left; she scooted out in fear someone would stop her. What can we do for you? Do you want to call the police? Yes. So I called 911, and gave the information (name [I’ll call her J], address, her skin color, lives alone, their names and ages, what they were driving (?), drugs, alcohol, firearms, etc. with her input. I stayed on the line as we walked towards her condo. Do not touch anything inside the condo when you get there. Sheriff’s department is on the way. 

We went to the address she gave us - it wasn’t her condo! A neighbor was walking her dog and we talked with her. Our new acquaintance did not want to talk to her - She thinks I’m nuts. The neighbor kept saying, She’s fine and told Charlotte she has dementia. She reminded J that her daughter is flying in today! We walked to the condo and everything was very orderly. Her jewelry was on her dresser and the bed was neat and partially made. She said she never leaves it like that. The marks on her body looked like a bad rash or bug bites.

Officer “B” arrived and before he got in the door, the neighbor told him she has dementia and the questioning began. He explained to her that he was there to make sure she is OK and safe. He doesn’t want her to wander off and not find her way back. He explained that a medical team was on the way to take her vitals, etc. When they arrived, I told the officer that I made the call and asked him if I could leave. He took my name and number and we left. He was calling two daughters who live in Bradenton. 

Charlotte and I went over what just happened and didn’t see how we could have handled it differently! We couldn’t just ignore her and keep on walking! There were no other people around when she approached us…. What would you do?

February 22, 2026 - Sunday

Walked early as it was going to cool off and rain a bit. It was a day to get crap done…

Rich stained the stools that had been weathered over time.

Got into the closets again and made decisions about what to keep, give away, and throw away. It is hard to think about the needs of potential summer renters. There are a lot of cabinets and closets filled with bedding, towels, pillows, etc. in this 1200-square-foot condo. And it has been almost 20 years of accumulation when the owners have only been here on short vacations - no time for sorting stuff…

Played through our song list for this week’s jam. 

February 23, 2026 - Monday

Too cold to swim or walk, so I did a physical workout! Back in the guest room - changing out bedding, pillows, towels, etc. It really was a physical job. Went to line dancing in the afternoon. I have a carload to deliver to Goodwill, but I was able to sell a set of 3 GE water filters from my old fridge. Taking care of business feels good. 

February 24, 2026 - Tuesday

Went for a walk - still cold, but it felt good. Rich and I played to practice for tomorrow’s jam. Can’t wait. 

February 25, 2026 - Wednesday

Weather warmed up a little (50’s at 9am) as the wind died down, but still no swimming. So I did the walk around the loop. 

Had our first jam at Jim and Cynthia’s beautiful home. 

They have a master bedroom on the first floor with 3 guest rooms upstairs. The bonus room is there which is perfect for us to play. Cynthia operated the tv/computer to scroll the music for us. And she took the pictures so she is not in any of them. It started out rough, getting used to the new set up, more instruments, etc. But it really smoothed out by the end of 2 hours. We played Sentimental Journey and Jim said he had never heard that song!!!! Obviously, he is a lot younger than us. Great couple - very patient and gracious to have us. They had water and packs of SunChips for us, too. 

Jim is on the left in front of Alan…

Kaye is in Alohaukulele and Laurie leads the art activity…

You know who…

Margo and Linda are in Alohaukulele group…

February 26, 2026 - Thursday

After my walk, we went to the shopping center - I got a pedicure and Rich went to Publix and got shrimp for tonight. From there, on to the Elks for lunch. Carol from Long Island was there in full swing. It’s been a month since she fell and fractured her shoulder, but she could pull tabs from the gambling without a hitch. She went through a lot of tabs and got 5 winners of $5. She went back and got another batch and got 5 more $5 winners. We were getting ready to pay our check and she only had 4 tabs left to pull. I was wishing she would get a $500 winner. She pulled and voila! She won $500. Those are the options - $5 or $500. We have seen her win big before, but to see the smile on her face when she pulled it was amazing. 

We had a little soirée for Connie and Steve (foreground) who are moving into a villa which has a garage. I have had to call on them numerous times from home to assist with renters or situations. We will miss them terribly! 

Betty and Joe came also - always good fun and lots of  stories…. We all crammed onto the lanai which is our fav place to be.

Apricity South 2

​February 13, 2026 - Friday

It was a little misty when we met at 9am for aerobics and the sun never came out, but it felt good to move, stretch, balance, and jog in the tepid water. 

Rich and I  met Tim and Dee at the Elks for a reasonably priced lunch. It’s one of the few places you can get lunch and drinks for two for under $30. 

