Further Florida ramblings

We're having some internet issues here at the condo, hence the delay in posting. But here's a few updates on what's been going on since last I posted.

1. I suppose since we're staying at St. Pete's beach I should talk a bit about the beach. Cathy gave me some grief for saying I liked Whitehaven beach in Australia better. Considering Whitehaven is regarded as one of the best beaches in the world, that's not exactly a shocker. Also, St. Pete's looks like it got hit hard by winter storms and, apparently, some tidal surges from the recent earthquakes to the south. It's pretty heavily eroded.

It's also a family beach. So you see lots of kids, families, older people and people not exactly in prime shape walking around. Not that I'm complaining as I'm hardly in peak physical fitness. It's just a bit different than some beaches I've been to. In fact, I've only seen once act of marginal public skankiness...a peroxide blond wearing a thong and three inch beach stripper shoes. Oh, and there was the girl who looked like she just walked off the set of a holocaust survivor film, she was that badly anorexic. But other than that, it's a perfectly normal beach.

2. We did our main lot of crass consumerism on Monday. We hit Bells and then drove out to one of the outlet malls. Normally I don't have much time for those kinds of malls. Previous ones have had junk and the only sizes available have tended to be extra small, or 4XL. But this was pretty good. Cathy and I managed to get new work wardrobes, which were kind of necessary. I also managed to not buy the Bose noise reduction headphones, although it was a close thing. Cathy managed to not buy the red high heel shoes. So we each resisted temptation while dropping hundreds elsewhere.

3. If ever there was a place where an investment in a Garmin would be a good idea, it is Florida. We have one, but it's from 2007. We haven't been able to buy a map update in stores and since the download online is huge and would nuke our cap in Iqaluit, we've been making do. However, the result has been the Bitch (as we call the Garmin) stroking out several times. She hasn't tried to deposit us in the ocean yet, but I'm pretty sure she sent us 16 miles in the wrong direction yesterday looking for a movie theatre that doesn't exist. We're going to have to do something about that.

4. I'm off this evening on an IMAX adventure. Alice in Wonderland and Avatar are playing at an IMAX in Tampa. And as I think this is a proper IMAX, I'm looking forward to it.

5. Oh, and in the course of my wanderings, I picked up an iPad to play with, but not buy. It's pretty and all, but surprisingly heavy. Great interface and I'm sure it's a lot of fun to do things with. And the keyboard is much easier to use than the one on the iPhones. But there is a surprising heft to it. I think I can easily wait a few years before engaging in a serious debate on whether or not to buy one.