February 14, 2026 - Saturday  HAPPY VALENTINE’S Walked with Charlotte and Shotsy early before it got too hot. 

Rich offered to take me to the World Ukulele Day at The Bay Park in Sarasota. Yay! 

We had decided not to go for a few reasons (45-minute drive, lots of traffic, people, parking, walking, etc.), but in the end overcame them and arrived at the park one hour early! So, not hard to park or walk. We acted so quickly that we didn’t bring chairs or instruments. I grabbed sunscreen and my water bottle and we both had hats to protect us from the sun. Being our first time, we weren’t sure of anything. Turns out, players from several groups in the area arrived with chairs, instruments, iPads and stands, hats, et al. We sat on a bench early and before the show started, I was feeling lightheaded from the sun and NO SNACK after walking. So I went to a shaded area and perused the situation. A table with four chairs in the breezy shade was occupied by a couple and two vacant seats. I knew he was a uker as he had a Hawaiian shirt on and his uke was on the table. I approached them and asked if I could use the extra two chairs - they immediately agreed to it. He, Kevin, wore a Boston baseball hat. So we started sharing - he went to school in N. Adams, loved the area we are from, and is in uke groups on the Cape and in Boston. Pat, his wife, told me he started playing during Covid and has become very involved. 

Notice the buildings being constructed in the background - someone was operating that crane and had to climb up the scaffolding to get in. Another person was on the top floor doing whatever one does up there… OY!

Our Alice and Carl kicked it off and then the Suncoast Sandfleas took over. 

This group meets every Monday at 10:30am at Nakomis Beach in Venice. There are over a hundred ukers who go weekly, toting their chairs, music stands, and books of music. I am not a book girl - I prefer an iPad or a big screen. Also, it is a hike for us, so we only went the first Monday we were here. It is much more convenient for us to go to Lakewood Ranch with the Aloha Ukulele Club. They have a big screen and chairs for us. 

Three lovely ladies in the forefront of this picture are in our Stoneybrook Jam. I offered Margo my hat - she wished she took it after the fact

Rich cooked a nice steak which we split with potatoes and broccoli for Valentine’s Day. 

February 15, 2026 - Sunday HAPPY 17th BIRTHDAY ❤️

Leanna Robin got an appointment for her license the end of this month. Good Golly Gee! When I think back to those days, it’s scary….

We went to Miller Ale House for our Valentine’s dinner out! Its our first time there - a sports bar with lots of taps…

We were surprised at how affordable the prices are there. During the week, you can order lunch specials starting at $7.99

Our waiter, Frank from Brooklyn and Yankee fan, was a real gem. He helped us decide what to order, and did nice follow-up too. He has Thursday and Saturday off to coach his son’s basketball team. 

The meal was terrific and very plentiful. Rich had prime rib and I had Pork Osso Bucco. So good!

February 16, 2026 - Monday

It rained pretty hard last night which cooled the pool quite a bit, but we did aerobics anyway. It  was fine after you were in and until you had to get out! Line dancing in the afternoon was good. 

Met up with Terry, Debbie and her daughter, Monica, at Outback for early dinner. It is school vacation back home, so a number of the town’s people are here this week. They sure got a great week weather-wise. 

February 17, 2026 - Tuesday

After my walk, we went to the post office to mail tax paperwork to my accountant - Hallelujah! I was in line for nearly an hour! Feels so good to have them gone…

Played a little ukulele after lunch - prepping for the jam on Wednesday. 

Boys game tonight - if they lose, they are out of the running for the State Championship. They lost…😢

February 18, 2026 - Wednesday 

There were 25 of us pollywogs today due to nice weather and school break, which brings a lot of folks down South.

This also affected our jam - three had company, one injured the tip of his fret finger, one is recovering from a germy cold. So it was a uker day with four of us strumming along. This is the last day we will play host as Jim is here from Connecticut and has invited us to play in his bonus room - a music room. Can’t wait to see it. 

The Lady Wildcats lost their final Western Mass Tourney game…😢 They will be playing in the Massachusetts State Tournament soon. 

February 19, 2026 - Thursday

Got my walk in before going to Aloha Ukulele strum and sing. We went to the Elks for lunch after and in walked Carol for the first time since she fell and broke her right arm a month ago. This was the first day driving her car. She wasn’t there long before she walked over to the tab machine. This is a two handed game to pull the tabs. Glad that she is feeling better and able to do what she wants. It was a long haul for a very independent lady. 

Tata from a beautiful, 80-degree slice of paradise… 🌴🌊🐠🏊